5 Favorite Golden Globe Nominations

As you may have heard, the annual Golden Globe nominations were announced yesterday, for better or worse depending on who you've been rooting for this awards season.

One thing I'll say, is that the Golden Globes are always the most exciting, bat crazy awards show. They've long eclipsed the Screen Actors Guild and Emmys in relevancy, and honestly, have some better choices than the Oscars in most cases. Last year they made history for nominating the incredible Ava DuVernay for Best Director, the first black woman ever nominated for the award. Oscar did not follow suit. In fact, if you look at their slate of nominees and winners last year, a lot of them are better than what Oscar ultimately picked.

This year's awards race is honestly all over the place, and while the Globes did a better job than SAG at forming a consensus, I still couldn't tell you what films have the edge at this point. But confusion aside, there are some really good nominations here, five of which really stood out to me.

Reacting To The Golden Globe Nominations

I've said it once and I'll say it again: It's a truly strange year. If you were to ask me which film had the edge after yesterday's SAG announcement and now the Globes, I still couldn't give you a confident guess.

"Trumbo" led yesterday's SAG nominations, the strangest occurrence I've ever seen. Today, "Carol" led the Golden Globe nominations, which is less strange, though still doesn't mean it's our frontrunner. The Globes have a long history with Harvey Weinstein, as every awards show does, so I don't know whether to chalk it up to the film's overall excellence or their affinity for Weinstein.

Similarly, "Brooklyn" a film I thought was universally beloved was not embraced as heavily here. "Room" on the other hand, showed some surprising strength, which could be good news for Brie Larson. Saoirse Ronan's surge in Best Actress critics' awards last week should not be overlooked, but if Larson starts winning, then look out.

Take a look at the full list of nominations below.

Cake: A New Chapter in Jennifer Aniston's Career?

Jennifer Aniston, the actress, has never been taken as seriously as she deserves to be. Her work on "Friends", though highly regarded by fans of the show, was much more difficult than many seem to realize. And many regard her work in "The Good Girl" some beautifully nuanced work that was deserving, but ignored, of an Oscar nomination. Since the end of Friends, however, Aniston has been churning out a lot of pretty low-grade comedies, ones that make money, but none that either showcase her comedic talent or challenge audiences.

So when it was announced that Aniston had taken the role of Claire in Daniel Barnz's "Cake", her die-hard fans took notice, but the incredibly small size of the film kept it from being more than a blip on peoples' radars.. that is, until last year's Toronto Film Festival. Though reviews for the film were largely mixed, Aniston received a standing ovation following the film's screening. Since then, she has been promoting the hell out of the film, distributed by the very tiny Cinelou films, and has found herself to be the recipient of nominations for Best Actress in a Leading Role from the Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild and the Broadcast Film Critics. And on Thursday, she will probably be nominated by the Oscars alongside Julianne Moore, Reese Witherspoon, Felicity Jones and Rosamund Pike; her first career nomination.

Recap: Last Night's Golden Globes

Margaret Keane's best "Big Eyes" painting was in attendance at last night's ceremony.

If there's anything learned watching last night's Golden Globes, it's that the HFPA really is into doing their own thing. Several categories went in a completely different direction, awarding the underdogs in their respective races. It seems like the Globes are really trying their best to distance themselves away from the organization that nominated "The Tourist" back in 2011, especially in regards to the television categories.

Golden Globe Predictions: Boyhood vs. Selma?

I've said it before and I'll say it again, this has been the strangest Oscar season in recent history. All of the contenders have been seen, and though "Boyhood" cleaned up the critic's awards, we still don't have a true frontrunner (remember, critics don't vote for the Oscars, just ask "The Social Network"). Next Sunday, the first major awards group from phase 2 (post-critics) will announce their winners: The Golden Globes. 

In recent years, the Globes have become a pretty substantial precursor, at least in predicting the nominees (sometimes you can win a Golden Globe and it doesn't really do much for winning momentum, ex: Jessica Chastain of "Zero Dark Thirty"). This year especially, the Globes seem to be trying to establish themselves as a serious awards body; gone is the group who nominated Angelina Jolie for just about anything ("The Tourist"); she and "Unbroken" were completely shut out this year in favor of non-household names such as Ava DuVernay ("Selma"). 

Speaking of DuVernay, her film is picking up a lot of (deserved) steam in this race, giving "Boyhood" quite the run for its money, heading into phase 2. That late release date barred its inclusion from many of the critic's awards and SAG, but its recognition at the Globes, the worldwide acclaim and assured box office success should give it all it needs to clean up nomination-wise at the Oscars in the coming weeks. If Richard Linklater and company have anyone to worry about at the Globes next Sunday, its team "Selma". 

Read my predictions, complete with commentary, below.

Critics, Globes & SAG: What Do They Tell Us?

I can't remember the last time an Oscar race was so unpredictable; though "Boyhood" is the "critical favorite" of this year, I don't know if it's our Best Picture winner yet. "Birdman" is the film that's getting the most notices in many of the other craft categories, while "The Theory of Everything" and "The Imitation Game" are playing well for Academy members, and showed surprising strength over more ensemble-like fair such as "Into the Woods" with the Screen Actors Guild. Then there are critical favorites like "Nightcrawler" and "The Grand Budapest Hotel" that are winning traction outside of the categories they were originally predicted in. Waiting in the wings, is Ava Duvernay's MLK biopic, "Selma", which is poised to one of the most critically acclaimed films of the year, not to mention, it's Academy friendly material that appeals to the zeitgeist. In other words, it's a real toss up.

Let's see who is up and who is down after the busy week.

Golden Globe Nominations

See the full list of Film nominees below.

Golden Globe Winners: What Does It All Mean?

American Hustle won 3 of the top awards (including trophies for Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence)

The Golden Globes are a weird case of award show. They take place before the Oscar nominations are announced, but after the voting for nominees has closed. What this means, is that no matter what happens at the Globes, it has nothing to do with a film or person's chances at getting nominated for an Oscar.

Unlike SAG, BAFTA, DGA and PGA, the Hollywood Foreign Press has no association with the Oscars. For example, the members of SAG are all members of the Academy, so their choices for winners are indicative on how the much larger voting body of actors will vote come time to decide a winner. But the HFPA is their own body, with entirely different people voting. And as history will tell you, they love nominating and awarding stars over character actors.

So then, what does it all mean? If this award has nothing to do with Oscar nominations, why is it important? Is it simply just another glamorized but meaningless award ceremony?

12 Years A Slave and American Hustle Win Best Picture at the Golden Globes

It was a big night for American Hustle; David O. Russell's "comedy" won 3 awards, including Best Picture.

After being shut out from every award it was nominated for, 12 Years A Slave came back with a Cinderella story win. "A bit of a surprise" admitted director Steve McQueen. After signs of slowing down from its frontrunner status, this puts a bunch of pep in the film's chances at taking it all home, or at least giving American Hustle a run for its money.

The rest of the races were filled with some surprises, and the usual "duhs". Check them out below.

Golden Globes: Who Will (and Should) Win?

Jennifer Lawrence won last year's Best Actress: Comedy or Musical award. Who will win this year?

For better or for worse, the Golden Globes are almost upon us. The good thing is that Tina Fey and Amy Poehler hosting again this year (they'll be hosting next year's Golden Globes too) so it's definitely not going to be a boring ceremony. Personally, I'm glad to see that some of my favorites (Julia Louis-Dreyfus, namely) will be in attendance.

It's a competitive year for awards; American Hustle, Gravity and 12 Years A Slave have all dominated the attention, with Dallas Buyers Club and Her hot on their tails. The Globes don't make it easy to predict frontrunners, however, because they split the drama and comedy categories. Therefore, American Hustle's win is almost assured, but either Gravity or 12 Years A Slave could win. However, it's always good to have a win behind you, whether it happens to be in the Comedy or Drama category. Ex: Jennifer Lawrence won Best Actress in a Comedy last year and walked away with the Oscar; it doesn't always matter which genre you belong to, it's all about momentum, and who has it and who doesn't.

So below you'll find a run through of the major categories (and brief commentary) on who will win, who could win, and who should win on Sunday night. Enjoy!

Golden Globe Nominations Announced

Julia Louis Dreyfus FINALLY gets some awards recognition this year for her performance in Enough Said.

The 71st Golden Globe Awards Nominations were announced early this morning. There were some surprises (good and bad) as always to keep things exciting. The full list of nominations is below.

Golden Globes Preview

Ben Affleck began Argo's march to Oscar last year when he won the Golden Globe for Best Director and Best Picture (he was one of the film's producers). Who will take his place this time?

The Golden Globes are notorious for being (pardon my french) star fuckers. Prime example being their nominations for "The Tourist" (a critical/commercial failure) starring Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp. In other words, they nominate the biggest stars to get them into the ceremony, and most of the times the bigger the star, they more likely they'll win.

Last year, Ben Affleck's Argo instantly became a front runner after its performance at the Globes, where Affleck won over presumed frontrunners Steven Spielberg and Kathryn Bigelow. Some people (myself included) attributed this to the fact that Affleck was the biggest "celebrity" out of the bunch, and it's true. However, he was given a chance to speak, and he did a great job at being charming and likable. This was at the exact moment that Zero Dark Thirty was experiencing a lot of controversy over the torture scenes that happen in the beginning of the film; backlash was ensuing.

Argo began channeling momentum, and a campaign focusing on Affleck's likability and his being an actor-turned director began. Win after win, speech after speech, Affleck continued to charm and ooze likability. Though he was snubbed for Best Director (some feel like voters didn't include him because they assumed he was a shoo in), he took home the Best Picture Oscar. His win at the Globes was an important turning point in the race; it was a weak moment for Zero Dark Thirty, and Argo came in and stole its thunder. This is why these award shows are important; speeches and getting up onstage give you good practice for the Oscars. Voters really do pay attention to all of this little stuff.

So where does that leave us this year? Read my predictions below:

Upcoming awards, Wolf of Wall Street Screens! & More

Happy December! I've been busy celebrating Thanksgiving and mentally preparing myself for the upcoming final exams, just as things are really starting to heat up.

• Tuesday December 3rd marks precursor season; the NYFCC (New York Film Critics Circle) will announce their winners. They are the first to do so, followed by the National Board of Review, and then by the LAFCA (Los Angeles Film Critics Association), followed by what seems like a million more critics organizations. Awards Daily's Sasha Stone gives insight and makes her predictions and analyzes both the NYFCC and National Board of Review awards (read here).  

• During the onslaught of seemingly endless critics awards, the Screen Actors Guild Awards (SAG) will announce their nominees on December 11th, and the next day the Golden Globes will announce their choice. The SAG nominees usually reflect more of what the impending Oscar nominations will look like considering the voting body is made up of actors (the largest voting body in the Academy coincidentally), so they're usually a key factor in deciding upon Oscar predictions. Take a look at this year's contenders (and the pretenders) for the Best Ensemble award here). 

• There really isn't too much time before the pool of contenders starts slimming down and the real nominees start to build upon their respective momentum. The last real surprise of the season seems to be Martin Scorsese's Wolf of Wall Street, which hasn't been officially screened yet, but did play for a small group of guild members over the weekend, to very positive reactions, particularly in the case of Jonah Hill who seems to be a spoiler for the Best Supporting Actor race (you can read a full write up from incontention's Kris Tapley here). 

• It has also been announced that David O'Russell's starry American Hustle is officially being campaigned as a "Comedy" for the Golden Globes. 
• And finally, Sight and Sound get the "End of the year list" rolling by announcing their winners of the Best Films of 2013 poll 

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler sign on to host the 71st and 72nd Golden Globes

That's right! USA Today  reports that our favorite awards show hosts have signed on for the next 2 Golden Globe ceremonies!

Tina & Amy at last year's ceremony (courtesy of nydailynews)