I started writing a Facebook post about an aspect of
last night’s Golden Globes that bothered me, but when I realized my rant would
be much longer than a simple post, I took to my long-neglected blog.
Let me preface this by saying that I am not an expert on movies,
television, or awards shows. I see about two movies a year that aren’t made by
Pixar or DreamWorks, and my television viewing mainly consists of PBS and Bravo
(although I try to remember which night The
Grinder is on, because that show is freakin’ funny). And I might’ve missed
the Globes from 9:00 to 9:50 because Downton
Abbey was on at that time. And I didn’t watch the last half hour because it
was past my bedtime. HOWEVER, this will not deter me from giving my (non-expert)
opinion about the show, because this isn’t a Vanity Fair article or even a
Huffington Post one. This is what a blog called Korina’s Take is made for.
That being said, I will start my Golden Globe stream of
consciousness writing at the beginning: with Ricky Gervais. He is a guy who usually makes me giggle the minute I
see him, even before he says anything that I know is going to be hilarious. I
love his style and I love his laugh, and I thought he was extremely funny in
past years. But this year he seemed to relish too much in his identity as being
the nasty host. He made more jokes about being mean-spirited than he did
mean-spirited jokes, but it still had the same effect of putting the guests on
edge. I felt like it was the school bully bragging about being the bully. Who
wants to see Jeffrey Tambor afraid?
After the monologue, it was all a blur, maybe because I was bopping back and forth between the awards show and The Real Housewives of Atlanta. So I’ll just throw out my thoughts.
I appreciate Jonah
Hill trying something cheeky. It is the Globes, after all. If Jack Nicholson could talk out his butt
on the Golden Globes stage back in the day, then Jonah Hill can dress up like
The Revenant Bear. Or so one would think. Alas, I love Jonah Hill’s movie work,
but at the Globes, he and Channing Tatum
looked like two frat boys who accidentally got asked to speak at the grown-up
party. Jonah Hill, you’re no Jack Nicholson.
Everyone, in fact, seemed to be trying too hard to keep up the
Golden Globes' reputation of being the boozy, good-time awards show in
comparison to the Oscars. Jamie Foxx
was under the impression that he was doing stand-up, which left poor Rose, I
mean Lily James, to stand beside him
nervously chuckling. And why, oh why, are they still doing the outdated, demeaning,
misogynistic Miss America-type thing introducing Miss Golden Globes? (Beside the fact that it seems like a direct reference to her breasts.) Every year
they pick an actor’s daughter to present herself and show how pretty she is so
she can be in the business, too. And Jennifer
Lawrence wonders why there’s a pay gap between actors and actresses.
I think they should just go ahead and take the Globes all
the way down the path of being the Oscars’ naughty brother. The Golden Globes should
be the Eric Roberts to the Oscars’ Julia. If Ricky Gervais is going to
stand up there with a beer and Jonah Hill is going to put on a bear head, then
why not go all the way with it? Why not put in a bunch of Barcaloungers? If they have to scooch between chairs to run up and accept their awards, let them wear sweats and sneakers. Serve Doritos and beer, so when the camera pans to the crowd, their bored and rude behavior might seem more warranted.
The whole thing was just so down the middle that it didn’t
work in either capacity. The ‘We don’t care, let’s just party’ attitude was not
believable. These people make their living in front of the cameras. No matter
how many swear words they used, they knew millions of us were still watching at
home. (Or some of us were still watching. It was 9:00, time for Downton Abbey.)
Of course they care. They care so much in fact that they’re
allowed to put any movie or actor in the comedy/musical category, even if it’s
not a comedy, just to better their chances of winning. Just because your drama
has a few light moments in it doesn’t make it a comedy, the same way having a
movie score doesn’t make it a musical. The producers from The Martian should’ve been embarrassed to be up there “winning.” I
would berate Matt Damon, too, except
for the fact that he was up against actors in other non-comedies. (And he’s
sweetie pie Matt Damon. You can’t berate Matt Damon.)
However, I can berate David
O. Russell, because American Hustle
was so good that his next two films have been way overrated. Silver Linings Playbook might’ve seemed
like a good movie unless you read the book. If we’re honest, Joy was on par with a really good TV
movie. Besides, I don’t want to see the same four actors in a bunch of
different movies. I like Jennifer
Lawrence but he’s made her overexposed. But that’s not the real issue. The
Golden Globes has a distinct category for comedies and comedians so that they
can get the recognition that the drama-filled Oscars denies them. Jennifer
Lawrence doesn’t need to sneak into the comedy section to get a little
recognition. They need to keep the comedy category for TRUE comedies. Spy was hilarious. Train Wreck was funny. Melissa
McCarthy and Amy Schumer
should’ve been the two favorites vying for that award. And if it ever happens
that Jennifer Lawrence doesn’t make a Golden Globe-worthy drama one year (like,
say, this year, for instance) then
she should bow out and allow an actress in a comedy to win the award she
deserves. Hopefully all the funny women in Ghostbusters
will push out any actress who happens to make a joke or two in her drama for
next year’s awards season.
Ok, enough ranting. Let’s get to the happy stuff.
Sylvester Stallone.
I loved him and I loved Rocky. I
loved the story of him making Rocky
and winning three Oscars for Rocky.
Sylvester Stallone was the 1976 version of Good
Will Hunting’s Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. It was like getting to see an
old friend be happy. It was my highlight of the night.
Dwayne, The Rock,
Johnson and Jennifer Lopez. My TV actually had an aura around it when they were
on. Together, they were almost too
beautiful.
Eddie Redmayne.
Let’s just have a moment of silence to sit quietly and reflect on the beauty
that is Eddie Redmayne.
America Ferrerra
and Eva Longoria. Eva Longoria was
funnier in her bit than Jennifer Lawrence was in her movie.
Tom Hanks. He’s
one of those guys that when you see him, you smile. I hope he lives forever.
Denzel Washington.
Why aren’t there movies written just for Denzel? Hopefully this will remind
directors that they should leave the action movies to Vin Diesel and give a meaty
drama to Denzel.
Christian Slater.
Isn’t he one of those young actors you figured would go the way of Judd Nelson
or Corey Feldman? How nice it is to see Christian Slater in a hit show and
looking so good. Even if his wife is young enough to be his daughter.
Melissa McCarthy.
Svelte!! (And robbed.)
Jim Carrey. For
the first time he was, dare I say, restrained. And funny. as. hell. We’ve
missed you, Jim.
Mozart in the Jungle.
Whaaa?? I have to admit, I wasn’t even aware of 95% of the shows in the TV
category. But this one looked so intriguing that I looked it up so I can start
watching it. Then I found out it’s on Amazon. Um…Isn’t Amazon where I order my
hair products from? This is when I realize I am one of those technically
challenged old people. All I want to know is which channel is Amazon. Whaaa??
Cate Blanchett. How
can someone be mesmerizing just by sitting there? She is.
And lastly, it was brief, it wasn’t scripted, it was just a
quick shot before a commercial break: Kate
Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, with
her arm on his shoulder, talking closely, together again. My happy ending is
realized. Finally, I have some closure.
What did you think about this year's Golden Globes?
