The Hits and Misses From The Golden Globes

My review of this years recent Golden Globes ceremony also published on Culch.ie:

Award Season officially got off to a glitzy start as this year’s Golden Globes saw the crème de la crème of the Hollywood elite come out in hopes of picking up a coveted award. We had our usual hits and misses in terms of the fashion stakes… Reese Witherspoon, when I die, I’m coming back as you but what where you thinking? Kelly Osbourne and Sarah Michelle Gellar? An entire post could be devoted to the fashion stakes, but the awards themselves proved to be more interesting.

Slightly more relaxed than the Oscars (with a hell of a lot more ad breaks too, it has to be said), TV stars also get a chance to be acknowledged here which is nice to see. British comedian Ricky Gervais gleefully stepped back into the ring as this year’s host, but despite the anticipation from all sides, his very reverential monologues didn’t quite make the cut (we’re guessing the producers had more than a quiet word after the controversy he caused last year). True, the opening monologue was very entertaining – the shot of the terrified stars as they waited with baited breath for things to start was classic – but after that his time at the helm proved rather more dull. Definitely a much more staid affair than last year – save for some of the host’s zingers, musical moments (thank you Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy!) and Seth Rogen’s reference to his penis (a moment of brilliance) — the ceremony capped a long week of statuette-accepting and speech-giving ahead of next month’s Oscars.

The Winners

We mimed our delight as The Artist further solidified its spot at the front of the awards-season pack with three wins including Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical and Best Actor (though our fingers were crossed for The Fass). Surprisingly The Descendants, which won for Best Motion Picture — Drama and Best Actor – Drama, showed that it could play the spoiler come Oscar night. Non-surprisingly, the veteran and all-round formidable talent that is Meryl Streep won for her role in The Iron Lady (kudos to her, she took advice from Gervais and dedicated her award to God and her entire family) and was so delighted and shocked to win that we can forgive her slightly rambled acceptance speech.

At the grand old age of 82, Christopher Plummer won for his role in Beginners (though disappointingly didn’t make any sort of musical reference – boo!) and Woody Allen very deservedly picked up a statue for his gem of a movie Midnight in Paris. The talented Michelle Williams deservedly picked one up for her performance in My Week With Marilyn, but how on earth did it get into the Musical or Comedy category?

The TV side was a more mixed affair, with no show dominating and high-profile wins going to newcomer Homeland and Modern Family. Kate Winslet very deservingly took home a statuette for her role in the HBO mini-series Mildred Pierce. The cast of the hit seriesDownton Abbey were thrilled with their win too.

The Losers:

Though it is of course always an honour to be nominated, there were a few who missed out on an award. Our own Brendan Gleeson more than deserved to win for his comic genius in The Guard, and Jodie Foster should’ve won for her role in upcoming Polanski film Carnage. In terms of TV, I think the brilliant Boardwalk Empire should have walked way with at least one award but hey, there’s always next year. And in terms of hosting skills, Gervais lost out big time. Let’s hope host Billy Crystal can give Gervais a run for his money in the humor stakes at next month’s Oscars.

All in all it was a good, albeit very rushed, start to the awards season and gave us some good indicators into who might be in with a chance for Oscar glory this year. Before all that we have the slightly smaller affairs of the Screen Actors Guild Awards and The BAFTAs to give out their honours to the best films this year.

For those of you that missed the show, here is a video of Ricky Gervais’s amusing Golden Globes opening monologue:

Official 'Carnage' Trailer

I posted the promo artwork for the film only a few days ago and now, at long last, we have been given the official trailer for the film.

Quite simply the story involves two couples who are brought together to solve a conflict between their young sons. What starts as a very civilized get-together, eventually descends into chaos - and we're given a nice taster of this in the trailer.

After thinking initially that the two couples - Kate Winslet and Christoph Waltz, Jodie Foster and John C Reilly seemed a little mismatched, after watching the trailer the couple are perfectly suited to each other.

Helmed by the legendary - and controversial - Roman Polanski, the film has created a buzz already and will no doubt make a big impact when its released later this year. We should just hand the Stars and Director the Oscars now I think...

Watch it below!

Movie Poster For Polanski's 'Carnage'

We've seen a few shots from Roman Polanski's highly anticipated new movie 'Carnage' but now the promotion campaign is starting to get into full swing as we now have the official poster for the film. This Andy Warhol style artwork features the lead actors showcasing a varied range of facial expressions and is a colourful change from his usually more serious film artwork.

The film is making it's premiere at the Venice Film Festival and will also be opening at the New York film festival before opening in selected cinemas in November. 'Carnage' is already creating Oscar buzz and with all the Oscars between the director and cast, I'm certain the film won't fall foul of the hype.

First Look at Polanski's 'God of Carnage'.

*Images courtesy of Empire Magazine*

Despite his off screen tribulations, I prefer to focus on the directorial, movie-making side of Roman Polanski and I'm always eager to see his films. This one is no exception.

When "God of Carnage" hit Broadway in 2009, it was an instant smash, winning critical praise, box office bucks and Tony Awards for Best Play & Best Actress, so it came as no surprise when it was announced that a movie rendition of the award-winning play was on the cards.

Carnage (formally known as 'God of Carnage') is about two pairs of parents who decide on a civilized sit-down when one of their kids hurts the other at a public park. But as as the night wears on, the parents become increasingly childish, resulting in the evening devolving into chaos.

In addition to three-time Oscar nominated director Roman Polanski taking the reigns, two-time Oscar winner Jodie Foster tackles the Tony winning female role, while Oscar winner Kate Winslet plays her matriarchal foe with John C. Reilly and Oscar winner Christoph Waltz cast as their husbands, respectively.

Chatting to Empire Magazine (where this first look comes from), Jodie Foster described the film: "it all happens in real-time, so it’s about an hour and 45 minutes of negotiation between two sets of parents and how it all falls apart," she said. "Kind of like Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?, but a little funnier. There’s a lot of wit."

Armed with an array of Oscar nominated talent, (which the advertising team will no doubt take full advantage of) the film will surely cause a stir just in time for the award season. Production has just wrapped up in Paris and the film is set to be released later this year or early 2012.