RECAP & REVIEW: 2013 Golden Globe Awards

I always enjoy the Golden Globes.  I love it because it isn’t as stuffy as the other awards shows.  It doesn’t take itself too seriously and it’s always a good time.  Plus, as the wonderful Amy Poehler put it, I love seeing “the beautiful people of film rub shoulders with the rat-faced people of TV.”

First of all the hosts….Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.  They.  Were.  AMAZING!!  I thought Neil Patrick Harris should host every award shows…I was wrong.  Ok, he can keep the Tony’s but I want Fey and Poehler for everything else.  They were perfection!!!  So as a result of their genius, a few of their best bits from the evening:

• “Celebrating shows that have entertained us all year and films that have been in theaters for two days”  - Tina Fay 
• “When you run afoul of the Hollywood Foreign Press, they make you host this show two more times.”  - Amy Poehler
• “When it comes to torture, I trust the lady who spent 3 years married to James Cameron.”  -AP  (In regards to Kathryn Bigelow’s direction in Zero Dark Thirty)
• “When left untreated, HFPA can lead to cervical cancer.”  -AP
• “He filmed his first films in Boston but moved this film to Iran because he wanted a place more friendly to outsiders.”  -TF (To Ben Affleck)
• “I have not seen someone so totally alone and abandoned like that since you were on stage with James Franco at the Oscars.”  - TF (to Anne Hathaway)
• “She had a difficult time performing with the camera so close to her face.  Then she’ll never make it in porn.  I don’t think she has any plans to do porn Amy.  None of us has PLANS to do porn Tina.”  - TF & AP (again to Anne Hathaway)
• “The Hunger Games is also what I call the 6 weeks it took me to get into this dress” – TF
• “The Life of Pi is what I will call the 6 weeks after I take this dress off!”  - AP
• “Meryl Streep is not here tonight because she has the flu and I hear she’s amazing in it.”  - AP
• “Wow, what an exciting special guest!  Hillary Clinton’s husband!  Bill Rodham Clinton!”  - AP
• “Good night everyone.  We’re going home with Jodie Foster!”  - AP

Unfortunately my bullet points don’t have the same inflections and facial expression that the ladies do so it probably loses a bit but you get the point.  Genius, genius, genius.   My only complaint, we didn’t have enough of them throughout the show.  Actually, they could have gotten rid of some of the boring presenters and just stuck with them.  Except for one pair…their SNL counterparts…Kristin Wiig and Will Ferrell.  Again, hilarious!  Maybe went on a touch too long, but I didn’t care.  It was wonderful.  Just ask Tommy Lee Jones who seemed to be rolling on the carpet howling with laughter at their bit.  (Insert sarcasm.)

There were many parts of this show that I loved.  Some parts that made me laugh, some parts made me roll my eyes, and some parts had me scratching my head.  I loved Jessica Chastain, Adele, and Ben Affleck’s acceptance speeches.   All were really from the heart and genuine and I couldn’t be happier for each one of them.  Take that Oscars for not nominating Affleck for Best Director.  That’s a crime.  Also, just when I thought it was impossible to love Adele more, she proves me wrong.  She is delightful and the type of person I just want to go and have a few pints with.  Just as I thought my love for Adele couldn’t increase, I thought my dislike for Taylor Swift couldn’t increase.  I was wrong, again.  Sitting there with her pissed off face for losing to Adele just shows again what a phony she is.  Show some class and be happy for your colleague who, quite frankly, can write circles around you and your pedestrian crap.  Moving on.  For some reason Lena Dunham and Anne Hathaway’s speeches didn’t come across as genuine.  I love Anne Hathaway. I do.  But her speech came across as a bit rehearsed and fake.  Except for her comments to Sally Field, that felt very real to me and they were beautiful.  But the rest…eh, not so much.  Lena Dunham’s speech was very nice, but it’s harder to believe someone’s sincerity when they are stiffly reading it off loose leaf paper.  I know it’s not fair and she probably had stuff written down because she was nervous.  I get all that.  I’m just saying it doesn’t feel as heartfelt.  Also, to say you’re “so surprised” yet you have an acceptance speech ready?  If you really don’t think you’re going to win, there’s nothing for you to prepare, right?    But I will say, her thanking Chad Lowe?   AWESOME!  Kevin Costner’s speech reminded me why I’ve never liked his acting.  It was a dry and boring and he is.  But congrats!

Then came Jodie Foster.  Foster is one of my all time favorite actresses.  If you really press me, she’s in the top 5.  She’s brilliant.  I was thrilled to see her getting the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement award because she is so deserving and I was ready to be wowed by her speech.  I was watching her feeling empowered yet confused at the same time.  I was touched and baffled all at once.  Does that make any sense?  I couldn’t tell if she was coming out or looking for a date.  If she was retiring or starting a self-help business.  It was bizarre.  But it was also beautiful.  It was just, odd.  It went off in these strange tangents but then when she focused herself back, she had some wonderful sentiments, especially about her mom.   Twitter last night was going off on her speech…some love it and some hated it.  Some were just as confused as I was.  But what no one can deny is that Foster has been a huge force in the film business for over 40 years.  And when looking back on her career, it was, and still is, glorious.

From the winners and losers standpoint, nothing was very shocking, on the TV end, except for one…Don Cheadle winning Best Actor in a Comedy for House of Lies.  Wow.  I love Don Cheadle and think he’s a great actor, but that show is awful.  And before you scream at me, yes I know he won and not the show, but he is wasted on that show.  His character is horrible, the plots are outrageous, and I can’t root for people who help slime balls out of jams they have no business being out of.  There are many awards Cheadle deserves, this wasn’t one of them.   But all the Homeland and Game Change love was well deserved.  The other one I’m not on board with is Girls.  I can’t speak very intelligently with this show because I only watched two episodes, but I couldn’t get into it.  I was bored by it.  And I know it’s the darling show right now and Lena Dunham is the darling writer/actor.  It did nothing for me.  But I’m happy for her and her cast and crew because it’s always nice when a new show can break the mold.  And hell, at least it’s not Modern Family right?   Yeah!!   The one person I’m hoping gets some love soon is Max Greenfield.  He is absolutely sensational as Schmidt on New Girl.  Please, please, please someone give this man the props he deserves!!!

The only thing I’m going to say from the movie side, since this is a TV blog after all, is that I have a TON of movies to see before the Oscars.  The last few years, there haven’t been many “Best Picture” movies I’ve wanted to see and truth be told, I think the last few years, I haven’t seen any of them.  But this year…Silver Linings Playbook, Argo, Django Unchained, Les Miz, Zero Dark Thirty, and Lincoln…wow.  What a great year for movies.  And I can’t wait to see all of these.

What did you think of the GG?  Love or hate it?

 

2013 Golden Globe Awards Winners vs. Nominees List

 

Television

Miniseries or TV movie

WINNER: Game Change, HBO

Hatfields & McCoys, History

The Girl, HBO

The Hour, BBC America

Political Animals, USA

Drama

Boardwalk Empire, HBO

Breaking Bad, AMC

Downton Abbey, PBS

WINNER: Homeland, Showtime

The Newsroom, HBO

Comedy or musical

The Big Bang Theory, CBS

Episodes, Showtime

WINNER: Girls, HBO

Modern Family, ABC

Smash, NBC

Actor, drama series

Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire, HBO

Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad, AMC

Jeff Daniels, The Newsroom, HBO

Jon Hamm, Mad Men, AMC

WINNER: Damian Lewis, Homeland, Showtime

Actress, drama series

Connie Britton, Nashville, ABC

WINNER: Claire Danes, Homeland, Showtime

Michelle Dockery, Downton Abbey, PBS

Glenn Close, Damages, DirecTV

Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife, CBS

Actor, comedy or musical series

Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock, NBC

WINNER: Don Cheadle, House of Lies, Showtime

Louis C.K., Louie, FX

Matt LeBlanc, Episodes, Showtime

Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory, CBS

Actress, comedy or musical series

Zooey Deschanel, The New Girl, Fox

WINNER: Lena Dunham, Girls, HBO

Tina Fey,30 Rock, NBC

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep, HBO

Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation, NBC

Supporting actor, series, miniseries or movie

Max Greenfield, New Girl, Fox

WINNER: Ed Harris, Game Change, HBO

Danny Huston, Magic City, Starz

Mandy Patinkin, Homeland, Showtime

Eric Stonestreet, Modern Family, ABC

Supporting actress

Hayden Panettiere, Nashville, ABC

Archie Punjabi, The Good Wife, CBS

Sarah Paulson, American Horror Story, FX

WINNER: Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey, PBS

Sofia Vergara, Modern Family, ABC

Actor, miniseries or TV movie

WINNER: Kevin Costner, Hatfields & McCoys, History

Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock, PBS

Woody Harrelson, Game Change, HBO

Toby Jones, The Girl, HBO

Clive Owen, Hemingway & Gellhorn, HBO

Actress, miniseries or TV movie

Nicole Kidman, Hemingway & Gellhorn, HBO

Jessica Lange, American Horror Story, FX

WINNER: Julianne Moore, Game Change, HBO

Sigourney Weaver, Political Animals, USA

Movies

Drama

WINNER: Argo

Django Unchained

Life of Pi

Lincoln

Zero Dark Thirty

Comedy or musical

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

WINNER: Les Misérables

Moonrise Kingdom

Silver Linings Playbook

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

Director

WINNER: Ben Affleck, Argo

Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty

Ang Lee, Life of Pi

Steven Spielberg, Lincoln

Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained

Actor, comedy or musical

Jack Black, Bernie

Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook

WINNER: Hugh Jackman, Les Misérables

Ewan MacGregor, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

Bill Murray, Hyde Park on Hudson

Actress, comedy or musical

Emily Blunt, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

WINNER: Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook

Judi Dench, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Maggie Smith, Quartet

Meryl Streep, Hope Springs

Actor, drama

WINNER: Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln

Richard Gere, Arbitrage

John Hawkes, The Sessions

Joaquin Phoenix, The Master

Denzel Washington, Flight

Actress, drama

WINNER: Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty

Marion Cotillard, Rust and Bone

Helen Mirren, Hitchcock

Rachel Weisz, The Deep Blue Sea

Naomi Watts, The Impossible

Supporting actor

WINNER: Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained

Alan Arkin, Argo

Leonardo DiCaprio, Django Unchained

Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master

Tommy Lee Jones, Lincoln

Supporting actress

Amy Adams, The Master

Sally Field, Lincoln

WINNER: Anne Hathaway, Les Misérables

Helen Hunt, The Sessions

Nicole Kidman, The Paperboy

Screenplay

Chris Terrio, Argo

WINNER: Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained

Tony Kushner, Lincoln

David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook

Mark Boal, Zero Dark Thirty

Original score

Alexandre Desplat, Argo

Dario Marianeli, Anna Karenina

Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek, Reinhold Heil, Cloud Atlas

WINNER: Mychael Danna, Life of Pi

John Williams, Lincoln

Best Original Song

Keith Urban, For You (Act of Valor)

Taylor Swift, Safe & Sound (The Hunger Games)

Hugh Jackman, Suddenly (Les Misérables)

WINNER: Adele, Skyfall (Skyfall)

Jon Bon Jovi, Not Running Anymore (Stand Up Guys)

Animated feature film

WINNER: Brave

Frankenweenie

Hotel Transylvania

Rise of the Guardians

Wreck-It Ralph

Foreign film

WINNER: Amour

The Intouchables

Kon-Tiki

A Royal Affair

Rust & Bone

 

 

2012 Academy Awards…The Oscars!!

I haven’t watched the Oscars in about 2-3 years.  For a while there, it was getting too political with the actors using the platform of the Academy Awards to pontificate their views on what Americans should be supporting and what is bad about the state of our politics.  Basically all the liberal actors were ripping the conservative administration.  Since this isn’t a political blog, I’m not getting into all that.  What I will say is that when I am watching a show for entertainment I don’t like propaganda being force-fed to me for 3 hours…whether I agree with it or not.   But I decided to tune in because, what else was I going to do, and I was pleasantly surprised that this was not “Meet the Press…Celebrity Style.”   But it still doesn’t mean the broadcast was good.

Let’s start with the big debate on Twitter last night (and leading up to the Oscars)…Billy Crystal as host.  I didn’t hate Billy Crystal as much as other people did.  I thought he was fine.  Were some of his bits old and tired, sure.  But I’ve seen worse.  I’ve never put as much emphasis on the host of an awards show as some other people have.  Over the course of 3 hours we get about 30-40 minutes of the host.  So as long as that person isn’t detracting from the enjoyment of the show and really God awful, I don’t pay that much attention to them.  Plus, I don’t think the host is why you chose to watch the Oscars.   I kept seeing comments on Twitter about how young people didn’t know who Billy Crystal was and therefore that was a bad thing.  So because they didn’t know who Crystal was, did they stop watching the Oscars?  I doubt it.  If Channing Tatum was the host, would more people tune in?  I doubt it.  Well maybe if he did the show shirtless I could see a bump in the female demo.  And that’s not a knock on Crystal or Tatum.  I just chose to believe that people who want to watch the Oscars, will watch regardless of who the host is.  Now having said that, I am campaigning for Chris Rock to host again.  That guy is flipping hilarious!!!!  I laughed more during his 5 minutes than I did for the whole 3 hours.  He was great.  And he brought some life to a really dead broadcast.   The other person who was great was Emma Stone.  She was so delightfully dorky and silly I could watch her host an awards show because she brings so much energy and excitement.   That is one thing I agree with Twittershpere on, Crystal was very dull at times.   Overall though, he didn’t bother me and it was nice to see him on stage again.

Next there was the other dominating topic on Twitter….the HORRIBLE sound on the show.  Not only could I barely hear Crystal’s opening melody and Tom Hanks’ opening speech, but the rest of the night, there was some sort of feedback or vibration in the background as each person spoke.  It was horrible.  Before the Oscar’s began, the producer in the truck was telling Robin Roberts (who looked awesome) how they spent 4 months preparing for this night so everything would run smoothly.  Well in those 4 months did ANYONE think to check to make sure the sound would work properly?  At one point, someone on Twitter asked if the mics were bought at Five Below.  It was awful.

Finally, the flow of the show.  Did we really need 3-4 montages of actors talk about how movies have impacted them and why movies are great and magical?  Why did I not get to hear more of Octavia Spencer’s acceptance speech?  Because she was told to wrap it up quickly.  And why was she told to wrap it up quickly?  Because we needed to get to the montage where I had to hear Adam Sandler talk about how awesome movies are.   Seriously?  Look, I’m all for making sure these acceptance speeches don’t go on as long as The English Patient.  But I think they can have a little more time than just 2 minutes to collect their thoughts and thank who they would like to thank.  I think we’ve gone from one extreme to the other.  Instead of montages about the first movie an actor ever saw, I would rather watch clips of the Best Picture movies.  I know they used to do that when only 5 pictures were nominated and now there are 8-10 depending on the year.  But you spent 1-2 minutes showing clips of past movies that won or were nominated.  Who cares.  Show me “The Artist” which I know nothing about.  Show me why I should go see this.  Show me “Hugo”, “Moneyball”, etc.  This night is to celebrate those movies and their accomplishments.  So let’s see them!!!  We had to sit through 4-5 minutes of the “Wizard of Oz” focus group.  What exactly did that accomplish (other than seeing Catherine O’Hara and Christopher Guest whom I love.)  I could have been learning more about “War Horse” and “The Tree of Life.”  You know what else I missed?  When people would perform the songs nominated for Best Original Song.  Now I realize it was slim picking this year and only two songs were nominated.  But I still would have liked to have seen them.

As for the good stuff.  I am THRILLED that Octavia Spencer and Christopher Plummer won for their supporting roles.  I was also stunned to see Dean Pelton from Community up on the stage winning an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for “The Descendants.”   Go Jim Rash!!!!!  I also loved his mocking stance of Angelina Jolie on stage…priceless!!!!  Since I haven’t seen “The Artist” or “Hugo” I can’t comment on their awards but they were clearly the movies to be seen (according to the Academy) so congratulations to all who won!!!   The biggest snub of the evening though, had to be Viola Davis for “The Help.”    It’s certainly no shame to lose to the woman who is arguably the greatest actress of our generation in Meryl Streep.  But this seemed to be Viola’s year.  She was SENSATIONAL in The Help.  Meryl Streep was Meryl Streep.  Always divine and spot on with her character but I though Davis was the brightest star of the bunch.   Can I also say that I was FLOORED when Natalie Portman announced that this was Gary Oldman’s FIRST Oscar nomination.  HIs first????    WHAT???  I was speechless when I heard that.  The man is genius.  He is the male Meryl Streep.  How was he never nominated before?  I can’t get over that!

Lastly, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the fashion last night.  Overall, I thought it was stunning.  Very elegant and classy.  I’m not going to mention the men because as Brad Pitt said, they were black and white tuxes.  They have it easy.  The only person I need to comment on is Tom Cruise.  I swear to God that man hasn’t aged in 20 years.  I want to be drinking what he’s drinking because he still looks hot as ever.

My favorite dresses of the evening have to go to Octavia Spencer, Emma Stone, Milla Jovovich, Rooney Mara, Gwyenth Paltrow (minus the cape), Michelle Williams, Cameron Diaz, and Tina Fey.   But the BEST look on the red carpet was hands down Penelope Cruz.  That lavender off the shoulder gown was stunning and looking perfect on her.   The WORST look of the evening…Jennifer Lopez.  For pete’s sake woman, can you tuck the Ta Tas in for one night?   We all know how much you love yourself but really, this is the Oscars not a wet t-shirt contest.  I found it so ironic that she and Cameron Diaz were presenting for costumes and Diaz’s line was about “something tight enough to show you’re a woman” and Lopez’s line was “and something loose enough to show you’re a lady.”  Guess Lopez decided to show us she was not a lady.

What were your thoughts on the Oscars last night?  Did you love it?  Hate it?  Who do you think was most deserving and most snubbed?   Also, here is the winner list below:

Actor in a Leading Role

Demián Bichir in “A Better Life”
George Clooney in “The Descendants”
Jean Dujardin in “The Artist” ** WINNER
Gary Oldman in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”
Brad Pitt in “Moneyball”

Actor in a Supporting Role

Kenneth Branagh in “My Week with Marilyn”
Jonah Hill in “Moneyball”
Nick Nolte in “Warrior”
Christopher Plummer in “Beginners” ** WINNER
Max Von Sydow in “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close”

Actress in a Leading Role

Glenn Close in “Albert Nobbs”
Viola Davis in “The Help”
Rooney Mara in “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
Meryl Streep in “The Iron Lady” ** WINNER
Michelle Williams in “My Week with Marilyn”

Actress in a Supporting Role

Bérénice Bejo in “The Artist”
Jessica Chastain in “The Help”
Melissa McCarthy in “Bridesmaids”
Janet McTeer in “Albert Nobbs”
Octavia Spencer in “The Help” ** WINNER

Animated Feature Film

“A Cat in Paris” Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli
“Chico & Rita” Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal
“Kung Fu Panda 2″ Jennifer Yuh Nelson
“Puss in Boots” Chris Miller
“Rango” Gore Verbinski ** WINNER

Art Direction

“The Artist”
Production Design: Laurence Bennett; Set Decoration: RoBert Gould
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″
Production Design: Stuart Craig; Set Decoration: Stephenie McMillan
“Hugo”
Production Design: Dante Ferretti; Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo ** WINNER
“Midnight in Paris”
Production Design: Anne Seibel; Set Decoration: Hélène Dubreuil
“War Horse“
Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Lee Sandales

Cinematography

“The Artist” Guillaume Schiffman
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Jeff Cronenweth
“Hugo” Robert Richardson ** WINNER
“The Tree of Life” Emmanuel Lubezki
“War Horse” Janusz Kaminski

Costume Design

“Anonymous” Lisy Christl
“The Artist” Mark Bridges ** WINNER
“Hugo” Sandy Powell
“Jane Eyre” Michael O’Connor
“W.E.” AriAnne Phillips

Directing

“The Artist” Michel Hazanavicius ** WINNER
“The Descendants” Alexander Payne
“Hugo” Martin Scorsese
“Midnight in Paris” Woody Allen
“The Tree of Life” Terrence Malick

Documentary (Feature)

“Hell and Back Again”
Danfung Dennis and Mike Lerner
“If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front”
Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman
“Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory”
Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs
“Pina”
Wim Wenders and Gian-Piero Ringel
“Undefeated”
TJ Martin, Dan Lindsay and Richard Middlemas ** WINNER

Documentary (Short Subject)

“The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement”
Robin Fryday and Gail Dolgin
“God Is the Bigger Elvis”
Rebecca Cammisa and Julie Anderson
“Incident in New Baghdad”
James Spione
“Saving Face”
Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy ** WINNER
“The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom”
Lucy Walker and Kira Carstensen

Film Editing

“The Artist” Anne-Sophie Bion and Michel Hazanavicius
“The Descendants” Kevin Tent
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall ** WINNER
“Hugo” Thelma Schoonmaker
“Moneyball” Christopher Tellefsen

Foreign Language Film

“Bullhead” Belgium
“Footnote” Israel
“In Darkness” Poland
“Monsieur Lazhar” Canada
“A Separation” Iran ** WINNER

Makeup

“Albert Nobbs”
Martial Corneville, Lynn Johnston and Matthew W. Mungle
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″
Edouard F. Henriques, Gregory Funk and Yolanda Toussieng
“The Iron Lady”
Mark Coulier and J. Roy Helland ** WINNER

Music (Original Score)

“The Adventures of Tintin” John Williams
“The Artist” Ludovic Bource ** WINNER
“Hugo” Howard Shore
“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” Alberto Iglesias
“War Horse“ John Williams

Music (Original Song)

“Man or Muppet” from “The Muppets” Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie ** WINNER
“Real in Rio” from “Rio” Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown Lyric by Siedah Garrett

Best Picture

“The Artist” Thomas Langmann, Producer ** WINNER
“The Descendants” Jim Burke, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, Producers
“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” Scott Rudin, Producer
“The Help” Brunson Green, Chris Columbus and Michael Barnathan, Producers
“Hugo” Graham King and Martin Scorsese, Producers
“Midnight in Paris” Letty Aronson and Stephen Tenenbaum, Producers
“Moneyball” Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz and Brad Pitt, Producers
“The Tree of Life” Nominees to be determined
“War Horse“ Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers

Short Film (Animated)

“Dimanche/Sunday” Patrick Doyon
“The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg ** WINNER
“La Luna” Enrico Casarosa
“A Morning Stroll” Grant Orchard and Sue Goffe
“Wild Life” Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby

Short Film (Live Action)

“Pentecost” Peter McDonald and Eimear O’Kane
“Raju” Max Zähle and Stefan Gieren
“The Shore” Terry George and Oorlagh George ** WINNER
“Time Freak” Andrew Bowler and Gigi Causey
“Tuba Atlantic” Hallvar Witzø

Sound Editing

“Drive” Lon Bender and Victor Ray Ennis
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Ren Klyce
“Hugo” Philip Stockton and Eugene Gearty ** WINNER
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon” Ethan Van der Ryn and Erik Aadahl
“War Horse” Richard Hymns and Gary Rydstrom ** WINNER

Sound Mixing

“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Bo Persson
“Hugo”
Tom Fleischman and John Midgley  **WINNER
“Moneyball”
Deb Adair, Ron Bochar, Dave Giammarco and Ed Novick
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon”
Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush and Peter J. Devlin
“War Horse“
Gary Rydstrom, Andy Nelson, Tom Johnson and Stuart Wilson

Visual Effects

“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″
Tim Burke, David Vickery, Greg Butler and John Richardson
“Hugo”
Rob Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossman and Alex Henning ** WINNER
“Real Steel”
Erik Nash, John Rosengrant, Dan Taylor and Swen Gillberg
“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”
Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White and Daniel Barrett
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon”
Scott Farrar, Scott Benza, Matthew Butler and John Frazier

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

“The Descendants” Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash ** WINNER
“Hugo” Screenplay by John Logan
“The Ides of March” Screenplay by George Clooney & Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon
“Moneyball” Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin Story by Stan Chervin
“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” Screenplay by Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan

Writing (Original Screenplay)

“The Artist” Written by Michel Hazanavicius
“Bridesmaids” Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig
“Margin Call” Written by J.C. Chandor
“Midnight in Paris” Written by Woody Allen ** WINNER
“A Separation” Written by Asghar Farhadi

 

2012 SAG Awards Nominations

And I thought the Golden Globes were bad (and they really weren’t that bad.)   These are HORRENDOUSLY bad!!!  Oh my Lord.  I was already convinced, but this completely solidifies my position that these people who are in charge of the nominations don’t watch TV and just pick the popular shows and actors because of name and past recognition.

I’m not going to comment on the TV movies or miniseries because the only one I watched was The Kennedys.  The one thing I will say, why not Barry Pepper for The Kennedys?  Greg Kinnear was great, but Barry Pepper was sooooooo much better.

Before I get into my issues with the acting categories, I just want to say, that EVERY SINGLE ONE of these actors nominated, I love and think are fantastic at their craft.  However, just because they rock at their professions as a whole, doesn’t mean they deserve the nominations below.  There are some incredible names listed below, but I have to say, many are getting props for the wrong reasons, in my opinion.   So I just want to be clear, how much I admire and respect the actors below…you know, before I rip them to shreds!  Actually, I’m not ripping them, just the stupid award people.

So as for the actors, I will say that I am THRILLED for Patrick J. Adams from the best new show of the summer, Suits.   That’s awesome!!!  Although in my humble opinion, if one of the actors would be nominated, I would have given it to Gabriel Macht.  Adams was fabulous but I thought Macht was just a tick better.  If only because he had a bigger range to play this season.   Overall, I don’t have a problem with the male category.   Although Damien Lewis is a glaring omission.  The female category, is a bigger issue for me.  Kathy Bates, really?  I like I said when she was nominated for the Emmy last year, I don’t hate KB.  I love her in fact.  But this character, doesn’t deserve a nomination, I’m sorry.  There are other people more worthy of a nomination than her.   While Jessica Lange was the best part of AHS, a best actress nom performance, it was not.  Kyra Sedgwick, I think this is a farewell nomination with this being the last season of the Closer, so I’m ok with it.  And Glenn Close and Julianna Margulies completely deserve the noms.   But where are Monica Potter, Lauren Graham, Emily van Camp, Claire Danes, Stana Katic, Emily Deschanel?  Hell, I would even give Kristen Bauer from True Blood a nom over some of these names.  I’m sure I’m forgetting other people, but come on.  I don’t understand and I never will.

As for the comedic acting categories, the first thing I will say is can we please get off the Betty White bandwagon please?  Yes the woman is hilarious but not better than Amy Poehler on Parks and Rec and no one will convince me otherwise.  And at some point, someone needs to explain to me how Nurse Jackie is a comedy.  IT ISN’T!!!!!  So stop putting a show in a category it doesn’t belong in just so you can nominate Edie Falco.  And while many people love Modern Family (I did in the beginning but have stopped watching it because I don’t think the writing is a strong as its premiere season), they don’t deserve all the acting noms they get.  It’s a great ensemble show, but not THAT many people stand out on that show.  And Jon Cryer?   Really?  I think not.  Also, while I am a HUGE 30 Rock fan, and a major Tina Fey fan, both Fey and Alec Baldwin’s nominations are getting tiring.  They are great at what they do, but haven’t brought anything fresh to the role in a while.   Where is Nick Offerman?  Who does he have to sleep with to get nominated?   The man is a genius on my TV screen every week.  I also think Danny Pudi and Eliza Coupe are constantly overlooked.  They are freaking hilarious!!!!  And I am surprised not to see Zooey Deschanel on the list.  I know she isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but she is perfect as Jess on New Girl.  I also think Jane Levy (Tessa from Suburgatory) should have received some recognition for her work.   And I know this show turns a lot of people off, but Beth Behrs (Caroline from 2 Broke Girls) should have been given consideration.  She is fantastically funny as well as incredibly likable in her role.    And what about Melissa McCarthy from Mike and Molly?  How could she be left off this list?    I think the number one name left off this list is Jason Segal from HIMYM.  His performance last season was incredible and certainly deserved to be on this list.  Not to mention, Neil Patrick Harris should be a staple on here.  There is a large pool of very talented actors to choose from, but that didn’t happen.

As for the shows themselves, I have no real beef with the dramas other than Homeland was missing.  As for the comedies, Big Bang, Glee, and The Office don’t deserve to be there.  I am still a big 30 Rock fan (I know a lot of people have grown tired of it, which I understand, but I don’t have a problem with it) and  I personally don’t think Modern Family should be in this category. I think it is HIGHLY overrated and not one of the best comedies on TV.  What I would have liked to see….Parks and Rec, Happy Endings, Episodes, 2 Broke Girls, New Girl, How I Met Your Mother, and maybe Community.  Community is a very up and down show…when it’s good, it’s the best comedy on TV, but when it’s bad, it’s as awful as Whitney.  So I can understand why it was left off, but this season has to be it’s best so far (especially from a consistency standpoint.)   The other shows are fresh and funny and have fantastic ensemble casts that really bring out the best in each other.  But that’s my list and that counts for exactly, nothing.

I sincerely believe the people making these decisions are incredibly lazy or are getting some sort of kick back.  I don’t know how you can watch TV (and watch the scope of the shows necessary to make these decisions) and pick these actors and shows for nominations.  Again, it’s not a knock on the actors themselves, but these performances aren’t as solid as some of the other performances out there that get constantly overlooked.

I really have to stop getting worked up over these things, but I hate seeing really talented, exceptional people and shows not getting the recognition they deserve for their work.  There are many names on this list who at one point, were the best and have been recognized as such.  Maybe in the roles below and maybe in other roles.   But it’s time to start spreading the wealth and because while the people below are very talented, there are a whole mix of actors out there that are missing their opportunity to get the acknowledgements that is rightly there’s and getting the chance to be publicly honored for their accomplishments.

TELEVISION

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries
LAURENCE FISHBURNE – “THURGOOD” (HBO)
PAUL GIAMATTI – “TOO BIG TO FAIL” (HBO)
GREG KINNEAR – “THE KENNEDYS” (REELZ CHANNEL)
GUY PEARCE – “MILDRED PIERCE” (HBO)
JAMES WOODS – “TOO BIG TO FAIL” (HBO)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries
DIANE LANE – “CINEMA VERITE” (HBO)
MAGGIE SMITH – “DOWNTON ABBEY” (PBS)
EMILY WATSON – “APPROPRIATE ADULT” (Sundance Channel)
BETTY WHITE – “HALLMARK HALL OF FAME: THE LOST VALENTINE” (CBS)
KATE WINSLET – “MILDRED PIERCE” (HBO)

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
PATRICK J. ADAMS – “SUITS” (USA)
STEVE BUSCEMI – “BOARDWALK EMPIRE” (HBO)
KYLE CHANDLER – “FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS” (DirecTV)
BRYAN CRANSTON – “BREAKING BAD” (AMC)
MICHAEL C. HALL – “DEXTER” (Showtime)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
KATHY BATES – “HARRY’S LAW” (NBC)
GLENN CLOSE – “DAMAGES” (DirecTV)
JESSICA LANGE – “AMERICAN HORROR STORY” (FX)
JULIANNA MARGULIES – “THE GOOD WIFE” (CBS)
KYRA SEDGWICK – “THE CLOSER” (TNT)

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
ALEC BALDWIN – “30 ROCK” (NBC)
TY BURRELL – “MODERN FAMILY” (ABC)
STEVE CARELL – “THE OFFICE” (NBC)
JON CRYER – “TWO AND A HALF MEN” (CBS)
ERIC STONESTREET – “MODERN FAMILY” (ABC)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
JULIE BOWEN – “MODERN FAMILY” (ABC)
EDIE FALCO – “NURSE JACKIE” (Showtime)
TINA FEY – “30 ROCK” (NBC)
SOFIA VERGARA – “MODERN FAMILY” (ABC)
BETTY WHITE – “HOT IN CLEVELAND” (TV Land)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
BOARDWALK EMPIRE (HBO)
BREAKING BAD (AMC)
DEXTER (Showtime)
GAME OF THRONES (HBO)
THE GOOD WIFE (CBS)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
30 ROCK (NBC)
THE BIG BANG THEORY (CBS)
GLEE (FOX)
MODERN FAMILY (ABC)
THE OFFICE (NBC)

Dick Van Dyke will present Screen Actors Guild’s 48th Life Achievement Award to Mary Tyler Moore.