Golden Globes Shake Things Up

Ladies and gentlemen the 2013 Award’s race just got that much more interesting. While some awards helped confirm who our Oscar locks really are, some threw a surprising wrench in the proverbial spokes. As some films like ‘Argo’ and ‘Les Miserables’ pick up steam, others like ‘Lincoln’ and ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ seem to be running of fumes for that final Oscar win.

Below you’ll find the winners and my commentary.

BEST MOTION PICTURE (Drama)

Argo
Django Unchained
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Zero Dark Thirty

So let’s start big. Argo winning the Globes is far from securing it at the top slot for the Oscars, as those are a whole different bag of tricks, but it does really do a number for Lincoln‘s standings. The fact that Lincoln only took home one Globe for Best Actor, which what else can you expect from DDL, doesn’t do much in terms of momentum going forward. Do we have a new frontrunner in Argo? The fact that Ben Affleck didn’t even get nominated surely points to a no but it definitely has more momentum and more backing from other institutions at this point.

BEST MOTION PICTURE (Comedy or Musical)

Les Miserables
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Moonrise Kingdom
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
Silver Linings Playbook

We all know that the Academy Awards don’t block things off into Drama and Comedy/Musical and seeing that Drama is nearly always the more prestigious category, we can assume that this Les Mis win won’t do a whole lot on its own for her Oscar standings. I’m still keeping this one

BEST DIRECTOR

Ben Affleck – Argo
Kathryn Bigelow – Zero Dark Thirty
Ang Lee – Life of Pi
Steven Spielberg – Lincoln
Quentin Tarantino – Django Unchained

Talk about a shake up. Afflect, at this point, seems to have more momentum than any other director out there and yet HE’S NOT EVEN IN THE RUNNINGS FOR THE OSCARS. Nor are fellow nominees Bigelow or Tarantino, essentially making the race between Spielberg, Lee and O’Russell. There’s no way that the little gold guy goes to Haneke or Zeitlin because neither have an sway or much precedence at the Oscar table. Haneke’s nomination only comes from the overflow of love for Amour where the rest of his career has been dismissed at best and hated at worst. Zeitlin is a first time director and while he managed to capture an otherworldly sense of realism with Beasts, he’s clearly running in last place with no foreseeable chance at winning.

BEST ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE (Drama)

Daniel Day-Lewis – Lincoln
Richard Gere – Arbitrage
John Hawkes – The Sessions
Joaquin Phoenix – The Master
Denzel Washington – Flight

No suprises here. DDL has this one on lock.

BEST ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE (Comedy or Musical)

Hugh Jackman – Les Miserables
Jack Black – Bernie
Bradley Cooper – Silver Linings Playbook
Ewan McGregor – Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
Bill Murray – Hyde Park on Hudson

Looks like Jackman is the only real contender for DDL’s crown come February but the signs are all pointing the other way. Be happy with the Globe Jackman, even though, in this guy’s opinion, you didn’t deserve it this time around.

BEST ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE (Drama)

Jessica Chastain – Zero Dark Thirty
Marion Cotillard – Rust and Bone
Helen Mirren – Hitchcock
Naomi Watts – The Impossible
Rachel Weisz – The Deep Blue Sea

This is where things get interesting. Essentially, we have a two woman race for Best Actress between Jessica Chastain and Jennifer Lawerence and the fact that they both won their respective categories but didn’t have to fact each other down head to head offers little knowledge as to what the final verdict will be. I don’t know quite where I stand on this one but with momentum on Chastain’s side, I’m going to have to go with her even though I’d prefer a Lawrence win.

BEST ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE (Comedy or Musical)

Jennifer Lawrence – Silver Linings Playbook
Emily Blunt – Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
Judi Dench – The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Maggie Smith – Quartet
Meryl Streep – Hope Springs

See above for commentary on this field.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE

Christoph Waltz – Django Unchained
Alan Arkin – Argo
Leonardo DiCaprio – Django Unchained
Philip Seymour Hoffman – The Master
Tommy Lee Jones – Lincoln

After having the other four nominees locked for the better part of the year, Waltz has managed to slip into the final slot and shockingly best his fellow contenders. Does this mean that we can expect a win for Waltz at the Oscars? Well let’s just say it puts him in a very strong position.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE

Anne Hathaway – Les Miserables
Amy Adams – The Master
Sally Field – Lincoln
Helen Hunt – The Sessions
Nicole Kidman – The Paperboy

This one’s another lock for Best Supporting. Hathaway was stunning in Les Mis and everyone who’s only seen the trailer knows it. She’s running full power for Fantine and then some extra loving for her Catwoman portrayal, so let’s just say she’s got the cat in the bag.

For other wins sans commentary check below.

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BEST ANIMATED FILM