The Golden Globes are always good for a curveball or two. Unlike the Academy Awards, which often go for the safe bet, the Hollywood Foreign Press isn’t afraid to annually throw its weight behind movies or performances that hovered on the fringe in hopes of injecting their television product with a little more excitement. (Even though they already have Ricky Gervais, so how much more excitement do they actually need?)
This morning, a handful of nominations literally made us yell out, sometimes with genuine excitement (way to go, Hateful Eight screenplay nod!) and sometimes with perplexed glee. These are the five best "WTF?" nominations from this year’s Golden Globes awards. And "WTF" doesn’t mean negative. It can also mean, "What the fuck, that’s awesome!" Starting with…
George Miller, Best Director
Mad Max: Fury Road has been popping up on a number of year-end Top 10 lists, from individual critics to full-fledged critical organizations. But we didn’t quite believe that it could be an Oscar contender… until this morning. Make no mistake, Fury Road is a beautifully calibrated muscle picture. But on the surface, it plays like a summer blockbuster. It’s only when you peel away the coarse surface that you reveal all that’s going on in Miller’s latest plunge through the wasteland. In our minds, Miller NEEDS to contend in every Best Director category for what he pulled off. The Globes, this morning, proved they are on our side, and we couldn’t be happier!
Spy, Best Picture
Listen. I like Spy. I gave it 3.5 stars out of 5, and sang the praises of Melissa McCarthy, her outstanding supporting cast (Jason Statham and Rose Byrne are hysterical in this movie) and even director Paul Feig. It’s an enjoyable movie. But a Best Picture nominee? No. And over a number of other worthy Best Picture, Musical or Comedy nominees? No. The Hateful Eight? Sure. Love & Mercy? Oh, definitely. Spy? Yeah, that’s a traditional "What the fuck?" Classic Globes.
Sylvester Stallone, Creed
Back to a positive "WTF?" moment from this morning’s Golden Globes announcement. Sylvester Stallone collected a nomination in the Best Supporting Actor category for his latest turn as Rocky Balboa in Creed, and we’re totally behind it, even though we didn’t really expect it. Oh, there had been whispers in the wind of how Creed is a crowd-pleaser, and how Stallone gives one of his most versatile, affecting performances as the aging boxer who agrees to mentor a young buck (Michael B. Jordan). But would the awards nominations actually come? This morning, they started… and if Stallone – and Warner Bros. – plays his cards right, the Italian Stallion could be wearing a tuxedo on Oscar night, potentially giving a speech that no doubt would have all of us cheering.
Al Pacino, Danny Collins
Yeah, what? Because I know you have no idea what Danny Collins is, this small and charming indie comedy casts the great Pacino as a former rock singer on the tail end of his career who turns his life on a dime when he discovers a long lost letter he once received from John Lennon. It’s sweet, and Pacino is fine in it. But really, raise your hand – anyone – if you had Al Pacino contending for a Golden Globe this year, for a movie called Danny Collins? Just what I thought, Nobody. Pacino must have charmed the pants off of the HFPA members during a Danny Collins luncheon.
Pretty Much The Whole Best Song Category
These songs are OK. Truth be told, Sam Smith’s Bond song, "The Writing’s On The Wall," is as disappointing as the movie for which it was written. But we’re screaming "WTF?" here because thanks to the Globes, perfectly enjoyable but hardly worthy popcorn flicks like Spectre, Furious 7 and Fifty Shades of Grey (!!!) can label themselves as Golden Globe-Nominated films. And in some parts of this crazy industry, that’s a badge of honor. What the fuck, Globes? Seriously.
