Share

Golden Globes 2020 – Not the party we hoped it would be


REVIEW:

Hollywood’s annual award season officially kicked off on Sunday night, 5 January with the 77th Golden Globe Awards. Here's what Herman Eloff, Lifestyle and Entertainment Editor at News24, thought of the very first award show of the year. 

Cape Town - The Golden Globe Awards were hosted once again by funnyman Ricky Gervais that casually lambasted Tinseltown’s elite whilst clutching a beer in his hand.

The controversial comedian didn’t hold back as he kicked off the glitzy night emphasizing that he’s "never doing this again" and that he "doesn’t care" about the show and "never has". It’s hard to get in the mood for celebrations when even the host admits right from the start that it will be a three hour snoozefest.

Ricky’s one-liners sting and he’s merciless in his pursuit to keep the stars humble, but his routine is way past its expiry date by now and it’s time for a fresh face to take over the duties. Might I suggest, Kate McKinnon?

What is great about the Golden Globes is that we get TV and film stars together in one room, although with streaming services dominating the award shows these lines are quickly starting to blur.

Although Netflix dominated the nominations with a whopping 34 nods it only managed to rake in two awards – Laura Dern for her supporting role in Marriage Story, and a very surprised Olivia Colman for her win in The Crown.

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 05: (L-R) Jaya

(WINNER: Jaya Harper, Laura Dern, Editor in Chief of InStyle Magazine Laura Brown, and Ellery Harper attend the 21st Annual Warner Bros. and InStyle Golden Globe after party. Photo: Gregg DeGuire/WireImage)

ALSO READ: All the 2020 Golden Globe winners

INSPIRING SPEECHES

Olivia’s delightfully genuine and happy acceptance speech undoubtedly lifted the sombre mood that was set from the start. Other topics like Trump and the bushfires in Australia were mentioned in-between, but few speeches made an impact like that of Michelle Williams.

The Hollywood star always gracefully uses her platform to highlight issues close to her heart and Sunday night gave a moving speech on a woman’s right to choose. "I've tried my very best to live a life of my own making and not just a series of events that happened to me. But one that I could stand back and look at and recognise my handwriting all over. Sometimes messy and scrawling, sometimes careful and precise. But one that I had carved with my own hand. And I wouldn't have been able to do this without employing a woman's right to choose,” she said and was greeted by a loud applause from the audience.

Another touching moment came when Kate McKinnon tearfully thanked Ellen DeGeneres for bravely breaking ground for the LGBTQ community in an industry that still lacks inclusion. Ellen received the Carol Burnett Award for her "outstanding contributions to television".

South Africans will love Charlize Theron’s special moment with Tom Hanks when she presented him with the Cecil B. DeMille Award. During her tribute to Tom, the 44-year-old actress referenced her childhood years in her home country: "There was this filthy duck pond on our farm that I would splash around in waiting for Tom to rescue me and show me Manhattan." Tom later gave Charlize her first breakthrough role in Hollywood.

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 05: In this ha

(BOMBSHELL STAR: Charlize Theron on the Golden Globes red carpet. Photo: Paul Drinkwater/NBCUniversal Media, LLC via Getty Images)

PHOTOS: 20 incredible photos and moments from the 2020 Golden Globe Awards

TV VERSUS FILM

The TV category was dominated by hits like Succession, Chernobyl, and Fleabag and delivered very few surprises. The most noteworthy win in this category has to go to Ramy Youssef for his work in the groundbreaking show, Ramy. The actor deserves all praise for his role in which he plays a fictional character named Ramy Hassan who, as Ramy put it, is a millennial Muslim struggling to make the two work together.

The film category, where Netflix’s The Irishman and Marriage Story were firm favourites, at least delivered some surprises when underdog Sam Mendes beat out both Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino to take both the best director and best drama awards with his war epic 1917. "It's difficult to make big movies without big stars," Sam said in his acceptance speech before adding, "I really hope this means people will turn up and see it on the big screen, the way it was intended."

Taron Egerton’s win for Rocketman also surprised many that believed Eddie Murphy was a guaranteed win for his role in Dolemite Is My Name. This highlighted even more the show’s shocking lack of diversity.

When Awkwafina won the best actress award for her role in The Farewell she was shockingly the first ever winner of Asian descent to do so in the 77-year-history of the show. Critics were also right to call out that the best director category lacked any female nominees despite great work being done by women in the industry.

Overall the show did little to really inspire change in the industry, barely lifted the spirits of those in the room and those watching at home, and wasn’t the cheerful party it is always made out to be. Let’s hope the rest of award season gets a little more exciting.

South African viewers who missed the live broadcast of the Golden Globes on Monday morning can watch it on DStv Now

The 2020 Academy Award nominees will be announced on Monday, 13 January. A full list of all the nominees will be available on Channel24.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE