Golden Globes Recap

Last night, awards season officially started with the Golden Globes. The Globes, hosted by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, combine film and television into one fun-filled night. Big winners of the night included: Les Miserable, Argo, Homeland, and Girls. The show was held in the Beverly Hilton Hotel and aired on NBC It was hosted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.

There were some great highlights to night. First off, Adele’s acceptance speech was absolutely hilarious. She most definitely deserved to win for Best Original Song for the James Bond theme song “Skyfall.” In her speech she stated that she and her friend were just looking for a night out, but she is bringing home a nice piece of hardware for the mantel.

My other favorite moment was Lena Dunham’s speech for Best Actress in a TV Comedy. She mentioned the other nominees in the category and how she worshiped them. The more I see of Lena Dunham, the more I find her relatable, as I also worshiped the comedians she was nominated with. It was a beautiful speech and the audience could clearly tell she was nervous to be up there. My favorite moment following that was Tina and Amy on stage immediately following Dunham’s speech. “Congratulations Lena, glad we got you through middle school” Fey slurred. Truthfully, there were a lot of girls the other nominees got through middle school. I was one of them.

For the most part, I agreed with the awards. There was one, however, that I think the HFPA got completely wrong. Brave won for this year’s Best Animated Feature Film. While I absolutely love Pixar, this did not deserve to win. Wreck-It Ralph was the star of this year’s animated competition. The field was much stronger this year than what it was in the past. I think this was a huge sub towards Wreck-It Ralph, which in my opinion is one of the best Disney movies of all time.

Overall, I thought the show was very well done. Tina and Amy did a wonderful job hosting and the stars provided great entertainment for the night. I look forward to the other awards show coming up. What did you think of the show?

Here is a complete list of nominees and winners:

MOTION PICTURES
Best Drama
"Argo"
Best Musical/Comedy
"Les Miserables"

Best Director
Ben Affleck, "Argo"
Best Actress in a Drama
Jessica Chastain, "Zero Dark Thirty"
Best Actor in a Drama
Daniel Day-Lewis, "Lincoln"
Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy
Hugh Jackman, "Les Miserables"
Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy
Jennifer Lawrence, "Silver Linings Playbook"
Best Supporting Actress
Anne Hathaway, "Les Miserables"
Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz, "Django Unchained"
Best Screenplay
Quentin Tarantino, "Django Unchained"
Best Foreign Language Film
"Amour"
Best Animated Feature
"Brave"
Best Original Song
"Skyfall," music and lyrics by Adele and Paul Epworth ("Skyfall")
Best Original Score
Mychael Danna, "Life of Pi"

TELEVISION
Best TV Comedy or Musical
"Girls"
Best TV Drama
"Homeland"
Best Actress in a TV Drama
Claire Danes, "Homeland"
Best Actor in a TV Drama
Damian Lewis, "Homeland"
Best Actress in a TV Comedy
Lena Dunham, "Girls"
Best Actor in a TV Comedy
Don Cheadle, "House of Lies"
Best Miniseries or TV Movie
"Game Change"
Best Actress in a Miniseries or TV Movie
Julianne Moore, "Game Change"
Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie
Kevin Costner, "Hatfields & McCoys"
Best Supporting Actress in a TV Show, Miniseries or TV Movie
Maggie Smith, "Downtown Abbey: Season 2"
Best Supporting Actor in a TV Show, Miniseries or TV Movie
Ed Harris, "Game Change"

Gangster Squad

This week, Gangster Squad hit theaters. The action packed film follows a group of police officers that act off book to bring down a mobster threatening to take over Los Angeles. Set in LA in the 1940s, Gangster Squad draws on the classic film noire style of movies like Chinatown and The Big Sleep. The combination of the classic noire, fast-paced action, and funny one-liners makes this film great for movie fans. Gangster Squad is based off a true story.

Gangster Squad has an ensemble cast that shines in the costumes of 1940s. Josh Brolin leads the squad of officers, which includes Ryan Gosling, Robert Patrick, Anthony Mackie, Michael Peña, and Giovanni Ribisi. Nick Nolte makes an appearance as the Chief of Police. On the other side of the law, Sean Penn plays Mickey Cohen, the Brooklyn born gangster taking over Los Angeles. Emma Stone rounds out the cast as the woman on Mickey’s arm. The film was very well acted. The cast had great chemistry and it was great to see Gosling and Stone back on the big screen together after Crazy Stupid Love.

As a gangster film, I knew it would be violent, but I actually found it to be a bit gory at points. The film had a lot blood, in addition to the violence. Gangster Squad delayed release due to the extreme violence. Scenes of the film were actually reshot following the movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado. Due to change in release date, it was taken out of consideration for this award season. I’m curious to see how it will do next year.

The film presents an interesting look at vigilantes and law enforcement. Since the law was bought out, the officers on the “squad” had to leave the law behind. The secret force violated the law and stooped to Cohen’s level to take him down. For these officers, they leave the squad room and become vigilantes. In their own way, they tear apart the city of Los Angeles to bring down Mickey. Do police officers need to throw out the law to take down a criminal?

Overall, I thought it was great movie. It was an engaging period piece, something I find rare.  The costumes and set design were beautiful. I would suggest this if you are looking for a good film to see. It’s definitely something you should see in theaters.