CARISSA MARSH
A&E Editor
‘Tis the season for red carpets. Fa la la la — OK, that’s not how the song goes. But just four weeks after Christmas, another joyful season is upon us: awards season. It all kicked off Monday with the Golden Globes. From stars to swag, stilettos to speeches, the night was catalogued by the media frenzy that surrounds each statue-oriented celeb-fest for the millions who tune in to watch.
The night could not have started more perfectly, with perpetual bachelor George Clooney presenting the evening’s first award for best supporting actress in a film. A teary Jennifer Hudson took the Globe for her role in “Dreamgirls.” It was the first of three wins for the musical, making it the most successful film of the night. In light of the Oscar buzz, hopefully “Dreamgirls” will not follow the annoyingly catchy (cannot get it out of my head) tune “One Night Only,” but instead have repeat award success.
Not surprisingly, Sacha Baron Cohen deserves the award for funniest acceptance speech, and, in true “Borat” fashion, it was completely off the wall. In case you missed it, Cohen said that during the filming of “Borat,” he saw “some dark parts of America … Of course I am referring to the anus and testicles of my co-star, Ken Davitian.” He went on to say that as he wrestled Davitian, faced with the sight of his “wrinkled Golden Globes,” he thought “I better win an award for this.” He did, and I’m sure America couldn’t be prouder.
Besides eye candy and laughs, my favorite part of the night had to be America Ferrera’s win for best actress in a television series (musical or comedy). I don’t even watch “Ugly Betty,” which also won for best TV series, but it is nice to see a newcomer take home the win. Crying makes for the best speeches and like Hudson, Ferrera was also emotional. The young star gave a shout out to her mom and later told “Access Hollywood” she is thankful exec producer Salma Hayek thought she was “ugly.” A strange yet surprisingly understandable sentiment from the breakout actress.
Pats on the back rolled on from there as more awards were handed out to honor TV and film. While the Golden Globes was not the most riveting television Monday night (I think the premiere of “24” takes the cake), it had its moments. Here’s a few highlights:
• Meryl Streep telling the audience to “shut up” when they moaned at seeing her long speech, much as her alter ego in “The Devil Wears Prada” would do.
• Tom Hanks referring to Warren Beatty’s “balls” an uncomfortable amount of times during a tribute to the legendary actor.
• Prince showing up late after getting stuck in traffic and missing his win for best original song.
• “Dreamgirls” producer Laurence Mark saying he appreciates the honor and “I’m sure we will be advertising it in about 10 seconds.” Ah, marketing. (But it’s true — one of the greatest benefits of an “award-winning” label is increased ticket sales and ratings.)
And what is a Hollywood awards show without some lowlights? Here’s a few:
• Cutting off the speeches of every writer, producer or non-celebrity. Where was Streep’s musical intervention?
• A crutch-bound Arnold Schwarzenegger closing out the show with his much-overused and just plain laughable, “We’ll be back.” Seriously?
Well, the governator is right. This is just the beginning of the red carpet madness, so if you missed this show, never fear. The SAG awards (Jan. 28) and Oscars (Feb. 25) are near.
01-18-2007