By: Hannah Mayer (12th Grade)
On Thursday December 6, 2018, the Golden Globe Awards released the list of nominees for 2019. The nominations are decided by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. The Golden Globes Awards honor the most successful and loved movies and television shows that have been released within the year before the awards. Among the list this year are recent movies BlacKkKlansman, A Star is Born, Green Book, Black Panther, and If Beale Street Could Talk. These five movies were nominated the most times, each for at least four awards.
BlacKkKlansman documents a true story in which a Black and a Jewish police officer team up to infiltrate the KKK chapter in Denver, Colorado. Together, they trick famous white supremacist David Duke and gather information from within. Spike Lee captures the essence of 1970s racism in a way that anyone can relate to. Though the movie is set in the past, it ends with a clip of the recent Charlottesville marches, connecting the movie to today and showing viewers that racism is still present. The movie stars Adam Driver, John David Washington, and Topher Grace. The movie was nominated for Best Motion Picture – Drama, Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama (John David Washington), Best Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture (Adam Driver), and Best Director (Spike Lee).
Actor Bradley Cooper directed his first ever movie, starring himself and singer Lady Gaga. Cooper’s fourth rendition of A Star is Born tells the story of the decline of an alcoholic rock star just as his girlfriend, a soulful singer whom he discovered, rises to fame. Cooper was nominated for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama and Best Director while Lady Gaga was nominated for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama. The movie was also nominated for Best Motion Picture – Drama and Gaga’s song “Shallow” was nominated for Best Original Song – Motion Picture. A Star is Born is deserving of every nomination it received due to its emotional depth and true beauty. Cooper builds up a beautiful love story that any viewer would be touched by and shatters it down into the viewers lap.
Green Book tells the story of an African American pianist and an Italian American bouncer who form an unexpected relationship while on a concert tour of the South in the 1960s. Green Book was nominated for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Peter Farrelly was nominated for Best Director – Motion Picture, Viggo Mortensen (the Italian bouncer) was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy, Mahershala Ali (African American pianist) was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture, and the film was also nominated for Best Screenplay – Motion Picture.
Chadwick Boseman plays the Black Panther, the rightful ruler of the African nation of Wakanda. After the death of his father, he returns home to take his place as king and must battle rival forces to protect his people and his nation. Black Panther was nominated for Best Motion Picture – Drama, Best Original Score – Motion Picture, and the song “All the Stars” was nominated for Best Original Song – Motion Picture.
If Beale Street Could Talk chronicles the relationship of an African American couple in 1970s Harlem. The movie shows their life, dreams for their future, and blatant racism that threatens the lives they wish to have together. The movie is nominated for Best Motion Picture – Drama, Regina King is nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture, and for Best Screenplay – Motion Picture.
Though all five of these movies represent the best of what the film industry had to offer this past year, there were other deserving movies that did not win well deserved nominations. Though Timothee Chalamet was nominated for Best Supporting Actor, Steve Carell should have been nominated for Best Actor for their movie Beautiful Boy. Beautiful Boy is the true story of a Nicolas Sheff, a teenager struggling with a meth addiction, and his father David Sheff. Though not a box office hit, the two built a beautiful yet tragic relationship within the movie that could bring anyone to tears.
Another mind blowing movie from the last year that should have been nominated for Best Motion Picture – Drama is Ocean’s Eight. The fourth installment of the Ocean’s series, Ocean’s Eight shows a mindblowing heist performed by a group of eight brilliant women, including Anne Hathaway and Sandra Bullock.
Other than movies, the Golden Globes Awards recognize recently released television series. Among the shows nominated are The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, The Good Place, Homecoming, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story,” and The Handmaid’s Tale.
With the nominations list out, viewers are anticipating the Golden Globes which will be hosted by Andy Samberg and Sandra Oh. The Golden Globes will air on Sunday, January 6, 2019.