BEVERLY HILLS, Jan 16: Harrowing drama “Babel” shared top honours with veteran director Martin Scorsese at the Golden Globes on Monday as hit musical “Dreamgirls” emerged as a serious Oscars contender.
Hollywood’s royalty turned out in force for a glittering ceremony in Beverly Hills that saw “Babel” crowned best picture as veteran film-maker Scorsese was honoured with best director for his crime thriller “The Departed”. Both films are seen as candidates for the Oscars in Hollywood on Feb 25, but can expect a strong challenge from “Dreamgirls,” the upbeat musical about the rise of a 1960s soul trio loosely based on The Supremes.
“Dreamgirls” waltzed away with three major honours – winning best supporting actor and actress awards for Eddie Murphy and Jennifer Hudson respectively.
It also won best picture in the musical category and now seems a certainty to earn an Oscar nod when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science unveils its best picture nominations on Jan 23.
Mexican director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu received the best picture award for “Babel” from California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who appeared on crutches to give the final prize of the night at the Beverly Hilton.
“I swear I have my papers in order governor, I swear,” Inarritu quipped, a reference to his moving film, which touches on immigration issues between the United States and Mexico, as it weaves together the lives of four families on three continents.Inarritu, who has said inspiration for the film came from his experiences of living in America in the aftermath of the Sept 11, 2001 attacks, said the film showed that cinema knew no boundaries.
“It seems that no matter how many languages you make a film in, I think the power of cinema is universal and at the end emotion doesn’t need translation and that’s the beauty of it,” Inarritu said.
Earlier Scorsese picked up his second Golden Globe gong in four years following his victory in 2003 for “Gangs of New York”. The creator of such cinematic landmarks as “Taxi Driver,” “Raging Bull” and “Goodfellas” has been nominated five times for an Oscar and never won but is seen as favourite for the directors prize this year.
In the acting categories, British veteran Helen Mirren scored a notable double, winning two Golden Globes for her portrayal of Queens Elizabeth I and Elizabeth II in separate productions.
Mirren is considered the overwhelming favourite for best actress at the Oscars for playing Elizabeth II in “The Queen,” a fictionalised account of life in the royal household following the 1997 death of Princess Diana.
Mirren dedicated her award to the British monarch.
“In 1952 a woman called Elizabeth Windsor at the age of 25 walked into literally the role of a lifetime and I honestly feel this award belongs to her because I think you fell in love with her not with me,” Mirren said.
The best actor in a drama role went as expected to Forest Whitaker, beating out stiff challenges from Peter O’Toole and Leonardo DiCaprio, with his portrayal of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in “The Last King of Scotland.” The biggest laughs of the night came from British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, winner of the best comedy actor award for his film, “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.” The spoof documentary sees Cohen play a blundering Kazakh journalist travelling through the American heartland in search of cultural enlightenment.
A hit at the box-office, it has courted controversy however with some participants taking legal action claiming they were duped into appearing.
The satire is also notable for some hair-raising nude wrestling scenes between Cohen and his co-star Ken Davitian.
“This movie was a life-changing experience,” Cohen said.
Other winners on Monday included screen legends Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood, whose war epic “Letters from Iwo Jima” scooped up the best foreign-language film prize.—AFP
BEVERLY HILLS, Jan 16: Harrowing drama “Babel” shared top honours with veteran director Martin Scorsese at the Golden Globes on Monday as hit musical “Dreamgirls” emerged as a serious Oscars contender.
In the acting categories, British veteran Helen Mirren scored a notable double, winning two Golden Globes for her portrayal of Queens Elizabeth I and Elizabeth II in separate productions.
