14 DAY TRIAL // Considering the backlash after the Golden Globes 2011 and Ricky Gervais' promise that, this year, he would finally give everyone reason to complain, you might have expected the 2012 awards show to be truly outrageous.
It wasn't.
Then again, it wasn't bad either.
Ricky Gervais hosted the Golden Globes 2012, his third time in as many years. From his opening monologue it was clear that organizers had imposed some constraints, lest A-listers were again offended by his jokes, as it happened last year.
“They're the wealthiest, most privileged people in the world. Offense is taken, not given,” Gervais said last week of the people he was meant to entertain, the biggest stars of the moment in television and film, including but not limited to actors.
However, he certainly made sure no one could say of him he'd given reason to take offense.
It's not that he didn't pick on celebrities anymore: he just made sure he steered away from topics that might be deemed too controversial, choosing instead “safe targets,” celebrities that have long become tabloid fodder.
For instance, in his opening monologue, he only joked about Justin Bieber, Kim Kardashian, Mel Gibson (and Jodie Foster), Dame Helen Mirren, and NBC, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and the Globes.
Granted, he included other celebrity jabs throughout the night, but they were clearly approved and pre-approved by the the team behind the targeted celebrity.
They still stood out, though, and that alone speaks volumes for Gervais' abilities as a comedian.
For instance, when introducing Oscar-winner Colin Firth, Ricky joked, “What you don’t know is that he’s very racist. Very. And I mean, really nasty stuff. I’ve seen him punch a little blind kitten.”
When it came to introduce Natalie Portman, he joked about her year off from making movies to be with her baby boy and fiancé.
“Last year, our next presenter won both the Golden Globe and the Oscar for her work in Black Swan. This year, she took some time out to have a baby. Consequently, she’s been nominated for nothing,” he said.
“Really pathetic. But she learned that valuable lesson you all already knew: Never put family first. Please welcome the very foolish Natalie Portman,” Gervais said.
There's no denying that Gervais' third stint as Golden Globes host was mild by comparison to last year's but, even so, many feel he still did an impressive job, managing to make a rather boring awards show something worth watching.
Or, as EW's Inside TV puts it, “Regardless of how you feel about Gervais, he’s been able to arguably generate more suspense and anticipation for his jokes than the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has for who wins tonight’s awards. Rarely has the host of any award show prompted so much interest and speculation than Gervais has spurred by simply returning to Globes podium.”
