14 DAY TRIAL // The Oscar race has officially begun. At last night's Golden Globes 2012 ceremony, the industry celebrated the best releases, actors and directors of the past year, in both film and television.
They say the Globes are the closest indicator of who will win an Oscar in film, especially in the Best Actress and Best Actor categories.
Granted, surprises have been known to happen but, if this holds water for 2012, we know George Clooney and Meryl Street are near-certain winners.
Silent-era film “The Artist” and “The Descendants” were top picks for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, with Meryl Streep coming in second, with a win for Best Actress Drama.
In Film, “The Descendants” won Best Picture. Other competitors for the same award included critics' favorite “The Help,” “Hugo,” the political thriller “The Ides of March,” the sports underdog “Moneyball” and the epic drama “War Horse.”
Meanwhile, leading man George Clooney took home the award for Best Actor Drama, beating co-star Ryan Gosling (“The Ides of March”), Brad Pitt (“Moneyball”), Leonardo DiCaprio (“J. Edgar”) and Michael Fassbender (“Shame”).
Competition was also fierce in the Best Actress Drama category, another category that got plenty of media attention because of its potential as an Oscar indicator.
The HFPA awarded the much coveted distinction to Streep for her work in “The Iron Lady,” thus beating Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs,” Viola Davis for “The Help,” Rooney Mara for “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” and Tilda Swinton for her remarkable performance in “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
It would seem all that talk about how relative newcomer Mara could actually land her first Oscar win for her role as the highly intelligent and socially challenged Lisbeth Salander in “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” has just been shut down.
In Television, winners included “Modern Family,” “Homeland,” “Game of Thrones” and “Mildred Pierce.”
Below is the complete list of winners in both Film and Television. Make sure you check it out to see if your favorite made the cut.
WINNERS: MOTION PICTURES
- Picture, Drama: “The Descendants”
- Picture, Musical or Comedy: “The Artist”
- Actor, Drama: George Clooney, “The Descendants”
- Actress, Drama: Meryl Streep, “The Iron Lady”
- Director: Martin Scorsese, “Hugo”
- Actor, Musical or Comedy: Jean Dujardin, “The Artist”
- Actress, Musical or Comedy: Michelle Williams, “My Week With Marilyn”
- Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, “Beginners”
- Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer, “The Help”
- Foreign Language: “A Separation”
- Animated Film: “The Adventures of Tintin”
- Screenplay: Woody Allen, “Midnight in Paris”
- Original Score: Ludovic Bource, “The Artist”
- Original Song: “Masterpiece” (music and lyrics by Madonna, Julie Frost, Jimmy Harry), “WE”
WINNERS: TELEVISION
- Series, Drama: “Homeland,” Showtime
- Series, Musical or Comedy: “Modern Family,” ABC
- Actor, Drama: Kelsey Grammer, “Boss”
- Actress, Drama: Claire Danes, “Homeland”
- Actress, Musical or Comedy: Laura Dern, “Enlightened”
- Actor, Musical or Comedy: Matt LeBlanc, “Episodes
- Miniseries or Movie: “Downton Abbey” (Masterpiece), PBS
- Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Kate Winslet, “Mildred Pierce”
- Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Idris Elba, “Luther”
- Supporting Actress, Series, Miniseries or Movie: Jessica Lange, “American Horror Story”
- Supporting Actor, Series, Miniseries or Movie: Peter Dinklage, “Game of Thrones”