It is an esteemed American tradition: once a year, we meet to question the integrity and taste of the Golden Globe Awards. And in 2021, the ceremony in honor of cinema and TV gave us many strange options to complain about.
Last week, it was revealed that the Netflix show “Emily in Paris” allegedly flew ⅓ of the Globes 90-person polling station to Paris and placed them at the $ 1,400 Peninsula hotel per night for a trip. The chic trip to the City of Lights may have helped give the program two nominations, including best comedy series.
Meanwhile, Sia’s nominated film, “Music,” is full of controversy for her carefree portrayal of autism. And to top it all off, it was reported a few days ago that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which organizes the ceremony, has no black members. An excellent year!
But the Globes have long provoked skepticism and outrage over their gloomy negotiations and cuckoo picks. Here are some of the strangest Golden Globe choices of all time.
Pia Zadora in “Butterfly”
A mystery not yet fully explained is the award for Pia Zadora’s new star of the year in 1982 for his performance in the critically eviscerated drama “Butterfly”. The bad taste movie is about an Arizona man (Stacy Keach) who starts an incestuous relationship with his long-lost daughter Kady (Zadora), who happens to be very interested in this type of thing. Gross. Times critic Vincent Canby said the newcomer’s sexual performance was “like a Brigitte Bardot that was recycled by a kitchen compactor”.
When Zadora received the award, some launched accusations that her then husband, Israeli billionaire Meshulam Riklis, influenced the Hollywood Foreign Press Association by hosting a lavish press conference at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas, owned by him.
Still, she claims she won her trophy fairly. A few months later, his performance also earned him the Golden Raspberry Award for worst actress.
“Women’s perfume”
No one would call “Scent of a Woman” a bad movie. He received nods from Oscar too, and Al Pacino, rightly, won an Oscar for playing a blind lieutenant colonel. But it was never the favorite of the season. (He competed against “A Few Good Men”, “Howard’s End”, “The Crying Game” and “Unforgiven”, which ended up winning the Oscar for Best Picture). Then, when the film snatched the 1993 Golden Globe for best drama film, HFPA found itself in the middle of yet another controversy. People inside Hollywood were angry when it was revealed that many voters were flown to New York to meet Pacino during the voting process. And no one involved would say who paid for the starry excursion.
Halle Berry (“Frankie and Alice”)
Another criticism often faced by Globes is that he names stars just to get them on the red carpet – talent from list A to failures on list D. This definitely accompanies Halle Berry’s best actress in 2011 in a drama film for “Frankie & Alice “. The small Canadian film about a stripper with a split and murderous personality was spiked by critics, although some praised Berry’s work. Stranger still, most Americans could not see this. While “Frankie & Alice” had a limited release in 2010 to qualify for the awards, its broad release was shelved until 2014.
“The Martian”
What was the funniest part of “The Martian”? Was that when Matt Damon’s astronaut got stuck on Mars, apparently destined to die alone? Or when he managed to grow potatoes to avoid hunger? Perhaps it was his harrowing final maneuver to reach the crew sent to rescue him. What was your favorite song in the movie? Oh, right, there was none. All of the above is why people scratched their heads when “O Martian” was nominated – and won! – the award for “best film – musical or comedy” in 2016. It surpassed real comedies, such as “The Big Short”, “Joy”, “Spy” and “Trainwreck”.
Johnny Depp (“Alice in Wonderland”, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”)
For a solid 20 years, the aloof HFPA would have nominated Johnny Depp for taking a walk around the block. From 1991 to 2011, the actor received 10 gigantic Golden Globe nominations. Compare that to Oscar’s three nods during his lifetime. Crazier than the total quantity, however, were the projects themselves, including 2005’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”, in which he played Willy Wonka as a Wisconsin drugstore clerk; “Alice in Wonderland” 2010, with her Mad Hatter with fire-colored hair; and, worst of all, “The Tourist”, also in 2010.
“The tourist”
Critics totally criticized “The Tourist”, which was a remake of a 2005 French film, but still got a nomination for the Globe for best musical or comedy and undeserved acting nods to Depp and Angelina Jolie, who had a lack of chemistry icy. The inclusion was so harshly criticized that host Ricky Gervais scoffed at it in his monologue.
“It was a great year for 3-D films,” he said. ”’Toy Story’, ‘Despicable Me’, ‘Tron’ – it looks like everything this year was three-dimensional, except for the characters in ‘The Tourist’. “
Continuing, Gervais added: “I feel bad about this joke, because I am joining the movement. I didn’t even see ‘The Tourist’. Who has? But it must be good, because it was nominated. “
“Burlesque”
Remember when Christina Aguilera tried to act? If you answered “No”, you’re in luck. In 2010, she played an aspiring artist who moved to LA to grow up, only to end up working in a basement-not-exactly-a strip club run by Cher. Post critic Lou Lumenick said of Aguilera’s turn: “Her debut as an actress is not going to keep Anne Hathaway up at night.” Still, he won three Golden Globe nominations, including best comedy or musical film.
John C. Reilly (“Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story”)
You can bet your last dollar that John C. Reilly never dreamed of or predicted to receive honors for his musical styles. Let the Globes get there first. Reilly wrote his character’s song in “Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story”, a comic parody by Johnny Cash. The melody is perfect, but it has lyrics like: “You know, when I was a boy, people used to say to me, ‘Go easy, Dewey, don’t walk so much’. Reilly ended up losing to Eddie Vedder.
Robin Williams (“Patch Adams”)
Robin Williams was one of our greatest comic actors, but “Patch Adams” was easily one of his worst films. In the comedy, he played a suicidal man who becomes a medical student and questions traditional doctor-patient interactions. He prefers to yuk it instead. But, as Gene Siskel said, “Who would want Mork by the bed?” The film was a strange mix of rude jokes and extreme sentimentality, and Williams’ performance was increased to 11. Naturally, the Golden Globe nominated him as the best actor in a comedy or musical film, as well as the lousy film itself.