This morning the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced the nominees for the 2007 Golden Globes. Some of the nominations were a bit surprising and the rest were pretty predictable.
The most surprising of all happens to be the nomination of "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" for Best Motion Picture -- Comedy or Musical. I'm not saying that the movie wasn't hilarious (because it was), but the HFPA is usually a bit stuffy. They also gave Sacha Baron Cohen a Best Actor nod.
The Best Foreign Language Film category puzzles me. One would assume that it's foreign films, i.e. directed by a foreigner, in a foreign language and primarily foreign cast. Meaning not a United States film. There are actually two movies, that have U.S., ties nominated this year. For one, Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto" and Clint Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima." Ok, so Eastwood's movie makes more sense because he only directed it while it was written by Japan's Iris Yamashita. But Gibson had his hands in all of "Apocalypto," direction and writing. Sure it's in a foreign language, but I just feel like the foreign film market got gypped this year.
Here are my predictions for Golden Globe 2007 winners:
Motion Pictures:
Drama
Best Motion Picture: "The Queen"
Best Performance - Actress: Helen Mirren "The Queen"
Best Performance - Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio "Blood Diamond"
Comedy
Best Motion Picture: "Little Miss Sunshine"
Best Performance - Actress: Meryl Streep "The Devil Wears Prada"
Best Performance - Actor: Sacha Baron Cohen "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America For Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan"
Supporting Roles
Actress: Jennifer Hudson "Dreamgirls"
Actors: Eddie Murphy "Dreamgirls"
Television:
Drama
TV Series: "Grey's Anatomy"
Best Actor: Hugh Laurie "House"
Best Actress: Kyra Sedgwick "The Closer"
Comedy or Musical
TV Series: "Ugly Betty"
Best Actor: Tony Shalhoub "Monk"
Best Actress: Marcia Cross "Desperate Housewives"
I'm probably right on a couple of these, but completely wrong on others, especially in the TV categories. I don't know if Hugh Laurie can actually beat out Kiefer Sutherland for "24" and I have no idea how he will fair against McDreamy (Patrick Dempsey "Grey's Anatomy"). And I'm not a huge fan of any of the comedic actors, but Steve Carell might pull off another win this year.
So where did the HFPA go wrong?
Well, the oversight in nominating Sandra Oh for "Grey's Anatomy" saddens me, but her role was actually not as great as in past years.
Toni Collette's nomination for "Little Miss Sunshine" is nice, but it really should have gone to her co-star Abigail Breslin.
Beyonce and Jennifer Hudson should be switched -- Beyonce as Supporting Actress and Hudson as Lead Actress. It would probably be too much to ask for because it is Hudson's first role, but she killed it.
There are also plenty of nominees that I am very torn between. "Notes on a Scandal's" Judy Dench and "The Queen's" Helen Mirren are both deserving of the Golden Globe for Best Dramatic Actress. I would love to give Johnny Depp a Golden Globe for his role in "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" as well as Sacha Baron Cohen for "Borat." Too bad there can only be one winner.
So what does everyone else think? Anyone else making predictions?
For a full list of nominees head over to hfpa.org. The 2007 Golden Globes air on NBC on Jan. 15.
Originally from Des Plaines, Ill., Heather moved to Milwaukee to earn a B.A. in journalism from Marquette University. With a tongue-twisting last name like Leszczewicz, it's best to go into a career where people don't need to say your name often.
However, she's still sticking to some of her Illinoisan ways (she won't reform when it comes to things like pop, water fountain or ATM), though she's grown to enjoy her time in the Brew City.
Although her journalism career is still budding, Heather has had the chance for some once-in-a-lifetime interviews with celebrities like actor Vince Vaughn and actress Charlize Theron, director Cameron Crowe and singers Ben Kweller and Isaac Hanson of '90s brother boy band Hanson.
Heather's a self-proclaimed workaholic but loves her entertainment. She's a real television and movie fanatic, book nerd, music junkie, coffee addict and pop culture aficionado.
