Worth the wait in gold?

Say what you like about the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. But they at least knew how to put on a good show last night . And it just might trump the Oscars. By the time AMPAS gets around to the grand finale next month, we may be well over this awards season, given how predictable things continue to be.

Last night’s telecast is getting good buzz from just about everywhere you look, and rightly so. There were surprises and just enough sentimental moments to make things more than a little compelling. In addition to Kate Winslet’s double whammy, Christopher Nolan’s tribute to Heath, and the showstopping response to Mickey Rourke’s win, we also had some memorable moments courtesy of Emma Thompson and Sandra Bullock, as well as Drew Barrymore’s most impressive Ann-Margret-inspired retro coif (altho’ what, pray tell, was up with her ardent Sapphic canoodling with the always glorious and "Grey Gardens" costar Jessica Lange? Is ).

I like “Slumdog Millionaire” very much. But I don’t love it. Still, only a real grouch could not be taken by how happy its seep made Dev Patel and Freida Pinto (both of them equally adorable) and director Danny Boyle who, if you ask me, is the frontrunner for the Best Director Oscar at this point. I’m a longtime fan. Has anyone seen (or does anyone remember) “Shallow Grave” ?

Despite decades worth of scorn and criticism heaped upon the HFPA’s Golden Globes --and, let’s face it, any group that would give Best Picture to “Scent of a Woman” or nominated for major acting awards Helen Hayes in "Herbie Rides Again" and Neil Diamond in “The Jazz Singer” is only asking for ridicule. To decide whether or not this little group of journalists has any real clout, just look at the volume of follow-up all over the web today, and start looking for huge “Golden Globe winner!!” attached to ads for Slumdog, The Wrestler, etc.

For me, the one thing that I like about the Globes is that they often give a final but very public tribute to certain actors that, from here on out, won’t be picking up any more steam. In some cases, an Oscar nomination, sure. But probably not any more major awards. This year, I think we can say this about both winners for Actor and Actress in a comedy/musical. Sally Hawkins and Colin Farrell were both very deserving.

I’d even say that Hawkins is still in the Oscar race. Forget winning the damn thing, but I like to believe she still has a shot at the final five. True, the SAG snub doesn’t help and last night’s victory may have been a little too late to influence Academy voters, most of whom have already submitted their nomination ballots. Still, she has that impressive tally of wins from various critics groups, and I believe last night’s GG victory puts her ahead – by one trophy – of Anne Hathaway in this season’s race. Even if they are tied at this point, that’s a pretty impressive haul for our Sally.

Also, 15 past winners of the Globes’ Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical went on to win the Oscar (one of them, Maggie Smith for “California Suite” would win her Oscar in the supporting category), which isn’t such a bad statistic. Also a Globe in this category is also a nice consolation prize; it has recognized some pretty great work including Rosalind Russell for “Auntie Mame,” Marilyn Monroe for “Some Like it Hot” Anne Bancroft for “The Graduate” and Julie Andrews for “Victor, Victoria”. OK, that last sentence sounded hopelessly gay. So be it. They were are all divine.

(Interesting bit of trivia: the only Best Actress Oscar winner whose performance was not nominated for a Golden Globe was Sophia Loren in “Two Women.”)

As for Best Actor in a Comedy or a Musical, the odds are not very favorable. Only five GG winners in this category went on to victory at Oscar night: Rex Harrison, Lee Marvin, Richard Dreyfuss, Jack Nicholson, and Jamie Foxx. George Burns tied with Walter Matthau for his role in “The Sunshine Boys” and, like Dame Maggie, would win his Oscar in the supporting category.

With his victory last night, Colin Farrell joins such illustrious past winners as Danny Kaye (“On the Riviera”), Glenn Ford (“Pocketful of Miracles”) Cantinflas for “Around the World in 80 Days” (he beat Yul Brynner for “The King and I”), Richard Harris for “Camelot” (he beat Dustin Hoffman for “The Graduate”) as well as my personal favorite, Alberto Sordi for “To Bed or Not To Bed”.

In fairness, it should be pointed out that many excellent Oscar-worthy performances were cited by the Globes in this category, including wins for Donald O’Connor in “Singin’ in the Rain” and James Mason in “A Star is Born,” just for starters.

I’ve been a big Farrell fan for years: “Tigerland,” “Minority Report” “A Home at the End of the World” and especially “The New World.” I don’t even mind admitting that liked him in “Alexander.” In spite of the bad-boy press and a particular home video which showcased another of his rather large talents, he’s done some good work. He’s always fun and even a little unpredictable. Remember “Phone Booth”?

As for “In Bruges,” it would be great to see Farrell in the Oscar race but I can’t even begin to consider that this year. I’m almost certain it’s a Langella, Rourke, Penn lock, with DiCaprio, Pitt, Eastwood, Jenkins vying for the other two slots.

The SAG awards should help us settle all bets.

Finally, as regards the other side of the barn yard, ie the TV awards, hooray for the much-deserving “John Adams” and “30 Rock”. And, of course, the best drama on TV, which would be “Mad Men.” Pity that Jon Hamm and January Jones were denied their awards. Gabriel Byrne and Anna Paquin are worthy contenders but not nearly as good as Mr and Mrs Draper.