The Globes Surprise..

2005 NOMINATIONS PRESS RELEASE

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
THE CONSTANT GARDENER
GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK
A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE
MATCH POINT

Prediction: Brokeback, Crash, Goodnight, King Kong, Munich
Score: 2/5
Reaction: Excellent. Just excellent. Two of this year's great films, Violence and Gardener are back in the Oscar mix. I think that realistically, Violence is a little too heavy for Oscar, but it does give the film a great chance at multiple nominations. Brokeback is the obvious frontrunner at this stage, with Goodnight and Good Luck a way behind. Match Point did well here, and will have a chance to build up some buzz before the ballots are posted back.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

MARIA BELLO A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE
FELICITY HUFFMAN TRANSAMERICA
GWYNETH PALTROW PROOF
CHARLIZE THERON NORTH COUNTRY
ZIYI ZHANG MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA

Prediction: Allen, Huffman, Paltrow, Theron, Watts
Score: 3/5
Reaction: The snub for Allen means she is out of this race. A real shame. But that does open the door for the fifth nominee slot. Theron is on the brink of it but the globes have kept faith with Ziyi, even though they clearly didn't like the film. Maria Bello's nomination for lead is not all that strange, given their history. We'll probably find that SAG will view her as supporting, though I could be wrong. Huffman is the massive frontrunner, with two nominations this year.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE - DRAMA

RUSSELL CROWE CINDERELLA MAN
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN CAPOTE
TERRENCE HOWARD HUSTLE & FLOW
HEATH LEDGER BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
DAVID STRATHAIRN GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK

Prediction: Bana, Hoffman, Hopkins, Ledger, Strathairn
Score: 3/5
Reaction: Well, the last minute suggestion that Howard would go drama was correct, though I didn't predict him there. If he had gone comedy/musical, he probably would have had a shout at winning, but as it stands its a massive Hoffman Versus Ledger contest. Winner takes all most probably. There's renewed hope for Crowe but he's really acting as a filler nominee. There wasn't a great deal of choice here, though you would think that either Mortensen or Fiennes would have made it considering how their films were adored here.

BEST MOTION PICTURE - MUSICAL OR COMEDY

MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS
PRIDE & PREJUDICE
THE PRODUCERS
THE SQUID AND THE WHALE
WALK THE LINE

Prediction: The Family Stone, Mrs Henderson Presents, Pride and Prejudice, The Producers, The Squid and the Whale, Walk The Line
Score: 4/5
Reaction: The Producers has done surprisingly well -- better than Phantom did last year. The category itself was fairly straightforward, though a snub for The Family Stone isn't the end of the world as you'll see further down. Walk The Line is the runaway favourite at this stage.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE - MUSICAL OR COMEDY

JUDI DENCH MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS
KEIRA KNIGHTLEY PRIDE & PREJUDICE
LAURA LINNEY THE SQUID AND THE WHALE
SARAH JESSICA PARKER THE FAMILY STONE
REESE WITHERSPOON WALK THE LINE

Prediction: Aniston, Dench, Knightley, Parker, Witherspoon
Score: 4/5
Reaction: Now this is the category! Reese will of course go into this as a pretty solid favourite, but the quality of the line-up is very decent, and Dench and Knightley will probably both still have a chance of winning by the time we get to January. It's a classy five anyway. A nod for Laura Linney also helps her Oscar chances, though to nominate a fourth "comedy" performance is perhaps a little too excessive. Still, there's hope.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE -MUSICAL OR COMEDY

PIERCE BROSNAN THE MATADOR
JEFF DANIELS THE SQUID AND THE WHALE
JOHNNY DEPP CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY
NATHAN LANE THE PRODUCERS
CILLIAN MURPHY BREAKFAST ON PLUTO
JOAQUIN PHOENIX WALK THE LINE

Prediction: Carrell, Daniels, Howard, Lane, Phoenix
Score: 3.5/5
Reaction: I'm giving myself a half-point since Howard was nominated, though admittedly not in this category (see above). Carrell and The 40 year-old Virgin was surprisingly left out this year, despite having many ingredients the Globes like. Nominations for Brosnan, whose film is doing very well, and Depp, who can't get away from the Globes it seems, are relative shocks. A nomination for Murphy is nice to see. Lane and Daniels were pretty solid bets. Phoenix is leading but his lack of precursor punch may allow for Daniels, or even Depp (given his outstanding popularity) to emerge victorious.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE

SCARLETT JOHANSSON MATCH POINT
SHIRLEY MacLAINE IN HER SHOES
FRANCES McDORMAND NORTH COUNTRY
RACHEL WEISZ THE CONSTANT GARDENER
MICHELLE WILLIAMS BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN

Prediction: Adams, Bello, Keaton, Johansson, McAdams, Williams
Score: 2.5/5
Reaction: Again, Bello is given lead, so I get a half point :P . A nomination for McDormand is quite a surprise, since the category is very strong this year. MaClaine probably won't last past this stage. Williams and Johansson were pretty solid. Rachel Weisz's nomination could actually turn into a win, if you consider what happened when the Globes got into Closer last year. Just a hint.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE

GEORGE CLOONEY SYRIANA
MATT DILLON CRASH
WILL FERRELL THE PRODUCERS
PAUL GIAMATTI CINDERELLA MAN
BOB HOSKINS MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS

Prediction: Clooney, Dillon, Giamatti, Hoskins, Hurt
Score: 4/5
Reaction: Oh I did well here. Hoskins could have gone lead but probably went supporting as a result of Dench totally overshadowing him. Dillon, Giamatti and particularly Clooney will fight it out for the win. A nomination for Ferrell doesn't surprise me actually, given his high-profile celebrity these days. Of course the oscars is very different, this is where his journey ends this year. Again, The Producers has done well though.

BEST DIRECTOR - MOTION PICTURE

WOODY ALLEN MATCH POINT
GEORGE CLOONEY GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK
PETER JACKSON KING KONG
ANG LEE BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
FERNANDO MEIRELLES THE CONSTANT GARDENER
STEVEN SPIELBERG MUNICH

Prediction: Allen, Clooney, Frears, Lee, Spielberg
Score: 4/5
Reaction: I'm very disappointed that for all of the Violence love this week, David Cronenberg did not make this five. It's by far the best direction I've seen this year. Mereilles was also good though, and I'm happy for him. Also for Allen, whose film has suddenly emerged as a big contender, Jackson, whose film looks as if it will be too big to be deemed suitable enough. Spielberg's nomination is bittersweet, seen as the film was snubbed. It also means Munich's only major nomination was in a six-person category. Not very encouraging.

BEST SCREENPLAY - MOTION PICTURE

WOODY ALLEN MATCH POINT
GEORGE CLOONEY & GRANT HESLOV GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK
PAUL HAGGIS & BOBBY MORESCO CRASH
TONY KUSHNER & ERIC ROTH MUNICH
LARRY McMURTRY & DIANA OSSANA BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN

Prediction: Brokeback, Capote, The Family Stone, King Kong, The Squid and the Whale
Score: 1/5
Reaction: The oddest category, and that's saying something. I expected Brokeback and maybe Crash but the absence of the two big screenplay winners this week, Noah's Baumbach's The Squid and the Whale, and Dan Futterman's script for Capote is a big shock. I don't expect they'll be snubbed altogether though. A nomination for Match Point means it's one of the most favoured films at the Globes and has now officially enter this year's race.

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

KUNG FU HUSTLE (CHINA)
MASTER OF THE CRIMSON ARMOR aka THE PROMISE (CHINA)
MERRY CHRISTMAS (JOYEUX NOEL) (FRANCE)
PARADISE NOW (PALESTINE)
TSOTSI (SOUTH AFRICA)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE - MOTION PICTURE

ALEXANDRE DESPLAT SYRIANA
JAMES NEWTON HOWARD KING KONG
GUSTAVO SANTAOLALLA BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
HARRY GREGSON- THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE
JOHN WILLIAMS MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA

BEST ORIGINAL SONG - MOTION PICTURE

“A LOVE THAT WILL NEVER GROW OLD” –- BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN Music by: Gustavo SantaolallaLyrics by: Bernie Taupin
“CHRISTMAS IN LOVE” — CHRISTMAS IN LOVE Music by: Tony RenisLyrics by: Marva Jan Marrow “THERE’S NOTHING LIKE A SHOW ON BROADWAY” — THE PRODUCERS Music & Lyrics by: Mel Brooks “TRAVELIN’ THRU” — TRANSAMERICA Music & Lyrics by: Dolly Parton
“WUNDERKIND” — THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE Music & Lyrics by: Alanis Morissette

Thats it! I'll be updating my Oscar predictions this weekend as a result of fierce precursor action this week. Til Then!