Golden Moments

Texas triumphs and more indelible bits from tame 2015 Golden Globes

Despite being around for 72 years, the Golden Globe Awards have been and likely always will be the redheaded stepchild of awards season. They’re rarely a harbinger for awards to come, mostly because they’re voted on by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association instead of industry professionals, and because they do things like shoehorn Birdman into the Best Comedy/Musical category.

But they’re usually the most entertaining of the awards shows, because the stars have no reservations about guzzling multiple drinks, leading to some truly delightful moments. Returning as co-hosts for the third and last time were Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, two former Saturday Night Live cast members whose bond only seems to grow stronger as the years go along.

The co-hosts were not as biting with their quips as they have been the past two years, but they still got off a few great zingers. On Patricia Arquette’s nominated role in Boyhood, which she shot over 12 years, they noted that this proves there are still great roles for women over 40, as long as they’re hired before they turn 40.

And they went after George Clooney yet again, pointing out that his wife, Amal Alamuddin, has accomplished a tremendous amount in her non-Hollywood career, yet it was Clooney who received the lifetime achievement award.

But they reserved their most shocking jokes for Bill Cosby — no surprise given Fey’s history at jabbing the comedian for the rape allegations against him. No recap does their jokes justice, so here’s the video instead:

cos by vidstuffs

However, once they got past the opening monologue, Fey and Poehler turned relatively tame, and the usually raucous awards show seemed to follow suit. There was not one boozy presenter or award winner, save for the reliably naughty Ricky Gervais, although even he seemed to censor himself.

That doesn’t mean the night was devoid of memorable moments. Among ones worth remembering:

A standing ovation for, of all people, HFPA president Theo Kingman after he proclaimed the HFPA’s support of free speech in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo shootings.
Rapper Common, who co-starred in Selma, gave an eloquent speech honoring the civil rights fight that continues to this day.
Two other SNL alums, Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader, who co-starred in The Skeleton Twins, were as funny as always when they presented the award for best screenplay.
Kevin Spacey, who had been nominated seven previous times before winning this year for his role on House of Cards, tested the censors with the line, “This is the eighth time I’ve been nominated. I can’t believe I f---ing won one.”
Michael Keaton delivered the most personal speech of the night after winning Best Actor, Comedy/Musical for Birdman, revealing intimate personal details. In paying tribute to his parents and his upbringing, he said his name is really Michael John Douglas, a fact many were sure not to know. He also had the line of the night while choking back tears: “My best friend is kind, intelligent, funny, talented, considerate, thoughtful … did I say kind? He also happens to be my son, Sean.” Keaton may or may not get to deliver another speech this awards season, so it was a pleasure getting a peek inside his soul, if only for a minute or two.

Boyhood was the big winner of the night, taking home three awards, including Best Supporting Actress for Arquette, Best Director for Richard Linklater and Best Picture, Drama. Birdman seemed destined for a similar trio of awards after winning for Best Screenplay and Best Actor, but The Grand Budapest Hotel, from Texan Wes Anderson, surprisingly won for Best Picture, Comedy/Musical.

Other winners on the movie side included J.K. Simmons for Best Supporting Actor in Whiplash; Amy Adams for Best Actress, Comedy/Musical for Big Eyes; Eddie Redmayne for Best Actor, Drama in The Theory of Everything; and Julianne Moore for Best Actress, Drama in Still Alice.

On the television side, the Amazon series Transparent made a splash by winning Best Comedy/Musical and Best Actor for Jeffrey Tambor. Showtime’s The Affair won for Best Drama, and Ruth Wilson was honored as Best Actress.

On a local note, Second Thought Theatre alum Allison Tolman, who was nominated for her role in Fargo, was front and center when the series won for Best TV Movie/Mini-Series.

Patricia Arquette won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture for Boyhood.

Patricia Arquette at the 2015 Golden Globe Awards

Photo by Paul Drinkwater NBC

Patricia Arquette won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture for Boyhood.

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Movie Review

Daniel Craig searches for elusive new bond in audacious film Queer

Photo courtesy of A24

Drew Starkey and Daniel Craig in Queer.

As recently as the late 2010s, if a movie was made about an LGBTQ+ character, it was more than likely about their coming out experience. Romance, if it existed, was typically chaste, and actual sex was almost completely out of the question. Things have changed dramatically in the 2020s, to the point that a major movie star has no issue starring in a film called Queer.

Based on the 1985 novella by William S. Burroughs, the film features William Lee (Daniel Craig), whom everyone calls just Lee, a writer living in 1950s-era Mexico City who spends most of his time haunting local bars with friends like fellow writer Joe Guidry (Jason Schwartzman) and hitting on younger men. His early interactions in the film seem to indicate that Lee has a bad reputation within the local gay community, as multiple people avoid him or give him odd looks.

Lee senses an opportunity when he encounters a newcomer, Eugene Allerton (Drew Starkey). Despite some awkward interactions, the two of them start spending time together, although Lee has much more invested in the relationship than Eugene does. Their hit-and-miss bond continues until Lee, who’s starting to get into drugs in addition to the booze, convinces Eugene to accompany him on a trip to South America.

Directed by Luca Guadagnino and written by Justin Kuritzkes (making their second straight film together after Challengers), early on the film seems to be mostly about the divide between an older person who’s grown comfortable in his ways and a younger person who’s living a relatively carefree life. The introduction of drugs into the plot changes things, though, with Lee searching out more ways to open his eyes to what the world has to offer.

Guadagnino and his team use some interesting visual storytelling techniques to introduce ideas that may not be present in the actual script. The most successful, demonstrated in multiple scenes, is the superimposition of movements by Lee over what’s actually taking place in the scene. The subtle overlay gives the audience insight into Lee’s true feelings, showing what he can’t or won’t say out loud.

Music also plays a big part in how the plot is perceived, with the use of anachronistic songs from Nirvana and Prince serving to heighten certain moments. The score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is not as in-your-face as the one they did for Challengers, but it complements the film well, especially when the plot starts to get trippy in its final half hour.

Craig, who appears sweaty and disheveled for much of the film, is about as far from the suaveness of James Bond as you can get in this role. He takes multiple risks with his performance and almost all of them pay off. Starkey’s character is subdued by comparison, but still comes off well. Schwartzman and Lesley Manville are given showy roles, with both using altered appearances that make them nearly unrecognizable to deliver memorable performances.

Queer is not as accessible as Challengers was storytelling-wise, but the fact that it tells a story about gay men living their lives as they see fit with no interference or questions shows how far the film world has come in a short period of time. It also continues Guadagnino’s streak of making audacious films in a way that few other filmmakers are willing or able to approach.

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Queer is now playing in theaters.

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