A pair of slavery-themed dramas, Lincoln and Django Unchained, lead the field with seven and five nominations respectively.

Jonathan Doyle, December 13, 2012 12:16:41 PM

Once again demonstrating the diversity of this year’s awards field, the Golden Globe nominations gave a significant boost to several films that have been largely overlooked thus far. By dividing many of their film awards (they also give awards for television) into Drama and Comedy/Musical categories, the Hollywood Foreign Press makes it possible to honour a broader selection of films and performances. The cynical argument has always been that this is a TV show first and foremost, looking for ways to emphasize celebrity wherever possible—this may explain why the HFPA gives awards for Best Original Song, while excluding more significant functions like editing and cinematography—but this also makes room for performances that may have been overlooked elsewhere.

After being snubbed by the SAG Awards—some claim the film wasn’t finished in time for screeners to be distributed—Django Unchained bounced back with five Golden Globes nominations, including Best Picture (Drama), Best Director, Best Screenplay, and two nominations for Best Supporting Actor (Leonardo DiCaprio, Christoph Waltz). Only Lincoln emerged with more nominations, landing seven.

The Comedy/Drama divide made space for several performances that some felt were overlooked by SAG, including Joaquin Phoenix (The Master), Amy Adams (The Master), and Jack Black (Bernie). Even more interesting than the differences are the trends that have started to emerge, including the disappointing omissions (Magic Mike’s Matthew McConaughey, Compliance’s Ann Dowd) and the repeat nominations for performances that once seemed like unlikely contenders (The Paperboy’s Nicole Kidman, Hitchcock’s Helen Mirren).

The winners will be announced on January 13th. Here is the complete list of film nominees:

Best Picture (Drama)
Argo
Django Unchained
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Zero Dark Thirty

Best Picture (Comedy/Musical)
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Les Misérables
Moonrise Kingdom
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
Silver Linings Playbook

Best Director
Ben Affleck (Argo)
Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained)
Ang Lee (Life of Pi)
Steven Spielberg (Lincoln)
Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Actress (Drama)
Rachel Weisz (The Deep Blue Sea)
Helen Mirren (Hitchcock)
Naomi Watts (The Impossible)
Marion Cotillard (Rust and Bone)
Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Actor (Drama)
Richard Gere (Arbitrage)
Denzel Washington (Flight)
Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)
Joaquin Phoenix (The Master)
John Hawkes (The Sessions)

Best Actress (Comedy/Musical)
Judi Dench (Best Exotic Marigold Hotel)
Meryl Streep (Hope Springs)
Maggie Smith (Quartet)
Emily Blunt (Salmon Fishing in the Yemen)
Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)

Best Actor (Comedy/Musical)
Jack Black (Bernie)
Bill Murray (Hyde Park on Hudson)
Hugh Jackman (Les Misérables)
Ewan McGregor (Salmon Fishing in the Yemen)
Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook)

Best Supporting Actress
Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables)
Sally Field (Lincoln)
Amy Adams (The Master)
Nicole Kidman (The Paperboy)
Helen Hunt (The Sessions)

Best Supporting Actor
Alan Arkin (Argo)
Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained)
Leonardo DiCaprio (Django Unchained)
Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln)
Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)

Best Screenplay
Chris Terrio (Argo)
Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained)
Tony Kushner (Lincoln)
David O, Russell (Silver Linings Playbook)
Mark Boal (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Original Score
Alexandre Desplat (Argo)
Dario Marianeli (Anna Karenina)
Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek, Reinhold Heil (Cloud Atlas)
Mychael Danna (Life of Pi)
John Williams (Lincoln)

Best Original Song
Keith Urban – “For You” (Act of Valor)
Taylor Swift – “Safe & Sound” (The Hunger Games)
Hugh Jackman – “Suddenly” (Les Miserables)
Adele – “Skyfall” (Skyfall)
Jon Bon Jovi – “Not Running Anymore” (Stand Up Guys)

Best Animated Feature Film
Brave
Frankenweenie
Hotel Transylvania
Rise of the Guardians
Wreck-It Ralph

Best Foreign Film
Amour
The Intouchables
Kon-Tiki
A Royal Affair
Rust & Bone

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