Golden Globes: The Power of the Dog and West Side Story, big winners of a ceremony shunned by Hollywood

Jane Campion's dark western won the Best Drama and Best Director awards on Sunday night, in a night shunned by Hollywood.

 

The Power of the Dog and West Side Story won, on Sunday, the main awards at a Golden Globes ceremony largely ignored by Hollywood, and whose winners were revealed online, without television broadcast or red carpet.

 

Jane Campion's dark western The Power of the Dog became the second film directed by a woman to win the Golden Globe for Best Drama. It also won Best Director, and Best Supporting Actor for Kodi Smit-McPhee.

 

Steven Spielberg's remake of West Side Story was awarded the Golden Globe for Best Comedy or Musical, with Rachel Zegler winning Best Actress in a Comedy and Ariana DeBose winning Best Supporting Actress. Will Smith and Nicole Kidman received the Globes for Best Actor and Actress in a Motion Picture Drama for their roles in The Williams Method and Being the Ricardos. 

 

Usually attended by all the elite of the entertainment industry, the Golden Globes were deserted this year by Hollywood stars, who criticize their lack of diversity and transparency. The NBC television network had even given up broadcasting the ceremony, even though it has been watched by millions of viewers in recent years.

 

Officially, the organizers cited the pandemic. But, according to Marc Malkin, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), which makes up the jury for the awards, tried to get celebrities to announce the winners of this year's Golden Globes. And no celebrities - none - said yes. The HFPA, made up of about 100 people connected to foreign publications, has long been accused privately in Hollywood circles of a range of failings, from corruption to racism.

 

None of the night's top winners rushed to social media to comment on their awards. Despite this leaden atmosphere, the three Globes awarded to The Power of the Dog and West Side Story confirm their status as contenders for the awards season, which culminates in March with the Oscars. The Power of the Dog, which questions male stereotypes in 1920s Montana with Benedict Cumberbatch as a toxic cowboy, was released by Netflix with a limited theatrical run and received rave reviews.

 

Steven Spielberg's remake of West Side Story flopped at the box office but was also praised by the critics. Considered one of the favourites, Belfast, inspired by Kenneth Branagh's Northern Irish childhood, left with only the best screenplay award.

 

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