Golden Globes Prove Laughable with Comedy Noms

Last week, the Hollywood Foreign Press (via a couple famous celebrities) announced their nominees for next month’s Golden Globe Awards. In the past, the Globes have earned credibility as an indication of the best picture nominees for the Academy Awards. But in recent years, the awards show has received some derision as nothing more than an industry frat party. This year’s nominees didn’t help.

At a glance, one may not think twice about this year’s nods. The Social Network, Inception, Toy Story 3, and The Kids Are All Right all received attention. But let’s take a look at what is nominated alongside The Kids Are All Right for best musical or comedy:

Alice in Wonderland

Burlesque

Red

The Tourist

Some may argue a couple of these are enjoyable. With the exception of Red, most critics would disagree. The Tourist was nearly universally disparaged; Burlesque was often compared to the campy Showgirls; and Alice in Wonderland was deemed appallingly dull (full disclosure: of the films nominated, I’ve only seen Alice and The Kids...). However, the one achievement these movies made this year – with exception to Burlesque and The Tourist, two recent bombs that were criticized for their acting and writing – was financial.  Alice earned big 3D dollars at over $1 billion, Red nearly tripled its own budget, and The Kids Are All Right proved to be the indie smash of the year.

Better received comedies – both by critics and the average Joes that saw them – like Easy A, Cyrus, Four Lions, Get Him to the Greek, and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World were completely snubbed, save for Emma Stone’s nomination for best comedic actress. Even if they were considered, The Kids... would still be deemed the front-runner (at a 94% positive on Rotten Tomatoes, it is the best-reviewed comedy of the year). But the question remains: why were these films of favorable repute snubbed?

Cynics argue that as a show, the Globes wanted to get a star-studded ‘cast’ to appear, hence the nominations for Angelina Jolie (The Tourist) and Johnny Depp (The Tourist, Alice in Wonderland). We may never know the real reason for sure and, if The Kids... loses in an upset, we may not have any credible authority to indicate what the best comedy of the year truly was.

However, best musical or comedy wasn’t the only category with snubs this year. Movies like Korea’s magnificent mystery from Bong Joon-ho, Mother; and Sweden’s sensation, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo were ignored in favor of a couple lesser-known or liked films.

Last year, the Golden Globes seemed to honor the movies that were popular over those that actually deserved to be described as “the best”. It’s Complicated, Julie & Julia, and last year’s musical lemon Nine were all nominated for best musical or comedy, as well as the year’s indie (500) Days of Summer – all lost to the popular hit The Hangover. 2010 lacked any comedy phenom, but if box office returns are to be viewed as any indication then Alice in Wonderland could be slapped with a label most agree is better suited toward The Kids Are All Right. After all, Avatar joined The Hangover as the highest-grossing films of their categories - and both won.

At any rate, movie lovers can rest easy knowing that whatever happens during the Golden Globes won’t necessarily mean squat come Oscar time. As last year’s Best Picture win for The Hurt Locker showed us, popular movies may get noticed more these days during awards season, but the ones that truly deserve the crown may still earn it.

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You can view a complete list of this year's Golden Globe nominees here.