Golden Globes kicks off movie awards season!

2010 Golden Globes Awards

By FRANCIS DASS

I saw Ricky Gervais just now. No, not in person, but on television, where he was was hosting The Hollywood Foreign Press Association's 2010 Golden Globes Awards.

The Golden Globes, in case you didn't know, is the awards show that kicks off the movie awards season -- not only in America but also the rest of the world. It -- USUALLY! -- foretells of what will transpires during Oscar night on March 7th. (Sometimes, the Oscars' Academy Awards gang like to cause an upset or two!)

Anyway, back to the 49-year old Englishman Gervais. I usually do not like the man at all. His humour never did translate over well with me. So, I have always avoided his shows (he is the man behind the original The Office in UK -- the show which was then transposed to American television audiences with the extremely likeable Steve Carell at the helm.)

Anyway, as host of the Golden Globes this year, Gervais has indeed chalked a new chapter for all other hosts in future at any awards programme: he has perfected the role of a host as a facilitator to the proceedings rather than the traditional one of the host aggrandizing him/herself to no end. (Sorry Whoopi -- although you ARE indeed very funny -- you are into that self-edification mode that comedians often fall into. Ditto to Jon Stewart of The Today Show.)

Gervais, on the other hand, was very much interested in pushing the programme along, oiling it remarkably with irreverent jokes.

Anyway, back to the Hollywood galaxy (which is not very, very far away) and its constellation of luminous stars.

As expected, Avatar won Best Motion Picture (Drama) and its director James Cameron won the best director golden globe.

Cameron said what the whole world knows by now: he and all the people gathered in the auditorium had the best jobs in the world. It is fitting indeed that Avatar ended on such a top note, as it is still number one at the box offices in the US and around the world. The film has collected a staggering US$1.6 billion around the world (stateside alone, it has bagged almost US$500 million!)

The golden Globes not only celebrates movies on the silverscreen but also television programming, and thus, it was a great, big, fat delight for everyone indeed that TV series Glee won Best Television Series (Musical or Comedy).

In accepting the award, one of Glee's producer/creators said the funniest thing that night when he described the actors in the musical comedy as "fake sexy-teen cast". On a more serious note, he posited that the show is about the importance of arts education and that Glee is -- laugher still had the last laugh! -- made for "anybody and everybody who got a wedgie in school!"

That high of an acceptance speech was easily matched by Robert Downey Jr who won the Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy) nod. In a hilarious speech, that demonstrated this Hollywood royal's wit and intelligence, he demonstrated mock-hubris in the face of all the other overdone acceptance speeches where the stars feigned to be full of humility and gratitude. But a few seconds past not wanting to thank the talented cast and crew that make movies happen, he did thanks those involved in the intoxicatingly clever Sherlock Holmes where his performance was nothing short of magical.

Another funny notable moment was offered by Todd Phillips, director an producer of extremely funny movie, The Hangover, which won Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy). Phillips had said he was afraid at winning this award in case he got into a fist fight with Harvey Weinstein, whose musical Nine was up in the  same category.

"But I have My Tyson on my side," Phillips cleverly said, too close his joke, which was appreciated by everyone.

Paul McCartney was a presenter for the Best Animated Feature Film and he CRACK-ed a gem of a joke too. He said animated movies are enjoyed by kids and drug-taking adults, vaguely quipping about the good old drug-fuelled days of long ago.

Talking of speeches, although it was a dignified speech, I was rather put off by Mo'Nique, the actress who bagged the Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture award for her turn in Precious. She took herself too seriously (as did all the other Precious people seated at her table -- making it look like the Grim Reaper's table!) -- with the exception being the sunny spirited Gabourey Sidibe who played the lead role in Precious.

Other memorable moments at the Golden Globes this year was seeing James Cameron's oldest and dearest friend California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger introducing Avatar, the sight of Mike Tyson coyly stepping into the world of filmed entertainment and, of course, the sight of George Lucas seated right at the front table, a few feet away from the presenters -- the most important seat in the house, we reckon, since he is like Zeus, compared to the rest of them!

Gervais, to his great credit, delivered the funniest lines and ribbed his guest to the max. Paul McCartney, who handed out  the animated movies prize got ribbed as did Mel Gibson, just before Gibson gave out the award to director James Cameron.

Gervais had said: "I like a drink as much as the next man, unless the next man is Mel Gibson!" This truly was funny -- Gibson has been arrested slandering Jews a while back while driving under the influence -- and this clearly threw off even the good-humoured Gibson who laughed and flubbed momentarily.

Gervais started the evening with some fabulous jokes: how performers have all put on the show of the best work -- the best work of plastic surgeons, that is! --  and an interplay with Steve Carell who is more famous than Gervais thanks to the stunning global success of the American version of The Office and when Carell mockingly gestured that he would break Gervais in two when Gervais was getting "personal" and "rude".

Here is the complete list of the winners at the 2010 Golden Globes:

Best Motion Picture - Drama: Avatar

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama: Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy: Robert Downey Jr (Sherlock Holmes)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama: Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side)

Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy: The Hangover

Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy: Glee

Best Director - Motion Picture: James Cameron (Avatar)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture: Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Serirs or Motion Picture Made for Television: Chloe Sevigny (Big Love)

Best Television Series - Drama: Mad Men

Best Foreign Language Film: Das weisse Band (Germany)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy: Alec Baldwin (30 Rock)

Best Screenplay - Motion Picture: Up In The Air

Best Performance by an Actress in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: Drew Barrymore (Grey Gardens)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: Kevin Bacon (Taking Chance)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy: Meryl Streep (Julie & Julia)

Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture for Television: Grey Gardens

Best Original Score - Motion Picture: Up

Best Originl Song - Motion Picture: Crazy Heart

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Drama: Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama: Michael C. Hall (Dexter)

Best Animated Film: Up

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: John Lithgow (Dexter)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy: Toni Collette (United States of Tara)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture: MoNique (Precious)

AVATAR -- movie review

MOVIE REVIEW

By FRANCIS DASS


AVATAR
Directed by James Cameron
Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Giovanni Ribisi, Dileep Rao, Joel Moore

When James Cameron accepted his Best Director Oscar for Titanic, he'd declared, "I am the king of the world!" That was eleven years ago!

Many writers and critics everywhere were shocked by his hubris. I had absolutely no problem with what he said. I loved his Terminator films, Aliens and, of course, Titanic. Never mind that his The Abyss was abysmal! He was a consummate filmmaker whose mastery of the technical aspects of making a film and storytelling expertise were second to none as far as I was concerned.

And, now, more than a decade after disappearing from the silver screen, he is back with Avatar.

All I can say is that, he has crafted a spellbinding film that works at so many levels that this is THE definitive event movie in a long, long time.

As all gamer boys and girls would already know by now, avatar in computer gamers' parlance roughly means a human player inhabiting the virtual shell of fantastical characters in computer games, role-palying anything from soldiers to warriors and sorcerers.

Of course, this being a James Cameron film, the director takes the whole virtual reincarnation game play to a whole new level.

The film is about Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), a soldier who has lost the use of his legs and, as fate would have it, ends up stepping into a world where he is recruited to explore another world in this futuristic sci-fi that blends live action and cutting-edge computer animation like you have never seen before.

The world Jake explores is an alien world called Pandora, inhabited by 10-foot tall blue aliens called the Na'vi. Funding the human exploration initiative is a bunch of heartless capitalists (a common theme in Cameron's films, as reflected in Aliens) who are determined to exploit Pandora for a priceless mineral that it possesses.

As the trailer for Avatar already made clear, a large mineral deposit is directly beneath the Hometree, an area that a group of these primitive but tough Na'vis call home. The "corporation" has already failed in its earlier negotiations (ploys which included offering colonialistic English lessons and the supply of medicines etc) with the blue natives to have them relocate so that the minerals can be mined for profit.

These diplomatic dialogues, intriguingly, were initiated with the help of scientific experiments where Na'vi clones were merged with human DNA and these lab-created Na'vi "vessels" are "piloted" by humans via some super sophisticated neuron networking devices. The three Na'vi bodies used by the humans are the avatars and the humans feel, see and experience everything that their avatars go through. Besides Jake, Dr Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver) and Norm Spellman (Joel Moore) are two scientists who have Na'vi avatars.

As is usual with corporations, time is money and time is exactly what they insists they do not have. These capitalists (represented by Giovanni Ribisi's Parker Selfridge) have guns for hire (led by Colonel Miles, played by Stephen Lang), and decide to take a hardline stance against the Na'vis reluctance to relocate.

This being a James Cameron film, things are not as they seem. Through the Na'vi avatars, the human pilots see life from the Na'vi people's benign and nature-loving perspective. And Jake especially connects with them.

But, before Jake reaches such a compassionate stage, as filmdom's dramatic device dictates, he is just a grunt for hire and in doing his soldierly duties, he feeds back intelligence to the corporation about whatever he learns about the Na'vi. Such information in the hands of the corporation, of course, spells doom for the alien species. Only thanks to the Na'vi-friendly Dr Grace's expert manoeuvering, Jake slowly begins to see and understand the fantastic relationship the Na'vis share with their land.

Into this bowl, writer-director Cameron throws the ingredients that include an interspecies romance, the already mentioned ruthless colonel, the heartless capitalist, a compassionate scientist and a courageous hero, and he sets the Hollywood Kitchen Aid mixer on an "are-you-insane" spin, resulting in a volatile mix of action an adventure. Simply unforgettable stuff!

As is his style, Cameron does not stinge when it comes to effects or details. Audiences are given a thorough sampling of the Na'vis' life philosophy, better than a National Geographic or Discovery channel programme ever could. Their oneness with the world they inhabit is mind-expanding and the way they are built to connect with everything around them is mind-blowing. Their love for nature is very Indian -- Red Indian as well as Asian Indian! (Indians on the subcontinent and in the global diaspora, as you would already know, revere animals and trees.)

The way the planet is organically linked is also impressive -- with roots of trees not only holding everything on and in the ground together but also stringing airborne chunks of Pandora's landmass in a state of connectedness.

The special effects in Avatar, needless to say are out of this world. Things that you or I could never have imagined are depicted in realistic three dimensionality on the screen. The plants, the animals, the terrain -- everything is exceptionally done, rendered and delivered. And these are not offered as quick glimpses but fully orchestrated and visually satiating scenes and sequences.

The way the story folds out is classic Cameron stuff: the premise is clearly laid out, the details are lucidly spelt out, the logic extremely sound and top quality performances are expertly harnessed from the actors.

The multilayered-relevance of this film (it could be a parable for the American invasion of Iraq for oil and Colonel Miles could double up for the Blackwater guards, or to cast your minds back a few centuries earlier in human history, it even reflects the European invasion and annihilation of the South American civilisations hundreds of years ago) makes Avatar perfect and resonant for the time we live in now.

Cameron poignantly delves into the many modes that the human mind works on: the desire for profit, the pursuit of materialsim, the need to defend the weak, the desire to be compassionate and maintain our humanity, the powerful intuitions to obey rules and to break rules.

Worthington is stellar as a soulful man and Weaver is a delight to watch. My favourite actress Michelle Rodriguez gives a memorable performance, as usual.

A visual wizard if there ever was one, the way Canada-born Cameron expertly alternates between reality and computer wizardry will come as no surprise to his ardent fans. His direction is flawless here.

At the end of this amazing work of silverscreen magic and art, you wonder whether you were actually James Cameron's avatar? Or, was the movie your avatar?"

SAM WORTHINGTON -- AUSTRALIAN SUPERNOVA

Terminator Salvation has now introduced a supernova screen talent, Sam Worthington, onto the public psyche. I could go on and on -- but in keeping with 32-year old Worthington's elegant and refined performance in Terminator Salvation, it suffices to say that this Aussie is one of the biggest talent working in Hollywood today. He blew away all his co-stars in terms of cinematic stature, even Terminator Salvation's lead actor Christian Bale.

AND Sam Worthington is going to go places as you have never seen him in his two upcoming movies, James Cameron's Avatar and the remake of The Clash of the Titans!








Photos of Sam Worthington:
1. Sam Worthington and James Cameron picture from http://fumingpew.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/james-cameron-avatar-sam.jpg
2. Sam Worthington in Clash of the Titans picture from http://www.daemonsmovies.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/clash_ofthe_titans_sam_worthington1-500x333.jpg
3. Sam Worthington photo from http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2007-01-08-cameron-avatar_x.htm
4. Sam Worthington photo in Terminator Salvation from http://mos.totalfilm.com/images/i/its-sam-worthingtons-film-630-75.jpg
5. Sam Worthington photo at Terminator Salvation premiere from http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/2009/05/17/2009-05-17_terminator_salvations_sam_worthington_hell_be_back__he_hopes.html

ANYONE KNOW WHAT'S THE LATEST WITH AVATAR?

I am a big fan of everything that James Cameron directs. I'm curious about what he has in store for us in his latest film AVATAR. I bet it will again rewrite the rules of making films and take special effects and the art of story telling to ever greater heights. Everything he has touched has made for superlative cinematic experiences.

Anyone know what this aging genius has in store for all of us?

Photo caption: An incarnation of Midas, anyone? (Just so long as he does not touch humans! hahahaha!)
Photo credit: Getty Images