The film “Mank” arrived this Wednesday at the head of the nominations at the Golden Globes, marked this year by a strong presence of women in the selection of directors and the ever-growing weight of Netflix.
Directed in black and white by David Fincher for Netflix, “Mank” explores the golden age of Hollywood by following screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz, played by Gary Oldman, and Orson’s premiere of the famous film “Citizen Kane” Welles. With six nominations, it is one head ahead of another feature film produced by the video-on-demand platform, “The Chicago Seven” by Aaron Sorkin, nominated in five categories.
The announcement of Golden Globe nominations traditionally signals the start of award season in Hollywood, shaken up this year by the Covid-19 pandemic and the postponement of many big productions.
Netflix, king of selections
The absence of sizes has made as expected the game of feature films from streaming platforms which have visibly benefited from the confinement. Netflix garners 22 selections, against 17 last year, while its competitor Amazon Prime climbs to second place (7 nominations) with a hat-trick for “One Night in Miami” and “Borat 2”. In the running for his portrayal of the fictional Kazakh journalist, Briton Sacha Baron Cohen landed a second nomination for the very serious “The Chicago Seven”.
The 2021 nominations podium is completed by “The Father”, adaptation of the play by Frenchman Florian Zeller with Anthony Hopkins, “Nomadland” by Chloe Zhao and “Promising Young Woman” by Emerald Fennel, with four nominations each.
A feminist thriller set against the backdrop of the #MeToo movement, “Promising Young Woman” stood out with selections in the categories of Best Dramatic Film, Best Director, Screenplay and Best Actress for Carey Mulligan. The latter will find on its way Frances McDormand for “Nomadland” and Viola Davis for “The Blues of Ma Rainey”.
Top directors
Last year, the Globes, awarded by some 90 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, came under heavy criticism for totally snubbing women in the “Best Director” category for a motion picture.
Chloe Zhao, Emerald Fennel and Regina King (“One Night in Miami”) have this year washed away the affront by carving out a place in this category, where they are therefore in the majority alongside David Fincher and Aaron Sorkin. Until this 78th edition, only five women had managed to make their way into this high-profile category.
Nominated series
Foreign films are also grouped into a separate category where “Minari”, which features an American family of Korean origin settling in the countryside, could experience the same success as “Parasite” last year. There is also “Deux”, a love story between two lesbians in their seventies which intelligently oscillates between an intimate film and a thriller, chosen by France to defend its colors at the Oscars.
In the long list of Golden Globe nominations for television, Netflix still dominates head and shoulders with 20 caps against seven to its challenger HBO. The British royal family won with “The Crown” and six nominations, ahead of “Welcome to Schitt’s Creek”.
The awards will be presented on February 28, during a virtual ceremony from Beverly Hills, nearly two months behind the usual schedule but still before the votes for the selection to the Oscars have started.
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“Mank”, “The Crown”, “Borat 2” … the list of nominees for the Golden Globes