Recapping the Golden Globes

I would like to thank the Hollywood Foreign Press — for taking all the fun out of the Golden Globes this year.

As many of you may know, last year’s host Ricky Gervais pushed the envelop with his comedy when it came to his opening monologue. It was harsh ... but it was the harsh truth at that. And it was funny. He was told he wouldn’t be invited back.

Well, he was — to many people’s chagrin. This year, as he approached the podium during his opening monologue, he spoke his best line of the night: “So, where was I? Nervous?” he asked the audience.

Unfortunately, the audience had nothing to worry about.

Gervais’ jokes centered on people he would never come in contact with. His jokes were mediocre and tame, taking jabs at Justin Bieber, Kate Middleton and Kim Kardashian (“The Golden Globes are to the Oscars like Kim Kardashian is to Kate Middleton — bit louder, bit drunker, bit trashier, and more easily bought. Allegedly. Nothing’s been proved.”), Eddie Murphy and Adam Sandler (“Between the two of them, they played all the parts in ‘The Help.’ ”) and NBC, the network the ceremony was aired on (“You get Britain’s first comedian, hosting the second-biggest awards show on America’s third-biggest network”). Easy targets, if you ask me. All thanks to the Hollywood Foreign Press.

If you’re going to invite someone back to host for a third time, there must be a reason. And I would think making people laugh would be one of those. Last year’s audience might have been uncomfortable with Gervais’ risky humor, but at least a large part of the audience was laughing. I can’t say the same for this year’s group.

Overall the night was fairly predictable, as were the recipients of the awards themselves, and the Oscars will surely have the same results, aside from Billy Crystal who will bring his all, as usual, as host. For now, here’s a quick look at who took home the gold this year.

Pleasant surprises

• Christopher Plummer wins Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his role in “Beginners” as Hal, an elderly man who comes out as gay after his wife passes away, only to find out that he has terminal cancer. Plummer has won many awards over his longstanding career, but never a Golden Globe.

• Jessica Lange outdoes Maggie Smith and Evan Rachel Wood, among others, to win the honor for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, for her stint on “American Horror Story.” “American Horror Story” was a risky show, not one likely for nomination. But Lange’s perfect performance as Constance, the next-door neighbor to a house full of ghosts made for an easy win.

• Martin Scorsese takes home Best Director for “Hugo” — a film he said he made at his youngest daughter’s request so that she would be able to see one of her father’s films for once. Keep racking them up Marty.

Unpleasant surprise

• Kelsey Grammar beats Bryan Cranston and Steve Buscemi for Best Actor in a Television Series — Drama. Grammar took the award home for his role in Starz’ “Boss,” after Buscemi won last year for his role in “Boardwalk Empire.” I’m sure Grammar’s performance was superb, as he is a seasoned actor, but Cranston’s performance on this year’s “Breaking Bad” was his best yet, and everyone was abuzz about it — apparently, just not the Hollywood Foreign Press.

• “Bridesmaids” goes home empty handed. It was a longshot for a raunchy, yet well-developed comedy to take home any hardward. Comedies usually get shafted at the elite award shows, and it would have been a nice surprise to see all of Kristin Wiig’s hard work pay off with a win in either of the two categories it was nominated for — Best Supporting Actress — Musical or Comedy (for Wiig), or Best Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy.

No surprise there

• Peter Dinklage of “Game of Thrones” wins Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. He scooped up the Emmy in the fall for the same role, both well-deserved.

• Silent black and white film “The Artist” picks up Best Picture — Comedy or Musical and actor Jean Dujardin wins for Best Actor — Comedy or Musical. It’s nice to see people can still appreciate a great silent film, no matter what day and age.

• “The Descendants” wins Best Picture — Drama, as does its star, George Clooney, for Best Actor — Drama. Director Alexander Payne is a noted director, especially for his previously winning film “Sideways.” It was no surprise that after seven years he came back and won it again.

• Octavia Spencer wins Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her portrayal as outspoken maid Minny Jackson in “The Help.” According to author and longtime friend Kathryn Stockett, Spencer inspired the character of Jackson, who was then cast by mutual friend and director Tate Taylor. Looks like Spencer couldn’t go wrong with a role made — literally — for her.

• Kate Winslet wins for Best Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for HBO’s “Mildred Pierce.” How many awards does she have now? It seems if you’re up against Winslet, you barely have a fighting chance.

Well-deserved wins

• Clair Danes is three for three as she took home the award in the Best Actress in a Television Series — Drama for her role in HBO’s “Homeland.” She first won a Golden Globe at the age of 15 for her role on the TV series “My So-Called Life” and last year she took home another for the television mini-series “Temple Grandin.”

• “Modern Family” wins Best Television Series — Comedy or Musical. Believe it or not, it’s the show’s first Globe win in the three years it’s been nominated. It lost out to “Glee” in the previous two years.

• Morgan Freeman, the man with the golden narrative voice and a prolific film career, is honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award. It’s about time.