Golden Globes Misses the Point, Again

By Claire Ingebretsen

Hey! That was Hillary Clinton's husband!" 

Only Amy Poehler could successfully upstage President Clinton's appearance at the Golden Globes. It was only after the show had moved on to another award that I realized Clinton himself had upstaged the presentation of Steven Spielberg's film, "Lincoln." I suppose the name of the game at the Globes was who was upstaging whom. 

This is not to say that either Clinton or Poehler intentionally upstaged "Lincoln." Rather, their comments pointed out the problem I have with the awards ceremony. By filming the awards, the focus of the ceremony shifts from honoring the nominees and winners to putting on a show.

Presenters of the awards are there to be seen, and heard, for approximately 45 seconds. Just recall Salma Hayek posing as she gamely navigated a teleprompter foul-up. The majority of those celebrities are there to network and sell a product - themselves. Frankly, with all of the cameras pointed at the stage, I was surprised not to see a Kardashian lunge for yet another photo op.

Furthermore, these actors are there to promote not only the work they are nominated for, but also those who have promoted them. The point of the red carpet is for celebrities to publicize the designers who have decked them out in studs and duds.

Nearly all of the victors sheepishly thanked the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for at one point ruining their lives, and now for awarding them with this honor. In fact, after thanking the HFPA herself, Adele went so far as to comment, "I never thought I would be saying that." The hypocrisy of attending an event hosted by an association whom you despise only points to a lack of reflection or caring on the part of the celebrities.

And when it comes to these celebrities accepting their awards, why does it seem like so many actors have such poor public speaking ability? It always strikes me as ironic that these people make a living out of performance art, yet when they are given a mic, they mumble, shrug or otherwise make some nonsensical remarks. Cue Jodie Foster's rambling acceptance speech.

Many of these distracting moments were cut short as Tina Fey and Amy Poehler delivered their highly anticipated performance as co-hosts. From the impersonations of Julianne Moore to quick-witted comments made by Poehler declaring she and Fey were "going home with Jodie Foster," they kept the night professional, positive and reminded us of why they were asked to host in the first place. 

That being said, we have seen both hosts before on television and in movies. Yes, they were fantastic hosts, but they contributed nothing new to the ceremony. Their humor was, as always, on point, but had an air of "been there, done that."

Lastly, I worry that an audience believes a performance is always better on a grand scale. The venue, stage, movie clips, synchronized sound clips and teleprompters all contribute to this fallacy. All of these additions to the ceremony do not enhance the evening - they take away from it. The purpose of the ceremony should be honoring and inspiring other actors and show business folks to aspire to create art on a similar, if not better, level.