Christopher Nolan’s brooding epic – making it the most decorated film of the night. But Greta Gerwig’s hot pink hitBarbieclaimed only two wins.
Margot Robbie and the entire Barbie crew scooped only two awards at the Globes. Was the film snubbed,or should we have seen it coming?AP
And while the best picture awards,separated into best drama and best comedy or musical,seemed made for Barbenheimer,Barbie was beat out by Yorgos Lanthimos’ feminist take on Frankenstein,.
Adding insult to injury,Australia’s darling Margot Robbie left empty-handed,having been pipped byPoor Things once again (Emma Stone in a comedy or musical for her portrayal of the toddler-like Bella Baxter).
It was a relatively disappointing result for the most-nominated production –Barbie received nine nods whileOppenheimer received eight – especially considering its and its apparent ability to.
So,was it snubbed,or should we have seen this coming? And what could this mean forBarbie’s chances at the Oscars in March?
Australians have won big at this year's Golden Globes,with all three of our nominees taking home a gong.
Should we have expected this?
Barbie wasn’t the only film to miss out at the Globes.,directed by Bradley Cooper,and Celine Song’s emotional romantic drama left with nothing. But the expectations around Gerwig’s comedy seemed different.
Since its release in July 2023,Barbie has made over $2 billion worldwide,making it the highest-grossing film of last year. dressed in glittery pink outfits,Sydney’s Icebergs pool was decked out with aBarbie decal and Barbiecore took over most major fashion runways. All of a sudden,it really was a Barbie world.
For this reason,American trade publications includingVariety predicted the potential continuation of Barbenheimer fever,reporting both films could claim best picture in their respective genres,and thatBarbie could snatch awards for its screenplay and Ryan Gosling’s “Ken-ergy”. Our also predicted a golden night for the Warner Bros. film.
Greta Gerwig missed out on best comedy/musical,best screenplay and best director at the 81st Golden Globes.AP
But alas,it only walked away (flat-footed) with prizes for best original song and the box office achievement award – a vaguely conceived new category that left many viewers puzzled over its intention. The “flashier” awards,such as best director,best screenplay,best actor/actress and best picture eluded it.
On the surface,it appears to be a major snub. However,award shows have never purported to honour the most popular films of the year.
The winners are,of course,reflections of the judges and their values,and in the case of the Golden Globes that’s critics and journalists. And it’s safe to say critics did not warm toBarbie quite as much as the average viewer.
This masthead’s:“The film is buoyed by jokes,yet heavy with speeches,bright with fantastical dazzle,but dulled by its real-world sequences,which,in comparison with Barbieland,look and feel perfunctory.”
Others expressed similar gripes,such as theVulture critic,who described it as “defensive” and “emotionally inert”. Though most reviews praised Robbie and Gosling’s performances,as well as the cartoonish set design and Gerwig’s self-aware script (written alongside her husband,Noah Baumbach),most reached the same conclusion:it was ultimately a film produced to serve a brand:Mattel.
Considering journalists and critics vote on the awards, Barbie’s underperformance might not be that surprising. And though the Globes have long been considered the slightly less serious sister of the Oscars,one look at the this year (many of which are arthouse features,such asPoor Things orAnatomy of a Fall) indicates it wishes to adopt a more critical and less mainstream approach.
Have other films suffered a similar fate?
Some of the most successful films in history have faced similar losses at major award shows,meaningBarbie is,at least,in good company.
Steven Spielberg’sThe Colour Purple (1985) was nominated for five Globes,but only took home one for Whoopi Goldberg’s performance as Celie Johnson. It lost to Sydney Pollack’sOut of Africa,which has largely been consigned to history.
Leonardo DiCaprio and Daniel Day Lewis in 2002’s Gangs of New York.Supplied
The Godfather Part III (1990) faced disappointment at the Globes in 1991,claiming zero prizes from seven nods. A few years later,another crime hit,Martin Scorsese’sGangs of New York (2002),ended the night with just one win – best director – out of five nominations,including best picture which controversially went to Roman Polanski’sThe Pianist.
Other films have struggled to rake in awards later in the season,such as crime-thrillerThe Shawshank Redemption (1994),which won no Oscars despite being nominated for seven. More recently,Scorsese’sThe Wolf of Wall Street (2013) completely missed out on its five nominations.
What could this mean forBarbie at the Oscars?
Short of finding an oracle,it’s practically impossible to determine how a particular film will perform at an awards show. At times,the Globes have provided a relatively handy snapshot of films that will snatch Academy Awards,but at other times,it has gone in an entirely different direction.
American Hustle won three Globes,but no Oscars.Supplied
For example,Scorsese’s crime thrillerThe Departed (2006) only won one Globe (best director) out of six nominations,but won four of its five nominated awards at the Oscars. Similarly,Mel Gibson’s war epicBraveheart (1995) won only best director at the Globes in 1996,but scooped five Oscars a few months later.
Some Oscar contenders weren’t even featured at the Globes. The westernTrue Grit (2010) was nominated 10 times at the Oscars,but didn’t get a single Golden Globe nomination. In the end,it didn’t win any Oscars either.
It can,of course,also go in the other direction.The Colour Purple won a Globe,but was completely snubbed at the Oscars despite its 11 nods. David O. Russell’sAmerican Hustle (2013) won three Globes,including best comedy or musical,but its 10 Academy Award nominations came to nothing.
This is all to say that the Oscars could either beBarbie’s redemption or just further disappointment. Could Robbie still become “Oscar-winner Barbie”? And could Gosling prove that Ken really is capable of more than “just beach”?
They will probably face similar competition as the Globes,notably Stone inPoor Things,Lily Gladstone inKillers of the Flower Moon (who also won a Globe),Robert Downey Jr. inOppenheimer and Robert DeNiro in.
Beating them will be no easy feat,as all elements ofBarbie continue to grapple with that which ultimately brought it down at the Globes:how do you convince critics of the authenticity of your performance when you’re portraying plastic?
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