Golden Globes 2013: Why was ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’ snubbed?
The Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. gravitates toward particular kinds of movies, and clearly the Golden Globe voters found that “Beasts of the Southern Wild” wasn’t in that realm.
Considered by many award prognosticators a leading contender for a best picture Oscar and a best actress Oscar for young star Quvenzhané Wallis, “Beasts of the Southern Wild” was completely blanked Thursday morning in nominations for the 70th annual Golden Globes, in which Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” led all nominees with seven picks.
The “Beasts” shutout came a day after the movie was passed over by the Screen Actors Guild, which ruled that the film was ineligible for SAG honors because it was produced without an actors’ union contract.
The Globes have long favored showy movies anchored by A-list stars, often nominating critically and commercially scorned titles just because they feature big-name actors. The Globe voters, being from abroad, can also show a penchant for films with international themes over strongly American tales like “Beasts.”
Two seasons ago, Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp’s critical dud “The Tourist,” a European caper, received three Globe nominations. Last season, Madonna’s British-inflected and poorly received “W.E.” was nominated for two Globes -- song and score.
Movies without any big names attached face a much tougher road to Globe glory. “Beasts,” which tells the story of a young girl (Wallis) and her dying father (Dwight Henry) in the Louisiana bayous, not is only nearly experimental in some of its design and execution, but also is populated with non-professional actors. Henry, for example, is a baker, and Wallis, who was 6 years old when the movie was made, had never acted before. All the same, the film is among the year’s best-reviewed movies.
If only “Beasts” had a cameo by George Clooney or Brad Pitt, it might be traveling to the Golden Globes.
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Golden Globe nominations: The complete list
PHOTOS: Golden Globe 2013 Nominations
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