The tragic love story Atonement has been named best drama in Hollywood's Golden Globe awards, announced Sunday evening. Sweeney Todd was named best musical or comedy. Mike O'Sullivan reports, the usually glitzy celebration was reduced to a news conference by the Hollywood writers' strike.
There were no poignant moments and little glamour at the 65th annual Golden Globes. Actors stayed away out of sympathy for striking writers, who walked off the job 10 weeks ago, because of the issue of payment for entertainment that appears on the Internet.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which presents the awards, instead offered a 30-minute news conference to announce the winners.
The World War II romance Atonement was named best drama. The picture was also honored for its original score, but stars James McAvoy and Keira Knightley were passed over for top acting awards. Instead, Daniel Day-Lewis was named best actor in a drama for his role as a ruthless oil prospector in There Will Be Blood.
Julie Christie was named best actress in a drama for her role as woman who suffers from Alzheimer's disease in the sad tale Away From Her.
The film adaptation of the Broadway hit Sweeney Todd was named best musical or comedy and star Johnny Depp was named best actor in that genre for his role as a vengeful barber who kills his customers.
Marion Cotillard won for best actress in a musical or comedy, for depicting the great French singer Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose. Cate Blanchett was named best supporting actress for portraying singer Bob Dylan in "I'm Not There." Blanchett was one of six performers who enacted different aspects of Dylan's life and work.
Spain's Javier Bardem was honored for his supporting role in the crime drama No Country for Old Men, and writer-directors Ethan and Joel Coen won a Golden Globe for the film's screenplay. Julian Schnabel was named best director for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, a French and U.S. production about a paralyzed man who struggles to communicate his rich inner world to those around him. It was also named best foreign-language film.
Ratatouille, a tale of a rat with gourmet tastes, was named best animated film.
Absent from the scaled-back Golden Globes were the top Hollywood stars that had been scheduled to appear, including Julia Roberts, Tom Hanks, Angelina Jolie and George Clooney. The scaled-down format raises questions about the fate of the more prestigious Oscars, which are presented by Hollywood's motion picture academy and are scheduled February 24. Oscar telecast Producer Gil Cates says the show will go on the air in one form or another, but if the writer's strike continues, actors may be also reluctant to attend that event as well.
