Here’s a look at the big winners and losers of the evening.

Oscar Contenders

Winners: “The Artist” and The Descendants”
Both films are likely to be major Oscar contenders, and both left the Globes with renewed momentum. “The Artist” collected awards for best comedy or musical, best actor (Jean Dujardin) and best score. Meanwhile, “The Descendants” collected two awards: best actor in a drama (George Clooney) and best drama. Their wins likely foreshadow their future success at the Academy Awards and could lead to more moviegoers checking out these two smaller films.

Losers: “Moneyball” and “The Ides of March”
Despite the fact that it was nominated for four awards, “Moneyball” walked home with zero awards. Even Aaron Sorkin (“The Social Network”), Steve Zaillian (“Schindler’s List”) and Stan Chervin didn’t win for their brilliant screenplay. Woody Allen took home the award for best screenplay for his wonderful comedy, “Midnight in Paris.” “Ides of March,” the political thriller directed and co-written by George Clooney, also went 0-4 during the evening but Clooney didn’t leave the show empty-handed (see winners).

Acceptance Speeches:

Winner: Michelle Williams (“My Week with Marilyn”)
Michelle Williams took home the award for best actress in a comedy or musical for her wonderful performance in “My Week with Marilyn.” Williams, who deserves an Oscar for her portrayal of Marilyn Monroe, gave an excellent and heartfelt acceptance speech. She thanked her family and noted that she considers herself “a mother first and an actress second.” She also showed her distinct humility by talking about how thankful she was that the Hollywood foreign press put in “my hands the same award that Marilyn Monroe won” more than 50 years earlier.

Loser: Meryl Streep (“The Iron Lady”)
Yes, Streep walked out with the award for best actress in a drama for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady,” but her speech was a mess. For some of it, her words were bleeped out and the other parts weren’t much better as she attempted to name all of the other nominees in her category. Plus, conservatives were outraged on Twitter afterwards because Streep didn’t thank the Iron Lady herself, Margaret Thatcher. Streep did, however, thank the people of England who “let me tramp all over their history,” an odd note to strike when talking about portraying their nation’s former prime minister.

Award Show Humor

Winner: Ricky Gervais
One of the most controversial aspects of the Golden Globes was its host. Many predicted he would make a lot of jokes at the expense of the Hollywood stars and starlets in the audience. With celebrities prepared for it this time, the room seemed more comfortable with Gervais’ act and he made a few great pointed jokes about the Globes and the network they aired on. He followed that up by making another joke about Johnny Depp’s film, “The Tourist.” He asked Depp himself if the actor had seen the film, one of the funniest moments of the evening. Depp admitted that he hadn’t.

Loser: Seth Rogen
Rogen, whose film “50/50” garnered two nominations, was one of the presenters at the Golden Globes. Having earned more credibility as a serious actor for his performance in that film, he could have used this opportunity to present himself as a mature actor willing to walk away from his sophomoric past. Instead, he used his turn at the mic to make a lackluster joke about being sexually aroused standing next to Kate Beckinsale.

A few other winners and losers made the night worth watching. The new Showtime series “Homeland” was a huge winner, taking home awards for best drama and best actress in a drama (Claire Danes). Also, Christopher Plummer and Octavia Spencer were big winners as well, taking home the awards for best supporting actor and actress for their work in “Beginners” and “The Help.” In a surprise win, Oscar winner Martin Scorsese  took home the award for best director for “Hugo.” Conservative actor Kelsey Grammer also emerged as a big winner, taking home the award for best actor in a drama for his work on the Starz  drama “Boss.”

However, the ceremony’s highlight for me might have been Morgan Freeman taking home the Cecil B. Demille Award. Speaking eloquently about his career and graciously about presenters Helen Mirren and Sidney Poitier, Freeman was a class act.

It’s not often that an actor is so impressive when he doesn’t have a script, but Freeman seemed genuine and gracious in accepting the award. Watching him speak was the best part of a satisfying but sometimes underwhelming– I still wish Albert Brooks had won for “Drive”– Golden Globes ceremony.

Fellow actor Seth Rogen is sticking up for his “Pineapple Express” co-star, albeit belatedly.

Rogen, most recently seen in “50/50,” contends it’s the producers’ fault when an Oscar host stumbles. And, in the case of Franco’s ill-fated pairing with Anne Hathaway last year, no one could have saved the show from itself, according to comments from Rogen published at MovieLine:

I think when you agree to do something like that, you put a certain amount of faith in the institution, hoping that they’ll take care of you, and I feel like they didn’t [take care of him]. Why hire James Franco and then give him Billy Crystal’s monologue? It was like, “Oh, we’ll hire these young hosts and then we’ll just do the same sh*t we do every f*cking year.” Which to me was really odd. I think they just approached it wrong. They didn’t think it through, and they were way underprepared. I think they hung him out to dry. So I wouldn’t do it unless they hired some better writers [laughs].

Rogen deserves credit for sticking up for a pal, but his logic is ultimately flawed.

Oscar hosts are given a set amount of material they likely can’t change, but they still are responsible for creating a sense of comfort and ease. Billy Crystal isn’t the best Oscar host in recent memory because of his killer punch lines. He’s great because he lets us know he’ll be there to guide us through the long, and often torturous, ceremony. We’re in good hands with Crystal, period.

Franco looked alternately bored and bemused, and that’s hardly the best way to approach the gig.

Most importantly, if Franco didn’t think he could work within the Oscar format he should have politely declined the gig. After all, the actor is pretty busy these days and is hardly wanting for work.

Now, can the movie inspired by his brush with death pull off an Oscar upset?

“50/50,” the serio-comedy starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt in the role inspired by Reiser, didn’t obliterate the box office competition following its Sept. 2011 debut. To date, it’s rake in a modest $34 million, not too shabby for a film revolving around cancer but hardly blockbuster material. And the film’s 93 percent “fresh” rating at RottenTomatoes.com also bodes well for its awards season chances.

But the movie doesn’t have that Oscar feel, and while that’s no critique on the film itself it could matter when it comes time to tally up votes.

Let’s face it. Oscar voters have a very set group of rules when analyzing a film’s chances for awards. Does it feature Meryl Streep, Dame Judi Dench or Clint Eastwood? Is it a biopic of a Very Important Person? Did the film make a splash at Sundance/Cannes? Is there a timely, left-of-center political bent to the proceedings?

Here’s one question no Oscar voter is asking? Does the film co-star Seth Rogen, and does he smoke pot in it?

Will Rogen’s presence, and the atypical approach to the subject of cancer, hurt the movie? It’s a shame if it does, since “50/50″ bullies past the usual mawkish subplots to give us a refreshingly honest look at a young man confronting cancer.

That Reiser not only survived by lived to write “50/50″ makes the film all the more rewarding.

The film’s best Oscar chances may rest with Anjelica Huston’s turn as the lead character’s distraught mother. Huston, who previously won an Oscar for “Prizzi’s Honor,” could use one more meaty scene to help lock up a nomination. But her work here transcends typical parental behavior, making her both a fierce protector of her son and a wounded heart herself.

Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a 27-year-old who lives a healthy lifestyle and has his whole life ahead of him. He enjoys his job as a writer for radio programs and is working towards taking the next step with his girlfriend. When Adam starts to have back problems, he does the right thing and gets it checked out. Adam’s world is completely turned upside down when an unsympathetic doctor tells him he has a rare form of spinal cancer and even after surgery, only has a small chance of survival. The rest of the film takes the audience through Adam’s struggle to fight cancer.

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This movie could have been just a sad, slow-moving story if it weren’t for its star and supporting cast. Seth Rogen successfully plays joking, but well-intentioned best friend, Kyle, who interjects the most hilarious and witty one-liners throughout the film. Anna Kendrick tops her performance from ‘Up in the Air’ taking on the role as the young, awkward, but cute therapist, Katie. Katie is working on getting her doctorate by ‘practicing’ patient therapy and Adam is one of her first patients. Bryce Dallas Howard nails the manipulative but sexy girlfriend, Rachael, and Angelica Huston plays the lovable, worried mother who is scared to death for her son’s life.

**Some Spoilers Ahead**

Since Adam can’t drive, he has to rely on the people around him to get to his treatments. Rachael agrees to help him through everything, although quickly we see she isn’t up for it and their relationship falls to pieces. Kyle tries to cheer him up by getting Adam to concentrate on two things: sex and smoking pot. Things turn sour when Adam’s condition worsens and everyone realizes he could die during surgery.

Gordon-Levitt doesn’t seem too far off from his quirky, nerdy character from ‘(500) Days of Summer’ but as his cancer progresses and the chemo takes over his body we start to see him transform emotionally and physically. He pulls a ‘Demi Moore’ and shaves his head while the camera is shooting. However it’s not just about the shaved head, it’s the way he changes the movement of his whole being as his body submits to the sickness.

Rogen provides some of the best comic relief I have ever seen in a film with such serious subject-matter as this one. The jokes are timed perfectly and Rogen is fantastic at delivering them. He and Gordon-Levitt work impeccably well together onscreen and the depth to their relationship doesn’t come out until much later in the film. The relationship is relatable to anyone who has struggled with the fact that someone they love is undergoing cancer.

And perhaps no one is cast better in this film than Angelica Huston who plays Adam’s mother just beautifully. Her role in the movie is small, but it is key to its success. Her performance itself is heartbreaking enough that it makes you want to reach through the screen and hug her.

I can’t remember the last time I had a full mix of emotions while watching a film in the theatre. ‘50’50’ is light and dark, but it’s casual enough for a fun night of entertainment. ‘50/50’ is one of the best films of 2011.

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As the story begins, Adam (Gordon-Levitt) spends his days working for a public radio station. Adam’s best friend is the immature but likeable Kyle (Seth Rogen) and he’s dating a beautiful girl named Rachael (Bryce Dallas Howard). Everything is going well for the young idealist until he visits his doctor and complains about the back pain and the night sweats that he’s been experiencing.

The routine visit becomes something more when the doctor tells Adam that he has cancer. The scene where Adam is informed of the illness shows the way Adam faces his diagnosis. The world around him becomes blurry and he can barely hear the doctor talking to him anymore. He shouldn’t have cancer, he thinks. He’s too young.

His chances of survival, as the title suggests, are 50/50.

From then on, the film is driven by his crew of supporting characters. There is a gentleness in the way the story handles them and their personal flaws. Rachael, for instance, is presented as a fully-dimensional character despite the predictable mistakes that she makes as the girlfriend of a cancer patient.

The relationship between the couple, which would have been managed incorrectly in a lesser film, is well-done here. After the diagnosis, Adam offers Rachael a way out of the relationship. Dating someone with cancer wasn’t part of the bargain, he figures, so he tells her that there would be no hard feelings if she walked away. She doesn’t and the honorable, though disappointing, actions that she takes to cheer him up show her affection for him. Down the line, she makes mistakes (including not driving him to cancer treatments) but her character never feels like the villain. She’s a normal woman who makes some terrible decisions. Her humanity shines through in a scene near the story’s end where the couple converse with each other on his front porch.

Casting is particularly important in a story like this. With characters in the foreground, director Jonathan Levine relies on a group of young, solid actors to bring the story to life. Gordon-Levitt is well suited for the main role but the supporting cast is nearly impeccable as well. Anna Kendrick, as Adam’s self-conscious therapist, and Rogen, who comes across as pompous in some of his other films, create identifiable and insecure characters who are just trying to help Adam through his disease. Anjelica Huston, who plays Adam’s mother, also does well in her small but unforgettable role as Adam’s mother.

“50/50″ is written by Will Reiser, who battled cancer himself. The film is inspired by his own story. Because of Reiser’s own experiences, the story feels honest showing us Adam through the stages of his disease. From the way that Adam’s fellow cancer patients introduce themselves (with their first name and then the type of cancer that they have) to the way that Adam judges his own looks after shaving his head (“I look like Voldermort”), “50/50″ rings true.

For audiences looking for a great movie with strong characters, there’s nothing risky about betting on “50/50.”

“RUNAWAY SLAVE” NEEDS YOUR HELP–

How’s that for a headline!

The folks behind “Tea Party: The Documentary Film” have started a new project with C.L. Bryant, a one-time NAACP leader who saw the light and moved to the right. The concept sounds fascinating:

Follow C.L. as he traces the footsteps of runaway slaves through the Underground Railroad.  He travels into the heart of Black communities across the US  from the slave ports of New Orleans to Chicago’s Cabrini Green to Martin Luther King’s birthplace, Atlanta, on to Jefferson’s Monticello; the film explores how 95% support of the Democratic Party has impacted the Black community.

You can learn more about the film, see the trailer, and choose to support the film here. Well worth a look.

–MICHAEL RAPAPORT TO STAR IN NEW HBO COMEDY–

For my money, Michael Rapaport is one of the most under-used and under-appreciated actors out there. He’s loaded with a personality that pops off the screen, has his own comedic sensibility, and is a very good actor.

It’s always good news when Rapaport is attached to something and if you want to know when I became a fan, check out the 1996 masterpiece “Beautiful Girls” — an amazing ensemble comedy directed by the late, great Ted Demme  and co-starring a young Natalie Portman at her most charming. The dialogue is quotable, the themes mature, and Rapaport steals every scene he’s in.

–“GREEN LANTERN 2″ COMING SOON?–

A movie no one liked that underperformed at the box office is worthy of serious talk surrounding another.

Why not make New Coke 2?

Hollywood, however, can’t let go of a brand name or concept. There are so few  of those and even fewer original ideas, so something like an expensive flop isn’t going to dissuade anyone from pushing forward.  

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LAST NIGHT’S SCREENING

The Green Hornet (2011): This is where Netflix is dangerous. The service is so cheap (until next month) you end up taking chances you normally wouldn’t, and boy did I pay for that luxury last night.

This isn’t even a movie. It’s an ego-boost for Seth Rogen who apparently thought a nonsensical plot wrapped around his “brilliant” improvisational skills would be awesome.

You keep waiting for Rogen’s character to grow up, waiting for that moment when he stops being a jerk-off with  daddy issues and starts to take his responsibilities seriously and like a man as opposed to a man-child. Maybe he does, eventually. I don’t know. I only lasted an hour. The story exhausted me with the forced pointlessness of it all.

What a waste of Edward James Olmos and Christopher Waltz — who delivers the film’s only good scene. His opening confrontation with James Franco is terrific.

Friday night I shut Nic Cage’s putrid “Drive Angry” off after only 15 minutes. As someone who’s ridiculously easy to please when it comes to the motion picture, someone who ALWAYS hung in there to the end, this new trend in movies so bad you can’t finish them is only getting worse.

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TODAY’S QUICK HITS

GOOD CASTING: LAURENCE FISHBURNE TO PLAY PERRY WHITE

PAUL SCHRADER AND BRET EASTON ELLIS TEAM UP. SHOULD BE INTERESTING.

‘PET SEMATARY’ REMAKE? I WANT TO PLAY.

CHRISTIAN TOTO ASKS A GOOD QUESTION. HOW MUCH?

TRYING TO CARE. FAILING.

WELL, THAT’S A RELIEF.

THREE REELS OF HITCHCOCK’S EARLIEST FILM FOUND

COULD “BREAKING BAD” LEAVE AMC FOR SEASON 5?

“RAYMOND” REUNION COMING TO “THE MIDDLE”

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CLASSIC PICK FOR THURSDAY AUGUST 4, 2011

TCM:

2:00 AM  EST: Lost Horizon (1937) –  Four fugitives from a Chinese revolution discover a lost world of peace and harmony. Dir: Frank Capra Cast:  Ronald Colman, Jane Wyatt, Edward Everett Horton. BW-133 mins, TV-G, CC.

Superb adaptation with an unforgettable final scene that lingers long after the film ends. Not one of Frank Capra’s best known films, but certainly one of his best. The story holds your attention from beginning to end and the cast is first-rate — as is the production design. 

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Please send tips/suggestions/requests to jnolte@breitbart.com

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Screenwriters Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger are back from KFP, and bring audiences a fun story with a similar flow to the first. KFP 2 is a natural progression in the life and times of Po, and Jennifer Yuh, the head of story and supervisor of action sequences from the first film, was the natural choice to take the series to the next level. She does so with more action, and solid backstory, while keeping the film as light-hearted as the original. 

There’s even more play on the characters’ animal nature in KFP 2, from a hilarious “revelation” scene when the panda Po finds out that – surprise – his goose father adopted him, to the Soothsayer goat (Michelle Yeoh) stereotypically trying to eat Lord Shen’s cloak and Mantis (Seth Rogen) waxing eloquent about his hopes for a future when he can settle down with a praying mantis wife who will ultimately eat his head off. 

The vocal performances in KFP 2 are all solid, with Jack Black’s Po leading the way, supported by a strong Gary Oldman as Lord Shen and Angelina Jolie as Tigress. Martial arts experts play many of the supporting roles, packing the film with a great conglomeration of action and Kung Fu film stars, including Jean-Claude Van Damme, Jackie Chan, Lucy Liu and Yeoh. 

Substantially, the film moves Po beyond the atrocities that Lord Shen committed against his family, and shows that facing your past and reconciling with it brings inner peace. Additionally, Po sees his adopted father as his real one in a touching moment at the end of the film. The Soothsayer goat is a little odd, but not too dark, and fits the film’s Eastern nature. 

Aside from that, KFP 2 is more of the same from DreamWorks and Jack Black, but after KFP, who wants anything different?

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“The Green Hornet” tells the story of Britt Reid (Seth Rogen), a young playboy whose father James (Tom Wilkinson) runs a major newspaper. “Trying doesn’t matter when you always fail,” James advises Britt early in the story, so Britt stops trying and starts wasting his life. While James spends his time trying to fight corruption in his newspaper’s editorials, Britt spends his time partying and sleeping with beautiful women.

As the story continues, James dies suddenly and Britt decides to vandalize the statue erected for his father. He enlists the assistance of Kato (Jay Chou), a former employee of his father who has a knack for making a delicious cup of coffee. Kato is Britt’s seemingly only friend and the two work together to destroy the statue. Afterward, they witness a crime occurring and they confront a group of thieves. Kato starts fighting all of the members of the group and quickly knocks them to the ground.  

Kato, who had previously served as James’s mechanic, turns out to be a great fighter. In one of the movie’s most clichéd turns, Kato has amazing acrobatic abilities that Britt hadn’t been aware of previously. Kato comes from the lame school of sidekicks who are undervalued in their regular jobs but who are secretly amazing athletes who can fight gangs of people when given the opportunity. (I wonder if he puts that on his resume.)

Eventually, criminal mastermind Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz) watches as his crime empire begins to suffer with the Green Hornet and his sidekick in town. In typical villainous fashion, he vows to find the Green Hornet and kill him.

Since its release a few weeks ago, “The Green Hornet” has done well at the box office. Unfortunately, the story isn’t worth the film’s box office success.  Aside from the James Franco cameo, this story is one disappointment after another.

The entire movie feels like it’s been written by young fanboys wanting to make a movie about their favorite crime fighter. It comes as no surprise that the movie was written by Seth Rogen, the film’s star, and Evan Goldberg, who helped write “Superbad” and “Pineapple Express.” Rogen and Goldberg have written humorous stories, before but there are very few jokes in “The Green Hornet” that actually work. Added to that, the action sequences are over the top and unbelievable.

None of the characters are even interesting to watch, including Cameron Diaz who appears as Britt’s assistant. Even Christoph Waltz, who was so memorable in his Oscar-winning role as the villain in “Inglourious Basterds” has a  forgettable role  as a villain with self-confidence issues. I only wish that the arrogant villain played by Franco could have hung around longer and actually proved a challenging foe for the Green Hornet.

It should be noted that “The Green Hornet” is being released in 3D. The film features one enjoyable scene where the 3D effects are well-used but other than that, the effect is mostly wasted in this tiresome story.

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If you’re going to criticize the trailer, please watch your words carefully. Jay Chou co-stars as Kato, which means Entertainment Weekly’s Owen Gleiberman might brand you a racist for not gushing over “The Green Hornet.”

Funny People showed much less audience draw than the great majority of Apatow’s and actor Adam Sandler’s previous efforts, and its failure to connect big with audiences cannot be blamed on any recent disappointments. Apatow’s Knocked Up and Sandler’s Bedtime Stories were both excellent films that did very well at the box office.

The magnitude of the disappointment for the Funny People writer-director and its star was summed up well by Reuters:

* This will likely be the eighth straight movie that Apatow produced that failed to top $100 million. (“Step Brothers” and “You Don’t Mess With the Zohan,” the latter of which he also wrote, just reached the mark but didn’t surpass it.)

* Opening weekend has been a hallmark of Apatow in his robust years. But only two of these past eight films opened to at least $30 million — after the three previous pictures all did.

* This month marks exactly two years since Apatow Prods. had a bona fide breakout along the lines of a “Talladega Nights” or “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” — the Greg Mottola-directed “Superbad,” which earned $121 million.

* After “Virgin” and “Knocked Up,” Apatow was touted for his rare ability to bring overseas audiences to U.S. comedies. That was then, this is now. Outside of “Zohan,” none of his previous seven pictures have topped $150 million internationally. “Funny People” isn’t likely to change that.

I haven’t yet seen the film, but it seems likely that this is a misstep on Apatow’s part and not a portent of inevitable things to come. It’s always tempting for comedians to attempt overtly serious projects, but Funny People is nothing like Woody Allen’s lugubrious and overwrought Interiors.It’s clear that Apatow tried to be funny in this film, and the inclusion of serious themes is certainly in line with the other films he has directed, The Forty-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up.

Sandler, of course, has done films such as Punch-Drunk Love and Spanglish but always managed to get back to what he does best. Both Sandler and Apatow have exemplified the contemporary habit of conveying positive ideas and moral messages through works of culture employing vulgar and trashy surface elements. The shortcoming of Funny People was an evident failure to assure audiences that the vulgarity and messages would be placed in an enjoyable dramatic and comic context.

That suggests that Funny People is more of a bump in the road for both filmmakers, and that they’ll both be able to move forward from the relative disappointment of their current film. However, the trailers and other publicity for their next project will have to make it clear that it offers audiences the same sort of enjoyment and edification their previous films have given.

Filmmakers in general must learn that vulgarity, explicit sexual content, absurd story lines, mad violence, and the like are not what appeal to most of their audience film-goers attend movies with such content because of the other good things in the films, specifically the positive messages and aesthetic enjoyment to be found behind the trashy surface nonsense. Emphasizing the former is the way to both artistic and audience success.

In a culture that openly celebrates vulgarity, mistaking it for authenticity, it’s difficult for artisans and audiences alike to see what really makes for good culture, including good popular culture. But the market sends strong signals, and filmmakers and other culture-makers do well to listen and learn.