Golden Globes: Winners Shine, Show Falters

The recent Golden Globe Awards honored credible winners such as Paul Thomas Anderson's "One Battle" and Chloe Zhao's "Hamnet." These selections, along with wins for Teyana Taylor and Jessie Buckley, reflected a shift towards recognizing critical favorites over pure star power, a departure from the show's past. The new ownership dramatically revamped the voting pool, aiming for greater legitimacy.

This new roster of 399 international critics, with nearly 90% based outside the U.S., influenced nominations, featuring more non-English language films. While international films didn't dominate the wins, this shift signaled a new direction. The telecast, however, felt disjointed, attempting to recapture past looseness while striving for newfound credibility, resulting in awkward moments and new, less impactful categories.

Despite the internal changes, the TV categories closely mirrored Emmy results, showing little divergence. The telecast's attempt at reinvention appeared clunky and frantic, with minimal surprises. While the winners were largely justified, the overall show failed to resonate, leaving questions about its future appeal and its impact on subsequent awards like the Oscars.