Oh my stars: Award shows should follow the Golden Globe's model of class

Tweet

In the few weeks after the Golden Globes, thoughts about award shows parade through my mind.
Who decides the winners? Why do we emphasize and award celebrities who are over-paid and publicized? What makes a “thank-you” speech stand out from the usual drawn-out rambles of appreciation and, gasp, shock?

Frankly, I think award shows are either droll or trashy. For instance, the Screen Actors Guild Awards, described by a CNN contributor in the article Awards Season 101 as “not generally known for standout moments.” The SAGs are usually dull; the 2014 awards show held Jan. 18 passed with little buzz in the media.

However, the MTV Video Music Awards are absolutely the opposite.

The best description of this affair is offered on the faces of the Pinkett-Smith family in the photo captured during the August 2013 ceremony, (if one could call it a ceremony.)

I wonder, what of the glamour, grandeur and glory that used to surround these honors?

There is a fine line between straying from the path of traditional and boring shows, and employing cheap tricks to gain an audience. The 2014 Golden Globes impressed me. Amy Poehler and Tina Fey hosted, with the former the first to win an award while hosting, according to Time Magazine Online.

Anyone who has had a class with me at SU knows I’m a Tina Fey fanatic, and if Amy Poehler had brown hair, I would probably obsess over her also. I think I relate better to brunettes since I am one. Regardless, my opinion of the hosts does not impart bias on my opinion of their hosting skills.
For instance, James Franco is brilliant and Anne Hathaway is charming but their 83rd annual Academy Awards hosting left me feeling embarrassed for, and annoyed with, the pair.

Fey and Poehler, who hosted the Golden Globes in 2013 and will repeat at next year’s ceremony, used appropriate humor and subtle jabs at celebrities without getting tacky. In typical style, the duo made light of gender inequality and celeb status without taking jokes too far or getting cheesy.
As for the award-winners, “American Hustle” scored big, with Jennifer Lawrence and Amy Adams taking home globes for winning best musical or comedy.

And finally, Leonardo DiCaprio won in his category, only the second time in nine nominations, over a span of 10 years. Each winner thanked the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for its selection, as the group decides nominees and winners.

Other than that, acceptance speeches were limited by the eye-roll encouraging score introduced to push award winners along; music to any bored listener’s ears.

Interesting speeches were those given under the influence of alcohol, like Cate Blanchett’s intoxicated questioning of the music; can us regular people hear it at home?

The night in a whole was entertaining to watch, but the most revered part of the Golden Globes was the way celebrities felt like “one of us.” Amy Adams mentioned in her speech that she moved out to California with nothing but a dream, and now she’s an award-winning actress.

Ceremonies like this showcase the work of talented individuals with integrity, and honor a classier and more talented brood of celebrities than Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber (or are they the same person now?) and Taylor Swift. (Who was at the Golden Globes, by the way. I have no comment.)

Other award shows should strike the same chord as this, with tasteful humor and without becoming too stale.