Golden Globe Musings: Best Director – Motion Picture

Golden Globe nominations for this year will be announced in just a few weeks, so here’s a survey of the contenders and the most likely predictions at this time. Weigh in with your thoughts, and let me know if I’ve left off anything important. A reminder that the Globes are wildly unpredictable and that it is still a bit early to gauge the reception or awards potential of a number of the so-called “contenders” at this point.

Last year’s nominees:
Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist)
Alexander Payne (The Descendants)
Martin Scorsese (Hugo)
George Clooney (The Ides of March)
Woody Allen (Midnight in Paris)

Golden Globe voters like to nominate directors with recognizable names. That’s good news for Ben Affleck (Argo), Steven Spielberg (Lincoln), and Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained). Her previous film could help get Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty) nominated, and two-time winner Ang Lee (Life of Pi) may well be back again too. Other possibilities include Tom Hooper (Les Miserables), Robert Zemeckis (Flight), Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master), and David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook).

Current predictions:
Ben Affleck (Argo)
Tom Hooper (Les Miserables),
Steven Spielberg (Lincoln)
Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained)
Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty)