Golden Globe Nominees: Best Motion Picture – Comedy/Musical

My predictions: 4/5
Who’s missing? The Menu, White Noise, Bros

This list is not too surprising, but it does give a big boost to the film I didn’t predict: Triangle of Sadness, which also scored a supporting actress nomination for standout player Dolly De Leon. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, a sequel to a previously-nominated film, also earned just one additional nomination. Babylon did pretty well, picking up four other nominations, while Everything Everywhere All at Once brought in five others. The big winner of the day, however, was The Banshees of Inisherin, which scored in every possible category and even got two bids for supporting actor.

Who will win? I’d like to think that it’s “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” but I’m worried that The Banshees of Inisherin is now the frontunner.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Motion Picture – Drama

My predictions: 3/5
Who’s missing? Women Talking, She Said, The Whale

This category doesn’t include surprises other than the films it’s missed, namely “Women Talking,” which should have been a shoo-in. I’m seeing Avatar: The Way of Water tonight, apparently after Golden Globe voters who were able to enthusiastically acclaim a sequel to a previous winner in this category. Elvis also did well, meriting a directing bid to go with star Austin Butler’s mention. TÁR performed about as expected, while Top Gun: Maverick could have done better and The Fabelmans missed out on an extra acting nomination or two that it could have gotten. That doesn’t leave a clear frontrunner, which at least is interesting.

Who will win? I feel like this will be The Fabelmans but maybe “Avatar: The Way of Water” can win too?

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Director – Motion Picture

My predictions: 3/5
Who’s missing? Sarah Polley (Women Talking), S.S.Rajamouli (RRR)

This is probably the biggest snub of the day and one that’s inexplicable: Polley, who made one of the best films of the year and would have been the only woman nominated in this category had she been included. I recognize that Rajamouli was a major longshot, but I didn’t see Baz Luhrmann (Elvis) coming, though I guess it does make sense. James Cameron (Avatar: The Way of Water) did win this prize back in 2009 for the first film, so I hope to appreciate his second effort when I go see it tonight. The other three were all expected and their films are the nominations leaders: Steven Spielberg (The Fabelmans), Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin), and, most excitingly, Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (Everything Everywhere All at Once).

Who will win? Without Polley in the race, it’s either Cameron or Spielberg.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Screenplay – Motion Picture

My predictions: 4/5
Who’s missing? She Said, The Whale

I’m relieved that at least Women Talking wasn’t snubbed here since it had the most disappointing day of all, missing out on multiple expected acting bids, a director mention, and a top category nomination. The Fabelmans, The Banshees of Inisherin, and Everything Everywhere All at Once all scored nominations for directing also, while TÁR surely came close too based on its overall performance.

Who will win? I think this win goes to The Fabelmans but it could be any of them.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Original Song

My predictions: 4/5
Who’s missing? Love Is Not Love (Bros), Applause (Tell It Like a Woman), many others

I hadn’t remembered which songs I had selected here and was pleased to see that I did so well overall. I’m most thrilled about Naatu Naatu (RRR), which I have a hard time believing wouldn’t win over anyone’s vote after listening to it and all the others. But Hold My Hand (Top Gun: Maverick) and Lift Me Up (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) are both good choices from popular artists – Lady Gaga and Rihanna – and Ciao Papa (Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio) has a particular relevance to its film. It’s interesting to note that there’s only one nominee here that’s the sole representative from its film, Carolina (Where the Crawdads Sing), which also happens to be the only film in this race I have yet to see.

Who will win? I’ll give this one to Hold My Hand.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Original Score

My predictions: 4/5
Who’s missing? Tár, RRR

This category features four films that performed very well overall and one that disappointly didn’t: Women Talking. I’m a big fan of that score and of Babylon, which I’m pleased to see also made the cut. Two of the most-nominated films, The Fabelmans and The Banshees of Inisherin, are here too, as is Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio. I have been and will continue to listen to these scores to get to know them better and decide whether I prefer any of the latter three.

Who will win? I think Babylon wins this.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Foreign Film

My predictions: 2/5
Who’s missing? Bardo (Mexico), EO (Poland), many others

I did much worse than I thought, but I’m not surprised by any of these nominees. It was a risky decision to predict one Korean film, “Hunt,” over the Oscar-eligible favorite, Decision to Leave (South Korea), and I thought Argentina, 1985 (Argentina) and Close (Belgium) would earn Oscar nominations after missing here. All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany) remains the frontrunner in my mind, though it may lose here to an Oscar-ineligible choice that also earned a song nomination, RRR (India).

Who will win? I’ll pick RRR.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Animated Film

My predictions: 4/5
Who’s missing? Lightyear, Wendell and Wild

I was reaching with my hope that “Lightyear” would be included since apparently I’m the only one who loved the film, and there’s just one nominee that did get in that I have yet to see, Inu-oh from GKIDS. I just watched Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, which is a fun inclusion, and Turning Red made the cut, which was hardly a guarantee. The race to the win will likely be between two other well-received projects: Marcel the Shell with Shoes On and Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio, which also received mentions for its score and song.

Who will win? I’ll go with Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture

My predictions: 2/5
Who’s missing? Hong Chau (The Whale), Jessie Buckley (Women Talking), Claire Foy (Women Talking)

This category is pretty disappointing, even if it’s a good world we live in where Kerry Condon (The Banshees of Inisherin) is a shoo-in. I’m shocked by the omission of both “Women Talking” actresses and thought Chau was on track for a nomination too, while Carey Mulligan (She Said) showed up as the lone representative of her film. I’m all for Dolly De Leon (Triangle of Sadness) even though I don’t love the movie, but I’m frustrated by the fact that Jamie Lee Curtis (Everything Everywhere All at Once) is here over her costar Stephanie Hsu. Angela Bassett (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) is a bit of a surprise given that no performers from the first film got nominated, but it’s a good mention and she is a very strong actress.

Who will win? Without the presumed frontrunners, I’ll bet on Condon to win this.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture

My predictions: 3/5
Who’s missing? Paul Dano (The Fabelmans), Ben Whishaw (Women Talking)

This category boasts two very surprising omissions given that “The Fabelmans” did do very well overall, while “Women Talking” was very unfortunately snubbed in all the major races. Eddie Redmayne (The Good Nurse) showed up for a performance that I don’t think needs to be here, while Brad Pitt (Babylon) merited a nomination that likely won’t translate to Oscar attention. Barry Keoghan (The Banshees of Inisherin) managed to join his expected costar Brendan Gleeson (The Banshees of Inisherin), providing some in-film competition that may benefit the final nominee in this race, Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All at Once).

Who will win? I think Quan will be able to beat Gleeson.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy/Musical

My predictions: 5/5
Who’s missing? No one major!

It’s nice to get a perfect score, and this is the only category in which I pulled that off. I just watched Lesley Manville (Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris) and expected her to be a double nominee today, but she didn’t manage a supporting bid for “The Crown.” The other lone nominee is Emma Thompson (Good Luck to You, Leo Grande), a great inclusion who I’m glad wasn’t snubbed. Anya Taylor-Joy (The Menu) is here with her costar Ralph Fiennes even though her film didn’t make the top category. Margot Robbie (Babylon) is a great choice and her film did very well, though not quite as well as Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once), the surest nominee in this race to head on to the Oscars.

Who will win? It could be Robbie, but I think Yeoh is safe.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy/Musical

My predictions: 4/5
Who’s missing? Billy Eichner (Bros)

This category isn’t really surprising at all, though it’s a shame that Eichner or his film couldn’t show up since they would have been fun choices. Ralph Fiennes (The Menu) was the nominee I didn’t predict, but he got in and not the film. Only Adam Driver (White Noise) is here on his own, and I’m all for it since it was an extremely entertaining performance in an often unfocused film. Daniel Craig (Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery) is back for the second time for this role, and he’s joined by a newcomer, Diego Calva (Babylon), and a returning winner, Colin Farrell (The Banshees of Inisherin), whose film bested all others with a whopping eight nominations.

Who will win? Unless Calva’s film sweeps, it’s going to be Farrell.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama

My predictions: 3/5
Who’s missing? Danielle Deadwyler (Till), Naomi Ackie (I Wanna Dance with Somebody)

This category brings one of the day’s most unfortunate omissions in the form of Deadwyler, who I had thought was safe, while Ackie wasn’t included presumably because voters didn’t have a chance to see the movie (I also have not yet). It shouldn’t be too much of a surprise to see Ana de Armas (Blonde) here, and that’s one of three films total that I now need to see as a result of today’s nominations. Olivia Colman (Empire of Light) also made the cut despite her film missing out in all other categories, and the same was true for Viola Davis (The Woman King). The other two are in much better company, with Michelle Williams (The Fabelmans) in the most-nominated drama movie and Cate Blanchett (TÁR) in the film tied for next in line.

Who will win? This feels like it should be safe for Blanchett with Deadwyler out of the running.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama

My predictions: 3/5
Who’s missing? Tom Cruise (Top Gun: Maverick), Paul Mescal (Aftersun)

It wasn’t too smart to assume that both Hugh Jackman (The Son) and Bill Nighy (Living) would be left out, those it’s worth noting that neither film scored any other nominations. An expected surge of enthusiasm didn’t help Cruise’s film, which scored two mentions, and all the independent energy around Mescal’s also didn’t materialize into anything with this awards body. And I’m sad about the underperformance of my top film of the year, but at least Brendan Fraser (The Whale) did get in here. Another bright spot is Jeremy Pope (The Inspection), also representing his film all on his own. The fifth nominee, Austin Butler (Elvis), saw his film do much better, and he may be the frontrunner now as the only one whose film has any degree of other support with this awards body.

Who will win? At this point, I’m picking Butler, though I’d of course love for it to be Fraser.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Motion Picture – Comedy/Musical

My predictions: 4/5
Who’s missing? On the Rocks, Emma, The King of Staten Island

Technically, this category is close to what I predicted, but I’m still reeling from the shock of Music, a film directed by Sia that’s slated for release next week in IMAX for a night and then on VOD. It’s just a wholly unexpected inclusion, but I’m looking forward to seeing it. I’m sad that “The King of Staten Island” isn’t here and would have much preferred “On the Rocks” to The Prom, which doesn’t need to be here. I’m overjoyed that Palm Springs made the cut since that did not feel like a sure thing. Hamilton scored even though it’s questionably a movie, and Borat Subsequent Moviefilm did the best out of all the comedies with two acting bids.

Who will win? Though “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” could win this, I expect that it will go to Hamilton.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Motion Picture – Drama

My predictions: 4/5
Who’s missing? One Night in Miami, Da 5 Bloods, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, News of the World

This category didn’t offer up much in the way of surprises, with The Father being the only film to show up here without a corresponding director nomination. The film that missed out as a result was “One Night in Miami,” which still scored three nominations, while “Da 5 Bloods,” which was predicted by many, got shut out entirely. I don’t know if that will continue to be the case with SAG and the Oscars, but I’d say we have firm frontrunners in the other four. I’m personally very happy since my three favorite films of the year - Promising Young Woman, The Trial of the Chicago 7, and Mank - are all here. I also like both “The Father” and Nomadland, so this is a pretty solid list. They’re also all nominations leaders, the only films to score four or more bids. It will be interesting to see what wins here because I’m not sure that any one film is particularly ahead of the rest.

Who will win? I’m going to predict The Trial of the Chicago 7 for now.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Director – Motion Picture

My predictions: 5/5
Who’s missing? Florian Zeller (The Father), Lee Isaac Chung (Minari), Spike Lee (Da 5 Bloods)

I’m proud to have predicted this category accurately, one of just two perfect scores for me this year. It’s a major first to have more than one female nominee in this category, and this time there are actually three! I did guess correctly that Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman) would be embraced along with her film, and Chloé Zhao (Nomadland) was a sure thing given her domination of critics’ prizes this season. It seems like Regina King (One Night in Miami) may have gotten in partially on her own reputation as an actress and a known quantity since her film was strangely absent from the Best Motion Picture – Drama and screenplay races. Despite not factoring in as emphatically as they could have to the precursor races, Aaron Sorkin (The Trial of the Chicago 7), a two-time Globe winner in the category, and David Fincher (Mank), the only past nominee (and winner) for directing, did make the cut.

Who will win? I might have said King if her film had performed better, so I’ll say Zhao has it in the bag.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Screenplay – Motion Picture

My predictions: 4/5
Who’s missing? One Night in Miami, Minari

If I had to guess which of the films I had predicted would be left off, it certainly wouldn’t be “One Night in Miami,” but for some reason that’s absent from this list. I had predicted that this list would match the Best Motion Picture – Drama field exactly, which it did, though I didn’t think that The Father would be one of those choices. This is first time in thirty years that such a match-up has happened between the two categories. I’m happy that Promising Young Woman made the cut because it was not a sure thing, and this only helps to bolster the general awards chances, both with this group and elsewhere, for the other three, Nomadland, Mank, and The Trial of the Chicago 7. It’s the kind of boost that “Minari” could have used.

Who will win? I suspect this could be Aaron Sorkin for The Trial of the Chicago 7.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Original Song

My predictions: 3/5
Who’s missing? Plenty of contenders

I haven’t had a chance to listen closely to these songs or many others, though I am sad that no music from “Over the Moon” made the cut. Interestingly, every film honored here boasts at least one other nomination, which isn’t always the case at all. Speak Now (One Night in Miami), Hear My Voice (The Trial of the Chicago 7), and Io Si (The Life Ahead) were the three I predicted, with Fight for You (Judas and the Black Messiah) and Tigress and Tweed (The United States vs. Billie Holiday) also making the cut. I’ll have more analysis on the musicians involved and the songs in general in my winner predictions – click the titles to listen to the songs on YouTube!

Who will win? I’m not sure, but I’ll pick Spirit for now.

Golden Globe Nominees: Best Original Score

My predictions: 3/5
Who’s missing? The Trial of the Chicago 7, Minari, Da 5 Bloods

I don’t have too much to comment here at this point but plan to listen to these scores as often as I can in the coming weeks. Soul managed to make the cut despite their not being a history of animated films nominated in this category, and both The Midnight Sky and Tenet, both expected to do well in technical races at the Oscars, showed up here without any other nominations. Mank helped to secure its nominations lead with a bid here, and News of the World rounds out the list. Lots of listening to do!

Who will win? I’m going to predict Soul.