Sean Penn drama adds surreal undercurrent to Golden Globes

The annual gala – seen as a good indicator of who might win Oscars glory on Feb 28 – is being hosted for the fourth time by British comedian Ricky Gervais, known for his politically incorrect and off-color jokes.

“Every time I’m up here is because of you”, Lawrence said in her acceptance speech, which focused mainly on Russell. It took less than a minute for Ricky Gervais to poke fun at Sean Penn’s interview with Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman at this year’s telecast.

“I’ve changed. Not as much as Bruce Jenner, now Caitlyn Jenner of course”.

“We’re live on NBC and it’s right that they host the award show because they are always fair and impartial”, Gervais said. Now, I know there was two of them, but it’s not my fault if they want to share the money, is it?

“If you do win tonight, remember that no one cares about the award as much as you do”, he said.

Anyway, Ennio Morricone just won Best Original Score (Motion Picture) for “The Hateful Eight” – another award for a film that’s not performing up to expectations.

Popular TV shows including Game of Thrones, Empire, Mr. Robot, Narcos, and Outlander will compete for the Best Television Series – Drama award. The comic returned to the Golden Globes Sunday night as master of ceremonies for the first time since 2012, but he was as biting and uncomfortable as ever.

Jon Hamm embraced fellow nominees Bob Odenkirk and Liev Schreiber as he was named best actor in a TV series drama for Mad Men. Best limited series went to “Wolf Hall”.

Amazon’s “Mozart in the Jungle”, about backstage battles in New York City’s classical music world, won the Globe for best comedy or musical and its star, Gael Garcia Bernal, won best actor for his role as the conductor Rodrigo De Souza. Gervais said he found that impossible because who would pass up a Golden Globe, “particularly if that film company has already paid for it”.

The talented actress won the 2015 Golden Globe, and is nominated again as Best Actress in a TV musical or comedy series for “Jane the Virgin“. Carol, starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, leads the drama film category with five nominations, while The Big Short leads comedy film category with four nods. Personally, I like Ricky Gervais’s previous work on the Golden Globes, so I’m glad he’s back.