Ryan Michaels Gives Golden Globe Predictions, Part One

Hi, my name is Ryan Michaels, signing on from Hawaii, on editor Michelle Rogers' account. Over the past 7 months, you may have caught my movie reviews for Heritage Newspapers. If not, you can go to www.heritagemoviereviews.blogspot.com...Anyways, with the awards season coming up for movies I have decided to do predictions for the big award in the Golden Globes, airing on ABC Jan. 13, and will give my reasons.

BEST PICTURE - DRAMA

AND THE NOMINEES ARE:
- "American Gangster"
WITH: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Josh Brolin
PLOT: A drug kingpin is brought down. Violence ensues.

- "Atonement"
WITH: Keira Knightley, James McAvoy, Saorise Ronan, Vanessa Redgrave
PLOT: A young girl's lie destroys all happiness in three lives.

- "Eastern Promises"
WITH: Viggo Mortensen, Naomi Watts, Vincent Cassel
PLOT: A gangster falls for a housewife who accidently uncovers evidence against him.

- "The Great Debaters"
WITH: Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Denzel Whitaker
PLOT: In 1935, a black college debate team challenges the country's thoughts on racism.

- "Michael Clayton"
WITH: George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, Sydney Pollack
PLOT: A burnout lawyer stumbles upon a huge case with deadly consequences.

- "No Country for Old Men"
WITH: Javier Bardem, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin
PLOT: A hunter stumbles upon $2 million in drug money, and chaos ensues.

- "There Will Be Blood"
WITH: Daniel Day-Lewis, Paul Dano
PLOT: A greedy oilman and a charismatic priest face off.

OK. The voters of the Golden Globes depend widely on popularity and drama, so "Eastern Promises" is out. "The Great Debaters" has positive reviews, but doesn't have the scope and story to win over voters. I have seen "Michael Clayton" and loved it, but when's the last time The Hollywood Foreign Press gave a legal thriller the big award? Didn't think so. "There Will Be Blood" has universally positive reviews, but The Foreign Press doesn't give awards to dramatic period pieces. So now it's down to this.

- "American Gangster"
- "Atonement"
- "No Country for Old Men"

American Gangster is incredibly popular and widely seen, a big boost. Atonement is a big decades-spanning love story, a category The Foreign Press goes for. And No Country for Old Men is a tense, well-written thriller. The Foreign Press will make this a close race, but I personally think that No Country for Old Men is out, because not enough people have seen it, a standard for thrillers. American Gangster isn't really in the Oscar race anymore, so I think that...

Atonement will win. It's a love story. It's complex. It has a lot of big stars. It has a big, flashy twist ending. The Foreign Press loves these factors, but don't take my word for it. Find out Jan. 13, on ABC.

Ryan Michaels from Oahu, Hawaii, signing off.