Golden Globes 2021: The Triumph Of Chloé Zhao's Nomadland, Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat And Netflix

The first spring morning didn't just bring the hope for warmth and sunshine but also the glorious list of 78th Golden Globe Award winners. Although the celebration was deprived from its conventional format and all the nominees and other movie stars were waiting for the winner announcements on their couches at home, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has made its perfect choices.

As the Golden Globes are often regarded as the rehearsal for the Oscars, the triumph of Nomadland in the best picture (drama) category and its director Chloé Zhao in the best director (motion picture) category is a direct statement towards the Oscar awards, though we still have to wait to March 15 to hear the nominees. Already recognized with the Golden Lion at Venice Film Festival in 2020, Nomadland is the film based on the non-fiction book by Jessica Bruder Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century. It tells a story of a woman (played by Frances McDormand) who starts on a journey across the American West as a van-living modern nomad after the Great Recession of 2008 takes away everything from her.

Chloé Zhao became only the second woman director to earn a Golden Globe in its history. It happened after nearly 40 years when Barbara Streisand was honored with the award for her Yentl. Being Chinese American, Chloé Zhao is the first woman of colour to be the best in this category.

The best picture (musical/comedy) award was handed to Borat Subsequent Moviefilm and its maker Sacha Baron Cohen who also received the award as the best actor in musical/comedy. Coming back on screens with this hilarious character after almost 15 years, Sacha Baron Cohen has hit a bull's eye and played a significant political chord, jokingly dedicating his award to Rudy Giuliani, the target of one of his outrageous pranks.

The best actor (drama) award turned to be posthumous and went to the late Chadwick Boseman who died six month ago at the age of 43. He received the Golden Globe for the role of an ambitious horn player in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. Meanwhile the best actress (drama) award was handed to Andra Day who played the legendary singer Billie Holiday in the movie United States vs. Billie Holiday, whereas Rosamund Pike was announced the best actress in musical/comedy category for her role of a ruthless Marla, a cunning legal guardian, in I Care A Lot.

Minary written and directed by Lee Isaac Chung was awarded as the best foreign picture but we really expect to see it nominated in the major best picture category of the Oscars to compete for the main prize. The best animated picture award predictably went to Soul, which has also been the favourite and a candidate to land in the Oscar best picture nominee list.

Television categories were dominated by Netflix and this is no surprise. Its famous British royal family series The Crown won the best drama series award and The Queen's Gambit has triumphed in the best limited series category. The final season of Schitt's Creek became the best comedy series.

Click here for the complete list of winners and nominees.