Ledger\'s award was accepted by the film\'s director Christopher Nolan, to a standing ovation from the ballroom. \"All of us who worked with Heath on The Dark Knight accept this with an awful mixture of sadness, but incredible pride.\"
The big film winner was Slumdog Millionaire, which took out directing, screenwriting and composing honours, in addition to the big one, best film. Danny Boyle\'s rags-to-riches tale of an underdog overcoming a life of adversity, is a popular and critical darling, so it\'s no surprise, but in a year with a more competitive field of contenders than most, its Oscar hopes can\'t be guaranteed.
In other acting results, Kate Winslet made up for lost time and was the night\'s big winner, taking out both the best actress and best supporting actress awards. Early in the ceremony she won the best supporting actress gong for her role in Stephen Daldry\'s The Reader, but that didn\'t lessen her chances of double-dipping, as she also took out the best actress honours for her role as a frustrated housewife yearning to find meaning in her life in hubby Sam Mendes\' Revolutionary Road. Winslet\'s win also disproves the rumoured leak that had the blogosphere in a frenzy.
Mickey Rourke was the sentimental favourite for best actor for his powerhouse performance in Darren Aronofsky\'s The Wrestler. The role of a washed up wrestler on the comeback trail echoes Rourke\'s own career path, and he\'s odds-on favourite for the Oscar with this Golden Globes win.
A surprise but welcome result saw Sally Hawkins beat Meryl Streep in the best actress in a musical or comedy category, for Hawkins\' turn as the eternally upbeat protagonist in Mike Leigh\'s Happy Go Lucky. Streep was in the running to take out the award for her over-the-top performance in the popular (...but awful) Mamma Mia. Streep also missed out in the best actress category, for her role as an iron-fisted mother superior in Doubt. The evolving lIst of winners in the feature film categories is as follows (winners in red). Check out the Red Carpet Gallery and come back here for regular updates...
2008 GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS
1. BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
a. THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Warner Bros. Pictures and Paramount Pictures; Warner Bros. Pictures and Paramount Pictures
b. FROST/NIXON
Imagine Entertainment, Working Title, Studio Canal; Universal Pictures
c. THE READER
Mirage Enterprises; The Weinstein Company
d. REVOLUTIONARY ROAD
An Evamere Entertainment BBC Films Neal Street Production; DreamWorks Pictures in Association with BBC Films and Paramount Vantage
e. WINNER: SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
Fox Searchlight Pictures and Warner Bros.; Fox Searchlight Pictures and Warner Bros.
2. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
a. ANNE HATHAWAY – RACHEL GETTING MARRIED
b. ANGELINA JOLIE – CHANGELING
c. MERYL STREEP – DOUBT
d. KRISTIN SCOTT THOMAS – I\'VE LOVED YOU SO LONG (IL Y A LONGTEMPS QUE JE T’AIME)
e. KATE WINSLET – REVOLUTIONARY ROAD
3. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
a. LEONARDO DICAPRIO – REVOLUTIONARY ROAD
b. FRANK LANGELLA – FROST/NIXON
c. SEAN PENN – MILK
d. BRAD PITT – THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
e. WINNER: MICKEY ROURKE – THE WRESTLER
4. BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICALa. BURN AFTER READING
Working Title/Releasing Company; Focus Features in association with Studio Canal
b. HAPPY-GO-LUCKY
Summit Entertainment, Film4, Ingenious Film Partners, Miramax Films; Miramax Films
c. IN BRUGES
Blueprint Pictures; Focus Features
d. MAMMA MIA!
Relativity Media, Playtone, Littlestar; Universal Pictures
e. WINNER: VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
Mediapro; The Weinstein Company
5.BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICALa. REBECCA HALL – VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
b. WINNER: SALLY HAWKINS – HAPPY-GO-LUCKY
c. FRANCES MCDORMAND – BURN AFTER READING
d. MERYL STREEP – MAMMA MIA!
e. EMMA THOMPSON – LAST CHANCE HARVEY
6. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICALa. JAVIER BARDEM – VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
b. WINNER: COLIN FARRELL – IN BRUGES
c. JAMES FRANCO – PINEAPPLE EXPRESS
d. BRENDAN GLEESON – IN BRUGES
e. DUSTIN HOFFMAN – LAST CHANCE HARVEY
7. BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILMa. BOLT
Walt Disney Pictures; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
b. KUNG FU PANDA
DreamWorks Animation SKG; Paramount Pictures
c. WINNER: WALL-E
Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
8. BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILMa. THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX (GERMANY)
(DER BAADER MEINHOF KOMPLEX)
Constantin Film Produktion GmbH; Summit Entertainment, LLC
b. EVERLASTING MOMENTS (SWEDEN/DENMARK)
(MARIA LARSSONS EVIGA ÖGONBLICK)
Final Cut Productions Aps; IFC Films
c. GOMORRAH (ITALY)
(GOMORRA)
Fandango; IFC Films
d. I\'VE LOVED YOU SO LONG (FRANCE)
(IL Y A LONGTEMPS QUE JE T’AIME)
UGC YM/UGC Images/France 3 Cinema/Integral Film; Sony Pictures Classics
e. WINNER: WALTZ WITH BASHIR (ISRAEL)Bridgit Folman Film Gang/Les Films D\'Ici/Razor Films/Arte France/ITVS International; Sony Pictures Classics
9. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTUREa. AMY ADAMS – DOUBT
b. PENELOPE CRUZ – VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
c. VIOLA DAVIS –DOUBT
d. MARISA TOMEI – THE WRESTLER
e. WINNER: KATE WINSLET – THE READER
10. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTUREa. TOM CRUISE – TROPIC THUNDER
b. ROBERT DOWNEY JR. –TROPIC THUNDER
c. RALPH FIENNES – THE DUCHESS
d. PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN – DOUBT
e. WINNER: HEATH LEDGER – THE DARK KNIGHT
11. BEST DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTUREa. WINNER: DANNY BOYLE – SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
b. STEPHEN DALDRY – THE READER
c. DAVID FINCHER – THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
d. RON HOWARD – FROST/NIXON
e. SAM MENDES – REVOLUTIONARY ROAD
12. BEST SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTUREa. WINNER: SIMON BEAUFOY – SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
b. DAVID HARE – THE READER
c. PETER MORGAN – FROST/NIXON
d. ERIC ROTH – THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN
e. JOHN PATRICK SHANLEY – DOUBT
13. BEST ORIGINAL SCORE – MOTION PICTUREa. ALEXANDRE DESPLAT –THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
b. CLINT EASTWOOD – CHANGELING
c. JAMES NEWTON HOWARD – DEFIANCE
d. WINNER: A. R. RAHMAN – SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
e. HANS ZIMMER – FROST/NIXON
14. BEST ORIGINAL SONG – MOTION PICTUREa. 'DOWN TO EARTH" — WALL-E
Music by: Peter Gabriel, Thomas Newman
Lyrics by: Peter Gabriel
b. 'GRAN TORINO" — GRAN TORINO
Music by: Clint Eastwood, Jamie Cullum, Kyle Eastwood, Michael Stevens
Lyrics by: Jamie Cullum
c. 'I THOUGHT I LOST YOU" — BOLT
Music & Lyrics by: Miley Cyrus, Jeffrey Steele
d. 'ONCE IN A LIFETIME" — CADILLAC RECORDS
Music & Lyrics by: Beyoncé Knowles, Amanda Ghost, Scott McFarnon, Ian Dench, James Dring, Jody Street
e. WINNER: 'THE WRESTLER" — THE WRESTLERMusic & Lyrics by: Bruce Springsteen
