Pete Hoskin
At yesterday’s low-key Golden Globes ceremony, the British film ‘Atonement’ was named the Best Dramatic Motion Picture of the year; making it the front-runner for the “Best Picture” Oscar next month.
Thankfully – and thanks should go to the Writers’ Guild of America – we were spared acceptance speeches yesterday. This meant that there were none of the typical British histrionics that accompany any major film awards win (see Colin Welland and his exclamation that “The British are coming!” at the 1981 Academy Awards). There’s no doubt, though, that Welland’s sentiment will be repeated – as it is almost every year – in the run-up to this year’s Oscars.
The things is, ‘Atonement’ is exactly the kind of film that we shouldn’t want to adulate, nor should we want it to be representative of the British film industry.
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