I wasn’t expecting “Iron Man” to get a Best Picture nomination from the Golden Globes, but I thought maybe “Dark Knight” would get one.  Sadly, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association did not give a Best Picture nomination to either “Iron Man” or “Dark Knight”.  We don’t normally see films outside of the Hollywood drama category get a nomination for Best Picture.  The original “Star Wars” got a nomination for Best Picture from the Golden Globes and the Oscars.  It lost the Oscar to “Annie Hall” that year in case you were wondering.  Which is shocking in itself because it’s a comedy and comedies don’t normally win Oscars.

However, in the case of “Iron Man” and “Dark Knight” both films should have received more nominations in the major categories. Robert Downey, Jr. got a nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his work in “Tropic Thunder”, but he was equally good -fantastic even- as Tony Stark in “Iron Man”. I would have also given a nomination to Jeff Bridges for his work in “Iron Man”. He was a very good bad guy in the film.

Hollywood tends to shy away from giving Summer blockbusters any awards outside of costume and special effects, but in this case both films were critically acclaimed and they’re both making Best Picture lists through out the country. What’s also upsetting is that it’s these type of movies that truly fuel the Hollywood industry. It’s movies like “Star Wars,” the Indiana Jones films, and comic movies like “Iron Man” and “Dark Knight” that make the serious money at the box office and enable studios to make so much money and pay actors million dollar salaries. It’s like building a house for someone and then getting the door slammed in your face when you come for a payment.

Both “Iron Man” and “Dark Knight” did what many film makers hope when they make a movie and that’s transcend the core audience that the movie is geared towards. When a film makes the money like “Dark Knight” has made so far (over half a billion dollars) it’s not just comic book store guys going to see it over and over again. It’s reaching people like the senior citizen who doesn’t get out much and likes mostly old films from the 30s and 40s. That type of achievement should be recognized by the industry which receives the most benefits from it. One person who will not benefit from the awards he may be in store for is Heath Ledger.

I wonder if Heath Ledger had not died would he have gotten the Golden Globe nomination. Either way, I’m sure his performance would have received the wide praise it has gotten since “Dark Knight’s” release. Ledger is up against Tom Cruise and Robert Downey, Jr for “Tropic Thunder”; Ralph Fiennes for “The Duchess” and Philip Seymour Hoffman for “Doubt”. Some tough competition, but the Hollywood Foreign Press may bend to pressure in order to not seem insensitive and give it to Ledger.

It’s sad should Ledger not completely receive the award for his performance, but theses awards shows come down to being a popularity contest and right now, the story of Heath Ledger; his death; and his final performance is hot. So I will give a toast to Mr. Ledger if he wins the Golden Globe and/or the Oscar. It was an amazing performance and it deserves any and every award it gets.