‘Brokeback Mountain’ simply Golden

updated 1:36 p.m. ET Dec. 13, 2005

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. - The gay cowboy romance “Brokeback Mountain” positioned itself as a key Oscar competitor Tuesday, roping in seven Golden Globe nominations, including best dramatic picture and honors for actor Heath Ledger and director Ang Lee.

Other best drama picture contenders were the murder thriller “The Constant Gardener,” the Edward R. Murrow tale “Good Night, and Good Luck,” the mobster story “A History of Violence” and “Match Point,” a drama about infidelity.

The Globes were a triumph for smaller budgeted films over big studio productions.

“This is the first time in the history of the Golden Globes that all of the best (dramatic) film nominees are independent movies made for under $30 million,” said Philip Berk, president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which presents the awards.

The Globes have a separate category for musical or comedy films. Nominated were the theater tale “Mrs. Henderson Presents,” the Jane Austen costume pageant “Pride & Prejudice,” the Broadway musical “The Producers,” the divorce story “The Squid and the Whale,” and the Johnny Cash film biography “Walk the Line.”

NBC VIDEO Golden Globes Dec. 13: "Today" west coast contributor Maria Menounos reports as the 63rd Golden Globe Award nominees are announced by Steve Carrell, Kate Beckinsale and Mark Wahlberg. Today show

The Globes were the latest recognition for “Brokeback Mountain,” a critical darling that has received top honors from critics groups in New York City, Los Angeles and Boston.

Still, the film has an uphill trail to the Oscars, whose voters may hesitate to anoint a gay-themed movie as its champion.

“It’s going to be a front-runner, but it really has a mountain to climb, because never have we seen a gay romance in the best-picture race before,” said Tom O’Neil, who runs theenvelope.com, an awards Web site.

Movies with gay angles have earned acting honors, Tom Hanks winning for “Philadelphia” and Hilary Swank for “Boys Don’t Cry,” but those movies did not break into the best-picture pack.

Film festival favorite
Yet “Brokeback Mountain” has proved a favorite at film festivals and debuted with huge box-office grosses last weekend, taking in almost $550,000 in just five theaters. The movie goes into wider release over the next few weeks, its backers hoping it will find a broad audience despite the subject matter.

“Clearly, we felt that because the film speaks a very universal emotional language; it’s going to surprise people, when it comes out, how accessible it is,” said James Schamus, a producer on “Brokeback Mountain” and co-president of Focus Features, the NBC Universal banner that released the film.

NBC VIDEO Phillip Seymour Hoffman is Golden Dec. 13: Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman talks with "Today" show host Matt Lauer after being nominated for a Golden Globe award for his leading role in "Capote." Today show

Best dramatic actor nominee Ledger plays a husband concealing a homosexual affair with an old sheepherding buddy from his family. Other nominees included three actors playing real-life figures: Russell Crowe as Depression-era boxer Jim Braddock in “Cinderella Man,” Philip Seymour Hoffman as author Truman Capote in “Capote,” and David Strathairn as newsman Murrow in “Good Night, and Good Luck.” The fifth nominee was Terrence Howard as a small-time pimp-turned-rap singer in “Hustle & Flow.”

“Good Night, and Good Luck” was tied for second-most film nominations with four, along with “Match Point” and “The Producers.” The Murrow tale earned a best-director nomination for George Clooney, who also had a supporting actor movie nomination for the oil industry thriller “Syriana.”

Felicity Huffman received two nominations — best dramatic actress in a film for her role as a man preparing for sex-change surgery in “Transamerica” and best actress in a TV musical or comedy for “Desperate Housewives.” Her “Desperate Housewives” co-stars Marcia Cross, Teri Hatcher and Eva Longoria also were nominated, and the ABC show earned a best TV comedy bid.

ABC also scored three nominations for best dramatic TV series: “Commander in Chief,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Lost.” Bids also went to Fox’s “Prison Break” and HBO’s “Rome.” Other nominees for best comedy or musical TV series were HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and “Entourage,” UPN’s “Everybody Hates Chris,” NBC’s “My Name is Earl” and Showtime’s “Weeds.”

Other best dramatic film actress nominees were Maria Bello as a wife learning painful secrets about her husband in “A History of Violence,” Gwyneth Paltrow as an unstable math genius’ daughter in “Proof,” Charlize Theron as a woman leading a sexual harassment lawsuit in “North Country” and Ziyi Zhang as a poor girl who becomes the belle of Japan’s geisha houses in “Memoirs of a Geisha.”

Based on a short story by Annie Proulx, “Brokeback Mountain” grabbed a supporting actress nomination for Michelle Williams as Ledger’s wife, who chooses to ignore his affair with a man (Jake Gyllenhaal) to hold her family together. The movie also scored a directing nomination for Lee and received nominations for best screenplay, score and song.

For best actor in a movie, musical or comedy, Globe voters nominated Pierce Brosnan as a burned-out hit man in “The Matador,” Jeff Daniels as a husband unglued by divorce in “The Squid and the Whale,” Johnny Depp as candyman Willy Wonka in “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” Nathan Lane as a Broadway con man in “The Producers,” Cillian Murphy as a cross-dressing Irishman in “Breakfast on Pluto,” and Joaquin Phoenix as country legend Cash in “Walk the Line.”

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