From its humble beginnings as a cut-rate awards show put on by an obscure bunch of foreign critics with no other importance, the Golden Globes ceremony has become second in glitz and prestige only to the Academy Awards. It's also a lot more fun, with bolder fashions, less predictability and the best reaction shots bar none - probably aided by the alcohol at the attendee dinner.

Not this year. The usual site of the red carpet was eerily bare, yet another casualty of the two-month-long strike by the Writers Guild of America. The writers, who are striking to receivea share of the broadcast revenue from the Internet and other new media, threatened to picket outside the ceremony, and the stars, who mainly sympathize with the writers, refused to cross a picket line.

Facing the potential embarrassment of throwing an unattended party, Globes organizers canceled the ceremony and released the winners in a terse press conference. Although there is a distinct upside to a 30-minute announcement as opposed to the usual three-hour-plus bloated snoozefest, the broadcast was almost as bleak and joyless as some of the Best Picture nominees. Viewership of NBC's "results special" suffered too, plummeting by two thirds from last year's levels.

Regardless of the circumstances, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association had a number of difficult choices to make. Depending on your perspective, this year's award race is either one of the most exciting in recent memory due to the lack of clear frontrunners, or one of the dullest due to the near-absence of movies anyone has seen. Without further ado, the nominees and winners are:

BEST MOTION PICTURE / DRAMA

• "American Gangster"
• "Atonement"
• "Eastern Promises"
• "The Great Debaters"
• "Michael Clayton"
• "No Country for Old Men"
• "There Will Be Blood"

"Atonement" emerged from a crowded field to capture the night's top award in a minor upset over "No Country for Old Men." Considering that momentum seemed to favor "No Country," this win is a huge lift to the romantic epic's previously shaky chances for an Oscar nod.

BEST MOTION PICTURE / MUSICAL OR COMEDY

• "Across the Universe"
• "Charlie Wilson's War"
• "Hairspray"
• "Juno"
• "Sweeney Todd"

It's unlikely any of these films will be serious contenders for Best Picture at the Oscars. (Could someone explain how "Across the Universe" is even on this list?) However, I always love seeing recognition for the combined bizarreness of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp.

BEST DIRECTOR

• Tim Burton, "Sweeney Todd"
• Ethan and Joel Coen, "No Country for Old Men"
• Julian Schnabel, "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
• Ridley Scott, "American Gangster"
• Joe Wright, "Atonement"

For the French director of a small, foreign-language film that will bypass most of America to come out ahead of the heavily favored Coen brothers is a tremendous upset. If Schnabel's film were one iota less gorgeous and lyrical, it would be nothing short of shocking.

BEST MOTION PICTURE / ANIMATED

• "Bee Movie"
• "Ratatouille"
• "The Simpsons Movie"

No surprises here, just a well-deserved win for the cutest movie about rats the world is ever likely to see.

BEST ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE / DRAMA

• Cate Blanchett, "Elizabeth: The Golden Age"
• Julie Christie, "Away from Her"
• Jodie Foster, "The Brave One"
• Angelina Jolie, "A Mighty Heart"
• Keira Knightley, "Atonement"

Julie Christie's win caps an incredible comeback by an actress who won a Best Actress Oscar way back in 1966. By going from ing?©nue to Alzheimer's patient, if she follows up the Globe with an Academy Award she will set a record for years between acting Oscars.

BEST ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE / COMEDY OR MUSICAL

• Amy Adams, "Enchanted"
• Nikki Blonsky, "Hairspray"
• Helena Bonham Carter, "Sweeney Todd"
• Marion Cotillard, "La Vie en Rose"
• Ellen Page, "Juno"

Maybe the Hollywood Foreign Press Association wanted to remind the world who gives out these statues. Marion Cotillard's win marks the second major award - and major upset - for a foreign film. Despite Cotillard's brilliant performance, this Golden Globe will likely be remembered mostly as a blow to the other contenders, particularly Ellen Page.

BEST ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE / DRAMA

• George Clooney, "Michael Clayton"
• Daniel Day-Lewis, "There Will Be Blood"
• James McAvoy, "Atonement"
• Viggo Mortensen, "Eastern Promises"
• Denzel Washington, "American Gangster"

Daniel Day-Lewis is Hollywood's version of a locust. He completely disappears for years on end, but each time he returns, he makes an impression that the world cannot ignore. Even if no one has actually seen his movie yet.

BEST ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE / COMEDY OR MUSICAL

• Johnny Depp, "Sweeney Todd"
• Ryan Gosling, "Lars and the Real Girl"
• Tom Hanks, "Charlie Wilson's War"
• Philip Seymour Hoffman, "The Savages"
• John Reilly, "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story"

Clearly, the HFPA loves Johnny Depp, who received his fifth straight nomination. It's a good thing he was in another movie this year they could reward him for, because let's face it, "Pirates 3" kind of sucked.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE

• Cate Blanchett, "I'm Not There"
• Julia Roberts, "Charlie Wilson's War"
• Saoirse Ronan, "Atonement"
• Amy Ryan, "Gone Baby Gone"
• Tilda Swinton, "Michael Clayton"

I can't improve on the irony of that movie title. Cate Blanchett scored in a tough category by following the time-honored path to award-season success: dressing up as a man.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE

• Casey Affleck, "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
• Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men"
• Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Charlie Wilson's War"
• John Travolta, "Hairspray"
• Tom Wilkinson, "Michael Clayton"

Surprisingly, Javier Bardem's win was the lone major award picked up by critics' darling "No Country for Old Men." His portrayal of a creepy psychopathic killer is being hailed as a classic of villainy on the level of Darth Vader. Personally I wouldn't go quite that far, but Bardem, the runaway favorite at the start of awards season, has to be considered a near-lock heading into the Oscars.

Bardem and Daniel Day-Lewis can start preparing their acceptance speeches, but most of this year's Golden Globes only further muddled the Oscar picture. In the end, the 2008 Golden Globes are significant for what was absent: expected wins, clear frontrunners and, most importantly, all of Hollywood.