One thing can be said for British comedian Ricky Gervais, who hosted the Golden Globes on Saturday: He succeeded… in disappointing us immensely once again.
His half-hearted attempt to roast celebrities during the opening monologue was predictable. LifeZette published a prediction on Saturday, in which we asked the question:
“Is Gervais really the best Hollywood can do?” We answered in the affirmative: “Hollywood is more interested in feigning to roast celebrities, and nobody does that better than Gervais, who is one of the laziest comics today.”
Related: An Unfunny Brit is the Best We Can Do?
He didn’t disappoint in hosting a show that was, ironically, far from intoxicating.
Entertainment Weekly summed up the evening’s events perfectly:
“Midway through the Golden Globes, Ricky Gervais slumped toward the beer that was perched by his microphone and grumbled, ‘Kill me.’ He might as well have been speaking for the rest of us. When was the last time the Globes were this painful to watch? The jokes weren’t funny. The winners were far more senseless than usual, even for an awards show that prides itself on erratic choices. The acceptance speeches weren’t nearly tipsy enough. Worst of all, it was boring.”
Even the New York Times described Gervais’ return as regurgitative and recycled: “There was even a Charlie Sheen crack that the dry cleaner might have left in his pocket after his last hosting gig.”
It’s uncertain what’s more concerning: That the organizers of the Golden Globes didn’t care to select a reasonably funny host, or that the Hollywood A-listers in attendance didn’t seem to care that he lowered the bar for what would otherwise be described as one of the most carefree events in the Hollywood awards season.
Gervais’ quip about Amy Poehler and Tina Fey might have taken the cake:
“Women should be paid the same as men for doing the same job and I would like to say now that I’m getting paid exactly the same as Tina and Amy did last year for hosting this — no I know there was two of them, but it’s not my fault if they want to share the money, is it? That’s their stupid fault. (pause) It’s funny cause it’s true.”
It was funny, but not because he pointed out the inherent prejudice in the Hollywood system. It was funny because it is sad that, with all the money in the world that Hollywood has access to, they choose to blow it on a man who’s happy to degrade the podium to its lowest level in years. Money that most any other comedian would be glad to be paid a fraction of — in the interests of poking holes in the Hollywood ego.
That Gervais managed to hit a new low in unfunny comedy was’t surprising. That the ego of Hollywood has grown so big, they hardly notice the difference — well, that’s the most humorless bit of all.
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