‘The Artist’ and ‘The Descendants’ Take Globes

And in a break from previous years, when support formed decisively around a single film, the organization behind the Globes spread its love unusually widely, giving one trophy each to nine other pictures, including “The Help,” “Hugo” and “Midnight in Paris.”

In short, the Globes did little to help clear up a muddy sprint toward the Academy Awards, although some snubs may be telling. Steven Spielberg’s “War Horse,” which has developed a noticeable limp on the awards trail of late, was shut out, as was “The Ides of March,” a political thriller, and the baseball drama “Moneyball.”

The night’s biggest winner might have been someone who never took the stage: Harvey Weinstein, whose company is behind “The Iron Lady,” “My Week With Marilyn,” “W.E.” and “The Artist.” That mostly silent picture also took home awards for best actor (Jean Dujardin) and original score (Ludovic Bource).

Meryl Streep, winning best actress in a drama for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady,” said she would like to thank “my agent, Kevin Huvane, and god: Harvey Weinstein.” Michelle Williams, winning the equivalent award for a comedy (“My Week With Marilyn”), also gave the Weinstein Company boss a shout-out, as did Madonna, after winning best original song for “W.E.,” her second attempt at directing.

Along with best drama, “The Descendants,” about a Hawaii land baron and his troubled family, took home a best acting Globe for George Clooney.

In one of the evening’s more telling moments, Martin Scorsese was given a standing ovation when he took the stage to collect his Globe for directing “Hugo,” a fable of 1930s Paris. That reaction — from a room stuffed with Oscar voters — bodes well for “Hugo” as Hollywood’s award season climaxes in the weeks ahead.

The early part of the 69th annual Globes was overshadowed by the ceremony’s crude-cracking host, Ricky Gervais. The British comedian made good on his promise to aggressively mock the A-list, taking on names like Eddie Murphy and Jodie Foster. “Nervous?” he said upon taking the stage.

Less than thrilled seemed more like it. After a chilly reaction to Mr. Gervais’s monologue, stars like Rob Lowe seemed irritated at teleprompter trouble and even marquee names (Madonna) had acceptance speeches cut short by music — an awards show hazard. A bevy of younger stars spent most of their time smoking on an adjacent terrace, where free Parliament cigarettes were provided.

Mr. Spielberg accepted the animated film trophy for his “Adventures of Tintin,” which was produced by Peter Jackson. “Oh, dear, before the music starts,” he said, before rattling off thanks to a list of executives from Paramount and Sony, the studios backing the film, for proving “the adage that Peter and I could make the telephone book if we wanted to.”

The mood in the ballroom at the Beverly Hilton Hotel seemed to perk up considerably when Octavia Spencer won a Globe for her supporting role in “The Help.” She was expected to win, but Ms. Spencer summed up her reaction this way: “Seriously nuts — seriously.” Christopher Plummer won the supporting actor prize for “Beginners.”

Woody Allen, who did not attend the ceremony, was honored for his “Midnight in Paris” screenplay, while the Iranian picture “A Separation” won best foreign language film.

The movie awards receive most of the attention because of their proximity to the Oscars, which will be presented on Feb. 26, but television prizes take up most of the ceremony. “Homeland,” the Showtime series about post-Sept. 11 terrorism, was a big winner, taking home best drama and best actress in a drama, for Claire Danes. Showtime dominated the major acting prizes, with Matt LeBlanc winning the comedy equivalent for “Episodes.”

Kelsey Grammer took home the trophy for best actor in a drama for “Boss,” on Starz.

PBS took the best mini-series trophy for “Downton Abbey,” while ABC’s “Modern Family” won best comedy, ending back-to-back wins by “Glee.” HBO, typically a dominant presence but experiencing something of a Globes brownout this year, won awards for acting in “Game of Thrones” (Peter Dinklage), “Mildred Pierce” (Kate Winslet) and “Enlightenment” (Laura Dern).

“I find it more and more rare, or rarer, every year to find a piece of work that is really beautifully written and gives you something to do,” said Jessica Lange, accepting a supporting actress award for “American Horror Story.”

Much of the attention heading into the ceremony had focused on the irreverence of Mr. Gervais, and he wasted no time in living up to his take-no-prisoners reputation. He aggressively took shots in his opening monologue at what might be considered obvious targets: the reality star Kim Kardashian; Eddie Murphy, who made headlines in November for quitting as host of the forthcoming Oscars; and the singer Justin Bieber.

More puzzling was a crude joke at the expense of Jodie Foster.

Nobody could say they hadn’t been warned about Mr. Gervais, who has hosted the ceremony since 2010 and created such a ruckus with his harsh opening monologue last year that the organization that gives out the Globes was forced to apologize and say he would never be invited back. But ratings trump feelings: Mr. Gervais’s antics contributed to a 5 percent increase in viewers aged 18 to 49, the coveted demographic, over the previous year. Suddenly he was asked to host for a third time.

Sunday’s ceremony arrived as the cloudy skies over Los Angeles vaguely threatened rain — a perverse break in the sunshine that prevailed in the last week and was scheduled to return on Monday. That put nature in sync with a movie year that saw bright spots — like the surprise success of “Bridesmaids” and “Midnight in Paris” — eclipsed by slow ticket sales for a dozen awards contenders. Movie attendance dropped about 4.2 percent for the year, according to Hollywood.com, continuing a decade-long decline.

Given by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, a group of about 90 mostly freelance writers, the Globes are an uneven predictor of Oscar success. Last year’s Globe winner for best drama was “The Social Network”; “The King’s Speech” won the equivalent Academy Award. In 2010 “Avatar” took the most prestigious Globe; “The Hurt Locker” walked off with the top prize at the Oscars.

Still, the press association’s golden trophies are valued here, partly because of the bragging rights that will help lift the more heavily honored films at the box office. Meryl Streep’s best actress win, for example, will help the Weinstein Company market “The Iron Lady,” while “The Descendants” is sure to benefit from its best drama prize.

The writers group that gives the Globes prompted the usual eye rolls with some of its nominations this year, including a pair for Madonna’s critically abused “W.E.” Aside from recalling the group’s quirky history — like naming Pia Zadora new star of the year in 1981 — such out-of-the-blue nominations added to the widely held belief that the press association is most interested in putting on a red carpet spectacle.

Madonna took the bait, with her attendance cemented by an invitation to present the trophy for best foreign language film. Madonna, who last won a Globe for her 1996 film “Evita,” won best original song for “W.E.”

“This is a surprise,” she said, before thanking her “irritating” manager and Mr. Weinstein for believing in her film.

A more serious drama continued to unfold around the future of the telecast, which this year was again produced by Dick Clark Productions. A pair of lawsuits filed shortly before last year’s show — one of them over what the press association said was an attempt by the company to hijack the ceremony by unilaterally negotiating a new agreement with NBC, the other by a former publicist who alleged corruption by the association — have since blossomed into furious legal battles.

The dispute with the production company, Red Zone Capital Partners, which now controls Dick Clark Productions, is headed for trial on Jan. 24 in United States District Court in Los Angeles.