Giuliani, Music win big Razzies; Nomadland triumphs at Spirit Awards
Golden Raspberry Awards 'honours' worst in film; Nomadland leads at Independent Spirit Awards
LOS ANGELES Former US president Donald Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani was awarded two Razzies on Saturday for his "performance" in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.
The annual tongue-in-cheek Razzies, or Golden Raspberry Awards, "honours" the worst in film and are handed out the day before the Oscars.
Mr Giuliani, a former New York City mayor, did not even know he was appearing in the comedy sequel about the titular fictional Kazakh journalist (Sacha Baron Cohen) - he was unwittingly tricked into a fake hotel room "interview" with Borat's young daughter, played by Best Supporting Actress Oscar nominee Maria Bakalova.
Besides being named Worst Supporting Actor, Mr Giuliani also shared the worst screen combo accolade with "his pants zipper", after the infamous scene ended with him apparently reaching into his trousers.
This year's Razzies were topped by Music, a musical that drew controversy and mockery for its depiction of autism.
Singer-turned-director Sia, actress Kate Hudson and supporting actress Maddie Ziegler each won for their categories.
Worst Picture went to Absolute Proof, a documentary by Mr Mike Lindell, the Trump-supporting chief executive of pillow manufacturer MyPillow.
The film, which pushes unfounded claims of fraud in last November's US election, was described by Razzie organisers as a "two-hour, fake news snooze-fest".
Mr Lindell was also named Worst Actor at the awards, which granted a Special Governor's Trophy to the year 2020 for The Worst Calendar Year Ever.
Earlier, Chloe Zhao's road movie Nomadland topped the Independent Spirit Awards last Thursday, winning Best Feature and showing no signs of slowing down its relentless awards season charge.
Tipped to win big at this year's Academy Awards, it also won Best Director, Editing and Cinematography honours at the ceremony dedicated to films with smaller budgets.
Zhao - who made her name with tiny indie films set in the US heartland - thanked the "independent film community", adding: "We wouldn't be here without you."
While Nomadland topped the Spirit Awards with four wins from five nominations, its star Frances McDormand missed out to Carey Mulligan of Promising Young Woman, a potential dark horse for the Oscars.
The #MeToo revenge thriller also won for screenplay.
Another Oscar Best Picture nominee that added some momentum was Sound Of Metal, in which Riz Ahmed stars as a rock drummer who loses his hearing.
Ahmed won Best Male Lead, supporting star Paul Raci was also honoured, and the film took Best First Feature for debut director Darius Marder.
Veteran South Korean star Youn Yuh-jung confirmed her Best Supporting Actress favourite status with another win for her eccentric grandmother role in immigrant drama Minari.
And Crip Camp became the latest documentary from the Obamas' production house to win at the Spirit Awards, emulating last year's American Factory win and boosting its own Oscar hopes. - AFP
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