Golden Globes nominations analysis: Good day for Nicole Kidman, 'Django,' cable TV

"Django Unchained," the Quentin Tarantino movie starring Jamie Foxx, got a big boost today from the Golden Globes nominations.

The Globes matter not just because they're one of the most entertaining awards shows Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are hosting this year's event at 8 p.m. Jan. 13 on NBC but because they can be a predictor of who has the best chance of making the Oscar cut.

"Django," a very Tarantino-ized look at a slave-turned-bounty hunter in the pre-Civil War South, nabbed nods for best drama, best director and best screenplay and for Leonardo DiCaprio and Christoph Waltz as best supporting actors.

The Globes spotlight could help the movie stand out in an awards-season crowd that's so far given more attention to fellow Globes drama nominees "Argo," "Life of Pi," "Lincoln" and "Zero Dark Thirty" and comedy/musical nominees "Les Miserables" and "Silver Linings Playbook."

Who else scored a triumph or a snub with the Globes announcements this morning? Let's just say it also was a good day for Nicole Kidman, Richard Gere and a certain fish.

"Les Miz" missed opportunity: While the screen adaptation of "Les Miserables" earned high-profile nominations for best comedy/musical, Hugh Jackman for best comedy/musical actor and Anne Hathaway for best supporting actress, "Les Miz" director Tom Hooper was left out of the mix -- a notable omission for a film with so much visual dazzle.

Rising interest rates: In the best actor for a drama category, Richard Gere landed a nod for his stellar performance in "Arbitrage" as a Wall Street tycoon facing personal and professional implosion. Although he'll face stiff competition from fellow nominees like Daniel Day-Lewis ("Lincoln") and Denzel Washington ("Flight"), this will help keep Gere's! Oscar stock (he failed to get a SAG Awards nomination) from plummeting.

Omega-3 power: The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which runs the Globes, loves to single out movies that other awards ignore, such as "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen," a small film that's competing for best comedy/musical and also won acting nods for stars Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt.

Funny guys: Surprise inclusion Jack Black, who starred in the dark comedy "Bernie," and Bill Murray, who plays FDR in "Hyde Park on Hudson," are in the running for best actor in a comedy/musical, a category that looks to be a showdown between Bradley Cooper of "Silver Linings Playbook" and Hugh Jackman of "Les Miz."

Kidman kudos: After landing best actress nominations Wednesday for the little-seen "The Paperboy" and HBO's "Hemingway & Gellhorn," Nicole Kidman roared back again at the Globes, landing in the best supporting actress category and the best actress in a mini-series or TV movie for the same titles. Whether or not her projects have wide appeal, Kidman certainly does as a Hollywood power player.

Music of the night: Besides the love it showed for "Les Miz" in the movie categories, the Globes included a TV musical, NBC's "Smash," in the best TV series in the comedy/musical category. This should give the creatively struggling show a reason to celebrate.

Broadcast snooze: The broadcast networks were shut out of the best TV series/drama and the best miniseries or TV movie categories. If it weren't for comedy/musical nods for CBS's "The Big Bang Theory," ABC's "Modern Family" and NBC's "Smash," free TV would be non-existent in the races for the top shows.

Country strong: Let's hear it for Connie Britton, who was nominated as best actress in a TV drama for her excellent work in "Nashville," the sort of new show that it often takes the Emmys two or three seasons to acknowledge.