67th Annual Golden Globe Awards

Beverly Hills - Hollywood's awards season officially began Sunday night with the 67th annual Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton.

The science-fiction blockbuster "Avatar" won best drama at the Golden Globes and picked up the directing honor for James Cameron on Sunday, raising the "Titanic" filmmaker's prospects for another Academy Awards triumph.

It was a repeat of Cameron's Globes night 12 years ago, when "Titanic" won best drama and the directing prize on its way to dominating the Oscars.

This time, though, instead of being "king of the world," as Cameron declared at the Oscars, he has become king of an alien landscape, elevating space fantasy to enormous critical acclaim.

"'Avatar' asks us to see that everything is connected, all human beings to each other, and us to the Earth. And if you have to go four and a half light years to another, made-up planet to appreciate this miracle of the world that we have right here, well, you know what, that's the wonder of cinema right there, that's the magic," Cameron said.

Winning the dramatic-acting honors were Sandra Bullock for the football tale "The Blind Side" and Jeff Brides for the country-music story "Crazy Heart." The crowd gave a standing ovation to Bridges, a beloved veteran generally overlooked for key Hollywood honors.

The acting prizes for musical and comedy went to Meryl Streep for the Julia Child story "Julie & Julia" and Robert Downey Jr. for the crime romp "Sherlock Holmes." The supporting-performance Globes were won by Mo'Nique as an abusive welfare mother in "Precious" and Christoph Waltz as a gleefully bloodthirsty Nazi in "Inglourious Basterds."

The Vegas bachelor bash "The Hangover" won for best musical or comedy, bringing uncharacteristic awards attention for broad comedy, a genre that often gets overlooked at Hollywood honors.

"I just want to thank my mom, who supported my decision to become a director when she realized I wasn't as smart as my two sisters," said "Hangover" director Todd Phillips.

As he accepted the directing Globe, Cameron had kind words for ex-wife Kathryn Bigelow, nominated as best director for "The Hurt Locker."

"Frankly, I thought Kathryn was going to get this. She richly deserves it," said Cameron, whose "Titanic" earned the directing and best-drama Globes 12 years ago on its way to Academy Awards triumph.

The blockbuster "Up" came away with the award for animated film.

While Streep is a perennial at awards shows, the prize marked a dramatic turning point for Mo'Nique, who was mainly known for lowbrow comedy but startled audiences with her ferocious performance in "Precious: Based on the Novel `Push' By Sapphire."

"First let me say, thank you, God, for this amazing ride that you're allowing me to go on," the tearful Mo'Nique told the crowd.

She went on with gushing praise for "Precious" director Lee Daniels and newcomer Gabourey Sidibe, a best dramatic actress nominee at the Globes with her first film role, playing Mo'Nique's abused, illiterate daughter.

"Lee Daniels, the world gets a chance to see how brilliant you are. You are a brilliant, fearless, amazing director who would not waver, and thank you for trusting me," Mo'Nique said. "To Gabby, sister, I am in awe of you. Thank you for letting me play with you."

Streep's competition for best actress in a musical or comedy included herself. She also was nominated for the romance "It's Complicated."

"I just want to say that in my long career, I've played so many extraordinary woman that I'm getting mistaken for one," Streep said. "I'm very clear that I'm the vessel for other people's stories and other people's lives."

Waltz, a veteran Austrian actor who is a relative newcomer in Hollywood, won the supporting-actor Globe as a gleefully bloodthirsty Nazi in Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds."

"A year and a half ago I was exposed to the gravitational forces of Quentin Tarantino," Waltz said. "He took my modest little world, my globe, and with the power of his talent and his words and his vision, he flung it into its orbit, a dizzying experience."

Though one of Hollywood's biggest parties, the Globes bore somber reminders of tragedy in the real world, many stars wearing ribbons in support of earthquake victims in Haiti.

Films from Pixar Animation, the Disney outfit that made "Up," have won all four prizes for animated movies since the Globes introduced the category in 2006. Past Pixar winners are "WALL-E," "Ratatouille" and "Cars."

"Up" features the voice of Ed Asner in a tale of a lonely, bitter widower who renews his zest for adventure by flying his house off under helium balloons to South America, where he encounters his childhood hero and a hilarious gang of talking canines.

"When it came to finding the heart of the film, we didn't have to look very hard," said "Up" director Pete Docter, whose film also won for musical score. "Our inspiration was all around us. Our grandparents, our parents, our wives, our kids. Our talking dogs."