Greek director from Athens wins Golden Globe for best picture

Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Poor Things,” an off-key Victorian-era riff on “Frankenstein,” pulled off an upset victory over “Barbie” to triumph in the best comedy or musical category at the 81st Golden Globes.

“Poor Things” also won for Emma Stone’s performance as Bella, a young woman, created by a scientist, who experiences a surreal sexual awakening.

When the “Poor Things” cast and crew took the stage to receive the award, the 50-year-old director from Athens thanked Bruce Springsteen, who was sitting in the audience.

Upon revealing to Springsteen that they have the same birthday and expressing “he’s been my hero since I grew up,” Lanthimos said, “thank you to everybody who worked on the film, people at Searchlight… the people that produced the film and made it happen. The actors, wonderful actors, Bruce Springsteen for making me grow up the way I did.”

“I see this as a rom-com,” said Stone about the film. “But in the sense that Bella falls in love with life itself, rather than a person. She accepts the good and the bad in equal measure, and that really made me look at life differently.”

“Poor Things” had been nominated alongside Ben Affleck’s “Air,” Cord Jefferson’s “American Fiction,” Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie,” Alexander Payne’s “The Holdovers,” and Todd Haynes’ “May December.”

Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster biopic “Oppenheimer” was the big winner of the event, taking home five awards including best drama.

Though the Globes have no direct correlation with the Academy Awards, they can boost campaigns at a crucial juncture.