Helen Mirren was honoured as the best dramatic film actress at the Golden Globes, while Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu's "Babel" took the best dramatic film award.
Mirren plays Elizabeth II in "The Queen," Stephen Frears's acclaimed film about how the Royal Family reacted to Princess Diana's death in 1997.
Reviewing the film in The New York Times, critic Manohla Dargis wrote that "with Mr. Frears's gentle guidance, (Mirren) delivers a performance remarkable in its art and lack of sentimentalism. Actors need to be loved, but one of Ms. Mirren's strengths has always been her supreme self-confidence that we will love the performance no matter how unsympathetic the character."
Mirren had already won for her role in the television miniseries "Queen Elizabeth I." She was also nominated for her performance as Detective Superintendent Jane Tennison in "Prime Suspect: The Final Act."
Forest Whitaker won best actor for playing reviled Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in "The Last King of Scotland."
And Meryl Streep won a best actress in a comedy award, for her role as a ruthless fashion editor in "The Devil Wears Prada."
"I think I've worked with everybody in the room," Streep joked as she accepted the honour. Then, after putting on a pair of glasses and peering out from the stage, she added: "Yes, I have."
Jennifer Hudson took home the first award, winning best supporting actress for her role in the musical "Dreamgirls."
"I'll try not to cry, but you do not know how much this will do for my confidence," she said.
"Dreamgirls" also won for best picture, musical or comedy, while Eddie Murphy earned an award for his supporting role in the film.
Jeremy Irons grabbed the second honour of the evening, thanks to his supporting role in the television miniseries "Queen Elizabeth I."
"This is a nightmare," he deadpanned. "I live in Ireland, and when I come back here I forget all of you."
Martin Scorsese won best director for "The Departed," a gritty crime drama based on the Hong Kong film "Infernal Affairs."
Other winners included: "Grey's Anatomy" won for best television drama; "Ugly Betty" for best television musical or comedy; America Ferrera for best performance in the same show; Clint Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima" for best film in a foreign language; and Sacha Baron Cohen for best actor in a comedy.
Hollywood icon Warren Beatty received the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement.
The Golden Globe Awards are given out each year by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and are considered a good hint at possible Oscar winners.
This year's Oscar ceremony will be held on February 25.
With files from The Associated Press
