BEVERLY HILLS, California, Jan 24: "American Beauty" won best motion picture drama, director and screenwriting honors at Sunday's Golden Globe awards, but no acting accolades, reports AFP.

"Beauty's" stars, Annette Bening and Kevin Spacey, were overlooked by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association in favor of newcomer Hilary Swank and Denzel Washington, respectively.

Washington was named best dramatic actor for "The Hurricane," portraying boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, unjustly imprisoned for murder. Carter attended Sunday's ceremony.

"When I was a kid, we used to say grace, you know, to bless the table and... the short version was 'God is love,' which I thought was one word," Washington said.

"When we made this film, I really began to understand what 'God is love' means," he said. "This man right here (Carter) is love, he's all love. He lost about 7,300 days of his life and he's love, he's all love."

Swank was named best actress for her role as Brandon Teena, a sexually confused young woman who was raped and murdered for trying to pass as a man in rural Nebraska, in the sleeper "Boys Don't Cry."

Swank, 25, alluded to her better-known competitors Meryl Streep, Annette Bening, Sigourney Weaver and Julianne Moore, in her acceptance speech.

"To be mentioned in the same breath as the other nominees, it blows my mind," she said. "Meryl, you are my acting god."

"Toy Story 2," the animated Disney feature, was a surprise winner for best musical or comedy film.

The Golden Globes are widely seen as a preview for the Academy Awards, to be presented March 26 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

Tom Cruise won best supporting actor for his role in "Magnolia," while "Girl Interrupted" star Angelina Jolie won for best supporting actress.

"Oh, God, I didn't expect this," said Cruise, 37, who played a millionaire male supremacist and motivational speaker in Paul Thomas Anderson's ensemble drama.

Cruise beat out Michael Caine ("The Cider House Rules), Michael Clarke Duncan ("The Green Mile), Jude Law (The Talented Mr. Ripley) and Haley Joel Osment ("The Sixth Sense").

Jolie plays an outspoken mental patient in "Girl Interrupted."

She edged out Cameron Diaz and Catherine Keener (both nominated for "Being John Malkovich") Samantha Morton ("Sweet and Lowdown") Natalie Portman ("Anywhere But Here") and Chloe Sevigny ("Boys Don't Cry).

Jim Carrey was named best actor in a musical or comedy for his portrayal of the late comic Andy Kaufman in Milos Forman's "Man on the Moon."

"This is a surprise. Another one. Second year in a row," said Carrey, 38, who last year took home the best dramatic actor Globe for "The Truman Show."

Spanish director Pedro Almodavar's "All About My Mother" was named best foreign language film, and Phil Collins' "You'll Be In My Heart" from "Tarzan" took best original song.

On the television side, HBO was the big winner with eight awards.

The cable network's Mafia drama "The Sopranos" won for best drama series -- besting "ER," "Once and Again," "The Practice" and "The West Wing" -- and three of its stars won statuettes.

HBO's "Sex And The City" was named best musical or comedy television series, while co-star Sarah Jessica Parker got a best actress award, and the network's "RKO 281," about the making of "Citizen Kane," was named best TV miniseries or motion picture.