Well, 18 for 24 is decent. I think that's better than last year. Congrats to Fox Searchlight and
Slumdog Millionaire, a pleasant and enjoyable (but overrated) feel-good-film. It was clearly the big winner of the night. However, I felt Dustin Lance Black and Sean Penn's powerful, heartfelt speeches really touched me and overshadowed all the other winners. The whole show was at times marginally better than in the past few years, thanks in major part to Hugh Jackman. That middle homage to the musical was a bit lacking, but the opening number was at first disarmingly odd, and then morphed into a rather amusing number, especially the bit about not having seen
The Reader set to a robotic choreographed jig. That was a perfect rub to Harvy Weinstein for standing behind such a shitty piece of work so strongly, forcing screenings down everyone's throat in the past few weeks. Such a shameless, shameless Oscar baiter, even to go to the lengths to rush a production and force a producer off of the project in order to have it ready in time. I don't think any time in the world could save
The Reader (maybe time to reshoot the whole thing with a new script), but I don't believe in rushing to meet a deadline that doesn't exist. At any rate, at least Kate Winslet finally nabbed an Oscar for countless other roles more deserving, as the Oscars usually drop an award on the wrong thing just to honor a career (hi, Alan Alda). I also rather enjoed the comedic bits between Steve Martin and Tina Fey, and the
Pineapple Express boys with Janusz Kaminski (who shot Judd Apatow's upcoming Funny People).
It was a mostly shockless set of awards. The best actor race was so tight that I wouldn't have been surprised either way it fell, and all the major awards were as predicted otherwise. The main exception was the foreign film catagory with Japan's
Departures, which surprisingly upset the two major favorites to swoop in and take t he win. It's not totally unheard of, though, as often the foreign favorite ends up being overshadowed by a film nobody in the media or the public has gotten a chance to see yet (and hopefully the Academy voters have). Pixar lost their short award for the hilarious and clever
Presto, which was a light shocker. On the technical side of things, I never can quite get the sound awards right. Shame.
The Duchess further proved that if you make a period costume drama, you're guaranteed an Oscar. Every time. The visual effects award was worthy for
Benjamin Button, however the makeup award is completely off base. The only special makeup seen in that film is during that limbo period where Brad's not quite Brad, he's slightly aged, everything else in there is CGI. The line was aptly blurred for viewers, but in no way was it more impressive than the incredible creatures in
Hellboy II. Alright, enough from me, I'll be back soon.
-M
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