The show seemed a bit sloppy to me but a few great acceptance speeches, a wonderfully talented (and sexy)host, a few noteable changes, and some gorgeous dresses made it a worthy addition to Oscar ceremonies past.
THE RED CARPET: I watched from five o'clock and the styles that impressed the most this time were the ones sported by the ladies in their 'prime'-the over 35 group. Diane Lane, Meryl Streep, and Robin Wright Penn stood out to me-mainly because they all looked their age but also, I couldnt remember having seen them look better. Other 'honorable mentions' were Penelope Cruz looking like a southern belle, Evan Rachael Wood looking like a goddess, Toraji B. Henson's tiered ruffles, Anne Hathaway's smile, and of course Angelina Jolie whose emerald earrings were the best thing I saw all night. I have to say the over-abundance of guilded and metallic dresses was off-putting. Leave the glitter to the Oscar-Man!
THE HOST: Hugh Jackman sliipped into the role w/ ease...and looked dang good in the process. His 'tribute' song to the five Best Picture nominees was one of the night's best moments, especially when he literally stole Anne Hathaway from her seat to join him in regaling Slumdog Millionaire in typical broadway fashion. Both of them are very gifted singers and pulled off an impressive duet that did Jackman's musical theater background proud! The inclusion of Hugh's 'Homemade props due to budget cuts' just added to the lighthearted atmosphere of the opening sequence. It was a hit!
THE MUSICAL NUMBERS: Other than the opening song, which was comedic in nature, the rest of the numbers were a bit of a let down. The 'tribute to the return of the movie musical' started off well but as soon as Beyonce' made her appearance, the performance went dismally south. So many songs were shoved into the mix in such a haphazard manner that the singing talents of the performers were placed on the backburner and it became more a race to see who could hit their cue w/ the least ammount of blundering. From what I understand, Baz Luhrman is to blame for this mess of a medley and his frenetic style didnt resonate w/ me this time. The nominated songs were thrown into another medley, which didnt necessarily work since the song from Wall-E (my favorite movie of the year, incidentally) needed its own atmosphere and not a troupe of bali-wood dancers to accompany it. I didnt care for the two Slumdog Millionaire songs and find it difficult to believe that these three tunes were the only ones that qualified for the award. On an up-note, Queen Latifah sang 'I'll Be Seeing You' for the 'In Memorium' segment and it was lovely.
THE PRESENTERS: Most of the presenters read their teleprompter just fine but Ben Stiller decided to do a parody of Joaquin Phoenix's bizarre Letterman interview while presenting and it was only partly successful. Everyone else played it pretty straight except perhaps the inherently funny Will Smith who played 'host' for a full four awards and made us wish he'd come back and do the whole sha-bang next year. One welcome change this year was in the acting awards which were presented by five prior winners in the category, all of whom showered praise on one of this year's nominees. It was moving and genuine but I can see that it would grow tired if such a thing were attempted every year. I say bring back the 'performance clips' and do this type of presentation every five years or so.
THE SPEECHES: Thank goodness for Kate Winslet. Though the majority of the speeches were run-of-the-mill gushers, Winslet was the only one who seemed to be completely in possession of every ounce of grace and poise in her curvy self. Her speech was just a pleasure, witty and moving all at once. Others made an impression as well. Penelope Cruz was endearingly funny w/ her charming accent, 'Man On Wire's Phillipe Petit balanced his Oscar on his nose, and one Japanese winner ended a series of muddled 'Sank-you's' with 'Domo-Arigato Mister Roboto' and alot of laughing. Unfortunately, Sean Penn's politically charged speech had me wishing Mickey Rourke was there to flip us off and the many winners associated with Slumdog Millionaire all seemed cut from the same dignified cloth.
But it was the Oscars and I take a deep breath and sigh every time they're over.
Til' next year.
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