Post-Oscar Recap

The Oscars at this point are like a grand old ocean liner.  You change the crew, slap on a fresh coat of paint – and it’s t still the same venerable old ship taking the same voyage on the same route. The predicted winners took home statues,  Anne Hathaway and James Franco were professional. And the show only ran over by ten minutes and included a satisfying ending with those grade school kids singing Over the Rainbow with all the evening’s winners on the stage.

The only thing the show lacked was any entertainment value. Last year when Adam Shankmen produced the event, he had Steve Martin and Alex Baldwin cracking wise and several spectacular dance numbers.

Last night we had a misfired musical number by Hathaway, and Franco in a dress. So I would call the show efficient, but dull.

Overall the awards were doled out as expected. Inception dominated the technical awards, King’s Speech and Social Network each took their respective writing categories, the same four actors that have been taking home prizes all season added Oscars to their winnings, and the big prize went to King’s Speech. Two minor surprises were King's Speech director Tom Hooper beating out David Fincher of Social Network, and the strong showing of Alice in Wonderland in the design categories.

So, here are some quick notes:

• The opening montage of scene’s from this year’s films was spectacularly edited, and made a great visual “overture” to the event.
• Bravo for the following sequence that dropped Franco and Hathaway into scenes from several of he nominated films via an Inception-themed dream.
• Best Acceptance Speech: 73-year-old screenwriter David Seidler, who won for The King's Speech: "My father always said to me," he told the audience, "I would be a late-bloomer."
• Best Dressed: Anne Hathaway – three times: That old-fashioned full crimson red dress she wore midway in the show, the royal blue sheath that followed, and the form-fitting black lace and crystal number she wore for the goodbyes.
• Worst Dressed: Cate Blanchette in that vanilla dress with the square craft project on top.
• Best Presenter (Individual): It’s a tie between two scenery-chewing scene stealers: Kirk Douglas and Billy Crystal.
• Best Presenter (Duo or Group):  Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law who struck just the right balance of tongue-in-cheek pretentiousness and self-deprecation.

As for me, I got 17 out of 24 right, which isn’t bad. We’ll see what they come up with next year.