This might have been one of the most uncertain Academy Award ceremonies ever. Going into the show, there were a lot of contenders but it was hard to find any sure things this year.
And it was anybody’s game as there were no leading contenders. Adrien Brody won his second Best Lead Actor Oscar for The Brutalist as he was the most favored. However, young Mikey Madison won Best Lead Actress Oscar for Anora beating out Demi Moore for The Substance and Fernanda Torres for I’m Still Here. The movie won five Oscars with Sean Baker making history by winning four for writing, directing, editing and producing as it was the Best Picture winner.
Kieran Culkin, a former child actor who has gone on to more success as an adult in movies and especially on TV with Succession, won Best Supporting Actor for A Real Pain. And Zoe Saldana won Best Supporting Actress for her role in Emilia Perez. While the Netflix movie was loved by the Golden Globes, its controversy surrounding past social media posts from Karla Sofia Garcon, who was present at the Oscar telecast, had gained a mixed reaction. But the movie didn’t win Best International Movie which might have relieved a lot as I’m Still Here took home that prize.
The show opening with a lovely performance by Cynthia Erivo singing “Over the Rainbow” and then her Wicked co-star Arianna Grande came out to sing along with her and they did a duet of “Defying Gravity.” Grande did the honorable thing by walking toward the edge of the stage during Erivo’s solo and waiting for the applause to die down before joining her again.
It wasn’t the only wonderful performance of the night. A retrospective on the life and legacy of Quincy Jones, who passed away on Nov. 3, was presented by Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey who co-starred together in The Color Purple 40 years ago. Jones produced it. Jones also helped supervise the music in the 1978 movie adaptation of The Wiz. And keeping with the Oz theme, Queen Latifah came out on stage to perform “Ease on Down the Road.”
While it was a wonderful performance, people in attendance proved Homer Simpson correct in his critique of white people as being “so lame.” While several black actors and entertainers got into the groove, others sat lifeless. Jones might be gone but his legacy will live on so you can’t stop the music.
However, the Best Original Song Oscar went to “El Mal” performed by Camille, a very forgettable song which will be more remembered for the cringe-worthy acceptance of the group who sang the song during their speech. The song is from Emilia Perez. Elton John didn’t win. But the biggest surprise was seeing Mick Jagger at 81 so full of life as he cracked jokes at Bob Dylan’s age, who is 83. You can tell that he really is a great showman and performer and while people say Keith Richards will live forever, he probably with have Mick with him.
But who knows what people are thinking of when they vote? People thought Wicked would win Best Original Score and it went to The Brutalist. Wicked did win two Oscars for Best Production Design and Best Costume Design. The Substance won only one Oscar for Best Make-Up.
Of course, it wouldn’t be the Oscars if there wasn’t some political issues with current events. First-time host Conan O’Brien made a reference to the controversy over Garcon and Daryl Hannah talked about her support for Ukraine while presenting. The winner for Best Documentary win went to No Other Land about the Isreali-Palesteninian conflict. The Best International Feature Film winner I’m Still Here focused the topic of the military dictatorship in Brazil during the second half of the 20th Century.
The biggest surprise might have been A Complete Unknown walking away with no awards. Despite a light of praise from critics and a box-office success, it didn’t win. Some people have argued that Timothee Chamelet should have won while Edward Norton again went away winless after four nominations.
Despite Moore and Torres both winning at the Golden Globes, both actresses seemed to be happy for Madison for her win. It was a tough year for a lot of people. There were a lot of good performances with deserving actors. I was disappointed June Squibb didn’t get nominated for her role in Thelma. She did present and show that she has as much spunk and vitality as Jagger and she’s 95. She’s has two upcoming movies that have been completed and in post-production, so fingers crossed.
O’Brien did a good job as host as he is grieving the loss of both his parents who died in December. Sometimes laughter is the best medicine. And unlike David Letterman and Jimmy Kimmel, he’s learned what to do to keep the audience laughing. However, the event was live-streamed on Hulu which cut out before the end.
They should’ve at least anticipated a four-hour telecast. The “In Memoriam” segment left actors Shannon Doherty, Tony Todd and Michelle Trachtenberg out along with others, but someone is always MIA in the ceremony. I thought the recognition of the southern California firefighters was good and they’re presentation of jokes proves they may have a later career in retirement.
It wasn’t one of the best ceremonies but it wasn’t one of the worst.
What do you think? Please comment.
Zane Says 