Oscar Re-Hash

Wow ... what a waste. For the first time in a long time I am actually completely non-plussed with the Academy Awards. After completely pulling me in with the Hugh Jackman hosting gig last year (that man can do anything!) I found myself feeling very uncomfortable watching the awkward banter of Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin open this year's telecast. For 20 minutes the two of them made lame jokes about EVERY acting/directing nominee. Seriously? I don't have time for this.

I would have preferred if the Neil Patrick Harris (yay!) song had just continued straight into the award presentations. Considering Penelope Cruz presented first there could have been a nice "Nine-esque" segue from NPH's broadway to her arrival on stage. But that was not to be. Thoughts about the rest of it below...

Christoph Waltz wins his gimme award for Supporting Actor and has gives my favourite line of the night, "Oscar and Penelope [Cruz] - that's an uber-bingo!"

The stupid introductions of all the nominated films are back in the program. This setup was painful when only five films were in the running but this year they have to do ten. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. OK - at least the actors doing the presentations have something in common with the directors (John Travolta to Tarantino, Keanu Reeves to Bigelow, et) which is cool. And they got ride of the song-singing for all those nominations so I will accept the compromise.

I have decided that Amanada Seyfried has finally arrived. She's made it to the big party wihtout a "real" role yet but she is likely the most prolific young star of the year with three films floating around. She may be the new Julia Stiles.

The Hurt Locker taking a screenplay award was a surprise. First set up of the dominoes towards its win for the night.

The John Hughes tribute was nice. I am of the generation of the John Hughes cult and own most of his 1980s teen films. Watching the clips you really got to see how many young Hollywood stars he had worked with - even Robert Downey Jr. is in that mix. Sad to see so many of the brat pack looking so haggard on stage though. What the hell happened to Judd Nelson?

The short film awards always remind me that I need to pay more attention to this category and try to see the films when they come out. There is some really cool stuff being made!

I have to say I officially depise Ben Stiller now. Showing up in Na'vi make-up and making pointless comments to James Cameron is a waste of time. He spent twice as much time on that gag as the actual winner got to speak and that just isn't cool.

Precious wins adapted screenplay so it looked like the love is going to spread around a bit for these awards. At least if felt that way at the time.

I love seeing the costume design winners on stage because they always look so fabulous. Sandy Powell (winning for The Young Victoria) is no exception and she generously points out that costume designers on smaller, non-period films have just as hard a job even if it doesn't look so obvious. Props to them all!

Kristen Stewart shows up with Taylor Lautner to introduce a pointless (yes, more pointless!) montage of "horror" movies. It lookes like the Academy is on Team Jacob!!

Sam Worthington (yummy) shows up and is chewing gum on stage. I love him but that kind of thins is SO not cool!

Oooookay ... interpretive dance is used to show-off the nominees for Best Score. This is the type of thing that happens when a judge on "So You Think You Can Dance" is producing the Oscars. And I admit to loving the dancing. It was kickass. But really? Winners are getting played off by the band. Do we really have time for this stuff?

Bradley Cooper and Gerard Butler - two of my favourite crushboys of yore - showed up together ... in tuxes. Someone has been reading my private journal!

Jeff Bridges finally gots his little gold man. For a split second I thought it might be going to Jeremy Renner but some trains are moving so fast they must reach the destination.

Sandra Bullock now has an Oscar. She will, forever, be referred to as "Academay Award Winner Sandra Bullock". This pisses me off more than the Marisa Tomei thing.

Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win a directing Oscar. I thing that is very cool as I have been a fan for a long time. Also, I love that the woman's directing award went for a war movie. It truly is an epic result.

And then The Hurt Locker takes the big prize and I have to admit this surprised me. I know all the momentum was there but I didn't really think it would triumph in the end. I think the award says alot about a shift in the American culture where war is no longer crash/bang but an isolating experience. There is not alot of pride to be wrung out of The Hurt Locker but there is a lot of duty and bit too much addiction and these two things appear to be more explicit in the American perspective than before and so a movie that represents them is the champion