Yes, yes. I know that it's been a while that I have posted on my blog but you know how the job search and submitting resumes can be but today, I found some time and while I was going to put up a review for my next post (that will come later), the biggest night for movies happened this past Sunday so I feel like I should cover that first.
Ladies and Gentleman...The Oscars.
The host for this year's Oscars was Seth MacFarlane, the creator of Family Guy and American Dad as well as the driving force behind the vulgar and risque movie, TED (2012). Anyone who has seen either of these shows or movies knows how Seth operates. When I first heard that he would be the host of the Oscars, I hoped that Oscars committee knew what they were doing because Seth's humor tends to rub people the wrong way...and Seth did not disappoint. There were times when I thought he was holding back (probably due to the committee talking to him before the award show started) but it didn't stop him from making jokes about Abraham Lincoln's assassination, for instance. In the beginning of the show, he did well with the musicals and great jokes; overall, he did a reasonably good job as a host. He's already tweeted that he would not host the Oscars again so who knows what will happen next year.
The tribute to James Bond was something that warmed my heart as a James Bond fan. Although my first James Bond movie was Die Another Day (2002) with Pierce Brosnan (what a way to start my Bond film life, right?), I have seen the movies of Bond's past (minus one or two from the Roger Moore era, one from the Timothy Dalton, and George Lazenby) and they made me fall more in love with the escapism of the Bond movies and appreciate the longevity of this franchise, entering its fiftieth year with Skyfall (2012). A video montage of highlights from the twenty-three Bond movies played before a performance from Shirley Bassey, singing Goldfinger. This tribute made sure that even after fifty years, everyone knows James Bond Will Return.
Beyond that, there was a lot of singing and dancing. I think Seth didn't mind that because most of his shows break out into song during random times.
Now, onto the awards. Because there are too many to go through, I'll just cover the highlights:
Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz - Django Unchanined as Dr. King Schultz.
This category was a hard personal pick for me because I enjoy each actor who was nominated for this award but out of all of the movies I saw from this nomination list, I have to say that Christoph deserved this award. His performance as the good doctor/dentist/bounty hunter was superb as a character, fully embracing the eccentricities of Dr. Schultz and his determination to help Django (played by Jamie Foxx) on his journey to reclaim his wife.
While I admit that I didn't have time to watch Les Mis (The Hobbit, Django Unchained, and Silver Linings Playbook came out around the same time so I was torn and short on money), Anne Hathaway had gotten rave reviews for her portrayal of Fantine. I have known some friends not like her performance because of her singing ability but I respect that Anne was willing to sing on her own, have her hair cut off and make someone emotionally invested in the Fantine's story and character.
Best Writing - Original Screenplay: Quentin Tarantino - Django Unchained
Now this award came as a surprise to me. I am a fan of Tarantino. I've seen almost all of his movies (Jackie Brown is the exception. Thank God for Netflix). I didn't expect for Tarantino to get this award because I felt like the Academy Awards didn't really appreciate Tarantino's writing or didn't know what to make of it in comparison to the other nominees. Apparently, they might have changed or warmed up to him a bit and this award is the proof. Django is one of the best original written movie I have seen in a while and having an original script is a rarity in Hollywood now. Congrats to Tarantino.
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln as Abraham Lincoln.
Out of all of the awards, this didn't surprise me. Bradley Cooper did excellent in Silver Linings but he was not ready for that spotlight just yet. That's just my opinion. Hugh Jackman is very multi-talented as well as Joaquin Phoenix but everyone knows that the Academy Awards have a soft spot for emotional character driven stories, historical movies, or just Oscar bait films that come out at the right time. With that being said, I thought the award would come down to Denzel Washington and Daniel Day-Lewis. In the end, I wasn't shocked at Daniel's win because he is an excellent actor and played a great role as one of our most influential presidents in this country's history. This is also his third Oscar for Best Actor. Way to go, Daniel.
Now, THIS came as a surprise to me. Considering her competition against Jessica Chastain for Zero Dark Thirty, I didn't know if Jennifer would win. Maybe I'm bias because I loved Silver Linings Playbook and its unique love story and Jennifer gave a wonderful performance as a dark, heart-broken, and somewhat crazy widow. When her name was called, I was surprised and apparently, so was Jennifer, because she fell while climbing the stairs to take the golden man award. You can't really blame her for her fall in that beautiful dress and knowing that you won the Best Actress award. Jennifer has a few more movies on deck like The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and X-men: Days of Future Past but this movie and her award proves that she is multi-talented and not just another pretty face. It also tells Hollywood that we might have our new A-List Actress for years to come.
Best Picture: Argo Ever since the number of pictures for this award was expanded from five to ten, it makes it much harder to pick out a winner. Personally for me, I was pulling for the dark horses such as Django Unchained, Silver Linings Playbook, and Argo against powerhouse picks like Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty, and Life of Pi. Honestly, Ben Affleck was snubbed from the Best Director nominations this year but he had the last laugh in the end, taking home the biggest award of the night. He seemed flustered as he powered through his acceptance speech. Whether that was because he didn't expect it, the show was coming to a close and he had to hurry up, or he just wanted to say that he was right about his movie all along, Ben had a right to be proud. I've heard good to great things about Argo and it is definitely on my list for next movie to watch in my spare time.
All in all, this Oscars ceremony was better than in previous years, drawing in a larger audience and higher ratings. I will say that I enjoyed this ceremony and looking forward to what next year will bring with the slate of movies that are expected to come down from Hollywood for our viewing pleasure.
Until next time, take care everyone!
