QPORIT

Some OSCAR notes:

The show was consistently interesting, never boring, but never really exciting either. A few lines from Bob Hope remind us how lame other comedians have been since. But then, that was one of Bob Hope's best moments they showed.

The opening film sketch was fun. The opening Hot Body Humping sketch on Jimmy Kimmel's After-the-Oscars show delivered, to bookend the night.

James Franco added little to the night, but Anne Hathaway was good, though not especially funny. More than usual, the hosts introduced the presenters and not much else. They are not comedians.

The show got past the more boring awards quickly, and bunched the songs and Best Picture segments, which avoided some of the more draggy elements of many shows. Still, the show ran a little over the 11:30 supposed ending time. The kids from PS 122 were good. It's always a thrill for kids to get special opportunities like that. Sometime in the next 50 years we'll read about some celebrity who was inspired by their visit to the Oscars tonight to sing in the chorus.

Big winner, of course was THE KING'S SPEECH: Here's how it fared...

The King’s Speech
==>Best Picture
==>Best Director - Tom Hooper
==>Best Actor - Colin Firth
xBest Supporting Actor - Geoffrey Rush
xBest Supporting Actress - Helena Bonham Carter
xBest Cinematography - Danny Cohen
==>Best Original Screenplay - David Seidler
xBest Art Direction
xBest Costume Design
xBest Original Score
xBest Film Editing
xBest Sound Mixing

Black Swan won Best Actress for Natalie Portman. Jimmy Kimmel remarked that Black Swan was the only black nominated this year.

Both Black Swan and The King's Speech were at HIFF (The Hamptons International Film Festival) in 2010, along with James Franco and 127 Hours.

Two of the best lines were

"How to Train Your Dragon".."that's disgusting!"

and

Tom Hooper's "LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER!" - She discovered The King's Speech for him.

I thought both Natalie Portman's talk and Aaron Sorkin's talk were amazing: for how much they said, and how many people they remembered, and how fast they spoke, and what they said, too, in the pressure of the moment.

Natalie Portman, by the way, is not only an actress, she directed a short film that I liked a lot:

http://qporit.blogspot.com/2008/10/hiff-eve-gsa-shorts.html

I enjoyed Kirk Douglas' spirit as a presenter. Scarlett and Justin made a good team; they were the best presenting couple.

Did Christian Bale forget his wife's name when he was thanking???

Inception was the big winner in the technical categories, with Sound Editing and Mixing, Cinematography & Visual Effects. Alice in Wonderland won for Art Design and Costumes. And The Social Network won for Editing. You'd expect a Best Directed picture to win in some technical categories, but Speech was shut out.

I do not really understand why Barney's Version was even nominated for Costumes, by the way.

The Inside Job was the winning documentary. It describes the way that financial institutions, as well as some academic consultants, were complicit in the financial meltdown. The director was astonished that three years after no one has been sent to jail for fraud.

In a Better World was the Foreign Film winner. It is not easy to see the foreign film winners. They seem to pass unnoticed in the theaters, and even in film festivals. The shorts are kind of invisible also, but more and more they will be able to be searched out online I think.

There was one clip from Winter's Bone which reminded me how terrific that cinematography really was. To appreciate it, watch the DVD, then watch the How-it-was-made feature on the DVD. You'll see the difference between how the place really looks, and how it looks in the film.

Finally, sadly, was the remembrance of those that have passed during this year. Sadly, I had met and known a number of the people mentioned. Some of those I knew were very nice, and nice to me. May they and their families rest in peace. I will remember them fondly and sadly.


Here is a list of nominees and winners:

NOMINATION LEADERS AND FRONT RUNNERS

The King’s Speech
==>Best Picture
==>Best Director - Tom Hooper
==>Best Actor - Colin Firth
xBest Supporting Actor - Geoffrey Rush
xBest Supporting Actress - Helena Bonham Carter
xBest Cinematography - Danny Cohen
==>Best Original Screenplay - David Seidler
xBest Art Direction
xBest Costume Design
xBest Original Score
xBest Film Editing
xBest Sound Mixing

True Grit
xBest Film
xBest Director - Joel and Ethan Coen
xBest Actor - Jeff Bridges
xBest Supporting Actress - Hailee Steinfeld
xBest Adapted Screenplay - Joel and Ethan Coen
xBest Cinematography - Roger Deakins
xBest Art Direction
xBest Costume Design
xBest Sound Editing
xBest Sound Mixing


The Social Network
xBest Film
xBest Director - David Fincher
xBest Actor - Jesse Eisenberg
==>Best Adapted Screenplay - Aaron Sorkin
xBest Cinematography - Jeff Cronenweth
==>Best Original Score
==>Best Film Editing
xBest Sound Mixing

Labels: Academy Awards, Black Swan, Jeff Bridges, Natalie Portman, Oscars, The King's Speech, The Social Network, True Grit

# posted by QPORIT @ 12:27 PM