The Annual Academy Awards - General Discussion

[GreekGeek]

2 hours ago, Simon Boccanegra said:

The other major one I remember, besides Curtis, was Ernest Borgnine, who said he had heard it was a great picture, but he hadn't seen it, wasn't going to see it, and didn't want to know about it. Then he added that John Wayne would be rolling over in his grave. What John Wayne and speculation on his opinions had to do with Brokeback Mountain, I have no idea. It's not as though they were remaking a famous John Wayne picture and adding a lot of gay sex. Although I would probably go see such a thing.  

I guess he mentioned John Wayne because BM was about cowboys (although they would more accurately be called sheepherders). Cowboys =Westerns = John Wayne. That said, I wasn't crazy about BM either and I liked Crash better. I wish it had won because Academy voters honestly thought it was the better movie, not because they didn't want to see a gay-themed movie.

[Sake614]

I’m sorry so few of you liked Green Book. I loved it. I laughed, I cried. Sometimes both st the same time. I thought both actors did a great job. Viggo has never played comedy and it was nice to see him in something so different. 

I also don’t get the whole ‘white savior’ notion. Regardless of whether Dr, Shirley’s family was happy with the film, or whether there was creative license taken, its a fact that Donald Shirley hired Tony lip to drive him/be his bodyguard on a tour of the Deep South in the early 1960s. And that they developed a friendship along the way. This film showed that development. Why is that such a horrible thing?

might it have been told from a different perspective? Sure. But it wasn’t written by Dr, Shirley’s family, it was written by Tony’s. If Dr. Shirley’s family wanted the story told another way, they were free to approach a producer directly. 

At the end of the day, since both Tony and Dr. Shirley are gone, we have no way to know the ‘real’ truth about their relationship. And even if they were alive, we’d likely still get different versions. That’s what happens over time. Friends have arguments, sometimes they go years without speaking. Sometimes they stay friends forever. But if you ask each about the cause of the fight(s) you’re likely to get a different answer.

I saw Bohemian Rhapsody and of course Blzck Panther. Really have no interest in Roma and haven’t had the chance to see the other nominees. Part of me was hoping for an upset with Black Panther but I never expected it to take the top award. I was actually surprised it made it to the nomination, although I don’t think the academy had a choice after the whole ‘most polular’ Debacle.

anyway, I thought green book was a fine choice and so did many of the critics. It was always  a favorite to win so I’m not sure where the sudden hate is coming from. And while I take nothing away from rami, who was amazing, I selfishly wanted Viggo to win.

okay going back to my little corner now...

[Crs97]

Good Night and Good Luck was robbed that year.

I hate to say this, but based on one article I read I think Octavia Spencer was brought in to be a producer simply so that Farrelly could throw her under the bus at every opportunity; e.g.,  “You thought the fried chicken scene was racist?  I was worried and thought about pulling it, but Octavia insisted we keep it!”

I read another article that stated Dr. Shirley was close to Martin Luther King, Jr. and marched in Selma so I don’t know how much Tony really had to teach him about the black community.  I’ll remain bitter about this one for awhile I think.

[Sake614]

10 minutes ago, Crs97 said:

Dr. Shirley was close to Martin Luther King, Jr. and marched in Selma

Yes that was mentioned in the film. Doesn’t mean he wasn’t still out of touch with the black community as a whole. Just as any elite person would be out of touch with the ‘masses.’ He didn’t go to clubs, he didn’t have money problems. He lived a privileged life. Or as privileged as was possible for a black man in the 1960s.

[Joimiaroxeu]

Congratulations to Regina King. Have to say it was a surprise though because that was an extra tough category this year. Wonder if the two actresses from The Favourite cancelled each other out?

Never knew who Tom Morrello was before last night. He is something nice to gaze upon.

OMG, all the awards! Just give Mahershala Ali all the awards! He's likely to get an Emmy later this year too because he has killed it on True Detective.

Surprised and glad for Olivia though I was pulling for Glenn. At least Gaga didn't win. (Also, interesting that she wasn't in the audience front and center when Barbra Streisand came out to introduce Spike's film. Hmm.)

Glad for Spike too but I'm not sure BK was his best work. He was overdue and this seemed to me perhaps like a body of work award.

Ugh, Green Book though.

Edited February 26, 2019 by Joimiaroxeu

[galaxygirl76]

All the movies nominated for best picture the year Crash won were better than Crash. A good chunk of movies that weren't nominated but were on the bubble of being nominated were better than Crash was. I saw all the nominated movies that year and I loved loved loved Good Night and Good Luck, that was my pick for best picture though I would have been happy with any of the four that weren't Crash. 

[Nidratime]

48 minutes ago, Sake614 said:

I saw Bohemian Rhapsody and of course Blzck Panther. Really have no interest in Roma and haven’t had the chance to see the other nominees. Part of me was hoping for an upset with Black Panther but I never expected it to take the top award. I was actually surprised it made it to the nomination, although I don’t think the academy had a choice after the whole ‘most polular’ Debacle.

If "most popular" was a reason for nominating a film and/or its stars and behind-the-scenes artists, than Crazy Rich Asians should've been given some kind of a nod. Supporting Actress for Michelle Yoeh? Best costumes or set design?

[Sake614]

2 minutes ago, Nidratime said:

If "most popular" was a reason for nominating a film and/or its stars and behind-the-scenes artists, than Crazy Rich Asians should've been given some kind of a nod. Supporting Actress for Michelle Yoeh? Best costumes or set design?

Agreed. But I was refrrring to the aborted ‘most popular ‘ category that they wanted to add this year. Everyone believed it was to give Panther a chance since it would never win best picture.  And I really liked crazy rich Asians. 

[Tosia]

8 hours ago, Stenbeck said:

Olivia Colman and Mahershala Ali will probably clean up at the Emmy's as well, for The Crown and True Detective, respectively. 

This would be ok by me.   I have lived Olivia Colman for years, but then I love Brit shows. 

Seth Meyer's spoof, White Savior, with Amber Ruffin, was a genius take on GB type movies. Definitely worth 5 minutes of your time.  

[Simon Boccanegra]

1 hour ago, Crs97 said:

I hate to say this, but based on one article I read I think Octavia Spencer was brought in to be a producer simply so that Farrelly could throw her under the bus at every opportunity; e.g.,  “You thought the fried chicken scene was racist?  I was worried and thought about pulling it, but Octavia insisted we keep it!”

Nah, I don't buy it. Spencer has spoken with pride about the film. She noted that she's been in several films that take place in the same time period, such as The Help, Hidden Figures and The Shape of Water, and she wanted to be a part of this film because it shows a black man who was prominent and had agency. She's entitled to her view. There were good things in Green Book, surely, even if it wasn't the best picture of these eight. I can't buy into a characterization of her as Peter Farrelly's dupe. She didn't get where she is and stay there without being a tough, savvy operator.

The Weinsteinian negative campaign against Green Book probably backfired and helped it, ultimately. I'd like to imagine that next year, people on certain blogs will get a hint and spend their obviously considerable energy making the case for the films they want to win rather than shaming and maligning people for liking/participating in ones they don't want to win, but as we see all the time, people don't learn lessons easily.  

Edited February 25, 2019 by Simon Boccanegra

[mtlchick]

2 hours ago, GreekGeek said:

What John Wayne and speculation on his opinions had to do with Brokeback Mountain, I have no idea. It's not as though they were remaking a famous John Wayne picture and adding a lot of gay sex. Although I would probably go see such a thing.  

Oddly enough, this 1971 interview of John Wayne is making the rounds again.  https://pages.shanti.virginia.edu/Wild_Wild_Cold_War/files/2011/11/John_Wayne_Playboy_Int2.pdf  (scroll down to the end of page 3.) 

[proserpina65]

Okay, so here goes some probably unpopular opinions:

Adam Lambert is no Freddie Mercury, not as a singer, not as a performer.

The dresses ranged from unimpressive to ugly.

I missed having a host.  Yeah, the show moved quicker, but it was boring.

I don't give a flying fuck what Spike Lee thinks about Green Book winning Best Picture.  And what the fuck was he rambling on about in his speech?

I'm sorry that Glenn Close lost, but glad that Olivia Colman won.  Too bad they were nominated in the same year.

Edited to note that the only film with any nominations that I saw was First Man.  The only film nominated for Best Picture which I had any interest in seeing was The Favorite.  So I had no horse in that race.

Edited February 25, 2019 by proserpina65

[truthaboutluv]

7 hours ago, DC Gal in VA said:

Loved, loved, loved this Oscars! Are you listening Hollywood? Hosts are totally NOT needed. Loved the pacing of the show. Yes, it was just as long as usual but it didn't feel that way to me. Anyway, much more to say but, again, loved this presentation

And they wouldn't have  been "over" if they'd just go with what I've been saying for years and officially make the show 3 1/2 hours. There are 24 categories to be awarded. Last night proved how that is virtually impossible in 3 hours, considering there was no host and as you said, the pacing of the show was great. It seemed to zip by. And it still hit 3 hours 20 mins. Just make it 3 1/2 hours. 

I also want to mention something about Rami Malek's performance and the constant shade about him lip syncing his way to an Oscar. FYI, Rami actually sang the entire time. He wasn't lip syncing. He mentioned this in a number of interviews. That every time he was supposed to sing, he did because he didn't want it to look like he was lip syncing. 

What happened is that the sound mixing/editing people then came in and layered his raw vocals with Freddie's recordings and a small amount was also done by this guy Marc Martel, who sings in a Queen cover band. And that by the way is also why Bohemian Rhapsody won Best Sound Editing and Sound Mixing. 

Edited February 25, 2019 by truthaboutluv

[DC Gal in VA]

Wow thanks for that very enlightening background information truthaboutluv. I absolutely did not know that. Isn't it amazing how many, probably talent free, people crawl out of the woodwork to throw shade at a fantastic performance by a very talented young actor? Bleh and a pox all on their houses I say!😅

[Dr.OO7]

2 hours ago, Sake614 said:

I’m sorry so few of you liked Green Book. I loved it. I laughed, I cried. Sometimes both st the same time. I thought both actors did a great job. Viggo has never played comedy and it was nice to see him in something so different. 

I also don’t get the whole ‘white savior’ notion. Regardless of whether Dr, Shirley’s family was happy with the film, or whether there was creative license taken, its a fact that Donald Shirley hired Tony lip to drive him/be his bodyguard on a tour of the Deep South in the early 1960s. And that they developed a friendship along the way. This film showed that development. Why is that such a horrible thing?

might it have been told from a different perspective? Sure. But it wasn’t written by Dr, Shirley’s family, it was written by Tony’s. If Dr. Shirley’s family wanted the story told another way, they were free to approach a producer directly. 

At the end of the day, since both Tony and Dr. Shirley are gone, we have no way to know the ‘real’ truth about their relationship. And even if they were alive, we’d likely still get different versions. That’s what happens over time. Friends have arguments, sometimes they go years without speaking. Sometimes they stay friends forever. But if you ask each about the cause of the fight(s) you’re likely to get a different answer.

I saw Bohemian Rhapsody and of course Blzck Panther. Really have no interest in Roma and haven’t had the chance to see the other nominees. Part of me was hoping for an upset with Black Panther but I never expected it to take the top award. I was actually surprised it made it to the nomination, although I don’t think the academy had a choice after the whole ‘most polular’ Debacle.

anyway, I thought green book was a fine choice and so did many of the critics. It was always  a favorite to win so I’m not sure where the sudden hate is coming from. And while I take nothing away from rami, who was amazing, I selfishly wanted Viggo to win.

okay going back to my little corner now...

I liked Green Book too. I don't get all the backlash either.

That said, I'm not sure how I feel about it winning Best Picture. I'm not angry, but I really wanted Spike Lee to win it and Best Director.

It's bizarre. For years, Best Director and Best Picture went together and only rarely were they split. Nowadays, the opposite is true.

[Milburn Stone]

39 minutes ago, Simon Boccanegra said:

Nah, I don't buy it. Spencer has spoken with pride about the film. She noted that she's been in several films that take place in the same time period, such as The Help, Hidden Figures and The Shape of Water, and she wanted to be a part of this film because it shows a black man who was prominent and had agency. She's entitled to her view. There were good things in Green Book, surely, even if it wasn't the best picture of these eight. I can't buy into a characterization of her as Peter Farrelly's dupe. She didn't get where she is and stay there without being a tough, savvy operator.

That's where I am, too. Was it a great movie? I'm not sure. But to those millions of woke folks on social media who think it was a retrograde movie, all I can say is that Octavia Spencer and Mahershala Ali didn't think so. And I have too much respect for them to disregard their point of view.

[proserpina65]

12 hours ago, nilyank said:

Angela looks great. Javier is not bad himself.

I didn't care for the weird, one shoulder bow, but the rest of the dress looked great.  She and Emilia Clarke were among the few women whose dresses I liked.  Regina King's had great elements, but there was too much fabric over the hip with the slit.

[DC Gal in VA]

9 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

All in all, I did think it was a solid telecast.  I think it actually helped not having a host, as most of the presenters were able to make it entertaining enough.  And while not all of my favorites won, I can't really think of any win that upset me.  Really, my biggest gripe is still that Won't You Be My Neighbor? snub.

I do kind of fell bad for Bradley Cooper, but then I remind myself that he's still Bradley Freaking Cooper.

Honestly, the worst part of the night was; as much as I love the site; the forums really were all out of wack.  Don't deny me my Oscar snark and witty remarks, Previously TV!

Anyway, off to take a break and then watch the True Detective finale, because apparently this is Mahershala Ali's world, and he's dominating everything!

I didn't really feel bad for Bradley Cooper last night. When I really, really really--yes, that's THREE reallys😄--felt totally pissed off for him was not winning for American Sniper. IMHO, he wasn't just robbed that night but pistol whipped, carjacked and then run over by his own damn car for good measure! I think Hollywood's far left leanings were showing for sure.

I saw an interview with the wife of Chris Kyle, the real American Sniper, and during the interview a brief clip of the movie was played. Well, she was very stoic and composed before they played it but after they came back to ask her about and how she felt about Bradley Cooper's portrayal of her late husband in mid sentence she burst into tears, saying something to the effect of it was like, for a moment, he was still alive. Broke my heart and honestly I was all teary eyed as well. That's how spot on his performance was let alone how he had to physically prepare for the role, as though he literally channeled her dead husband.

******* Whew, Team Bradley Cooper Rant Ovah, LOL! *******

[vibeology]

10 hours ago, ShellsandCheese said:

There were issues with how Dr. Don Shirley was portrayed. His family said the film wasn't true to him but then he came out that he had some sort of falling out with his family - and he cut them out of his will (don't know if that is true). Mostly, a lot of people felt it was another White Savior movie; personally, I didn't get that impression and was more disappointed that it wasn't about The actual Green Book. A lot of the outrage surrounding the movie actually left a bad taste in my mouth because of who was most vocal; think about that scene in Get Out with the work liberal whites saying they'd have voted for Obama for a third time. A lot of the criticism in particular from white people just came across as too over the top and too try hard, trying to show they are woke or down for the cause. I'm happy that both Octavia Spencer and Mahershala Ali now have two Oscars each.  

Mahershala got a second Oscar but Octavia did not. She was not listed as one of the nominated producers. As an executive producer, she put money in and is making money off of the movie but she did not win an Oscar for it.

8 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

She was a frontrunner or the (unbolded) front runner but this race was always close.  It was hard to predict because The Favourite was considered more comedic while The Wife was more dramatic.  Glenn and Olivia often found themselves in separate categories.  Then Glenn won SAG but Olivia won BAFTA.  I do think if felt like Glenn had the upperhand because of her long career and the SAG win but this wasn't a total upset. 

I feel like when a British person wins the BAFTA people tend to write that off assuming the BAFTAs just like to support their own. It's a mistake since there is enough crossover to consider the BAFTAs but that is why I think the press story coming into the night had Glenn as the clear frontrunner.

I'm thrilled for Ruth Carter, Spike Lee, the women of Bao, Regina King and Olivia (even though I personally was hoping for Glenn.) I'm also so pleased that Period. End of Sentence. won in it's category. There was a secret ballot where some guy said it wouldn't win because men wouldn't vote for it and a movie about periods was "icky." Well fuck that guy and good on a still mostly male voting body for not being grossed out by a biological function and voting for a great movie with an important story. (Though I don't think they could have gone wrong in Documentary Short. Every film was truly excellent.)

My biggest WTF was Bohemian Rhapsody winning for editing. There's a clip floating around showing the horrible editing in one scene and I just cannot believe that has an Oscar.

[Apocalypso]

I can't remember a  year in which there were so many colorful tuxes!  After purple, pink, blue and maroon, camo for heaven's sake - it was actually a shock when men in black came up to accept an award!  

I don't object, I've always thought it a pity that men have had to adhere to the same boring conventional suits for the last century or so.

[Stenbeck]

Left out of the In Memorian segment: Carol Channing!

[Dr.OO7]

1 minute ago, Stenbeck said:

Left out of the In Memorian segment: Carol Channing!

That's two things I don't understand--why it isn't done in alphabetical order, and why certain people are omitted. 

If they died the day before the ceremony, I can understand, obviously, but not when there's been plenty of time to include them.

[Cementhead]

To help explain some of the Julia Roberts hate: 

My hatred for all things Julia and Mr. Danny Moder stems from her A Low Vera t-shirt.  That told me all I needed to know about who Julia Roberts really was and is.  Prior to the shirt, I was a big fan. 

I will say that she won the battle of the pink dresses last night.  She looked great.

Edited February 25, 2019 by Cementhead

[proserpina65]

12 hours ago, ProudMary said:

General observation: I think the expansion of academy members over the past couple of years to add younger members, more women and more people of color has been felt tonight.  A few years ago, the awards for Costume Design and Production Design would have gone to The Favourite or Mary, Queen of Scots.  The awards for Sound Editing and Sound Mixing would have gone to First Man.  There were gloriously different results tonight!  

Personally, I wanted First Man to win the sound awards because it deserved them.

12 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Or Seth McFarland singing about seeing the boobs of the nominated actresses?

I thought that was funny as hell.

[Lady Iris]

10 hours ago, Misslindsey said:

Is it bad that I still refer to Viggo as Aragorn?

Nope! I still do.

Aside from the forum crashing last night, I really enjoyed reading along while posting. I just wonder who gets the call that the site is crashing/has crashed? Is there a dedicated red phone that rings when something like that happens?

[DC Gal in VA]

9 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

Add Mahershala Ali's wife to the worst dress list.

I know that I already quoted you Vernicious Knid but there was just something about this dress that I just couldn't put my finger on regarding exactly what her outfit reminded me of at first and then, light bulb moment!

It looks like the kind of dress/gown/monstrosity that a relative would design. Now I mean a really beloved THISCLOSE relative like your mom or big sister (or brother) not like a distant cousin or auntie so-and-so who you only see on holidays. That person has absolutely zero design talent but you love him or her so much and don't want to hurt their feelings and you agree to wear what you just know is going to make the 2019 Oscars' Worst Dressed List the next day. It's either that or she made it herself!

[truthaboutluv]

9 minutes ago, vibeology said:

My biggest WTF was Bohemian Rhapsody winning for editing. There's a clip floating around showing the horrible editing in one scene and I just cannot believe that has an Oscar.

I found out on one of these industry/entertainment sites like Variety or Hollywood Reporter, that for these categories, voters typically are only voting off a 20-30 minute submitted clip of the film. 

Most experts predicted Bohemian Rhapsody would win because they assumed that they likely submitted the Live Aid sequence. And as one critic said it, if a voter only watched that and watched it side by side with the real Live Aid footage, it was very unlikely they wouldn't vote for it. 

[Lady Iris]

2 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

I found out on one of these industry/entertainment sites like Variety or Hollywood Reporter, that for these categories, voters typically are only voting off a 20-30 minute submitted clip of the film. 

Most experts predicted Bohemian Rhapsody would win because they assumed that they likely submitted the Live Aid sequence. And as one critic said it, if a voter only watched that and watched it side by side with the real Live Aid footage, it was very unlikely they wouldn't vote for it. 

I've seen a video of the actual Live Aid performance side by side with the movie on Youtube and they truly did justice to the excitement and joy of it. I can't get it out of my head. Their Live Aid performance, especially of Radio Gaga is my top favorite live performance and the movie caught the magic done that day so perfectly.

[Simon Boccanegra]

7 minutes ago, DC Gal in VA said:

It looks like the kind of dress/gown/monstrosity that a relative would design. Now I mean a really beloved THISCLOSE relative like your mom or big sister (or brother) not like a distant cousin or auntie so-and-so who you only see on holidays. That person has absolutely zero design talent but you love him or her so much and don't want to hurt their feelings and you agree to wear what you just know is going to make the 2019 Oscars' Worst Dressed List the next day. It's either that or she made it herself!

Heh. Now that's making me think of Denise Huxtable's attempt at a Gordon Gartrell. (It probably helps that Lisa Bonet and her husband did a red carpet interview.) 

[Petunia13]

My mom thought Green Book deserves Best Picture. 

[proserpina65]

12 hours ago, MerBearHou said:

I’ve been kicked off this site so many times.  Really irritating on tonight of all nights.

Oh how I love John Mullaney.

I thought he and Awkwafina were the worst presenters of the night.

[benteen]

I'm just trying to figure out why the clip they used for Rami in the Best Actor category was him lip-synching...

I've been a fan of Rami since Mr. Robot so I was happy to see him win.  This should ensure the amount of viewers watching Mr. Robot will go from 10 people to 12.

I was sorry that Glenn Close lost but have also been a fan of Olivia Colman for years.  Was happy to see her win and her speech was wonderful.

Edited February 26, 2019 by benteen

[DearEvette]

My probably not popular opinion is that I think Oscar gets best picture wrong more often than it has gotten it right.  Quite a few best picture winners don't feel like you are watching great cinema and especially not the greatest of the year.   I think Green Book's win for writing was probably a worse travesty than its win for best picture.  So Banal. Hell Black Panther had better writing that GB.

It kinda sucks that is was the last winner of the night because it leaves a sour taste after having some really deserving wins early on:  Regina, Ruth, Rami, Spike, Hannah Beachler, Cuaron, and Olivia Coleman etc.  Even Mahershala deserved his win since I do think the acting was about the only thing the movie did well.

[Bunnyto4]

 I really enjoyed this years telecast. So happy  for Regina King-I have loved her work since she was a kid. 

And I don’t know about anyone else, but after Gaga and BC’s performance, which I thought was awesome, I kinda wanted a cigarette. Just saying. Whew

[slowpoked]

https://mobile.twitter.com/ScottFeinberg/status/1099839556608618497

Kudos to all who called her win, even if it didn’t look possible leading up to the Oscars, at least with the precursor awards. I haven’t seen the movie, but it’s hard not to root for Regina King. She has just such a great body of work from TV to film.

Edited February 25, 2019 by slowpoked

[DC Gal in VA]

Okay folks, how about some Worst Dressed snark? Here are three of my nominees:

Okay, I'm a fan of Maya Rudolph; the woman is Hella funny but this dress? Yikes!

You know when you've just done some decorating at home and you got a lot of extra material left over from making your custom made drapes or bedding and you just don't want to waste that extra fabric and you decide that you just have to do something with it? Well that's this dress! No you DON'T have to do anything with it except march yourself on down to the nearest Goodwill and donate that shit!

Glenn Close is an actress whose talent I deeply respect and admire. However, I think I can figure out what she was thinking when she chose this outfit: "You know all of the Hollywood Intelligentsia are saying that I am a lock for the Best Actress Oscar. But, just in case I don't win I'm gonna wear my own damned Oscar!" Take that Hollywood!!!

Kacey Musgraves. Frankly I haven't a clue who she is and don't feel like Googling for it right now. Anyway, I think I get it. See, she got confused and thought that she was headed to the Grammys a couple of years ago when the song Chandelier was up for an award. Yeah, I nailed it! See, she loved that song and video so much she wanted to pay homage to it by wearing this gown. Whew, so glad I finally figured that out! HEE!😊

Anyone else want to share their, ahem, favorites?

I don't want to just pick on the ladies and will be back to share some of the men's Oscar fashion fails.

Edited February 25, 2019 by DC Gal in VA
Typo.

[Bunnyto4]

One more thing and then I’ll sit down. They did the In Memoriam tribute and didn’t mention Stanley Donen?? Shameful! And don’t say there wasn’t time-he died on Friday. 

[ProudMary]

A few comments about the telecast itself:

I think having no host worked just fine.  Having Queen open the show musically instead of an opening comedic monologue worked well but then the producers must have felt they needed to hedge their bets and brought out Rudolph, Fey and Poehler to do an abbreviated comedy bit, which I thought was unnecessary.  Several minutes could have been cut right there.  If they choose to move forward without a host next year, the opening becomes an issue.  Having Queen perform this year made perfect sense because of Bohemian Rhapsody.  Also, Queen's fandom spans generations of viewers.  There aren't many acts that would fill that bill.  I suppose an alternative would be to have a host do an opening monologue and then perhaps some closing comments, without all the filler crap that hosts normally do.

I think what really kept the show moving last night was that there was no insipid, scripted banter between presenters.  Pretty much, presenters walked on stage, named the category, led into the list of nominees and then announced the award winner(s).  The only pair who seemed to improvise some (IMO, not very funny) banter was Awkwafina and John Mulaney.

What was the deal with the presenters for the acting awards?  All four of last year's acting award winners were ultimately there as presenters--I know there had been talk of not having them present at all--so why didn't Sam Rockwell and Allison Janney present the Supporting Actress/Actor awards?  Teaming them up with Frances McDormand and Gary Oldman, respectively to present Best Actress/Actor didn't make particular sense.  I wish the producers would explain their thinking on that.

Earlier in awards' season, we'd heard that the producers of the Oscars' telecast were telling celebrities that if they presented at the GGs, the SAGs, etc. they wouldn't be presenting at the Oscars.  The specific group that kept coming up in these rumors were the actors of the MCU, with an "Avengers reunion" hinted at strongly for a ratings' draw.  So what happened there?  I saw Chris Evans and Paul Rudd but they presented independently.  Where were the rest of the Avengers?  That seems to be something that fell apart.

This part definitely comes with a "just my opinion" warning:  By and large, the songs nominated for Best Original Song are boring as hell.  I'm not just talking about this year, but every year.  There's usually one standout, sometimes two.  If the producers want to cut serious time from the broadcast, lose the performances of the nominated songs.  Do exactly what they do with the acting nominations.  Name the nominee and then show a 20-30 second clip of the song as recorded for the film.  

I am so glad that the presentation of ALL 24 of the the awards remained in the actual telecast.  Even though I saw few of the short films this year, the energy and excitement that radiates from the winners of those awards is well worth seeing.  An Oscar truly means something to these filmmakers.  They know that "Oscar winner" before their name will mean more funding opportunities for their future projects.  Many viewers may look at those categories as a good time to go make a sandwich, but I think differently.

[SunnyBeBe]

I saw a little of Sam Elliott last night.  I've been a big fan for years.  I kept missing his wife, Katherine Ross, who was on his arm though.  And, each scene where he was interviewed, she was not shown!  If anyone runs across a photo or clip of them together on the red carpet or inside last night, will you please post?  

[Bunnyto4]

7 minutes ago, DC Gal in VA said:

Okay folks, how about some Worst Dressed snark? Here are three of my nominees:

Okay, I'm a fan of Maya Rudolph; the woman is Hella funny but this dress? Yikes!

You know when you've just done some decorating at home and you got a lot of extra material left over from making your custom made drapes or bedding and you just don't want to waste that extra fabric and you decide that you just have to do something with it? Well that's this dress! No you DON'T have to do anything with it except march yourself on down to the nearest Goodwill and donate that shit!

Glenn Close, is an actress whose talent I deeply respect and admire. However, I think I can figure out what she was thinking when she chose this outfit: "You know all of the Hollywood Intelligentsia are saying that I am a lock for the Best Actress Oscar. But, just in case I don't win I'm gonna wear my own damned Oscar!" Take that Hollywood!!!

Kacey Musgraves. Frankly I haven't a clue who she is and don't feel like Googling for it right now. Anyway, I think I get it. See, she got confused and thought that she was headed to the Grammys a couple of years ago when the song Chandelier was up for an award. Yeah, I nailed it! See, she loved that song and video so much she wanted to pay homage to it by wearing this gown. Whew, so glad I finally figured that out!😊is

Anyone else want to share their, ahem, favorites?

I don't want to just pick on the ladies and will be back to share some of the men's Oscar fashion fails.

Agreed-I literally adore Maya Rudolph, but when I saw her, all I could think of was the Carol Burnett “Went With the Wind” sketch. And I know it’s a trend, but I hate pink(meaning the color, of course). Sorry pink lovers

[ProudMary]

3 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I saw a little of Sam Elliott last night.  I've been a big fan for years.  I kept missing his wife, Katherine Ross, who was on his arm though.  And, each scene where he was interviewed, she was not shown!  If anyone runs across a photo or clip of them together on the red carpet or inside last night, will you please post?  

[ABay]

15 hours ago, Mystery said:

Yeah, I thought that Emilia looked old-Hollywood glamorous.

Does anyone keep getting booted off with "500 error"s?

Yes. I finally gave up last night right after my last post here. So frustrating.

[Cementhead]

6 minutes ago, ProudMary said:

Oh, that's unfortunate about the nipple tape.

[proserpina65]

12 hours ago, Crs97 said:

The John Williams song was beautiful and should be used every year.  I hated when they would get a singer, and we would keep having to cut to him/her rather than to the photos of the people we were supposed to be honoring.  This was perfect.

I thought it was rather bland.  But then, I think most of his work is bland.

[Archery]

Not sure the amount of vocal editing/SFX required helps Rami Malek in comparison to Bradley Cooper, but whatever. 

I read an article this morning (confirmed, it appears by the BBC), that what Trevor Noah said in Xhosa was not that lovely adage about fighting together but really, "White people don't know that I am lying."  I. Am. Done. 

Big loser of the night:  fashion designers trying to make unwieldy trains a thing.  Amazing that the only person who face planted was a guy in a tux. 

[scarynikki12]

44 minutes ago, Bunnyto4 said:

One more thing and then I’ll sit down. They did the In Memoriam tribute and didn’t mention Stanley Donen?? Shameful! And don’t say there wasn’t time-he died on Friday. 

They left out Brody Stevens as well.  I know they have an official time frame for the In Memoriam segment, and those who pass after that window closes are to be put in the following year's montage, but we also know that if it had been Martin Scorsese who passed away just days before the Oscars they'd have scrambled to make sure he was included.  I won't get mad unless they forget to include Stanley and Brody in next year's segment.

[teddysmom]

47 minutes ago, DC Gal in VA said:

Anyone else want to share their, ahem, favorites?

Is Maya pregnant? The way she kept holding her stomach made me think so. That dress is awful.

Glenn's was a little too on the nose.  Of course she thought she would win, everyone said she would, but it shouldn't have been for this movie, which is a role she can do in her sleep.   That other actresses were more deserving this year, ie Olivia. The Oscars shouldn't be "here, we messed up a couple years ago, so we'll screw someone else over this year". 

I didn't know who Kacey was either.  

[blackwing]

1 hour ago, DC Gal in VA said:

Okay folks, how about some Worst Dressed snark? Here are three of my nominees:

Okay, I'm a fan of Maya Rudolph; the woman is Hella funny but this dress? Yikes!

You know when you've just done some decorating at home and you got a lot of extra material left over from making your custom made drapes or bedding and you just don't want to waste that extra fabric and you decide that you just have to do something with it? Well that's this dress! No you DON'T have to do anything with it except march yourself on down to the nearest Goodwill and donate that shit!

Glenn Close, is an actress whose talent I deeply respect and admire. However, I think I can figure out what she was thinking when she chose this outfit: "You know all of the Hollywood Intelligentsia are saying that I am a lock for the Best Actress Oscar. But, just in case I don't win I'm gonna wear my own damned Oscar!" Take that Hollywood!!!

Kacey Musgraves. Frankly I haven't a clue who she is and don't feel like Googling for it right now. Anyway, I think I get it. See, she got confused and thought that she was headed to the Grammys a couple of years ago when the song Chandelier was up for an award. Yeah, I nailed it! See, she loved that song and video so much she wanted to pay homage to it by wearing this gown. Whew, so glad I finally figured that out!😊

Anyone else want to share their, ahem, favorites?

I don't want to just pick on the ladies and will be back to share some of the men's Oscar fashion fails.

I agree that Maya Rudolph was terrible.  Looked like curtains from the rec room of a nursing home whose purpose was supposed to provide cheer to its aging residents.  There's always a number of fails at the Oscars but this Oscars to me had so many more utter fails than usual.  Mahershala Ali's wife.  Hideous.  The woman who won for Production Design and her hideous dress with the enormous amount of red fabric perched on her shoulder.  The normally lovely Rachel Weisz with her latex top.  Olivia Colman.  She had a perfectly nice forest green looking dress and then somebody thought it looked too plain so they took this weird gray gauze and made a huge bow for the back and made some sleeves, wound up with way too much extra material but figured they paid for it so they took the remaining 20 feet of it and just wrapped it around her.

I didn't mind Glenn Close wearing a golden gown.  I thought she looked great.  I seem to recall that Meryl Streep wore an Oscar statue-looking gown as well the year she won for "Iron Lady".

As for the men... Mahershala himself with his $10 knit hat.  Was it cold inside the theater?  Ryan Seacrest, looking like he was trying for that "sophisticated smoking jacket" look but instead he looked like he rolled right off his shift as a blackjack dealer in Vegas.  Spike Lee, who looked like a video game character with his purple hat and suit.

Edited February 25, 2019 by blackwing

[Proclone]

5 hours ago, Sake614 said:

I’m sorry so few of you liked Green Book. I loved it. I laughed, I cried. Sometimes both st the same time. I thought both actors did a great job. Viggo has never played comedy and it was nice to see him in something so different. 

I also don’t get the whole ‘white savior’ notion. Regardless of whether Dr, Shirley’s family was happy with the film, or whether there was creative license taken, its a fact that Donald Shirley hired Tony lip to drive him/be his bodyguard on a tour of the Deep South in the early 1960s. And that they developed a friendship along the way. This film showed that development. Why is that such a horrible thing?

might it have been told from a different perspective? Sure. But it wasn’t written by Dr, Shirley’s family, it was written by Tony’s. If Dr. Shirley’s family wanted the story told another way, they were free to approach a producer directly. 

At the end of the day, since both Tony and Dr. Shirley are gone, we have no way to know the ‘real’ truth about their relationship. And even if they were alive, we’d likely still get different versions. That’s what happens over time. Friends have arguments, sometimes they go years without speaking. Sometimes they stay friends forever. But if you ask each about the cause of the fight(s) you’re likely to get a different answer.

I saw Bohemian Rhapsody and of course Blzck Panther. Really have no interest in Roma and haven’t had the chance to see the other nominees. Part of me was hoping for an upset with Black Panther but I never expected it to take the top award. I was actually surprised it made it to the nomination, although I don’t think the academy had a choice after the whole ‘most polular’ Debacle.

anyway, I thought green book was a fine choice and so did many of the critics. It was always  a favorite to win so I’m not sure where the sudden hate is coming from. And while I take nothing away from rami, who was amazing, I selfishly wanted Viggo to win.

okay going back to my little corner now...

Full disclosure I have not seen Green Book.  I really have no desire to.  It may be a well-made movie, but it does seem to be (to quote Honest Trailers) taking the controversial stance that...gasp...racism...is...wrong.  And it says it without saying anything else, like say BlackKlansman did on a similar topic.  I will agree that Crashes message of "everyone's a little racist/we often don't realize our own racism" is actually a more nuanced message.  It does not seem like a movie that is made to make us question our prejudices or connect to issues facing us today.  It seems like a movie made to make us feel good that we are not mouth breathing racists, and it's great things aren't segregated anymore.  Which doesn't make it a bad film, but these surface level things aren't things I think the academy should be rewarding in this day and age, YMMV.  I also think when a Marvel movie (which was also nominated) has more subtle and interesting themes about race and privilege (BP definitely asks the question at which point are those that have privilege required to act on behalf of those that don't), you're probably picking the wrong movie for Best Picture in Green Book.

I have read a few articles on the topic, and one of the biggest issues I find is that the Shirley family claims Tony and Dr. Shirley were not friends at all.  That while Tony did work for Dr. Shirley they had an employee/employer relationship and that Dr. Shirley actually fired Tony for being less than professional.  There's a difference in taking liberties and making a story up whole cloth.  In that case, just write an original story.

And the family was also not contacted to let them know the movie was even being made.  Producers claim they didn't think there was any family, but Dr. Shirley had several brothers, one of whom is still living, and several nieces and nephews.  I can't imagine they'd be that hard to find.  The family also claims Nic Vallelonga approached Dr. Shirley about making the film while Dr. Shirley was still living and he turned him down.  It seems more than a little tacky to wait until someone dies to make a film about them because they wouldn't consent to it while they were living. If anyone is interested in reading.

Edited February 25, 2019 by Proclone

[mtlchick]

Awwww yay for Richard! ❤️