87th Annual Academy Awards: Some Thoughts

Ever since I was 12, I stayed up late to watch the Oscar telecast.    For a movie lover, this is the Superbowl.      Last night's 87th Oscars ceremony hosted by Neil Patrick Harris was like many of the past telecasts:  Unnecessarily long.    Each year, the identity of the Oscars host is revealed with eager anticipation.     Neil Patrick Harris is a talented actor with prior awards show hosting experience.    However, a host is usually only as good as the material he is provided.    I thought Harris carried himself well, but had to shoulder a load of a ridiculously long, drawn-out telecast.     It is too much for any one person to handle.    Nonetheless, he carried himself with aplomb.

Here are some other thoughts about the 87th Oscars:

*   When I wrote wrap ups for the previous two Oscar telecasts, I was annoyed by the unusual amount of standing ovations.    Last year, the audience awarded 12 standing O's.    About three-fourths of the way during this telecast, I praised the audience for its restraint.    It gave only one standing ovation (to Patricia Arquette for her acceptance speech containing a plea for equal pay for women).    Four musical numbers went by and nary a standing ovation.    I was impressed.    Then the bottom fell out.    John Legend and Common received three standing ovations within 10 minutes.     Standing ovations for speeches reflecting societal woes seemed to be the norm.    This year's audience gave 10 ovations, so there is slight improvement.     I'm not saying that some weren't deserved, but too many standing ovations detracts from the impact.    

*   Lady Gaga impressed with her renditions of songs from The Sound Of Music.   Julie Andrews' immediate appearance afterwards added a nice touch.   

*   I said it before and I'll say it again:   Awards that people just don't care about (which is all but say 10 categories) should take place at an untelevised ceremony like the Governor's Ball or The Scientific & Technical Awards.    Have a presenter explain who won what and the categories will be covered in less than five minutes.     I should cut and paste this paragraph to put in next year's wrap-up.   I'm sure it will apply.

*   Speaking of technical categories, why were the nominees in these categories seated way in the back of the Dolby Theater?   Or in the side balconies?    It took many of the winners entirely too much time just to walk to the stage to accept their awards.    That adds to the running time.    Again, if these categories had their own ceremony, this would not be an issue.

*   Each year there is at least one notable omission from In Memoriam segment.    This year was Joan Rivers, who was seen on the red carpet annually and of course was known to give sometimes skewering fashion critiques.    Was this an oversight or done accidentally on purpose?    Hmmm.

*   Afflictions are king in the acting categories.   Two more awards presented to actors playing people with afflictions.    Eddie Redmayne (The Theory Of Everything) playing Dr. Stephen Hawking and Julianne Moore (Still Alice) as a woman facing Alzheimer's.    A close second is an actor who uglies himself or herself up for a role.  

*  Did Neil Patrick Harris' predictions really need to be read right before the announcement of Best Picture?   The weary audience at home and in the theater were surely ready to leave and could not muster enough energy for one more bit.

*  I understand Sean Penn once acted in a movie directed by Alejandro G. Inarritu (21 Grams) but his joke, "Who gave this guy his green card?" in reference to Inarritu might have a little too inside for us viewers.    Now Penn is under fire for what is perceived as an off-color joke.    Penn needs to stick to his day job.  

*  I enjoyed the opening joke "Best and Whitest" from Harris, plus the byplay between John Travolta and Idina Menzel over Travolta's butchering of her name last year.    Travolta was a good sport, but then again, why shouldn't he be?   He is an annual presenter even though he hasn't made a relevant movie in quite some time.

*  Jennifer Lopez hasn't been relevant in movies in ages.   Why is she an annual presenter?   Maybe because she wears dresses that show off her ample breasts.    In that case, no problem.

*  Wouldn't it behoove Kelly Osbourne of E!'s Fashion Police to look presentable while critiquing other people's dress choices?   A purple mohawk doesn't work at all and neither did the frumpy dress.

*  Finally, I finished 5 for 8 picking the major categories.    I made my predictions shortly after the Golden Globes, which is not always the best Oscar predictor.     Yet, making picks after the SAG Awards, Producer's Guild Awards, and Director's Guild Awards is almost like shooting fish in a barrel.     I thought for sure Boyhood would be a shoo-in after taking into account early critics' awards and the Golden Globes.    It lost a lot of steam since.    My Best Picture and Director picks were wrong.    I also thought Michael Keaton could build off his success at the Globes, but Eddie Redmayne (who also won a Golden Globe) went on a roll winning the SAG Award and BAFTA for Best Actor.