The 88th Academy Awards is in the books. I finished 4 for 8 (50%) on my picks in major categories. I fared much better in the technical categories. I went 15 for 23 overall. The show itself managed to be over by midnight, which is in itself a feat. Here are my observations from the broadcast:
* Chris Rock was at ease as host, with material that was more in his wheelhouse than in 2005 when he last hosted. The material focused heavily on diversity (i.e. lack of minority actors nominated in the acting categories). Rock's monologue was hit and miss with the controversial topic. Sometimes things went too far and made the audience wince, but other jokes were spot on. Why did they have to go to jokes involving lynching though? And did the audience really need to be hit with a barrage of jokes after everyone got the point?
* I laughed at the "Black History Month Minute", in which Angela Bassett paid tribute to an actor "who starred in the Enemy of the State, who starred in the animated comedy 'Shark Tale', and was one half of a fresh singing duo." We all assumed Bassett was talking about Will Smith, but the tribute was for Jack Black instead. It was a funny swerve.
* With all of the discussion about diversity, what will happen in the future? Did Will Smith practically guarantee himself a nomination next year because of the uproar surrounding him this year? This is a slippery slope the Academy must negotiate, especially with something as subjective and sometimes political as Oscar voting is already.
* Rock's monologue focused exclusively on the absence of black nominees, but what about other minority groups? My belief is that the issue is not as much the absence of minority nominees, but the absence of minorities in major roles in studio films. 2015 was a year in which very few minority actors starred in juicy roles that anybody saw. The studios' output is dictated by box office. If a black actor can bring in the same money that Leonardo DiCaprio could, then that actor would star in the bigger films. It's an economic thing more than it is implied racism.
* I liked how the broadcast handled acceptance speeches. Winners had their lists of people to thank on a scroll at the bottom of the screen, which is supposed to keep their speeches shorter. It worked better, but some speeches still ran a bit too long. Still, it is a good first step to limit the thanking of agents and people no one knows.
* Mad Max: Fury Road led the night with 6 Oscars, all in technical categories. What the hell was that outfit worn by Costume Design winner Jenny Beavan? She looked like she arrived at the ceremony as a member of the Hell's Angels. It is ironic the winner of the Best Costume Design Oscar was dressed the worst. Just because she designed the costumes for Mad Max doesn't mean she had to dress like a cast member.
* Only 3 of the 5 Original Song nominees were performed. Lady Gaga's angry, emotional performance of her song, "'Til It Happens to You/" was moving. The song lost, however, to Writing's on the Wall" from Spectre. This is the second straight Bond film to win Best Original Song.
* There were only 5 standing ovations vs. 11 last year and the absurd 12 the year before. If the crowd gives a standing ovation for everything, then that devalues the impact of the standing ovation. The crowd picked its spots this year, making the ovations more meaningful.
* Spotlight won Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay. It won the first award of the night and the last. The last movie to win Best Picture and only one other award during a ceremony was The Greatest Show on Earth (1952). The Revenant appeared to have snatched the momentum from Mad Max: Fury Road with Best Director and Best Actor wins, but Spotlight took home the big prize. The Revenant finished with three awards. including a second consecutive Best Director win for Alejandro G. Inarritu. This feat last occurred in 1949 and 1950, when Joseph L. Mankiewicz won for A Letter to Three Wives and All About Eve respectively.
* Dave Grohl's subtle, gentle version of Blackbird sung during the In Memoriam tribute was well done. The tone was just right. It was just Grohl singing with an acoustic guitar. He wasn't delivering vocal exercises.
* This was the first year in quite a while in which the four acting category winners were not foregone conclusions. DiCaprio and Larson's wins were expected since they swept all of the other pre-Oscar awards, but Alicia Vikander had to battle with Kate Winslet for Best Supporting Actress while Mark Rylance had to overcome sentimental favorite Sylvester Stallone to earn his Best Supporting Actor win. Rylance's role was less flashy than the other nominees', but he was powerfully subdued and observant as Rudolph Abel in Bridge of Spies. He played a man who was a master of keeping to himself and seeing all since he spent his life as a spy. Because of this, he was a sympathetic political football kicked back and forth between the Americans and the Soviets in a time when one-upmanship was the norm.
* DiCaprio was well-prepared with a speech that focused not just on The Revenant, but his parents and the ongoing issue of climate change. He pointed out that the crew had to travel to the southernmost point on the planet to find snow since 2015 was the warmest year on record to date.
* Overall, the telecast was better than in the last few years, which were slowly paced and painfully unfunny. This was one was actually over while it was still Sunday night, so that represents progress. I still believe the broadcast could be over just in time for the 11:00 news, but this will never happen. People tune in to see the celebrities, even if they are presenting a category which many don't really care about. An observation: Kerry Washington presents annually at the Oscars for various categories. What movie of consequence has she appeared in within the last half decade? She has primarily been on TV.
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