Monday, February 25, 2008

The Little Gold Man

Another Oscar Night has gone by without the glitz and the glamour. There was something missing last night. I don't know if it was the big names (Leo DiCaprio, Brangelina, Kate Winslet, Matt Damon, Jude Law, etc., etc.) missing from the Red Carpet or the lackluster fashion choices. Or could it just be that the movies nominated were not seen by most people?
I like to consider myself a movie buff, but there were more than a few movies I didn't see. For instance, There Will Be Blood: it only grossed 35 million while Fool's Gold has grossed 52 million. But don't even get me started on that.

I think a lot of people will have some serious questions after last night. Here are the top five:

1. Javier Bardem is this sexy? Good lord! Can hair really make that much of a difference?
http://www.variety.com/graphics/awardcentral2007/javier.jpg
http://www.fest21.com/files/images/NO%20COUNTRY%20FOR%20OLD%20MEN.JPG

2. Tilda Swinton: who is it, what is it and what kind of dumbass speech is that?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XE8aHxrcvGk

3. Even Daniel Day-Lewis wants to kiss George Clooney? Can someone please explain the appeal?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoQhqBSNVos

4. Why is Collin Ferrel still invited to the Oscars? Remember Alexander? I do! I'll never get those two excruciating hours back.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck_c40EdLFE

5. Where the hell is Billy Crystal????


This year I have only seen a handful of the movies nominated:
La Vie en Rose : one of my new favourite movies, btw. It was simply fantastic and I'm so glad Marion won
Juno: cute movie but hardly worth all the Oscar buzz
Elizabeth: The Golden Age: the first one was better. Great costume's though and my Cate was amazing, as usual
Eastern Promises: fantastic movie. Viggo really did deserve the nomination although I'm surprised it was the only nom for this movie
Atonement: a simply gorgeous film. It was a bit boring at times for me but that's just because I dislike war scenes.
Ratatouille: I LOVED this movie. The win for best animated film was a no-brainer.
American Gangster: your typical Denzel film. Well-acted and worth the $11.95.

I have to mention my favourite moment last night. It was the winner for best song. Let me set the stage for those of you that missed it:
Enchanted was a cute movie. It's a Disney movie. It's a musical. It was nominated for best song three times over this year. The other two nominees; a song from August Rush (a movie most people did not see or even hear of) and a song from the movie Once, even fewer people saw or heard of Once.
These two little films were up against an entertainment conglomerate. An entertainment empire, if you will. The odds were stacked against them. But guess what; Once won the Best Song Oscar for Falling Slowly!
Below is the speech one of the musicians made after Jon Stewart let her come back out to say something as the orchestra cut her off! This is one of the best speeches in Oscar history, imho. Her name is Marketa Irglova.

“Hi everyone. I just want to thank you so much. This is such a big deal, not only for us, but for all other independent musicians and artists that spend most of their time struggling, and this, the fact that we’re standing here tonight, the fact that we’re able to hold this, it’s just to prove no matter how far out your dreams are, it’s possible. And, you know, fair play to those who dare to dream and don’t give up. And this song was written from a perspective of hope, and hope at the end of the day connects us all, no matter how different we are. And so thank you so much, who helped us along way. Thank you.”

Below is the actual speech thanks to YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck_c40EdLFE