So, the 90th Annual Oscars are a wrap, and they were...um, more or less what I expected. Sure, there were a few surprises here and there, but mostly, even when my predictions were wrong, there were pretty close. In other words, if my prediction was off, then my personal choice was usually right, with some minor exceptions.
As ever, the ceremony ran long, clocking in at nearly four hours, in spite of starting "early." It was real early if you count red carpet coverage, but I don't get E! so I only watched a little of that on NBC. What I saw was pretty awkward, as, in an attempt to "stay woke," the commentators mostly opted to forgo the whole "who are you wearing" thing in favor of seeking out more political commentary, i.e. talk of the "#MeToo" and "Time's Up" movements, as well as Trump's decidedly un-woke immigration policies and so forth.
This made for some decidedly iffy segues, as the poor hosts tried to transition from serious conversations to more typical RC talk, with oft-disastrous results that actually made one long for the days of fluff pieces. Maybe in time these people will get the hang of it, but for now, we'll have to deal with the growing pains of switching from Weinstein horror stories to the arrival of Matthew "I get older, they stay the same age" McConaughey and his supermodel wife. What are you gonna do?
As for the ceremony itself, I don't find host Jimmy Kimmel all that funny, and he definitely did a lot to add to the running time (see the painfully long bit with a cadre of stars crossing the street to a local theater to surprise unsuspecting moviegoers), though I did get a kick out of the whole "keep your speeches short and we'll give you a Jet Ski" thing, complete with Helen Mirren (!) doing her best Vanna White.
Alas, few opted to heed Kimmel's plea, as many of the speeches did indeed go long, and usually it was the ones you didn't particularly welcome in doing so. I did adore Frances McDormand's typically rabble-rousing feminist speech, especially when she had all the nominated women stand up, in a sparse reminder of how much work Hollywood still has to do in order to give women better representation in the industry. (She also probably had many scrambling to look up "inclusion riders" on the net afterwards, no doubt.)
Also gratifying: Guillermo Del Toro, nabbing both Best Director and Best Picture, for The Shape of Water. I wasn't sure if the late-in-the-game backlash would rob Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri of some of its thunder or not, but in the end, Oscar opted to spread the wealth, awarding the former for its artistry and the latter for the excellent acting, which I think was right on the money.
That manages to evade some of the divisive politics of Billboards by awarding a film that plays it much safer in that area but still has a solid message about everything from diversity to sexuality to dubious politics, all under the guise of a "monster movie." Of course, those of us who saw it know it was so much more than that, but that probably didn't do much to soothe those who just didn't get it, like my mom, who lamented how that "stupid fish movie" won over Billboards, which she just adored. (She didn't get the backlash, either, and I can't say I blame her there.)
Allison Janney rightfully thanked her scene-stealing co-star, that bird, when she won; the "Ivory" in Merchant-Ivory became the oldest Oscar winner ever for his Call Me by Your Name screenplay, thanking his late partner in the process; and basketballer Kobe Byrant stopped dribbling and shutting up alike to win an Oscar for Best Animated Short.
Complaints: Big-ups for Oscar for including the legendary George A. Romero in its obligatory "In Memoriam" segment, accompanied by a lovely rendition of a Tom Petty song by Eddie Vedder, but big-downs to their leaving out Tobe Hooper (even after including Leatherface in one of their montages), Adam West and Miguel Ferrer, among others, including Petty himself.
And as much as I love Gael García Bernal as an actor, he should probably leave the singing to the professionals, like Miguel, who knocked it out of the park. Also sad that Lady Bird went home empty-handed, though it did sort of prove McDormand's point, in a way.
Overall, the show had its moments, but, as ever, it was too long and particularly droopy in the middle, and could have done with some judicious editing. Maybe they should get the Dunkirk guys on that, since they won so many awards for it. 😏
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