The Oscar Awards Recap

Film is a unique thing that can both unite and divide us when comparing different movies, debating the best or worst. Last weekend, the film industry’s biggest night returned for the 97th Academy Awards ceremony. Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo beautifully opened the show with a medley of songs from “The Wizard of Oz,” “The Wiz,” and, of course, “Wicked.” Hearing “Defying Gravity” performed live by them gave me goosebumps. I couldn’t imagine witnessing it in person at the Dolby Theater.  

Soon after the performance came Conan O’Brien, who I found to be an excellent entertainer. I thought O’Brien was a fantastic host and had some pretty good jokes. I was genuinely shocked when he made fun of Karla Sofia Gascón’s recent controversy surrounding resurfaced racist tweets. I was even more surprised when the camera panned to her, as it was expected that she would not be in attendance due to the controversy and being pulled from Netflix’s campaign for the film “Emilia Pérez.”  

Further performances in the night were also entertaining, including a James Bond franchise tribute with a dancing Margaret Qualley and singers LISA, Doja Cat and RAYE. Doja Cat performing “Diamonds are Forever” in a dress made almost entirely from diamonds was pretty epic. While the performance looked great, the sound was not as great. However, it was definitely cool to hear some 007 classics again! Later on, Queen Latifah gave energetic homage to Quincy Jones, which was a highlight of the night for sure.  

Now, onto the awards. I was excited and surprised that Best Animated Feature went to “Flow,” as I was almost certain the award would go to “The Wild Robot.” “Flow” is truly one of the most beautiful and heartwarming films I have ever seen, and it’s also the first Latvian film to ever win an Oscar. This historic win was so incredibly deserved.  

“Dune: Part 2” took home many of the technical awards, including Best Sound and Best Visual Effects, which I felt was very deserved. I was hoping for a “Nosferatu” win for Cinematography. However, it ultimately went to “The Brutalist,” leaving the dark horror film going home empty-handed.  

It was clear that the recent controversies surrounding “Emilia Pérez” have halted its awards success, especially at the Oscars. Despite this, Zoe Saldaña was able to continue her streak of winning Best Supporting Actress at the major award ceremonies. I think that Saldaña is a real talent, but I wish she would have won an Oscar for a different role in a different movie. Another first-time winner was Kieran Culkin for Best Supporting Actor.  

“Wicked” snagged a few unsurprising awards, including Best Production Design and Best Costume Design. Both its main stars ultimately lost their respective categories: Best Actress for Erivo and Best Supporting Actress for Grande. My prediction is that these talented women will receive more recognition for the upcoming second part of the musical adaptation, “Wicked: For Good.”  

Adrien Brody gave a very lengthy acceptance speech after winning Actor in a Leading Role for “The Brutalist,” which was also very lengthy. Brody said so much but ultimately so little. Timothée Chalamet, in my opinion, was once again snubbed for an Academy Award, this time for his portrayal of Bob Dylan in “A Complete Unknown.”  

Another surprise of the night was Mikey Madison’s win of Actress in a Leading Role. While I think Madison deserved the award, and I am glad she got it, I was really rooting for Demi Moore. As a Hollywood veteran and giving the best performance of her career in “The Substance,” I was hoping that she would finally get her moment. Hopefully, this renewed critical acclaim and recognition will land her other extraordinary roles. I am very excited to see what Madison accomplishes in the future as well.  

It was a great night to be a fan of “Anora.” The film, directed by Sean Baker, secured Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing. I really enjoyed Baker’s acceptance speeches, particularly his emphasis on bringing back theaters and the movie-going experience.   

Now, let me address the elephant in the room… meaning the major disappointment that Hulu brought to many of its users, including myself, on Sunday evening. About ten minutes before the awards ceremony began, the streaming service crashed and prompted many users trying to log in with an “invalid email” notification. Eventually, my friends and I were able to access the show, but there were even more problems. Multiple times throughout the show, the site crashed and glitched. The stream was scheduled to end at 10:30p.m., but the show still had about another half hour and two of the night’s biggest awards, including Best Picture. Luckily, we quickly started a free trial for YouTube TV, but I know that many others were left with no way to stream the rest of the show. This example shows the cracks that exist within the streaming world that we are living in.  

I think the Academy played it safe this year for the most part, but that might not be such a bad thing. I mean, movies are usually successful for a reason. The overall message of the night was to bring back theaters to the mainstream movie-watching experience. Some greatness you can only experience on the big screen and surround sound. Finally, I want to end this by quoting Baker’s acceptance speech for Best Picture, “Long live independent film!”