The Oscars 2009
The Oscars 2009
An Overview Opinion Piece
(you down with OOP? Yeah you know me!)
By Jessica Dwyer
I had hoped to do a live reaction entry to the show this year, but alas things happened and you get this…my overview reaction to the show and the winners.
I'm sure many of you will not agree with what I have to say here, that's why this is an OOP (opinion is the word here) so feel free to discuss and rant back.
Firstly, and I’m not the only one to point this out…this had to be one of the most awkward awards shows I’ve ever seen. No one looked like they felt comfortable being there…except Hugh Jackman who it seems would have a good time being roasted on a pit in hell.
Is this Hollywood feeling weird for glamming up and flaunting it and all their money during a time when people are having to decide between having gas or food that day since the unemployment check just ain’t covering it? Possibly. That might even explain why they awarded a movie like Slumdog Millionaire, about the poor boy who made good so many damn statues.
Whatever the reason, the show felt way off. The other factor to this may have been the strange attempt to “young up” the show. From inviting Robert Pattinson who was not involved with ANY of the films there (and I seriously doubt Twilight’s sequels will be up for any Oscars in the future) to having Hannah Montanna in the audience (what the fuck people???) and the cast of High School Musical 3 on stage with Jackman and Beyonce (who was very obviously lip synching her lyrics) it was a pitiful attempt to try something to get ratings.
This was also evident with the semi-funny stoner skit directed by Judd Apatow and starring Seth Rogen and his Pinapple Express buddy James Franco. I didn’t hear any laughter from the audience…and the humor was most likely lost on the 50 to 80 year olds who were in attendance. It felt forced and more like something that should be on the MTV Movie Awards. This goes for Ben Stiller’s impersonation of Joaquin Phoenix, which granted was funny…but thanks to most of his act going on off camera and the reaction of the crowd, most of them just didn’t get it…or didn’t know if they should laugh or not.
Jackman did a good job with what he had. The man is charming, witty, and would be at home in the 1940s films of yore. He outshone most of the guys there who were getting accolades (cough…Brad Pitt…cough) and is an all around decent guy. I wished more people there had his excitement and acted half as happy to be there. Fawk…Hollywood loosen up and have fun. Have Jackman do a duet with Robert Downey Jr…Iron Man vs. Wolverine…that would have been EPIC. At least he mentioned Wolverine in his opening number. But good on you Hugh. You did awesome. And I bet you smell good too. Uhm….moving on.
The winners…
The Good
HEATH HEATH HEATH HEATH HEATH HEATH!!!!!!!!!!!!
There were tears. I cried a lot. I was wearing my Joker t-shirt. I love him. I miss him. And he will live forever thanks to that role. If he hadn’t won I would have transported my ass onto that stage and beaten the winner to death with his Oscar. Or possibly performed a magic trick...
Man on Wire Magic Dude: You rule. I love you. You should win all the time. You win at life. Come back next year please!!!
Kate Winslet FINALLY. Damn people…she deserved it for Heavenly Creatures which was YEARS ago. But at last she got her props. And looked beautiful and classy whilst getting them.
The What??
Benjamin Button…WTF? Okay….granted I haven’t forced myself to sit through it. But I know for a goddamn fact that Hellboy 2 had some of the most awesome make-up of the year and it was REAL. Del Toro doesn’t do CG until he absofucking has to. HB2 deserved that Oscar. You can go rot old man baby. (I’m not bitter…) There are other things it stole that should have gone to Dark Knight. But the make-up one is the real knife.
Slumdog…WTF? tried to watch this movie. I turned it off within the first 15 minutes. I’m not sure why...between flashing forward, flashing back, and weird angles I felt I was watching a weird Lost episode. I can guarantee you that Frost/Nixon was better and deserved a lot more than it got (including a nomination for Michael Sheen for Best Supporting Actor…which he wouldn’t have won…but still needed to be nominated for.)
I do not see the appeal of this thing. I will try again I suppose. But the fact I have to TRY again to watch it tells me its another instance of Crash-itis. I’ve heard its good from other people. But the sweeping love fest I have trouble figuring out.
Sean Penn…again…WTF? The Golden Globes and the BAFTA’s are wrong and Mickey Rourke wasn’t fucking amazing? Fank Langella wasn’t possessed by the spirit of Nixon while on screen? What am I missing here? And why is it he always looks greasy? (shudder) Words fail. Once again…this is the academy trying to make a statement and that leads to my closing.
This Oscar’s shows everything that is wrong and has slowly been getting worse with the awards show and Hollywood over the last few years. Missing the point and trying to be relevant and making a statement when they really don’t know how, and at the cost of credibility.
They tried to young it up because they are desperate to have ratings and get the young people involved. It failed. I doubt anyone under the age of 20 watched this show. And if they did they were bored senseless and switched it off. The fact is the Oscars needs to be classy and witty.
Remember David Niven as the host? Remember when it meant something? Jackman brought some of that back, but the mixture was off. This should be for movie fans who actually give a shit about films and celebrating them…not the fashion show and not bringing in people like Miley Cyrus who has no reason to be there. I mean seriously people…have some dignity.
The other part of this was trying so hard to be diverse and accepting and sneaking in the political agenda. I understand that gay rights are important, I understand that other countries as well as our own have issues…but you guys are not helping to dispel the belief that if you want to win an Oscar play retarded or play gay.
The Oscars shouldn’t be a grandstand for pushing the Hollywood ideal, or a way for Hollywood to say “Oh we do value diversity! No really! Look who we gave this award to!” This has started getting worse and worse. Halle Berry was a real showing of this and I believe Sean Penn was last night. Milk was a great movie but really was he better than Langella or Rourke? I think not.
Oh and one more thing…go fuck yourself Bill Maher. Seriously. This jerk comes out to present after one of the most emotional and important moments of the night. He trivializes it “Everyone’s crying and I come out…hehe” and then he commences to pimp his “documentary” which wasn’t nominated. You make a career of telling people who actually believe in something they are wrong and how much better and smarter you are that you don’t believe in ANYTHING.
You have no soul sir (which you can’t argue with me about because you don’t believe such a thing exists) so don’t ever try to cheapen something like that again you douche bag by trying to be funny and failing. At lest pretend to have a heart. But what can one expect from a guy who wore a dead Steve Irwin costume for Halloween right after the man died.
Sorry…I had to rant a little there.
So that is my Oscar recap. Depressing yes. Not the best way to spend three hours. The editing of the movie catagories was awesome. Jackman was great but he deserved a better crowd…but then again I think we all did.