RANDOM THOUGHTS:
The following were on my mind between Monday, March 1st and Monday, March 8th:
- Congratulations to the film industry. It took over one hundred years, but a woman has finally won the biggest accolade imaginable for a director, an Oscar. Progress! And now, here are some more thoughts about the Oscars (besides telling James Cameron to screw himself and to go back to exile for ten years with your house made out of gold bricks where he belongs. After all, you probably knew that):
1. Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin really exceeded my expectations as hosts. Sure, there were times when they looked awkward on stage together. But besides that, the jokes were funny (my favorites were about Meryl Streep's most Oscar losses, the one with Christolph Waltz and the silent staring at George Clooney), and they didn't manage to screw the whole thing up.
2. (Academy) Governor Tom Hanks just announcing Best Picture knowing that the awards show was going on way too long (thanks in large part to those unnecessary verbal accolades to the actors nominated) was definitely another reason to like the guy. Everyone already knows who's nominated, so why not just say it. Also, I wish Tom Hanks hosted every Oscars. That way, I would know every award winner in a span in an hour.
3. I will be stunned if this broadcast's director is nominated for an Emmy.
4. In a perfect world, it would've been "Up" winning Best Picture. It had the most amount of good reviews from critics then any of the other films nominated, it was touching and an instant classic. Unfortunately, we aren't living in that perfect world. Instead, we are living in one where the so called elite of the Hollywood film industry view animations and comedies as second rates and only give it to the dramas/thrillers/war movies, hence "The Hurt Locker." No offense to THL, of course, as it deserved it. I'm just saying that ten years from now, will we look at it as the most memorable movie of that period? No. We will remember it as the year of "Avatar," "Inglourious Basterds" and "Up" every time we see the movie on Spike or TNT or any other major cable network while "The Hurt Locker" will just be known once every five years and only talked about when trying to remember who won in '09.
5. Worst moment of the night: the tribute to horror movies. First of all, the presenters, Kristen Taylor and Taylor Lautner, said that it is a tribute to films made since "The Exorcist." Yet, it kept showing clips from movies from the 1930s and 1940s. Also, most of the movies shown WEREN'T HORROR MOVIES, like "Jaws," "Frankenstein," "Marathon Man," and much more. Also, why was "Twilight: New Moon" part of the montage? The only thing scary about it was the poor acting and dialogue. (Runner-up goes to the break dancing before announcing best score and the "In Memoriam").
6. George Clooney should host the Oscars next year. That way, he wouldn't look as bored as he was last night. Him, or Tina Fey. She has been part of the best presentation
7. What was up with the presentation of Best Director? From the announcement of the winner (Bigelow) by Barbara Streisand ("The time...has come! Katheryn Bigelow") to the playing of "I Am a Woman" as Bigelow got up on stage, it just felt like the Academy awarded to her for her gender, not for her work.
8. How come everyone has a time limit in their Oscar acceptance speech, but not the ones who win best actor/actress, who get to talk for five minutes straight (like Jeff Bridges) and thank everybody? It's just not fair.
9. Surprise of the night: none much, except for the screenplay awards. Jason Reitman should have for best adapted screenplay(but he didn't so "Up in the Air" ended up with a surprising zero wins) while Quentin Tarantino was ROBBED of best original screenplay (is there some kind of feud between QT and the Academy that I don't know about?).
10. I wonder who's more likely to be on the Oscars again: the people honoring John Hughes, Gabby Sidibe or Tyler Perry?
Oh, and for the predictions, I finished 8-2 (darn you screenplay category!), including all the actor awards and best picture. I also feel like Nostradamus for writing way back last year on July 31st:
" I watched "The Hurt Locker" with some of my
friends and cousins on Tuesday. We watched the trailer and heard some of the
reviews (97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.com). It was an easier decision to go
watch it then finding out what theater is it playing in (it's in select
theaters). After watching it, I just have to say that if it's not the best
movie of the Iraq war ever, it has to be in the top 3. It was compelling, the
acting was great and relate able, and simply terrific. In my opinion, it's the
leading contender for next year's Oscars."
Isn't it great whenever you make this kind of bold statement, and it becomes true (in a way, as it not only was the leading contender at the time, but ended up winning the whole thing).
- Who are these people disguised as the front management of the Chicago Bears? Julius Peppers, Chester Taylor and the former TE from St. Louis IN ONE DAY? Well, they certainly shut me up (for now).
- I have never listened to "You're So Vain," or any of Carly Simon's songs, but even I think she's being really annoying for not telling what's it about.
- A very good baby episode of "The Office." Way exceeded my expectations. It was funny, the delivery scene was not as cheesy as most comedies of the past, and it felt pretty realistic (even the Pam wanting to wait part in the first half). Could've ignored the mixing up the babies part, though.
- 3D-TV: Because the HDTV your recently bought is now considered inferior technology.
More random thoughts to come next Monday! Until then, enjoy the rest of your Championship Week!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
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