This year’s Academy Awards was actually quite entertaining. Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin proved to be great hosts; the Neil Patrick Harris surprse opening number was a hit (the Paranormal Activity spoof was spot on); the horror film montage was long overdue; Ben Stiller dressed as a Nav’i blue humanoid with fishline-controlled tail was great; the Best Picture featurettes worked well; the dance routines performed for each song in the Best Original Score category was fun; the Best Actor/Actress introductions were touching; and there was even a “imma let you finish but…” moment by some strange woman. AND the Best Director award went to a woman for the first time! So those were the highlights; now let’s discuss the notable winners.
Let’s start with the king (or should I say queen) of the night Kathryn Bigelow and her brilliant film The Hurt Locker. The critically acclaimed film nabbed six Oscar wins in the following categories: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Sound Editing. Avatar, directed by Biglow’s ex-husband James Cameron, walked away with many technical awards including: Best Visual Effects, Best Cinematography, and Best Art Direction. (Side note: District 9 totally would have won all these awards if Avatar had not been competition!) Best Actor went to Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart), no surprise there; and Best Actress went to Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side). Best Supporting Actor deservedly went to Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds); and Best Supporting Actress went to Mo’Nique (Precious), again no surprise there. Precious also picked up Best Adapted Screenplay.
Other notable winners include: Pixar’s UP nabbed Best Animated Film and Best Score (well done, Michael Giacchino); and Star Trek won Best Makeup. Look after the break for the full breakdown of the night’s winner and losers. Overall, the 82nd Academy Awards show was entertaining, fun, and full of deserved wins. Congratuations to Kathryn Bigelow & crew for The Hurt Locker. James Cameron, go wallow in your boatloads of cash.