Oscarworthy?

Photo via marca.com

After fighting with two of my TVs, a laptop, and a desktop, 28 minutes later, I could finally turn on the 97th Academy Awards. I missed the opening breathtaking performances of Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande but went back and watched before writing this. My notes: NONE. Both women performed stunningly, tying in music from Wicked, The Wiz, and The Wizard of Oz. The energy these two create in any space is noticeable to anyone watching. Though I feel these two were not given their flowers for the diligent, ambitious, and true dedication to their roles in Wicked Sunday night they gave them to each other in what I am sure is the last time we will see them perform for a while. Ladies, I applaud you for every moment you have dedicated to Glinda and Elphaba.

Now onto the awards portion of this blog. Robert Downey Jr. is always a breath of fresh air when he's on-screen and appreciate him for giving his friends their flowers while presenting for best supporting actor. A well-deserved round of applause to Kieran Culkin for winning with his role in A Real Pain. The film tells the sweet story of cousins who visit their late grandmother's homeland, Poland, and also learn more about the Holocaust. Though these cousins are not estranged their relationship is a coarse one that gets tested during this trip. Jesse Eisenberg did a tremendous job directing this film as well as executing his role in this film. Along with his first Oscar win, I do hope Kieran does get that 4th kid he was working hard for. 

The awards that help the actors and actresses bring any story to life are the ones that billions of eyes remember. The production, hair & makeup, set design, costume design, music, and of course the visual effects that take us to places outside of our everyday lives. The winners of these are the following:

Hair & Makeup: The Substance, Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon and Marilyne Scarselli

Costume Design: Wicked, Paul Tazewell

Visual Effects: Dune: Part Two, Gareth John, Richard King, Ron Bartlett and Doug Hemphill

Sound: Dune: Part Two, Gareth John, Richard King, Ron Bartlett and Doug Hemphill

Music (Best Original Song): El Mal from Emilia Pérez; Music by Clément Ducol and Camille; Lyric by Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard

Music: (Original Score): The Brutalist, Daniel Blumberg

Production Design: Wicked,  Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Lee Sandales

Writing (Adapted Screenplay): Conclave, Peter Straughan

Writing (Original Screenplay): Anora, Sean Baker

I couldn't do the job of any of these talented people above but I do hope they continue to inspire the next generation of filmmakers, designers, and writers. Without these dreamers, the readers who imagine the way a character looks in a book wouldn't come to life without the costume designer who does 300 pages of research before the film even starts shooting wouldn't exist. As Sean Baker asked of us, go to theaters and let children create dreams from movies just as I did when I would spend Friday nights with my siblings watching movies, eating pizza, and making a mess of popcorn in the living room.

This year there were tributes to the late Quincy Jones, and James Bond, and a preview to the exhibit coming in September commemorating 50 years of the blockbuster hit "Jaws". I was not a fan of either tribute from an artistic stance. The Substance star, Margaret Qualley, disappointed me with her stiff and bland performance. I understand she is an actress but this is the Oscar I am sure they could. have gotten a better choreographer that gave more flair and dramatics to this performance. With that being said, I love Queen Latifah in almost anything. Except for whoever dressed her last night and chose that song for her to sing. She did her best to bring her flair to "Ease on Down the Road" but think  "You Can't Win" would have been more in her range and they could have done a more noteworthy performance and seen more of Queen's range that we all know and love. Oprah and Whoopi opening the tribute with the kind words and memories of their late friend was a great addition to the tribute. 

Throughout the Nick, we were graced with narrating from Nick Offerman who did a great job and loved his moment of messing with Conan. Now for Conan, I think the Academy could have looked a little harder for a better host, please start looking now or give Kevin Hart his chance to host or someone that has a funny bone in their body. Along with a lack luster host who gave tired and tired bits the evening also had sad and boring commercials. The prudential ones were lovely but that's the only one I even remember as I write this less than 24 hours after watching.

What I am still thinking about is the gorgeous Christian Siriano mirrored glass dress that hugged Halle Berry's body gracefully. On the other hand, Doja Cat's performance dress reminded me of the meat dress Lady Gaga wore to the 2010 MTV Awards but with some crystals draped over the dress. Needless to say, I wasn't a fan of her dress or performance. The music I did enjoy was the melodious conducting of the Oscars Music Director Rickey Minor, who played impeccably throughout the night.  

Each year I always try to watch as many nominations as I can before the show so I can see what gets awarded and what I think should have. My biggest takeaway from the show is that I will be watching Anora here shortly to see if they were deserving of Best Picture. I do want to take some time to speak positively about some films. I very much enjoyed Conclave and its entirety. Casting was excellent, and details to costume and set design were meticulous along with the accuracy of how the Cardinal Lawrence organized a conclave to elect a new pope after his death. The organization displays how dramatic, political, and lacking faith some cardinals can be when it comes to a conclave. The theme of "the inevitable of changing" plays well throughout the film and ends on a progressive note that I was very satisfied with.

The night was filled with a lot of cultural achievements that I hope to see inspire more filmmakers, costume designers, writers, and more throughout the world. A huge congratulations to Paul Tazewell. His work in Wicked landed him the first Black man to win an Oscar for costume design. Latvia won their first Oscar as well for the Animated Film "Flow" which I didn't care for and found to have an odd ending along with a few questionable artistic scenes. My vote was for either Inside Out 2 or The Wild Robot which both told beautiful stories of growth and acceptance.

It was a big night for Anora as they took home 5 Oscars for Best Leading Actress, Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Achievement in Film Editing and Directing. I will be adding this to my rotation of weekend movies here soon to see if it's 5x Oscar-worthy. It was not a big a night for Emilia Perez aside from Zoe Saldana winning actress in a supporting role, making her the first Dominican American to win an Oscar. I tried very hard to watch this movie and after 20 minutes I switched over to " A Real Pain" and made it to the end. I haven't seen Saldana in anything I didn't care for before Emilia Perez. The combination of musical murder did not play out well in my opinion. You are wondering what is going on almost the entire time and I don't think Saldana was the "singer" for this role. I may try to get through this movie in the future but for now will focus on seeing Memoirs of a Snail, Anora, and Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl.

Let me know what you hope to see at the 98th Academy Awards. I would like to see better presentation pairs, better commercials, and speeches need to be better prepared.