The Oscars Were Actually... Really Good?!
Art beats politics at the 96th Academy Awards.
Rare events happen. Witnessing a full solar eclipse from the exact spot you’re on now. Finding a four leaf clover. Surviving a plane crash.
We can now add ‘feeling satisfied after watching the Oscars’ to the list of rare but possible life occurances.
As I made clear in my lead up piece to the show, I wasn’t exactly filled with optimism. Jimmy Kimmel was the host, it’s election year and Hollywood’s number one orange supervillain Donald Trump looks set to make a comeback, overrated critical darlings Barbie and Killers of the Flower Moon were poised to spoil a big category or two, and well, it’s the Oscars. Hollywood’s biggest night doesn’t exactly have a sparkly resume when it comes to unbridled entertainment.
Much like the welcome strength of this year’s Best Picture nominees, last night defied odds and expectations. Oh, Jimmy Kimmel still bombed for the most part – mollycoddling the crowd with humor that makes watching paint dry look like Eddie Murphy’s Delirious in comparison. Kimmel couldn’t resist taking a dig at Trump towards the end of the night, despite being advised not to, but that just made it feel like a desperate last-ditch attempt at salvaging a stale performance than a well thought-out punchline.
But.. everything else was kind of great? Even the one biggest undeserved win of the night (Cord Jefferson winning Adapted Screenplay for American Fiction amongst nominees that were literally all superior) became a distant afterthought by the end of the night. Turns out it’s not so complicated to make a good night out of biggest of all awards nights.
Five Reasons Why The Oscars Smashed It
1. Despite Kimmel, It Was Actually Funny
Whoever wrote all the bits that Jimmy Kimmel wasn’t saying deserves a raise. From a naked John Cena presenting cosutmes and opening with the line “Costumes! They’re super important” to Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt needling each other over Barbenheimer, Kate McKinnon and Steven Spielberg having a moment over some ‘tasteful nudes’, the night was filled with laugh-out-loud moments and sizzling comedic chemistry.
Even Gosling’s ‘I’m Just Ken’ performance was a blast.
2. No Politics, Just Great Speeches
Kimmel couldn’t resist it, but everyone else did and it was so refreshing. The two political speeches came from Jonathan Glazer who accepted the Oscar for Best International Film (The Zone of Interest), distancing himself from Israel’s over-the-top reaction to October 7th, and Mstyslav Chernov, who won for Best Documentary (20 Days in Mariupol), saying he wished he never had to make the film as the Ukraine-Russia war rages on. Both speeches were buzz kills, no doubt, but both were powerful and felt absolutely right considering their respective films.
The night’s biggest winners (Emma Stone, Cilian Murphy, Emma Thomas, Christopher Nolan, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Robert Downey Jr, Justine Triet and Cord Jefferson) all delivered heartfelt speeches, without using the stage to make a grandstanding lecture.
3. Welcome Surprise Winners
Jefferson’s Oscar for American Fiction was the biggest ‘WTF?’ win of the night, but not a massive surprise - Billie Eilish winning Best Original Song for ‘What Was I Made For?’ was also not a big surprise but absolutely among the best wins of the night. That Barbie ballad is now my favorite thing about the film.
Aside from those coinflip wins, the two biggest surprises were The Zone of Interest winning Best Sound over Oppenheimer and – for the night’s biggest nail-biter – Emma Stone (Poor Things) winning Best Actress over Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon). Both inspired wins, both very welcome.
4. A Proper Celebration
A big part of what made the night special was how the focus that’s usually reserved for political correctness shifted to something that makes way more sense: celebrating themselves. That’s kind of the point of the whole thing isn’t it?
Emma Stone’s speech about collaboration, Christopher Nolan’s humble thanks to being considered as someone making worthy contributions to the art of cinema, and even the way the acting categories were presented – previous winners introducing each nominee with a personal spin –was all very touching, filled with a sincere kind of love and respect.
5. Deserving Winners
Gladstone was picking up steam after her SAG win, and many thought she’d take home the big one – but what ended up being the moment of the night, Emma Stone won for her brilliant (and far superior) performance as a reanimated woman with an infant’s brain in Poor Things.
Oppenheimer swept with seven awards (Picture, Director, Actor, Supporting Actor, Cinematography, Editing and Score) – all predictable, all very well deserved. In some other year, Paul Giamatti might’ve won an ‘overdue’ type of Oscar, but nope. First-time nominee Cillian Murphy wins for a performance that’s not showy whatsoever, but filled with nuance and intelligence.
The two most overrated Best Picture nominees Barbie and Killers of the Flower Moon had 15 nominations between them, and walked away with one win (Best Original Song).
My favorite film of the year, Anatomy of a Fall, won Best Original Screenplay and while in a perfect world, Sandra Hüller would’ve won Best Actress – it’s hard to deny Emma Stone deserved to win just as much.
It was just that kind of night – where almost all the winners felt right. And at the end of the day, that’s really the most you can ask for when it comes to any awards show.
I actually agree with everything!! Jimmy Kimel boring as always but everything else was so much fun! And the Batman !!! In my opinion , the sound win is for the right reason. There were no gruesome scenes but that sound is the most heartbreaking and terrifying at the same time... it made the film so much more real ….