Folks! It finally came! The end to awards season, The Academy Awards. And they did not disappoint. I’m going to recap my thoughts, favorite and most awkward moments for you all below, as well as my thoughts on those that took home the hardware.
Despite not having a host this year, the show went pretty smooth in my opinion. No listening to jokes that might not land or an over the top opening number/monologue. Just getting straight into presenting awards after an opening performance from Queen with Adam Lambert. That performance fell a little flat for me, but I still enjoyed it.
Best Director – Alfonso Cuaron for his work on Roma was no surprise as the winner here. Well deserved even if I didn’t care for the film itself.
Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture – Regina King was also not a surprise win here, although I would still have preferred Amy Adams.
Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture – Mahershala Ali totally deserved this win!
Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Literally making me say “What?!” was when Olivia Coleman’s name was called over Glenn Close and Lady Gaga. I’m very much excited to see Olivia take the win because she was truly fantastic in The Favourite, but the race had seemed to be between the other two, so it took me by surprise for sure!
Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Rami Malek was going to get it and he did, and he deserved it. Interesting point I heard was that all of the nominees in this category were all in films that were either remade or impersonating someone from history. Think about that.
Best Picture – Green Book. You read that right. Green Book. Now, I certainly had no problems with this film and actually quite enjoyed it. Does that mean I think it should have won best picture? No. I would have bet my life savings on Roma taking home the trophy, and if it wasn’t going to be that then I would have bet on a close second being The Favourite. But evidently I don’t know what I’m talking about.
So there was no host. So what? I still have my favorite presenters! First up was Helen Mirren with Jason Mamoa – what a random pairing, but they were delightful to watch and matched in shades of pink! Next up were Awkwafina and John Mulaney – yes, please! Hysterically sarcastic and I loved it. Finally, Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson were giggling between everything and it was cracking me up. I’d be fine with any of these pairings hosting something in the future! Oh, and we can’t forget about Melissa McCarthy and Brian Tyree Henry parodying The Favourite, hand puppet rabbits and all. That was fun. Future Oscars take note please.
Other notables for me included Javier Bardem jamming during Queen’s performance. That man was seriously digging it! I also loved John Mulaney’s puzzled expression when ex-Rage Against the Machine guitarist came out to introduce best picture nominee Vice. Meme worthy reaction for sure. An equally puzzling presenter came in the form of Serena Williams. I am a huge tennis fan, but I saw no reason for her to be here, let alone presenting. Oh, well. Things I’ll never know. Possibly the most talked about moment of the night was Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s performance of their now Oscar winning song “Shallow” from A Star is Born. Full disclosure, I was nervous for Bradley, so I can’t imagine how he was feeling. But he did well! I wouldn’t say he nailed it: definitely took it up an octave, and his singing voice sounds sort of like his talking voice, so let’s just be thankful he didn’t have too many verses.
I smiled for four straight hours, so this year’s Oscars was a success in my book! Check out a complete list of winners here.