And The Winner Is...

Ok, first and foremost: you will all be quick to learn that I am obsessed with Meryl Streep; therefore bias towards any of her work. I understand that some of you may see this as a reason to immediately dismiss my opinion regarding anything Meryl-related; although in doing so you are denying the truth!

Anyhow, the 81st Academy Awards…

Overall, I was impressed. Majority of the awards were given to their rightful owners, the style of presentation was different yet effective, and the hosting ensured an entertaining drift between categories.

To begin with I think I will address the gem of the night. Hugh Jackman. I am ashamed to admit that, like nearly every other person watching, I was expecting a mediocre ‘fill-in’ for the usual standard of Oscar hosts. However, like nearly every other person watching, I was captivated from Jackman’s first performance. I would even go as far to say that he stole the night.

As for the presentation of the awards themselves, I was initially confronted by the absence of clips that usually accompany the calling of the respective nominee. However, I soon took a strong liking to their new idea, having five previous victors come out and each acclaim one of the nominees. To me it fostered a notion of an all-star body of talent overseeing the appointment of a new successor, such as past presidents do to new elects.

Speaking of politics, Milk, arguably the biggest shock of the night with Sean Penn defeating the underdog juggernaut, that is Mickey Rourke! Now of course, even though I loved The Wrestler and believe Rourke delivered a knockout performance, I was in the backing corner of Frank Langella, for his scarily accurate portrayal as Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon. Nevertheless, well done to Penn and I really loved how he took such a prime opportunity to support the legalisation of gay marriages, as I am doing now. For me, Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role was: a) the most heart racing; and subsequently b) the most shattering, all for obvious reasons. Yet I am not going to justify why Meryl deserved it more that Kate Winslet. I have accepted that, for being the incredibly talented actress she is, Winslet finally got what she deserved. Congratulations to her although I assure you Meryl will reign supreme the next time they face off. For the main event of the night, I had mixed emotions, while I wanted Slumdog Millionaire to win; I still affirm that either, or both, Doubt and The Wrestler should have been deemed nominees for Best Motion Picture of the Year.

So that is it for this year. I can only pray that next year has the same competitiveness and excellence. This year, the category that was exemplary with these qualities was Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role. Even though the eventual winner satisfied public expectation, each of those nominees where definitive winners in my eyes, as cliché as it may sound. Although only Heath Ledger’s take on the Joker in The Dark Knight, could have overcome the aptitude of Robert Downey Jr, Josh Brolin, Michael Shannon, and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Only Heath Ledger…