A.V. Club Blog

 
 

11:13 PM CT -- Best Picture

posted by: Keith Phipps
February 25, 2007 - 11:13pm

Man, they're going fast. After Scorsese, how will they let us down? This has been a pretty good night. Great host. Good segments (by and large) and... the winner is... The Departed. Wow! Who knew? My (figurative) money was on Babel but... Well, good. Great movie. Great honor for Scorsese. Could they actually have gotten it right this year? Well, let's sound a slightly sour note: It's not like all the best films were nominated. Or even most. Okay, enough of that. Go Scorsese!
 
 

11:09 PM CT-- The Moment We've All Been Waiting For

posted by: Scott Tobias
February 25, 2007 - 11:13pm

Stanley Kubrick never got an Oscar. Orson Welles never got an Oscar. So it would have been okay if Martin Scorsese had never won an Oscar, but it's really wonderful that he got this acknowledgement. He's the reason I got interested in movies. Watching his films and the films that inspired him set me on my current path.

But enough about me. Scorsese's coronation was inevitable, but sweet nonetheless. I wish he had 20 minutes just to free associate. His speech for the NYFCC Best Director award was much livelier and funnier, perhaps because he was speaking to an audience of critics who would indulge a longer speech. The Departed is certainly not Scorsese's best work, but it's a nonetheless dazzling piece of direction and worthy of this acknowledgement. Eat that, 3-6 Mafia.

 
 

11:02 PM CT -- Best Actor

posted by: Keith Phipps
February 25, 2007 - 11:02pm

Now we're in the meat of it. We're thinking there's a chance for a Peter O'Toole upset here instead of Whitaker. (If it's a matter of an actor singlehandedly making a film worth seeing, I'd go with Will Smith, however. He's terrific. The movie's only okay.) And... It's Whitaker. Well, that's fine too. Will he keep it together unlike at the Golden Globes... Nope. He's terrifying in that movie and incredibly endearing when he's out of character. That's why it's called acting, right?
 
 

10:54 PM CT: Brush Your Hair, It's The Oscars

posted by: Scott Tobias
February 25, 2007 - 10:56pm

... so says my wife upon seeing poor Philip Seymour Hoffmann introduce Best Actress. This one is a slam dunk for Mirren, of course, but I think it's worth noting that 2006 was an exceptionally strong year for this category. I could easily come up with another five or ten nominees on top of this very deserving bunch. Let's see if she gives an inflammatory speech. Ummmm....no, just gracious and eloquent and British. Big fake-out on introducing The Queen, though-- I thought for sure she'd descend from the ceiling. Bummer.
 
 

10:50 PM CT--Death becomes us

posted by: Nathan Rabin
February 25, 2007 - 10:51pm

Ah, the obligatory death reel. That melancholy time when America sheds a single, perfect tear and reflects on the untimely passing of countless people we didn't realize made it past the ninety-nineties to begin with. Alot of big luminaries this year, from Betty Comden to Don Knotts to Robert Altman. Depending on your perspective it was either a very good year or a very bad year for celebrity deaths. So pour out a little liquor, home-slices, for the brothers and sisters who ain't here.
 
 

10:42 PM CT-- Michael Mann On America

posted by: Scott Tobias
February 25, 2007 - 10:41pm

I guess I'm supposed to hate these time-sucking montages, but I appreciate Michael Mann's emphasis on the coarse elements that go into building a nation-- the wars, racism, demagoguery, et al.-- and the clips are very well-chosen. Maybe Mann should take over Chuck Workman's job from here on out.
 
 

10:30 PM CT: Surprise Of The Night

posted by: Scott Tobias
February 25, 2007 - 10:33pm

Wow, apparently the three nominations for Dreamgirls songs split the vote, because there's no way anyone could have guessed that the INCONVENIENT TRUTH song would win the Oscar. I'm no fan of Dreamgirls, but its three original songs obviously play a more important role in the film itself, and I'd say they're on the par with the mediocre Broadway pap that made up the original production. (How's *that* for a backhanded compliment?) If you picked Etheridge and have any official documentation to that effect, please share with the group.
 
 

10:29 PM CT -- Melissa Etheridge: Oscar-winner

posted by: Keith Phipps
February 25, 2007 - 10:29pm

So, this means Scorsese has to win, right? Becaue now Al Gore, Ben Affleck, Kevin Costner, and Melissa Etheridge all ahve something he doesn't.
 
 

10:25 CT PM--Battling cleavage. Also, music of some sort

posted by: Nathan Rabin
February 25, 2007 - 10:25pm

I'm not saying that the Oscars telecast isn't absolutely riveting but I just watched the clip on Videocracy of the cat watching television. It's adorable! It's watching television just like Rory Calhoun! I suspect it's a lock for a Best short nod next year. The Dreamgirls performance is on now and I must admit that I am absolutely enraptured by the cleavage on display. And by "cleavage" I of course mean "astounding musical talent". Also, Etheridge's chances aren't looking too good right about now.
 
 

10:14 PM CT -- Best Original Screenplay

posted by: Keith Phipps
February 25, 2007 - 10:15pm

That has to be the best bit of trivia of the night, and the best worded: "In order to write the screenplay to Little Miss Sunshine he had to quit his job as an assistant to Matthew Broderick."

Had to. Broderick was there, beating him down, saying, "Man, you better not be writing a screenplay to Little Miss Sunshine. Not on my time, son."