Lisa's Oscar Commentary - The 84th Annual Academy Awards

Lisa’s Oscar Commentary
The 84th Annual Academy Awards

Billy’s back!!! After a very long hiatus, Billy Crystal was back to host the Academy Awards for the ninth time. He was sorely missed.

Originally, Brett Ratner was scheduled to produce the Oscars and he had asked Eddie Murphy to host. Brett made some comments in an interview or two that were offensive to some – I’m not sure anyone remembers exactly what he said anymore. Nonetheless, he stepped down as producer and Brian Grazer took over. I’m still curious as to how Eddie Murphy would have done as host, but it was great to have Billy back. He did not disappoint. He gave the audience everything he traditionally offered as host – some clever clips editing Billy into the Best Picture nominees, and a little medley of songs for each of the nine nominated films. By the way, there were only nine nominees this year, not ten, because there weren’t ten films worthy of being nominated. Maybe they should have gone back to five. On the other hand, the expansion of the category has made room for so many independent films. This was the year of the small film, not the big one. In fact, it was the year of the black and white film, not the color one. The year of the silent film, not the talkie. Hurray for The Artist! The only film that was nominated that deserved to win…and did...The Artist, indeed.

Also in black and white, and in color, were the numerous tuxedos and gowns that walked the red carpet. This year’s red carpet wasn’t so different from the films – no clear winners or losers. There were some that were better and some that were worse but there wasn’t one dress that will go down in Oscar Red Carpet history – for better or worse.

Trends were long sleeves, color, particularly shades of white and red, and modesty. Though there were a few plunging necklines, like Jennifer Lopez who always looks sexy and gorgeous, most of the women were showing more skin from the back than from the front.

Some of the best dressed and fashion-forward were on trend. Wearing white were: Mila Jovovich in one shoulder sparkling Ellie Saab, Rooney Mara right off the runway in Givenchy looked like a porcelain doll with black hair bright red lips, Octavia Spencer in Tadashi Shoji perfectly beaded gown (she looked like a winner), Gwyneth Paltrow in a one shoulder white Tom Ford dress that was a Best Dressed Nominee for sure (and she wore the matching white cape on the carpet – fab - I will remember this look for sure) and goddess, Jennifer Lopez in the slinky beaded Zuhair Marad. Angelina Jolie joined Rooney Mara and Michelle Williams in stunning red lips. While Angie wore a sexy Atelier Versace architectural gown with a slit up to her ummm hmmm, Michelle wore a perfectly modest but feminine coral Louis Vuitton dress which matched her pixie haircut perfectly.

Viola Davis looked lovely in green - not glam, but lovely. Glenn Close looked lovely and modest in Zac Posen. And Meryl Streep looked like a winner in gold Lanvin. Meryl has obviously read my blog of past years and took my advice. I always say: “if you want to win an Oscar, dress like one.” Gold is for winners.

Other honorable mentions, wearing gold were Jessica Chastain in a Victorian Alexander McQueen statement gown, and Stacey Kiebler in a bronze/gold Marchesa gown that no one else could wear, except maybe Charlize Theron. George Clooney may not have won an Oscar, but he got to take home a gold statuette nonetheless.

So who was the best dressed of the night? That award has to go to Penelope Cruz. She just looked perfectly stunning in Armani – a mix of old Hollywood glamour and 2012 style. The color of the silk was a slate periwinkle blue that stood out on the red carpet and on the stage presenting. She was a vision – perfection.

There were many who weren’t terrible, but they just missed the target. All the Bridesmaids girls looked great. If Kristin Wig had glammed it up a little more, or if Rose Byrn had worn different shoes, they could have been superb. But they were great presenters proving that funny is just as fabulous as fashion. Berenice Bejo was lovely, but the long sleeved Ellie Saab looked a little old on her and her hair was a little too tight and not romantic enough for the dress, but she still looked lovely. Shailene Woodley wore a beautiful very sophisticated Valentino Couture dress that I absolutely loved, and if Cate Blanchett had worn it, she probably would have been Best Dressed. But Shailene is much too young to wear that dress – it just looked old on her. But, I give her props for good taste, the dress is fashionable and stunning.

Also missing the boat was Sandra Bullock – her hair and makeup was beautiful, but the Marchesa vintage-looking dress was not a flattering silhouette for Sandra’s boyish figure. And Cameron Diaz also had beautiful makeup and a great new haircut, and the dress was sexy, but the dress had too much going on at the bottom – simple silhouettes are better on her. Emma Stone was beautiful and I loved her dress, but perhaps Emma is too young to remember the legendary Balenciaga dress that Nicole Kidman wore to the Oscars almost ten years ago - A long red dress with a big bow at the neck. Nicole Kidman has worn a couple of dresses that will live in Oscar history and that dress was one of them. Sorry, Emma. You should have picked a different dress.

If you happened to catch Sherri Shepherd, you wished you had missed her. For a woman who’s been top-heavy her whole life, she still hasn’t learned what to wear to flatter her figure. Her gown had loose chiffon on top and tight taffeta on the bottom – completely backwards. She needs a fitted top and loose volume on the bottom for balance. She looked like she might actually tip over. Jane Seymour was also one of the worst of the night. She must have heard red was the trend, but she got it all wrong. A red shiny slinky candy apple red dress that looked like a Vegas costume. If you want to be a dancer, Jane, stick with Dancing with the Stars – and hire a stylist. Busy Phillips arrived with Michelle Williams as her friend and “plus one.” Busy’s dress was too busy, and honestly, if you’re going to be Michelle William’s accessory, you should look the part. Michelle was a Best Dressed Nominee and Busy Phillips was a Worst Dressed Nominee.

Unfortunately, the Worst Dressed of the night was mostly just the most disappointing, and for that reason alone, she’s getting the Worst Dressed award: Natalie Portman. The dress was almost pretty but it looked more like a dress for an awards luncheon – a little too picnicky. It could have been chic and fabulous if it were accessorized properly, but she wore a very glam sparkly diamond necklace as if she wanted to glam it up but it didn’t match at all, and her hair was down and sloppy and tucked behind her ear. She looked like her baby had just spit up on her backstage and she just couldn’t deal with getting herself dressed up for the Oscars this year – after all, she was only presenting this year, not winning.

The men put on an excellent parade of sharped dressed tuxedo clad well groomed stars. P. Diddy looked sharp as always, perfectly tailored. And his diamond earrings were bigger than any diamonds I saw on the women. Brad Pitt and George Clooney – handsome and classic – even Brad’s long hair didn’t detract from his handsome appearance from head to toe. Jean Dujardin looked like a winner – he truly epitomizes old Hollywood glamour. And he had the perfect accessory – Uggie, the jack russell terrier.

But two men stood out to me as the best dressed of the night. Bradley Cooper presenting with Tina Fey made the best dressed couple. Bradley wore a dark navy double breasted tuxedo with a black satin shawl collar. That navy tuxedo looked perfect with Tina Fey’s navy Carolina Herrera gown (she never looked better). Best dressed “couple.” And the surprise best dressed of the night was someone who I think usually looks classic but this year stepped it up a notch. Tom Hanks wore a perfectly tailored midnight black double breasted tuxedo with a shawl collar, a crisp white shirt with a covered button panel, and a perfectly folded white pocket square. Both Bradley and Tom Hanks are tall enough to wear the double breasted tux, and both chose to move on trend with the shawl collar. I just love that look. An unexpected Best Dressed Winner: Tom Hanks.

The show ran only ten minutes long, which for the Oscars, is ten minutes early. So if it felt long, it was probably because there were a few too many clips of actors reflecting on how they learned to love movies. Billy’s opening numbers did not disappoint. And Billy was a great host. Billy is everything we love in a host - funny, relaxed, and enthusiastic and entertaining. He can sing, dance, adlib, and deliver a joke. His medleys and clever film clips always make us laugh. This year, they gave us just enough of that….not too much.

I was personally disappointed that there wasn’t more of a tribute to Gil Cates who produced the Oscars fourteen times. Gil Cates and the Academy Awards were synonymous for years. I wish they had shown some clips of Gil over the years working behind the scenes. He was a Hollywood legend and the Oscar stage was his home. I remember Gil as a great producer, a gentleman and a genuinely nice guy. He will be missed.
Christopher Plummer and Meryl Streep had the best acceptance speeches of the night. At 82 years old, Christopher Plummer became the oldest actor to win an Oscar. He looked at his Oscar, “You’re only two years older than me – where have you been all my life?” Best line of the night even if it was rehearsed. Meryl Streep has broken every record for nominations, and she is irrefutably the best actor of all time. Yet, her win was a surprise. And her acceptance speech was heartfelt, genuine, and articulate yet seemed unrehearsed – then again, she is the greatest actress of all time.

Love that Woody Allen won for original screenplay – I only wish he had surprised everyone and showed up, or at least sent Owen Wilson up to get it. Owen really does do a great Woody. And I was glad that the makeup artist from Iron Lady finally won an Oscar after so many years. Gwyneth and Robert Downey Jr. were pretty funny together. Emma Stone and Ben Stiller were almost funny. Will Farrell and Zach Galifianakis were a little bit funny, not as funny as the Bridesmaids. “Scorcese” – do a shot. A new Oscar drinking game is born. Billy could have used a little more help with the laughs – I thought maybe Uggie, the dog from The Artist might have given him a hand, or paw.

All the Frenchies were fabulous. Every time the Artist won an award, the recipient was charming and gracious. Interestingly, of all the nine films that were nominated for best picture, The Artist was the only film that was shot entirely in Hollywood, California. And even though Spielberg and Scorcese were in the mix, there was no runaway Hollywood blockbuster. Thank goodness, there was no James Cameron film this year. The Artist captured the spirit of the year – a creative, artful, feel-good film. Next year, I’m hoping for a color film with Jean Dujardin, Jonah Hill and Michelle Williams shot in Paris, directed by Woody Allen. And if someone calls Harvey Weinstein, maybe it can win an Oscar.