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"Romans
and Tigers and Roberts, Oh My!"
If you think about it, Oscar season is a lot like Christmas season. Right after Thanksgiving, people become obsessed with the holidays and start thinking about gifts for their friends and family. Then they start making travel arrangements and ponder what they are going to wear on the big day. After such a big buildup, some people are left feeling empty when it's all over, and now they can't help but ask themselves "now what?" Right after the Oscar nominations are announced, people become obsessed with predicting who the winners will be with their friends and family, while celebrities start making travel arrangements and ponder what they are going to wear on the big day. After such a big buildup, many show-biz junkies are left feeling empty when it's all over, and now they can't help but ask themselves "now what?" It's a vicious cycle, and it happens every year.
The actual awards show is anything but a vicious cycle, and the "73rd Annual Academy Awards" was full of surprises. When first-time host Steve Martin--who miraculously followed up Billy Crystal to deliver a classy, sharp, and tight presentation--started off by making a well-timed joke at Russell Crowe's expense, Crowe clearly didn't appreciate the dig. His on-camera response may have made the moment even funnier, but it also made the Academy want to give Crowe an honorary Oscar for being such a big sourpuss. The biggest upset of the night came early on when the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress went to Marcia Gay Harden for her intense and passionate performance in "Pollock."
After so much speculation that Hollywood's it-girl of the moment Kate Hudson would be really famous after taking home the Oscar for "Almost Famous," Academy voters pulled a fast one. Harden obviously deserved the award, but when her name was read from the envelope, a collective "What?" rang throughout the world. The winner for the next major category--Best Supporting Actor--was pretty much a sure thing. After winning a slew of awards for his portrayal of an honest Mexican cop in "Traffic," Benicio Del Toro took the stage and gave a humble speech for his Oscar victory.
If anything, his thick Pennsylvanian accent made you wonder how he was able to pull off most of his performance in Spanish in the first place.
The mid period tends to be a bit dull, but leave it to Bjork to liven things up a bit. When she took the stage to sing her number from "Dancer in the Dark," which was up for Best Original Song, the big question on everybody's mind was "what the heck was up with that dress?" (Come to think of it, what the heck is up with Bjork?) Martin was quick to seize the moment when he commented that he left his swan outfit at home because "it was so last year!" The other Oscar moment came when yet another joke was made at Crowe's expense, only this time, even Crowe seemed to think it was funny. In light of all the recent kidnapping reports against Crowe, Martin quipped that fellow Best Actor nominee Tom Hanks should be ashamed of himself for sending out the threats! The camera then panned to Hanks, who went with the joke and bowed his head in mock shame, even muttering "sorry" under his breath. If anything, it proved what we all knew anyway--that Hanks is one helluva good sport.
Steven Gaghan's win for Best Adapted Screenplay for "Traffic" was no surprise, as even with Steven Soderbergh's innovative direction, the honesty and complexity of the story wouldn't have been possible without Gaghan's first hand experience as a former drug addict. (By the way, does Gaghan look a lot like David E. Kelley, or what?) The Best Original Screenplay basically came down to Kenneth Lonergan for "You Can Count on Me" and Cameron Crowe for "Almost Famous," and while Lonergan's touching slice of life film rang about as true as a movie can get, Crowe's semi-autobiographical ode to rock'n'roll was duly honored after being snubbed completely in the Best Picture and Best Director categories.
If there was ever a sure thing at the "73rd Annual Academy Awards," it was that Julia Roberts was going to win the Best Actress Oscar for "Erin Brockovich." Her acceptance speech was easily the most heartfelt and vibrant since Cuba Gooding Jr. won for "Jerry Maguire," and even though Oscar producer Gil Cates offered to give a high-definition TV to the winner with the shortest speech, Roberts knew better and said her TV was just fine thank-you-very-much. Despite the notable omission of the real Erin Brockovich from her long list of thank-you's, Roberts held on to the spotlight and knew this was her night.
Early predictions were that Russell Crowe was a shoo-in for the Best Actor statue for "Gladiator," but after his difficult reputation and penchant for being a homewrecker began to take hold of--and turn off--the press, many focused their attention towards Tom Hanks for "Cast Away." When the winner was finally announced, Crowe's reaction was one of utter disbelief, and his acceptance speech yielded a surprisingly humble side to his tough exterior. The DGA Awards have had a near-perfect track record for predicting who will win the Best Director Oscar prize (only missing the boat 4 times out of the last 53 years), and when Ang Lee was given the DGA for "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," his Oscar victory was pretty much cast in stone.
Well, that stone turned out to be pretty brittle when the Oscar was given to Steven Soderbergh for "Traffic." While Soderbergh's win was well-deserved (let's face it--between "Traffic" and "Erin Brockovich," he had a pretty good year!), Lee's loss actually made sense. The DGA gives only one award, while the Academy covers so many categories. It's quite possible that Academy voters felt that "Crouching Tiger's" win in the Best Foreign Film category covered a lot of bases, leaving the rest of the major awards open to more domestic fare. Another point worth mentioning is Tom Cruise's delivery of the Best Director statue. After a much-publicized split from Nicole Kidman, the already reclusive Cruise made his first public appearance since the announcement donning a casual look and a brand new buzz cut (no doubt for his role in Steven Spielberg's "Minority Report," which just started shooting last week). It's also worth mentioning that Cruise was announced as a two-time Oscar nominee, when in fact, he's been nominated three times (for "Born on the Fourth of July," "Jerry Maguire," and "Magnolia"). In keeping with the Academy's love of historical epics, it was no surprise when "Gladiator" emerged victorious as Best Picture. Usually, the Best Picture and Best Director winners go hand-in-hand, but like with 1999's great "Shakespeare in Love" vs. "Saving Private Ryan" debate, this was not the case. Ridley Scott's defeat in the Director category was not softened when "Gladiator" won Best Picture, and when the film's producers asked Scott to join them on stage, he shrugged them off, sulked in his seat, and look pretty pissed.
And he wasn't the only one. When Michael Douglas read the name "Gladiator" from the envelope, he was clearly disappointed that "Traffic"--in which he co-starred--didn't win the big kahuna. Then again, he got to go home with Catherine Zeta-Jones, so he couldn't have been that upset! And just like last year, and the year before that, and the 70 years before that, it was all over. In the end, the "73rd Academy Awards" came in at just under 3 1/2 hours, and the winners were spread across the board. Up next was one long night of partying and ass-kissing, but after a couple of wild and crazy months building up for the big night, Hollywood would wake up the next morning and ask "now what?" What were Scott's original picks? Click here to find out! |
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© Scott Mantz - Scott's Movie Reviews
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