Arts: It’s What’s for Blog » Blog Archive

Things were looking grim for a while there, but with the WGA strike finally over, the Oscar ceremony will go on as planned. Tune in to ABC at 5 p.m. tonight to watch the show live. Or you could just read about it here!That’s right—I’ll be liveblogging the Academy Awards for your reading pleasure. Refresh your browser frantically for up-to-the-minute announcements of the winners. Sure, you could just check IMDB, but they simply can’t offer the same snarktastic commentary. (Snarktastic commentary contingent on the ceremony itself, but given how over-the-top the Oscars are every year, I think we can count on something to mock.)See you all in 40 minutes!

8:47 Phew. We’re done. It’s been a long night, although the ceremony was mostly painless: many deserving winners and only a couple interminable montages. Thanks for reading, especially if you’re someone other than my mom.
8:45 Indeed it is. No Country for Old Men wins Best Picture. Congratulations, Coen Brothers. You should never have left the stage.
8:43 The Coen Brothers win their second award of the night, Best Director. Er, Directors, I guess. Does this mean No Country for Old Men is a lock for Best Picture?
8:34 Daniel Day-Lewis gets his second Best Actor Oscar. Impressive performance, but I was gunning for George Clooney, however unlikely that was. This probably has something to do with the fact that I’d take Michael Clayton over There Will Be Blood any day.
8:31 No one has ever said “cojones” as gracefully as Helen Mirren. I must reiterate, she’s a lady.
8:25 Naturally, Diablo Cody wins Best Original Screenplay for Juno. Everyone loves a rags to riches story. Or exotic dancer to riches, as it were. Of course, it helps that her script was seriously awesome.
8:17 Best Documentary goes to Taxi to the Dark Side. I liked Sicko, but there was no real front-runner here.
8:13 Freeheld wins Best Documentary Short, an award presented by a group of Iraqi soldiers. That part was weird, if not well-intentioned.
8:10 No contest. Dario Marianelli wins a well-deserved Best Score Oscar for Atonement.
7:59 Robert Elswit snags the Best Cinematography Oscar for There Will Be Blood. Though I’m not a huge fan of the film, I will concede that it looked good. Therefore, I accept this.
7:57 Aww! Marketa Irglova gets to take the stage after being oh-so-rudely cut off during her acceptance speech. The Academy has a heart after all.
7:51 I don’t know about you all, but I’m loving Jon Stewart’s one-liners.
7:50 As predicted, Once’s “Falling Slowly” wins Best Original Song. Nothing much to say. Aside from the requisite “yay,” that is.
7:45 I have to say, this last song from Enchanted would be a lot more interesting if Patrick Dempsey were singing it.
7:43 The Best Foreign Film Oscar goes to The Counterfeiters. Sadly, I haven’t seen any of the nominated films, but now would be a good time to point out that The Daily Cal ran interviews with two Oscar winners in our Oscar preview issue: Marion Cotillard and Stefan Ruzowitzky. Not to be too self-congratulatory, but go us and our foresight!
7:34 Honorary Oscar recipient Robert Boyle takes the stage. For 98, he’s looking pretty good. And he tells jokes! This is good, because chances are they’re not going to kick him off the stage until he’s good and ready.
7:31 Here comes a lifetime achievement award. Time for dessert. Just kidding! Robert Boyle’s been working for 70 years—he certainly deserves our respect.
7:29 The Bourne Ultimatum wins its third award. And I vaguely know what film editing entails, so that’s pretty exciting. On the other hand, isn’t it a bit late in the evening for this award?
7:27 Well, that was a fun trip down memory lane. Also, wholly unnecessary.
7:23 I don’t know what makes it harder to take Jack Nicholson seriously: those sunglasses, or The Bucket List. In other news, another montage?
7:19 Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova perform “Falling Slowly” from Once. With the Enchanted songs splitting votes, this should be a shoe-in for Best Original Song. Also, it’s really, really good.
7:13 In the first real “holy shit” moment of the night, Marion Cotillard wins Best Actress for her role in La Vie en Rose. Front-runner Julie Christie also gave a great performance in Away From Her, but I’m glad to see Cotillard get it.
7:06 Another win for The Bourne Ultimatum, this time for Sound Mixing. Um. See below.
7:03 Best Sound Editing goes to The Bourne Ultimatum. I’ll be honest—I don’t really know what sound editing entails. However, that clip they just showed was pretty loud, so I’ll assume this was deserved.
7:01 We’re promised Dame Judi Dench and Halle Berry. We get Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill. As far as I’m concerned, that’s a step up.
6:54 Why does Kristin Chenoweth get to perform “That’s How You Know” from Enchanted? The truth is, if I had my way, this would be The Amy Adams Show. Thankfully, the song hasn’t lost much of its charm.
6:49 The president of the Academy explains how films are nominated. We take a dinner break. In all seriousness … no, it’s really just not that interesting.
6:48 The Coen Brothers win their first Oscar of the night for Best Adapted Screenplay. An exceedingly awkward speech ensues.
6:46 Did Josh Brolin and James McAvoy coordinate their tuxes, or do they both just have impeccable taste? Either way, awesome.
6:39 I’m going to go ahead and preemptively say that Tilda Swinton gives the best speech of the night, just for her mention of George Clooney’s underrated Batman, nipples and all.
6:38 Whoa! Tilda Swinton nabs Best Supporting Actress for her role in Michael Clayton. I’m as surprised as I am pleased. Here’s hoping this isn’t the last award for the film.
6:32 Peter and the Wolf wins Best Animated Short Film. Gazelle is pleased: “My favorites won!” Of course she has good taste—she’s an Arts & Entertainment writer.
6:29 The Mozart of Pickpockets wins Best Live Action Short Film. Having not seen any of the nominees, I will defer to my friend Gazelle, who has seen them all. She says this was her favorite, and I think we can take her word for it.
6:26 As a song, “Raise It Up” is quite good. It comes from August Rush, however, and thus I have a hard time taking it seriously.
6:23 An Oscars salute to binoculars and periscopes. Brilliant. Really, though, being self-referential about all the ceremony’s montages doesn’t actually make up for it having so many.
6:18 Javier Bardem, the clear front-runner wins the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance in No Country for Old Men. And deservedly so. Frankly, I’m still somewhat scared of him.
6:13 We need a “refresher course” on past winners? Anything for a montage.
6:11 Sweeney Todd wins an Oscar! OK, it’s for Best Art Direction, but that is completely respectable. (Oh no, is my bias showing?)
6:08 Miraculously, The Golden Compass wins for Achievement in Visual Editing. I guess all the daemons and armored bears looking fake was a good thing?
5:59 I must say, “Happy Working Song” works a whole lot better with the dancing cockroaches and rats.
5:57 Sorry, Norbit. La Vie en Rose wins Best Achievement in Makeup. The camera keeps returning to Marion Cotillard, probably to show just what a great job those makeup artists did.
5:54 Ratatouille wins Best Animated Feature. I’m pleased, given that it was—hands down—the best movie of 2007. Again, not being facetious.
5:52 Steve Carell just said “shit.” As slip-ups go, it’s not actually all that exciting. Bears mentioning nonetheless.
5:50 I’m not sure what this is actually about, but I’m digging the use of Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On.”
5:48 Isn’t it a little early for a montage? Never mind—this is the Academy Awards. Prepare yourself for at least 17 more of these.
5:42 Best Costume Design goes to Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Having not seen the film, I can only nod solemnly.
5:39 Uh oh, political humor. Good thing it’s mild enough to not offend any Republicans in the audience. You know, all four of them.
5:35 Oh, and he can pronounce Javier Bardem’s name. Bonus points there.
5:33 Jon Stewart is off to a promising start. First, because his WGA material is funny, and second, because he’s not Regis Philbin.
5:30 Should we blame the awful, awful animation on the fact that the strike just ended? I mean, honestly, this is pretty bad.
5:27 Yes, Regis did just refer to Javier Bardem as “Xavier.” Close enough?
5:23 So far Ellen Page is the most poised person on the red carpet.
5:18 Regis’ fixation on Miley Cyrus is slightly disconcerting. Chances are the spectators on the red carpet are there for more than just her, especially given that her most notable acting role is on Hannah Montana.
5:16 We’re all glad that Amy Adams is performing tonight, but who else thinks she got robbed? Enchanted was one of the best movies of 2007—and no, I’m not being facetious.
5:14 Get your hands off Helen Mirren! She is a lady. Regis is really crossing the line tonight.
5:09 When I yell “Miley Cyrus” in my apartment, I rarely get such a vocal reaction.
5:06 Ryan Seacrest and Joan Rivers can be rather awkward, but at least they don’t refuse to let go of the nominees’ hands. Creepy, Regis. Creepy.
5:04 Marion Cotillard looks amazing. Of course, after seeing her eyebrow-less performance in La Vie en Rose, it’s hard not to be blown away.
5:01 First reference to the WGA strike. I plan on keeping a tally, but chances are I’ll lose count.
5:00 And we’re off! The Academy Awards have begun. Or at least the official red carpet. Regis Philbin is hosting, probably because of all his recent film work.