There were so many moving moments. Sidney Poitier is just the definition of class! I was all teary during Halle Berry's acceptance speech. I loved how both of them gave credit to those who had come before, the shoulders that they stood upon. I agree with previous comments that Halle's speech was perfect - shocked, emotional, yet surprisingly articulate nonetheless. I also enjoyed what Robert Redford had to say. And yeah, who doesn't love Denzel?

About A Beautiful Mind, as a movie, I enjoyed it and was touched by it. I thought Russell Crowe did a wonderful job, and, had he won the Oscar, would have deserved it on the merits of his acting. I was glad that Jennifer Connelly was recognized.

Rocketdyke, thanks for being the first one to bring up the dresses!! When Gwyneth first came on stage I turned to my friend and said, someone give that girl a bra. Not a very flattering look for her! And sorry, I didn't like Cameron Diaz's dress either. And you know, I can dis them because I have such fabulous fashion sense and look more glamorous than they any day of the week!

I especially enjoyed the quotes from various screenwriters about the more technical awards. Funny and interesting!

Okay, about Ian McKellan's "companion". (sorry if I get rant-y but I've been holding this in for the last 4 pages) That was Orlando Bloom!!!! The actor who played Legolas, the elf!!! In the movie!! (whew, okay I'm calm now. So sorry.) I think I've read that they became good friends during the makeing of LOTR. And I believe Orlando is British, but I could be wrong on that. And yes, Sir Ian does have an actual companian who is much closer to his own age.

And lastly, Whoopi just cracks me up!!! (Although, yes, her intro to ABM was not in good taste.)

I liked the many new touches this year: the montages, the actors naming their favorite movies - even the jokes that the presenters made were better this year. And Cirque de Soleil was amazing.

I agree with all who said that Halle Berry broke down an important barrier by winning, and her speech was indeed very touching.

I agree with almost everything the salon.com article said. I am in the minority who don't think A Beautiful Mind deserved to win. I thought it was a good movie, but not a great one. I thought both Moulin Rouge and Lord of the Rings were far superior to it in both style and substance.

Neither do I think Ron Howard could even hold a candle to Robert Altman or Baz Luhrmann. He is a competent director but not an inspired or original one.

quote:

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Originally posted by ennui:
[B]Some belated thoughts on the Oscars ...

I liked the many new touches this year: the montages, the actors naming their favorite movies - even the jokes that the presenters made were better this year. And Cirque de Soleil was amazing.

I agree with all who said that Halle Berry broke down an important barrier by winning, and her speech was indeed very touching.

I agree with almost everything the salon.com article said. I am in the minority who don't think A Beautiful Mind deserved to win. I thought it was a good movie, but not a great one. I thought both Moulin Rouge and Lord of the Rings were far superior to it in both style and substance.

[B]

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Here's a quote from the salon.com article that completely sums up what I feel about the movie and its director:

Can somebody please clarify?

Hi! I hated last night's Oscar ceremony. Here's some reasons why:

Mulholland Drive - not an Academy-friendly picture, they say. So why don't they hire some new voters who aren't just into one kind of movie? Especailly seeing as it was the best film of the year by a country mile.
Halle Berry's speech - I suppose it happens every year. At least it wasn't as bad as Tom Hanks's "I'd like to thank everyone in the entire world, bar none" thing for Forrest Gump.
A Beautiful Mind - Ladies and, well, probably mostly ladies 'round here, we have a new English Patient. Hated it.
Ron Howard - oh, come on! He can't direct his way out of his bedroom in the morning! Every single director in that category was better than him. Even Ridley Scott. Even a couple of directors who weren't nominated - Wes Anderson and Baz Luhrmann
Akiva Goldsman - Whatever you think of the script to ABM, I still think he should be punished for the other things he wrote. Batman & Robin? Lost In Space: The Movie? Hack.
Julian Fellowes - well, he should have won, but he shouldn't have had to share his award category with Goldmember (above).
The inevitable "Whose frock was the best?" debates all around the media. I don't care.
The two best films up for a lot of categories - LOTR and Gosford Park - being almost entirely shut out. And much as I like Jim Broadbent, I think Ian McKellen should have got that 'Best Supporting Actor' gong.
When are they going to give Altman an award, anyway? After he dies?

*retreats to castle of bitterness, to roast photos of Russell Crowe*

EDITED TO ADD: After reading some of the other posts on this thread, I'd like to clarify that I didn't think Halle was playing the race card in any way. The bit I objected to was her thanking everyone, for some interminable minutes.

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On a lighter note, what in the world did Jennifer Lopez do to her hair? Had she just woken up? Is she doing a remake of "Hairspay?" What in the world??? Was that a bird's nest? Poor J-Lo. Big ol' fashion faux pas this time around.

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I saw the highlights show last night on UK TV (much better than sitting through the whole 4-hour version) and, yeah, what the frilly heck did La Lopez do to her hair? She should shoot whoever told her that was a good look.
On the completely shallow hair & dress front:
* Julia Roberts’ dress: fine from the waist up, yuck from the waist down. The split-to-the-crotch look almost always comes off as tacky, no matter who wears it.
* Marcia Gay Harden: you were made to wear red lipstick. Forget the awful pearly frosted stuff., okay? It just doesn’t suit * Jennifer Connelly and Gwyneth Paltrow jointly win the Most Unflattering Dress award . And Gwynnie, nobody over the age of 10 can get away with that hairstyle. Also, buy a bra.
* Nicole Kidman’s dress: flattering colour, but go for EITHER ruffles OR ruching. Both at once just looks fussy.
* Josh Hartnett: may I introduce you to the concept of hair gel? You’ve got nice eyes, don’t hide them underneath your fringe.
* Maggie Smith, Judi Dench and Helen Mirren were the most stylish and best-coiffured of the night, imo.
[Ah, I love giving fashion advice to Hollywood.]
Other ramblings:
I want to marry Denzel. Sidney Poitier too.
Best remark: ‘Stone the crows!’ - Jim Broadbent, on winning.
Amusing that the UK papers were trying to claim Halle Berry as an honourary Brit today (her mother is originally from Liverpool, which incidentally is my home town.)
I’m sure I’ll have more to say when I’ve seen more photos in today’s papers…

I couldn't even see "In the Bedroom" which was up for freakin Best Picture. I've been hearing raves about Sissy Spasek

I, for one, was seriously disappointed that Ms Spacek didn't pick up 'ol oscar. Her performance in "In the Bedroom" was an acting masterclass.

I was even more disappointed that David Lynch didn't win for "Mullholland Drive". There is a director on top of his game, so on top he's playing in a different league- certainly to the likes of Ron Howard...

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"Occasionally, I'm callous and strange."

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Originally posted by maudmac:
I like
I'm still holding a grudge against the Academy for shutting out The Color Purple. What's it been, like, 15 years or something? I'm still not over it and therefore attach no significance to their decisions. Right then and there I said, "The Academy? Piffle." I've never looked back.

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Holy sh*t maudmac! I've finally found the other half of my brain. This is exactly the same moment that I lost faith in the oscars. I remember watching The Color Purple the same day of the Oscars. And then I remember thinking how unfreakin believable that Out of Africa won everything. "I had a farm in Africa" my ass.

Has anyone ever watched poodles right before a dog competition? The owners pull back their hair in buns so that they don't get messed up before the competition. That's what J-Lo's hair looked like on Sunday.

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Originally posted by Cicca:
Oh too funny Pixie! Thank you! I hadn't noticed who was sitting next to Ian McKellan, but my friends were commenting on how he had his hand on the thigh of the hot young thing beside him. And then of course they didn't show them again! Orlando Bloom hey? Quite a cutie.

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Really, they didn't show any more? Cause here in Sydney we had almost non-stop Ian & Orlando snuggling on our telecast. I think if there was hand holding, thigh grasping or just general friendliness between those two, we saw it!

And what has Jennifer Connelly done to her breasts. She had the classic fashion designers attempt at disguising the fact that she has exercised and/or starved away her breasts - ruffles across the "should have been a cleavage" area. Poor thing......

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"Take my word for it, I'm not the wifey type"
Gabrielle - Xena "Dreamworker"

"I think being a beautiful, heavy lesbian witch rocks!"
Amber Benson

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Originally posted by Queen of Denial:
link to a pic of Sir Ian's hottie:
http://www.eskimo.com/~allegro/images/hubba.jpg

who else was hoping he would win so we can all see him french the hottie? ok ,so it was just me then.

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No...you are definately not the only one... although i am doubtful (as someone said earlier in the thread) that it was Orlando Bloom... I'm rather sure that Ian McKellan is in a relationship with a man he met in New Zealand... so i think the hand holding and thigh rubbing with "Orlando" would be a bit inappropriate... and plus, at all the LOTR premieres, Orlando had rather short hair. This gentlemen did not.

Although I would like to think it WAS Orlando... my friends and I are convinced that Legolas and Aragorn are lovers... he he he... gotta love a gratuitous queer reading...

EDITED TO ADD: Regarding enya, salon.com had this rather amusing thing to say... "Enya is the music I imagine when I am standing in a meadow in a white dress, closing my eyes and rapturously rubbing soft, quilted, two-ply toilet tissue against my cheeks." ....I almost fell off my chair when i read that.

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"FINE! I'll go to the pool and you can go to the museum of pools!"

'Gentleman Jim, a very British Oscar winner.'

Jim Broadbent? Nah. He's Spanish, isn't he? *rolls eyes*

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Originally posted by Dazey:
Brandon Teena was a transsexual. His sexual preference was for women. Hence he was straight, not gay. Tom Hanks won for a gay character in Philadelphia.

Halle Berry completely rocked.

What was up with the Best Song category? A more banal and unmemorable collection of tunes could not be found on your average "Love Songs--Nothing But Love Songs" radio station. Sigh. Speaking of Philadelphia, where's Bruce when you need him?

[This message has been edited by Dazey (edited March 25, 2002).]

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Originally posted by EvilAnya:
Nope, pretty sure that's not Orlando Bloom. Read somewhere that his name is Nick and he's a student from new zealand. In that picture he looks kind of like the Groosalag(sp?) from Angel.

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Take it from an LOTR nut - that is NOT Orlando Bloom.

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Originally posted by Scoobiedoo:

Although I would like to think it WAS Orlando... my friends and I are convinced that Legolas and Aragorn are lovers... he he he... gotta love a gratuitous queer reading...

EDITED TO ADD: Regarding enya, salon.com had this rather amusing thing to say... "Enya is the music I imagine when I am standing in a meadow in a white dress, closing my eyes and rapturously rubbing soft, quilted, two-ply toilet tissue against my cheeks." ....I almost fell off my chair when i read that.

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I love Enya, but that is absolutely hilarious!

The idea of Legolas and Aragorn together... Hmmmm! The two hottest guys in the movie. What about poor Liv?

quote:

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Originally posted by EvilAnya:
Nope, pretty sure that's not Orlando Bloom. Read somewhere that his name is Nick and he's a student from new zealand. In that picture he looks kind of like the Groosalag(sp?) from Angel.

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It was god-awfully long and Whoopi was great and i wish J-lo had stayed at the Prom she was going to instead of showing up.

As for the issue of Halle Berry and Denzel. I couldn't be happier that they won and it makes me feel proud that Oscar finally got it right for once even if they are a day late and dollar short. As for the issues surrounding thier wins some folks have been much more articulant than i can be on the subject, but i will add the reason why it is such a big deal is because it has been 74 years since a Black woman has won and 40 years since a Black man has won. I want us to examine those numbers when we think its not a big deal.

It is not just an issue of wonderful actors not being nominated or even winning, it is the fact that Black actors aren't even given the chance. Sydney Poitier said it best in his speech when he thanked those directors and writers who had the balls to look past the politics and cast him in strong roles not because of his color but because of his talent.

Sorry to get off on a rant.

peace and blessings

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Originally posted by All4W/T:
I just want to say that there have been a number of black nominees in the past very deserving of the nominations and quite possibly should have won: ie Diana Ross in Lady Sings the Blues, Angela Bassett in Whats Love got to do with it, Cicely Tyson in Sounder..Samuel L Jackson for Pulp Fiction, Denzel Washington for Hurricane or even Malcolm X, Louis Gossett Jr was well deserving of his Oscar for Officer and a Gentleman..

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Agreed but, in case you missed that, Ms Berry and Mr. Washington have both acknowledged that fact and, while disappointed this had to be so, they understood the importance of minorities winning critical acclaim (I think you missed that point too since no one really stated that it was a black thing but more a "person of colour" thing.

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My point is its not just the blacks that dont get nominated or win every year, there are plenty of great perfomances that dont get nominated, plenty of great actors/actresses who should have won but didnt..

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Overstating the obvious here.

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Yes blacks have been passed over, but i certainly dont think its because the Academy is racist..Each category is nominated by thier peers..Everyone in the Academy votes for the winners..

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And so how do you account for excellent actors/actresses of colour not receiving their due in the past? A Freak accident? *raised eyebrow*

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If they didnt win in the past, i really dont think it was because they were black..Politics as far as how commercially successful a movie is plays a role, popularity of the actor plays a role, whether its a makeup award for a previous year plays a role (like it or not, it does happen)..

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That's not necessarily true. Many commercially viable motion pictures have been passed over and even extremely popular actors have been overlooked (whether they be of colour or not)....so, while that argument could be made, it doesn't hold up.

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I think making this a race issue and saying that its time we make up for blacks not winning in the past,has taken away from the fact that two very fine ACTORS won..

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I disagree...I think it helps prove to minorities that there is hope for them and that they can be just as successful as the Sidney Poitiers and the Denzel Washingtons or even the Colin Powells of the world.

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Some of the things ive read on other boards go from "now the white folks know how it feels", to the "its about time", to "see how ya'll like it"..My goodness racism is alive and well in America, black and white..All this seems to have done is bring it back to the surface and show far we have not come in all these years..

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While I cannot speak for all of the ignorance of other boards (and I do realise reverse racism does exist), that is not a reason why blacks and other minorities should not be proud of the accomplishments done on Oscar night. For others it may be about race for entirely different reasons. But to lump all of the "it's time that whites know how it feels" idiots in with those who are proud of minority achievement plain and simple, does everyone a disservice.

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It saddens me that this had to come down to a race issue

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That saddens me too....but unfortunately that seems to be the way of the world.

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and if the awards were pre determined so that blacks won to make up for past snubs, shame on the Academy..

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Unless you are a member of the Academy or SAG you can not possibly know this. If you have concrete support for this assertion, please fill us all in. If not, this assertion can not be supported except for pure speculation.
The Academy should be ashamed mostly in not promoting equity period. Which I feel is their biggest crime.

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They dont understand us therefore they dont tolerate us.."Its a lifestyle choice"..Its acceptable to gay bash and make jokes and stereotype gays and lesbians, but not acceptable to do the same for people of color..Prejudice and discrimination are the
same regardless of who it involves, but no one "gets" that..

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Acceptable to whom? The Screen Actors Guild? The Academy? Because I thought that's who we were talking about here instead of the failings of humanity in general. Unfortunately, there will always be someone who will be prejudiced against someone for some spurious reason or other. I think we all "get" that. But there have been gays at least nominated (and I believe a few that have actually won) an Oscar. Those numbers still may be a bit more skewed than the numbers for minorities who have won Oscars.

Toni

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"Sometimes, we just can't make it on our own. We all need someone to love us, to help remind us that there's good in the world, to keep us from going crazy."

Willow from Dacia's The Dreamer Awakes

I don't get people. Like, generally, I don't get people. I think I shall become a hermit.

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Originally posted by All4W/T:
Critical acclaim and nominations for awards usually are based on a performance in a particular role not because of the color of ones skin, at least as far as i know..

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Either you're more naive than I had imagined or you haven't attempted to go up for an award recently. In a perfect world, that is what is supposed to happen. In reality, unfortunately, it does not truly work that way. BTW, last time I checked, I had a name, it was posted at the bottom of my post I don't remember poofing into a Pineapple lately but I guess I'll have to take somebody's word for it.

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Is there a group of critics or SAG members witholding critical acclaim or awards because someone is a person of color? The impression i got from your statement was that "people of color havent received the critical acclaim"..So who is not giving them this acclaim??

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Yes, many people of colour haven't received the critical acclaim due them, as was evidenced by the numbers an earlier poster spoke of. If there is indeed a group within the Academy that is withholding critical acclaim, that is something that has not been made public. I was addressing your statements since you seemed to have given the impression that you knew far more about the Academy and its political underbelly that most of us. I am curious if you know in fact that there is no bias whatsover going on within the Academy.

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Anyway im not going to go on about everything you said in reagard to my post, we'd go on for days..Ill just say that we will have to agree to disagree on our interpretations of things..

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*shrug* I'll agree to disagree. I was pointing out that many of your arguments did not seem to really make sense. Unless one is indeed a member of the Academy, that does not necessarily qualify one to say "Oh there's no such thing as race bias in the Academy, you people are all just making it up." If there is no such thing as bias, then how is it that you are trumpeting bias against gays within the Academy?

Apparently, something is amiss here...I wonder what it could be?

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"Sometimes, we just can't make it on our own. We all need someone to love us, to help remind us that there's good in the world, to keep us from going crazy."

Willow from Dacia's The Dreamer Awakes

'Frodo and Sam began to prepare their camp for the night. "This is all very queer", Sam thought...' etc

(ok I just made that one up, but there are heaps of moments *just* like this, I swear )

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Originally posted by All4W/T:

Since racism is still alive and well, it scares me to death to think of how long homophobia will be around..Because while it is utterly unacceptable for people to be prejudice against blacks, hispanics, indians whomever, it is still acceptable to be prejudice against gays and lesbians..By people period..

They dont understand us therefore they dont tolerate us.."Its a lifestyle choice"..Its acceptable to gay bash and make jokes and stereotype gays and lesbians, but not acceptable to do the same for people of color..Prejudice and discrimination are the same regardless of who it involves, but no one "gets" that..

I have seen such awful comments that it breaks my heart to know that people still feel the way they do about gays..One person who said the "its about time" line on another board, also said "Kevin Spacey, the HOMO" shouldnt have won for American Beauty..There were actually people who jumped in and made more horrible comments..

Its seems the one thing that people can agree on, that brings people together, is their hatred, disgust, loathing of gays and lesbians..Thats the issue i feel should be addressed and should be of concern to alot more people than it is..Just my opinions, dont mean to offend anyone, make anyone angry, hurt anyones feelings or argue with anyone..Im a 47 year old lesbian who was around in the 80s when the gay rights movement started, yes WE have come a long way, but society hasnt..

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A114W/T: Toni addressed some of your points about the Academy Awards and Halle Berry winning. I won't repeat them. I will just say that as a queer woman of color who has been involved in anti-racist, anti-homophobia, and social justice movements I am tired of seeing people compare homophobia to racism and imply that homophobia is more rampant or more oppressive and more of a priority to fight today. I have experienced racism within the white lgbt communities as have many of my lgbt peers of color; a movement or call for action that prioritizes homophobia over racism (as your post seems to imply) or compares and pits one against another is simplistic and deeply offensive to me. Single issue organizing that focuses on homophobia without looking at how it is a form of oppression that is intrinsically connected to other forms of oppression such as racism and sexism has only proven to be divisive and ineffective. It has also resulted in the marginalization of people of color within lgbt communities.

You asked who is "withholding acclaim" from people of color. Racism and homophobia and other biases do not operate on this simplistic level. It's not like I am implying there's a group of members of the Academy who hold biannual meetings and say, "We hate people of color. Let's not ever vote for them! Yeah! Is everyone in agreement? OK, cool!" Racism is not also not JUST about segregation or slavery or something similarly overt. We are talking about a plethora of centuries old ingrained beliefs and practices that will not disappear without the hard work of continually challenging the status quo and our internalized biases from living in/growing up in this society. These beliefs and practices are reflected in media and pop culture and reinforced by movies and TV shows. The movie industry still MOSTLY targets white young middle-class audiences as the profitable (and therefore worthwhile) market (and gee could that have something to do with the economic practices of this country that determines which groups tend to make more money to spend?) and as such the options for actors and actresses of color to get good roles, much less receive acclaim for them, are fewer and far between than for their white counterparts. Whose stories are seen as universal and mainstream? Generally speaking white, middle class, and straight stories. The industry is far more accustomed to writing stereotypical roles for people of color or forgetting about our existence entirely. I consider that racism. No less and no more a form of evil that is CURRENTLY alive and thriving than homophobia, or sexism, or classism, or transphobia, or ableism, etc. etc.