Post Oscars Review

Yesterday was the 84th Annual Academy Awards. I love Oscar season. I throw parties, live vicariously through those present at the ceremony and act as though I am present at the ceremony, much to my loved ones dismay.

So how did they do?

Firstly, I am so happy Sacha Baron Cohen went to the Oscars as his character The Dictator. Throwing the 'ashes' of Kim jung Il on the pretentious Ryan Seacrest really made my night. Did you see his face? Classic!

Our host for the evening was the talented yet safe Billy Crystal. I really appreciate him as a comedian, his experience as an eight time Oscar host, and his long Hollywood career, however he brought nothing fresh, new or exciting to the event. I know people were upset after Hollywood tried to pump some fresh blood into the mix with hosts Anne Hathaway and James Franco, sure, it didn't go well. But did we need to revert back to times long gone? I think the Awards need younger hosts that connect to the younger audiences whilst also having the experience and talent to entertain all ages. This isn't an easy feat but surely in La La land they can pool together some potential.

Ok, let's talk about the winners. Now I really have to mention here how frustrating it is when people say that they can't understand how The Artist won considering it's a silent film. Those people should take a little walk down film history. Some of my favourite films are silent films and they emote as much as any film with sound can. I was very happy that Hugo picked up five awards (Cinematography, Art Direction, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing, and Visual Effects) I absolutely love this film. Check out my  Hugo Review.

There were no surprises for Octavia Spencer's win as best actress in a supporting role, Christopher Plummer as best actor in a supporting role, and Jean Dujardin as best actor. There was some surprise however when Meryl Streep won best actress. No one can deny Meryl's talent, she is untouchable and an inspiration to any actor. Viola Davis however blew people away with her performance in The Help. It's a tough call, two spectacular actresses up for one award. There's definitely going to be those for and against the final decision but I think we can all agree that they are both amazing.

My favourite win of the night was when Brett McKenzie took home an Oscar for his song "Man or Muppet" from The Muppets. Seeing a fellow kiwi on that stage only brings me joy and pride. He's a wonderful comedian and song writer and it's great to see him acknowledged by the Academy.

I really love the Oscars. I do a countdown and read up everything I can in the days leading up to the ceremony. I have spent the last ten years dreaming of going there myself one day, and I still believe with unabashed certainty that I will. However I have to admit that the past couple of years the Oscars have lost a bit of their sparkle. I think I can reach out a little farther and say that in the past couple of years the film industry has lost some of its sparkle. What I would love to see is more films being nominated that speak to a wider audience. There were a few snubs this year that many weren't happy about (Ryan Gosling and We Need to Talk about Kevin for example). It's never going to be perfect, but there seems to have been a wider disconnect this year.

Perhaps because of the Anne Hathaway/James Franco debacle the Academy tried to stay away from doing anything "young". That's a mistake however. This may have been the 84th Annual Academy Awards but that doesn't mean the median age of viewers are in their 80s. I think they need to reach out more to the youth, get the youth excited about the film industry because they are the future of the industry. I love how diverse film is, there is room for everyone regardless of age, sex, race, religion, sexual orientation. I just want to see an Academy Awards show that represents that too.