And the winners are....as predicted.
No surprise in The Artist winning nods of best picture, director and actor, but there were no disappointments either. It is the first silent film to win Best Picture since the first Academy Awards in 1929, when Wing's (1927) won, right before the discovery of "talkies" took over. The Artist and Hugo both took home 5 awards, while the other films nominated in categories with them hardly stood a chance against the critic favorites. The only slight, but pleasant, surprise was The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo taking the award for Best Editing.
As a show, I thoroughly enjoyed what seemed to be a "Golden Age" theme for the night. After James Franco and Anne Hathaway flopped as hosts last year, the Academy took a safer route with veteran comedian Billy Crystal. And although he is older than the age of the previous two combined, Crystal kept the show classy and didn't play on rude comments or stunts for laughs.
The design and reels of old movie footage paid homage to the early years of Hollywood glamour, and ushers dressed as drive-in movie theater attendants brought candy and popcorn to members of the audience. At no point during the show was I disgusted by a presenter, winner, or attempt at a publicity stunt. The only time I cringed was when a clip from Twilight snuck into a montage of classic movie moments.
My favorite part of the night was the reoccurring question: "where were you when you fell in love with movies?" Actors, directors, cinematographers of all ages shared what made them fall in love with the magic of movies and what influenced them to pursue a career in this art. It was actually very humbling to be reminded they were just wide eyed kids at one point as well.
Everything about the show held up to what I had previously mentioned about Hollywood recognizing the nostalgia for the "golden age of cinema".
Hopefully the trend will keep up long enough for me to be a part of it.
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