Why is everyone so surprised to hear Green Book called as Best Picture? I mean, followers of this site clearly knew it was coming, right?
Several of the Best Pic nominees were winning big throughout the night. Bohemian Rhapsody, Black Panther and, of course, Roma were all getting called to the stage.
Now on to an actual surprise.
God Save the Queen
No, not Queen as in Bohemian Rhapsody. Queen as in Olivia Coleman’s character! Coleman won for Best Actress, shocking everyone who thought this was Glenn Close’s lock, with Lady Gaga having an outside chance.
But Coleman delivered some of the best moments of the night, including telling the show’s timer where to go when they tried to wrap her. As she pointed out, she won’t be here again. Not necessarily true, but at least she was aware of her moment! You go!
Spike the Punch
It’s time to celebrate for Spike Lee. One of the definitive auteurs of his generation finally has an Oscar. While he didn’t score the holy grail of Best Director, he did win for Adapted Screenplay. There was just joy oozing from him every time the camera was on him tonight.
And the hug he shared with Samuel L. Jackson is everything you need to know about true happiness.
No Host? No Problem
I was one of the people who was skeptical of not having a host. It would put more pressure on producers to move the show and likely lead to more montages.
I couldn’t have been more wrong!
I hope the Oscars go hostless for years to come!
The show opened with Adam Lambert & Queen promising to rock us. And while the Oscars don’t ‘rock,’ they sure rolled along. They finished in UNDER three and a half hours!
Every presenter was able to have a moment, if they wanted, to stand out and not have to worry if they were upstaging the host.
Plus the show moved along just fine. I do hope the Announcer got a raise and a pack of throat lozenges. She was working overtime!
Plus having the trio of Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and Maya Rudolph (who is everywhere these days) start the show on a funny but on-point note worked.
I think the show was funnier by allowing Hollywood to poke fun of itself ad hoc, as opposed to having a ringleader.
The Critic’s Cocktail Recommendation
I’m currently holding the nearly empty bottle of Coppola’s Director’s Cut wine over my mouth, allowing the last drops pour into my bloodstream before turning in for the night.
Cheers!
Critic's Cocktail 