I indicated that I did not want these kinds of titles. Please make your headlines descriptive…
Over the course of the weekend, the city of Orlando was in a basketball craze over the NBA All-Star game. Every year, the game is held somewhere different and attracts thousands of basketball fans, celebrities and tourists from all over the United States. Many of the celebrities held appearances at malls, restaurants and nightclubs over the weekend, resulting in high entry fees to these events and of course, huge crowds.
What almost went unnoticed to many Orlando residents was the 84th Academy Award show that took place on Sunday night. While shorter than usual in length (it ran at three hours and ten minutes this year, while in past years it usually runs well over four hours), the winners and nominees had time to take in all of their cinematic accomplishments for the year.
The film that ran away with the show was “The Artist”, raking in 5 Academy Awards including Best Picture. This is remarkable considering that it is in black and white. It became the first silent winner since the World War 1 movie “Wings”. The movie also won for musical score and art direction.
Besides “The Artist”, Martin Scorsese’s “Hugo” also ran away with five Oscars, all in technical categories. While I have yet to see either movie, they are both definitely the next ones that I will be watching.
There were many firsts for for the Oscars this year. The oldest acting winner was 82 year old Christopher Plummer who won Best Supporting Actor his role as an elderly man who comes out as gay in “Beginners”. He defeated Max Von Sydow (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close), Nick Nolte (Warrior), Kenneth Branagh (My Week With Marilyn), and Jonah Hill (Moneyball) for this amazing win.
As with any event where Celebrities gather, and especially those events that are nationally televised, one of the biggest conversation points on the morning after news shows is the fashion; who is the best dressed and who should have chosen a different outfit. People Magazine’s Style Watch has already pinned their favorites.
Taking the lead was a glamorous Gwyneth Paltrow, who wore a simple cape-gown designed by Tom Ford. Jessica Chastain also received a lot of praise for her black and gold Alexander McQueen gown, which was described as both romantic and tough at the same time. I personally thought that George Clooney and Stacy Kiebler were the best dressed couple. Although he looks about thirty years older than her, they both appeared sleek and sophisticated.
For the celebrities that are not in attendance at the Oscars, there are lavish parties thrown by fellow famous people. The most notorious party this year was the Vanity Fair party, of which celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez, Sean Combs, Miley Cyrus and Penelope Cruz made an appearance. Of course, what is any party without a bit of drama? At the official Academy Awards official after party, The Governors Ball, actress Sean Young was arrested. Apparently, she was outside the venue posing for pictures with Celebrities when security realized that she did not have a ticket to enter. She was asked to leave but later returned, and got into an altercation with the security guards.
Overall, the award show was very entertaining this year and I am looking forward to seeing who is in the running next year.