Oscars recap, part deux

I know there're probably a million things out there written about the Oscars. But I can't resist; I have to add my two bits.

Unlike Cris, I'm a devout award show watcher. I especially love the Oscars because well, I love movies, inane celebrity banter, and the Red Carpet fashion show.

So here are my notes from the show.

Host Hugh Jackman: Because I have the mentality of a middle schooler, his name makes giggle. In fact, the name Hugh in general just sounds strange to me. My mother put on the Barbwa Walters special before hand, and I have to say, I was traumatized by the lap dance he gave her.

Penelope: I just saw Vicky Christina and was underwhelmed. But I was pleased that with my elementary understanding of Spanish, I could translate her speech to my family.

Dustin Lance Black: Awesome name first off. The winner of the screenwriting award gave the best speech of the night. Lovvved his personal anecdote and his advice to gay and lesbian teens. The fact that he was so young was hopeful as well.

Ben Stiller as Joaquin Phoenix (whoa that is a hard name to spell): Hilarious. I wish the whole event was on that level.

The musical number: was wack. I love a good song and dance but, this was certainly not one. Beyonce usually looks hot but, last night, something was off. I think it was the garish red leotard. The dancing coulda been better. Singing coulda been better. There coulda been better performers. And what's with the hack editing job? As soon as I recognized the song that was playing, it would change.

Presentations by former winners: Not sure how I feel about this. On the one hand, we got those heartfelt odes to all the nominees. On the hand, not all of the mini-speeches were so heartfelt. We also got to witness most of the actresses turn to mush during their tributes. But I like watching clips. And some of the people they choose - Cuba Gooding Jr. (one almost forgets he has an Oscar after watching Snow Dogs or Boat Trip) - were questionable.

Heidi Klum and Seal: Why were they there? More importantly, why we're their seats in the front when the techies and the short film people were relegated to the nosebleeds, making for a long and awkward march to the podium.

Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto: At first I was confused. Did the animation short winner just end on an 80s song quote? But now I realize, that phrase truly is all the Japanese we Americans understand.

James Franco: is hot. And so was the Pineapple Express spoof. I especially enjoyed the trippyness of his character watching his Milk character make out with Sean Penn.

Heath Ledger win: Who didn't see this one coming? It was definitely emotional but I had to wonder if those were real tears welling up in Brad and Angie's eyes.

Slumdog: Sunday night was all about the brown invasion. I kept wondering if (in the spirit of the Brangelina cut over during Aniston's speech) the camera would cut over to previous Indian-descent Oscar winner Ben Kingsley. But no such shameless ploys. It was especially gratifying to see the little film that could take the biggest prize of the year. My belief is that the movie banked on the message of hope, which being America's slogan of the year, clinched the win.

Overall, the show was extremely predictable. I'm happy everyone who I thought deserved an award walked away with a statuette but at the same time, I love a good upset. The fashions were OK. A lot of the origami-style dresses went down the Red Carpet. But that's for another discussion.

One thing's for sure, there was a total Asian domination. Which is cool. Last year was all about the Euros with actors from European nations taking all the big awards. Who knows, maybe next year there'll be an African takeover! One can dream.

Millionaire Dollar Prizes

At the risk of alienating my fellow desis, especially in light of my first blog posting, I need to get something off my chest. Last night, I caught the Screen Actors Guild Awards on TV. And Slumdog was awarded the most coveted prize of the night, best cast.

Since it's an event that recognizes actors and not the film as a whole, there's no best film, just best ensemble in a movie. While I agree with Slumdog as a choice for best film, or best director, or best score., I can't let my homeland pride blind me to the fact that the acting in the film was just average - at least from the adults.

The kids in Slumdog were amazing. What's even more amazing is that some of those children were actually picked out of the slums. That they were able to act so intelligently, to speak English so well is telling of their talent. I love that the people behind Slumdog set up a trust fund for the kids, so they could get a real education and get out of the slums one day, with less trouble than Jamal had.

The adults were OK. Not great. Any one could have been in Anil Kapoor's role. And the female character mostly was just there as eye candy. And Jamal is a bit goofy looking. It's speaks volumes that Dev Patel was nominated as in the supporting actor category, rather than lead actor.

Honestly, I have to say the cast of Benjamin Button deserved it. Individually, they all gave incredibly touching performances. I'll admit it, I cried when Ben's mama died. And the actors from Dark Knight should have at least got a nod.

It's been said that Slumdog's gaining so much recognition because it neatly fits into Western notions about Eastern culture. Could it be that critics and Academy members are indulging in a bit of Oriental fetishism? Or you do disagree with my opinions about the movie? Let us know.

- De