The 81st Academy Awards 2009

This year, Australian screen and stage actor Hugh Jackman did a fine job in presenting the Oscars. His old fashioned sing and dance approach reeled in 36 million viewers which was approximately 4 million more than last year's all time low. It still nevertheless failed to beat 1998's record of 55 million where viewers all across the world tuned in to see Titanic sweep the board.

I may prefer the more cynical comedic approach, like that of previous host John Stewart, but this year's musical theme was still very entertaining, witty, accessible, and derivative of the old Billy Crystal days. Cynics have been quick to point the finger claiming that it was obvious to see a very stripped down Oscar night in light of the recession but Jackman's more 'show' and less 'bizz' theme paid off. With its fast paced proceedings the ceremony was confined to a brief, by Oscar terms, three and a half hours and I don't think the hotly tipped Ricky Gervais could have produced something so upbeat.

Unfortunately I cannot get the Sky Movies Channel in my poky student house and I was somewhat unwilling to fork out £40 to watch it online so I was subjected to Radio 5 Live's commentary which was far from like being there but I will give you the best coverage I can.

Here is the list of winners in full with my wrong predictions highlighted in red, actual winners in green, with a short critique underneath interspersed with video highlights:

Performance by an actor in a leading role

• Richard Jenkins in The Visitor


• Frank Langella in Frost/Nixon


• Sean Penn in Milk


• Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler

The Shock and bewilderment was certainly felt in the Radio 5 Live studio as the commentators shared a brief silence at the biggest surprise of the night. Although at the actual event the audience all gave Sean a standing ovation and the loudest applause of the night as he walked towards the podium. His speech was certainly politically courageous, moving, respectable to his fellow nominees (particularly Mickey), delivered with great rhetoric and above all proved that he actually had a sense of humour as he took a slight dig at himself.....

Nevertheless I still believe Mickey was robbed. He put everything into this role and it was far more demanding of him. Its emotional power was more hard hitting than Sean's Harvey Milk and everyone will agree with me that Milk's assassination was nowhere near as devastating as Randy's teary eyed breakdown in front of his own daughter. For Sean this was yet another 'standing on a soapbox' preacher character which was simply more engaging and likeable than usual. This was Rourke's Raging Bull his Godfather Part II, a career high that cannot be surpassed. Penn I’m sure will have better characters in him because as skilled as his performance was I just don't think he put as much into it. Some say it was due to the political climate of California at the time that influenced voters and with Rourke later claiming if he had won he would have dedicated his Oscar to 'all the heterosexuals out there' means this may not be too far from the truth. Do not fear though, I'm sure Rourke will get an Oscar five years down the line for a role that isn't as good due to an academy Scorsese esque guilt trip.

Performance by an actor in a supporting role

• Josh Brolin in Milk


• Robert Downey Jr. in Tropic Thunder


• Philip Seymour Hoffman in Doubt


• Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight


• Michael Shannon in Revolutionary Road

Emotional scenes at the Oscars as Heath's family picked up the award on his behalf. A brave and I think correct decision by the academy to invite those closest to him. The second ever posthumous acceptance in the Oscars history, the first went to Sidney Howard for his Gone With the Wind screenplay in 1939. The statuette will be given to Heath's four year old daughter when she grows eighteen, and she will then have the right to sell it if she so wishes with permission from the academy. Many claim that Heath only won the Oscar due to his sudden death but all you need to do is compare his performance to the all the other nominees to see that none of them come close in terms of depth, scope and imagination. Robert Downey Jr. had no right to be nominated at all for his impersonation of a stereotype.

Performance by an actress in a leading role

• Anne Hathaway in Rachel Getting Married


• Angelina Jolie in Changeling


• Melissa Leo in Frozen River


• Meryl Streep in Doubt


• Kate Winslet in The Reader

I thought the academy would hold out and grant Angelina the award but it seemed the favourite was destined to win. Strangely she won not for her better role in Revolutionary Road but for her more controversial character in The Reader. It seems the Academy thought it was about time they granted her a win after five strong and unsuccessful previous nominations. Perhaps she was granted a statuette for her perseverance more than anything else, but it is good to see a Brit win an award. Her speech here was a lot less embarrassing than her Golden Globe acceptance, a bit more yucky than the BAFTAs but so many years in the public eye with nothing to speak of she deserves to immerse herself in the spotlight.

Performance by an actress in a supporting role

• Amy Adams in Doubt


• Penélope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona


• Viola Davis in Doubt


• Taraji P. Henson in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Marisa Tomei in The Wrestler

It certainly wasn't The Wrestler's night! I had not seen Vicky Christina Barcelona whilst making my predictions but if I had, I probably would have put my money on Penelope. Her speech seemed more genuine than Kate's and echoed her co-star Javier Bardem's acceptance speech of last year as she spoke in her first language to thank her family back home. Her depiction of a woman on the edge of breaking point in despite what seemed a quite brief screen time had more to it than Marisa's compassionate lapdancer. All actresses chasing such an award should bear in mind that this is the third time that Woody Allen has written and directed a character that has led an actress to pick up a statuette.

Best animated feature film of the year

• Bolt


• Kung Fu Panda


• WALL-E

Definitely a no-brainer. WALL-E was a film that deserved to win best picture, never mind best animated feature, especially given the simple children's films it was competing against. I much more admired the BAFTA's decision to pit it against the far more artistic Persepolis and Waltz with Bashir.

Achievement in Art Direction

• James J. Murakami and Gary Fettis - Changeling


• Donald Graham Burt and Victor J. Zolfo - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Nathan Crowley and Peter Lando - The Dark Knight


• Michael Carlin and Rebecca Alleway - The Duchess


• Kristi Zea and Debra Schutt - Revolutionary Road

Makes sense really, this dreadful film was purely carried by its art direction and nothing else.

Achievement in Cinematography

• Tom Stern - Changeling


• Claudio Miranda - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Wally Pfister - The Dark Knight


• Chris Menges and Roger Deakins - The Reader


• Anthony Dod Mantle - Slumdog Millionaire

I thought The Dark Knight would at least pick up another award for its imagery but it lost out to Slumdog's vibrant visuals which I certainly have no qualms about. The most exciting thing about this award however was Ben Stiller's impression of Joaquin Phoenix's recently bizarre appearance on David Letterman's show. Apparently this joke didn't quite pick up the laughs that it was after on the night but this clip is still quite amusing....

Achievement in Costume Design

• Catherine Martin - Australia


• Jacqueline West - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Michael O'Connor - The Duchess


• Danny Glicker - Milk


• Albert W Revolutionary Road

The award is in the name of the genre really: "costume drama".

Achievement in Directing

• David Fincher - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Ron Howard - Frost/Nixon


• Gus Van Sant - Milk


• Stephen Daldry - The Reader


• Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire

Hoorah I got this right. It appears the academy agreed with me that Boyle's direction made this simple concept work due to his vibrancy and energy which he emphasised through his Tigger jumping:

Best Documentary Feature

• The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)


• Encounters at the End of the World


• The Garden


• Man on Wire


• Trouble the Water

More success for British cinema. This BBC documentary on Phillipe Petit's amazing achievement of walking between the twin towers on a tightrope was produced in a way that made you feel as if you were there. Its effective filming of photographs of the incident twinned with its music blurred the lines between the artistic and the documentary, a worthy winner. Still, it would have been nice to see the brilliant King of Kong at least pick up a nomination. Petite demonstrated that the enthusiasm he expressed on screen was no trick as he proceeded to balance the statuette on his chin!

Best documentary short subject

• The Conscience of Nhem En


• The Final Inch


• Smile Pinki


• The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306

If anyone knows how I can get hold of a copy of this short film then I would be intrigued to watch it.

Achievement in film editing

• Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Lee Smith - The Dark Knight


• Mike Hill and Dan Hanley - Frost/Nixon


• Elliot Graham - Milk


• Chris Dickens - Slumdog Millionaire

If Frost/Nixon was going to pick up an award, it was here. The editing between the two characters heightened the tension which was the whole point of the film. However, it was business as usual for Slumdog. It’s understandable why this won the award as the quick editing certainly enhanced the pace and emotions of the film.

Best foreign language film of the year

• The Baader Meinhof Complex - Germany


• The Class - France


• Departures - Japan


• Revanche - Austria


• Waltz with Bashir - Israel

The second biggest upset of the night. This Japanese film has only been seen by a select few, and it has yet to be released in this country. It is encouraging that members of the academy can only vote in this category once they have seen all the films nominated but it'll take a lot to convert my allegiances from my 3rd favourite film of last year. It's certainly interesting to note that the winner of this category at the BAFTAs, the French film I’ve Loved You So Long, did not even pick up a nomination here as didn't Gomorrah which was such a realistic depiction of the Naples Mafia that the filmmaker is still on the run from them!

Achievement in makeup

• Greg Cannom - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• John Caglione, Jr. and Conor O'Sullivan - The Dark Knight


• Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz - Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Before the Oscars started the last thing I said a colleague was that Benjamin Button only deserved to win two Oscars and this was one of them. Turning Brad Pitt into a convincing elderly midget is the greatest achievement of this film.

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)

• Alexandre Desplat - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• James Newton Howard - Defiance


• Danny Elfman - Milk


• A.R. Rahman - Slumdog Millionaire


• Thomas Newman WALL-E
  

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)

• "Down to Earth" from WALL-E Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman


• "Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire Music by A.R. Rahman


• "O Saya" from Slumdog Millionaire Music by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam
  

A lot of controversy has surrounded this particular award. Initially Peter Gabriel pulled out altogether and then he refused to play a segment of his song on stage as part of the big musical number for all those nominated as he only wanted to play his song if he could play it from start to finish. Similarly many have been in uproar as Bruce Springsteen's original song for The Wrestler was not officially recognised by the academy which has echoed Johnny Greenwood's lack of a nomination last year, which still make me feel bitter as he should have won it! Call me tone deaf but all the music in Slumdog sounded the same to me. Nevertheless it added to the feeling of experiencing the Mumbai slums.

Best motion picture of the year

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Frost/Nixon


• Milk


• The Reader


• Slumdog Millionaire

Not Danny Boyle's best film by any stretch of the imagination. Shallow Grave, Trainspotting, 28 Days Later and Sunshine have all been greater achievements cinematically in my eyes. But it is still without doubt the best flick nominated and my faith in the academy has been restored somewhat as they stayed clear of the God awful Ben Button. This is hopefully a step forward for the British Film Industry as a film which struggled with funding from the start and was originally going to be released straight to DVD has now received the highest accolade possible. As Danny Boyle explained to a reporter after the ceremony, people in the film industry do not start out in blockbusters such as The Dark Knight and it is these smaller indie films that deserve recognition. I for one agree, blockbusters get their achievements through profit, the smaller films deserve them through critical achievements. It was heart warming seeing Mumbai slum children having the opportunity to walk on the red carpet and hopefully this film will help their economy somewhat. Also, let's hope Boyle keeps his promise and goes back there and parades the Oscar through the street as a thank you.

Best animated short film

• La Maison en Petits Cubes


• Lavatory - Lovestory


• Oktapodi


• Presto (Pixar)


• This Way Up
  

Best live action short film

• Auf der Strecke


• Manon on the Asphalt


• New Boy


• The Pig


• Spielzeugland (Toyland)
  

Achievement in sound editing

• Richard King - The Dark Knight


• Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes - Iron Man


• Tom Sayers - Slumdog Millionaire


• Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood - WALL-E


• Wylie Stateman - Wanted
  

Achievement in sound mixing

• David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick - The Dark Knight


• Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty - Slumdog Millionaire


• Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt - WALL-E


• Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt - Wanted
  

Achievement in visual effects

• Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


• Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin - The Dark Knight


• John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan - Iron Man

Anyone who can turn Brad Pitt into an elderly dwarf deserves recognition.

Adapted screenplay

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Screenplay by Eric Roth


• Doubt Written by John Patrick Shanley


• Frost/Nixon Screenplay by Peter Morgan


• The Reader Screenplay by David Hare


• Slumdog Millionaire Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

Full Monty scriptwriter, Simon Beaufoy now has an Oscar to his name and it is well deserved. A script that can turn a gameshow fable into a film is very skilled indeed.

Original screenplay

• Frozen River Written by Courtney Hunt


• Happy-Go-Lucky Written by Mike Leigh


• In Bruges Written by Martin McDonagh


• Milk Written by Dustin Lance Black


• WALL-E Screenplay by Andrew Stanton and Jim Reardon
  

Two brilliant pieces of writing here. Unlike the BAFTAs however, the academy opted for the political struggle over the sharp witty narrative. If any screenplay was going to lose out to McDonagh's then it had to be this one. Not just because WALL-E had hardly any dialogue and Mike Leigh films are heavily improvised, but because this film was not a preachy film in any way shape or form but a thoroughly engaging experience derived from real events that made it very educational indeed.

Other highlights of the ceremony included this massive musical number involving Beyonce who was previously seen at President Obama's inauguration (big year for her) and the leading stars of High School Musical 3:

Overall this was a worthwhile night had by all! Mainly the favourites won but it was still enjoyable to watch, or so I’ve heard. The films didn't quite reach the quality of last year, namely No Country For Old Men and There Will Be Blood but this is still the most exciting and hotly anticipated night for film every year. Critics try to claim its apparent wilting influence but millions of viewers cannot be wrong.

One stark change to proceedings however was the decision to replace clips of actor's performances during the listing of the nominations with past winners reading out monologues. This was rather uncalled for as it was a device which purely drew attention to how prosperous the academy is and how no other organisation can put so much talent under one roof. And it was another way to increase the so-called yuck factor. Although it did however put a new spin on the reading out of nominations and if mixed with clips of the films it could better the experience.

Although what I really want to know is, where was Jack Nicholson this year?
Every ceremony you can bet good money he will be sat on the front row in his shades looking seedy, not this time.