Winds of Change 
 My Analysis of 2001 Academy Awards

How fitting was it that the song Things Have Changed won for best original song (although that was my official pick, a viewing of Dancer in The Dark just prior to the show, gave me a change of heart towards Bjork's I've Seen It All) because this was a night that things may have indeed changed in the Hollywood system. The winds of change blew through Hollywood, hence the several wind-blown do's on the stars, and brought in a night where the awards were spread around to several movies, not just sweeping through one.  The ceremony came in a whopping 43 minutes shorter than last years show.  There were no rambling speeches, save Julia's rant (where she sadly excluded the one person she owed the most to for her role, more on that later), and the tributes were kept short, but sweet and very powerful and effective.  The memoriam sequence brought it's share of tears, and remembrance, for those who I knew had passed, and those that had slipped out of my memory.  It was a night where old recognized young, those who sweat for the profession were both rewarded and recognized, and the global net of Hollywood spread across the globe.  

In the hosting category, Steve Martin is definitely no Billy Crystal.  He started off acerbic, and at times became downright cruel.  It's like Kat said, either he's making a lot of enemies, or he's very secure in his relationship with Hollywood's up and comers.  He took jibes at winners, performers, recipients and presenters, and no one, not even the great Dino De Laurentis, was spared.  Few of his jokes worked, most fell flat, and I have a feeling that he and Russell Crowe aren't going to be having dinner together anytime soon.  It's still a popularity contest, as witnessed by Julia's win while the more deserved Burstyn was a runner-up, and another deserving star in Bjork, was shut out of recognition at all.  It's still a contest that rewards careers and past faux pas as opposed to current work, evidenced by Crowe's win, which while deserved was also a make-up for last year, when he truly should have one.  But at least the mere presence of one film in a category did not guarantee a win.  A year of mediocrity bred the greatest night of competition in recent Oscar history.  It was a heavyweight battle between three films, each giving their all, neck and neck, toe-to-toe until the end, when three approached the finish line tied, and one emerged victorious.

First off, here's a summary of my picks and results

Now, for an analysis of the evening, fittingly with a movie title, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of Hollywood's spotlight evening.

The Good

- The under appreciated, and apparently under viewed, Almost Famous winning a deserved Oscar for it's brilliantly poignant, realistic depiction of Crowe's own life story.

- The multiple awards for the beautiful visual experience that was Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

- The fashion statements:  the hopes of Hollywood's future in Kate Hudson, Julia Styles and Penelope Cruz; the continued and growing elegance of Goldie Hawn, Sigourney Weaver and Ellen Burstyn, and recovery of previous fashion don'ts by Angelina Jolie and Ashley Judd

- Tom Hanks trumping Steve Martin's jab at Russell Crowe's stalking charges with a mere look

- Honorary nominee Ernest Lehman's reminder to all critics that every movie starts and ends with a screenplay

- Old guard member Dino DeLaurentis recognizing the talent of the young mavericks in Hollywood and asking all to support the youth movement

- Adapted screenplay winner Stephen Gaghan urging and inspiring all those who create in any form to continue and to be supported

- Steven Soderburgh, delivering the best speech of the night, short, powerful, heart-felt, effective and dead on 

- Goldie Hawn's recovery during her speech, reminding us of her lovable playful spirit which will hopefully never die

- As usual, the memoriam sequence which never fails to leave me breathless in admiration

The Bad

- The screaming fashion no's by Bjork (stealing from Dr Doolitle), Renee Zellweger (channeling Veronica Lake and Big Bird simultaneously),  and Julia Roberts (and anyone else who continued the nights other fashion trend (besides unkempt hair, thanks Joaquin) of wearing a train that is unnecessary and inhibitive of movement.

- Julia Roberts, during her rambling speech which while heartfelt, was still a bit scattered, forgetting to thank the real Erin Brockovich for LIVING the life that gave her the award.  She started too, but in a similar fashion to her Golden Globes diatribe, this time, on the biggest stage in the world, she failed to recognize.

- The overall performance of Steve Martin, who was not meant to carry a show completely.  In his heyday, Martin would've run mad and rampant through the entire evening, but with his insanity corralled, and his humor matured and no one to play off of, Martin's attempts at intellectual humor often lacked spontaneity (save delivering the dip to DeVito), and seemed forced and desperate.  I know he can do better, and wish he'd let loose a bit more, maybe with another chance, he could learn from his mistakes, if he hasn't burned too many bridges already.

The Ugly

- Martin's repeated attacks on Russell Crowe, his jibes at Ellen Burstyn and Dino DeLaurentis were just downright mean

- The fashion disasters Jennifer Lopez, once again (it's called a bra J, we shouldn't be able to see how Lo they truly are) and Winona Ryder, looking gothic, disheveled and lost.

- I have the utmost respect and admiration for Bob Dylan and what he has done for, and given to, the world of music.  But please, if he's going to perform live, can we be spared the close up and head shots.  Dylan's appeal has never been his looks or appearance, but the magic of his words and music.  Let those have their spotlight, and keep Bob's face out of it.  He's lucky the Academy doesn't vote on the song based on their live performances, because Bob would've been handing that gold man over to a woman in a swan outfit.

Overall, my impression of the ceremony was similar to opinion of the year 2000 in movies.  It wasn't bad, but wasn't as great as it could have been with the proper tweaking and adjustments.  They have the right idea that a more compacted delivery will hold more power and memory in the eyes of fans, while spreading the wealth around to several films instead of doling them all out to one film gives us a sense and spirit of competition that will keep people watching and give us something to cheer for.  Now, if they could just lose the politics of favoritism, and heed the words of DeLaurentis and recognize the youth, and reward the new auteur's of film who are using their creativity to do cutting edge works which deserves praise.  The absence of films or more nominations for Requiem for a Dream and Dancer in The Dark show that while sometimes you just can't deny recognizing certain aspects of a film, the entire picture deserves to be mentioned amidst the mainstream faire that seems to clutter and take up space in Oscar's presence every year.  This is to take nothing away from the winners, Russell, Julia, Marcia (whose movie I plan to see ASAP) and Benecio, congratulations on your deserving wins.  I'd just like to see a more diverse category of competition that is based who was truly did give the best performance, not just everyone's favorite.  The winds of change are beginning to blow across Hollywood's mindscape, I just hope and pray that they heed it's call and cherish its results.