I had a number of complaints about the Academy Awards show last Sunday. First and foremost, they chose to show their panorama of self-adoration opposite the swan song episode of the world’s most popular TV show, Downton Abbey. If you are a fan (which I am) and you don’t have access to “On Demand,” which I do, you had a difficult choice to make. Frankly, without that option, movie critic or not, I skip the Oscars.
Then there was the host, Chris Rock. Arguably the worst performance in the history of the Oscars. His opening monologue was not only terrible; it was awful. Even if his jokes were funny, which they weren’t, his personality was grating and his singsong voice irritating. Last year’s host, Neal Patrick Harris, was heads and shoulders above him, to say nothing of past performances by a legion of class entertainers, especially Billy Crystal.
Hordes of Hollywood’s finest came forward, usually two at a time, to announce the winners in the various categories. You would have thought they were sleepwalking. There was no passion or excitement from them as they read the teleprompter, anyone reading this column could have done a better job than most of them. At one point, my wife looked at me and said, “this show is not entertaining at all,” which is the very thought I was having at the moment she said it. Even most of the commercials were awful, especially Kohl’s, I’ll never understand how they had the chutzpa to even produce an advertisement like that, much less air it.
In the meantime, as we watched “Mad Max” garner one award after another, I thought if this win’s the Oscar for best movie, this will be my last column. I felt the same way about The Revenant, which had some fine moments, but I still maintain was a bummer of a film. I took no umbrage with the various acting awards; they were all fine performances and deserving. Lady Gaga’s tribute song was a moving moment, and there were few others.
Finally, justice was served. Spotlight won the best movie award. It deserved to win. This was a powerful, true story with redeeming value and a great ensemble. Interestingly, Michael Keaton had a prominent role in this film, and you may recall he starred in last year’s winner, Birdman. Looks like he’s on a roll.
So, our long tedious evening ended on a high note. A deserving movie won the award, and no more Chris Rock. All that remained was the wait to see the final episode of Downton Abbey. Thank you Comcast for On Demand.
Agree or disagree? I always welcome your feedback.
