It’s the Oscars, and Admit One is covering it live! …from Admit One HQ.
Who’s gonna take home the gold this year? Hugo and The Artist lead the way in nominations but can they convert on the night? It’s gonna be quite the scrap, with The Artist winning on points heading into the final round. Weta Digital and Bret McKenzie will be there, hoping to steal some of the limelight for good ol’ NZ. Billy Crystal returns as host but can bring back the laughs?
In case you aren’t watching it live, we have you covered. Admit One will be updating this post throughout the telecast and bringing you thoughts on the winners, the coverage and any celebrity malfunctions that occur along the way.
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LIVE BLOG:
Final thoughts – Well, that was fun. Think I might do it again next year. After a slow start, The Artist won big and carried its success at other awards through to the big dance. Congratulations to all the winners. Overall I quite enjoyed the telecast. Much better than last year’s disaster. The whole thing was made all the more interesting with a couple of stunning live performances. Crystal was a good host, without being a standout, and had more hits than misses with his jokes. They certainly played up with glory of cinema aspect throughout the show – which I didn’t mind, although some may find a bit cheesy. Hollywood studios take note – you haven’t made them like you use to in a while.
BEST PICTURE:
The Artist (Winner!)
Moneyball
The Descendants
The Tree of Life
Midnight in Paris
The Help
Hugo
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
War Horse
Thoughts – I think everyone saw this coming. Hugo was my pick, but The Artist is a very good film.
5:31 p.m. – Love it. Tom Cruise presents Best Picture. The Academy are not without a sense of humour. No, wait… Rain Man won Best Picture. Damn it.
5:30 p.m. – Time for the big one. With 9 nominations, it could take a while before we know who wins.
BEST ACTRESS:
Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady (Winner!)
Viola Davis – The Help
Michelle Williams – My Week With Marilyn
Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs
Rooney Mara – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Thoughts – Again, no surprise here. But after 17 nominations who could deny her a third win.
5:25 p.m. – Colin Firth is one classy guy.
BEST ACTOR:
Jean Dujardin – The Artist (Winner!)
Gary Oldman – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
George Clooney – The Descendants
Brad Pitt – Moneyball
Demian Bichir – A Better Life
Thoughts – Damn. Was hoping for an upset. Gary Oldman is all class. But I don’t think this win for Dujardin comes as much of a surprise to anyone. Liked his speech. He seems like a cool guy.
5:06 p.m. – Nice that they had a live performance during the ‘In Memoriam’ section. Much better than a pre-recorded soundtrack.
4:59 p.m. – Honorary Oscars are given to James Earl Jones and Oprah Winfrey. Oprah? Really??
BEST DIRECTOR:
Alexander Payne – The Descendants
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist (Winner!)
Martin Scorsese – Hugo
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris
Terrence Malick – Tree of Life
Thoughts – Big win for The Artist. Surely this means it will win Best Picture? And there I was thinking it could be Hugo‘s night. Oh well.
BEST ANIMATED SHORT:
Dimanche/Sunday
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (Winner!)
La Luna
A Morning Stroll
Wild Life
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT:
The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
God Is the Bigger Elvis
Incident in New Baghdad
Saving Face (Winner!)
The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom
4:40 p.m. – The Bridesmaids girls bring us the ‘Scorsese Drinking Game’. Funny.
BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT:
Pentecost
Raju
The Shore (Winner!)
Time Freak
Tuba Atlantic
Thoughts – I’m sure all of the above shorts will be online somewhere to check out. Definitely worth a look, I say.
4:30 p.m. – Best montage of the night. Genuinely funny moments of stars talking about ‘what makes a great movie’.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Kristen Wiig & Annie Mumolo – Bridesmaids
J.C. Chandor – Margin Call
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris (Winner!)
Asghar Farhadi – A Separation
Thoughts – From all accounts, the right call. Need to see that movie.
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon & Jim Rash – The Descendants (Winner!)
John Logan – Hugo
Aaron Sorkin & Steven Zaillian – Moneyball
George Clooney – The Ides of March
Peter Straughan & Bridget O’Connor – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Thoughts – Wow. Thought that might have gone to Hugo. Love how the guys poked fun at Angelina’s pose though.
4:24 p.m. – Oh dear, Angelina. That pose is a shocker.
BEST ORIGINAL SONG:
“Man or Muppet” – The Muppets (Winner!)
“Real in Rio” – Rio
Thoughts – Only two to choose from… but they got it right. Go Bret!
4:15 p.m. – Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis provide a few chuckles (particularly Zach). Will Ferrell is only funny in small doses. Fortunately this was only a small dose.
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE:
John Williams – The Adventures of Tintin
Ludovic Bource – The Artist (Winner!)
Howard Shore – Hugo
Alberto Iglesias – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
John Williams – War Horse
Thoughts – The Artist is back in the race! Was up against some stiff competition in this category.
4:09 p.m. – Crystal’s ‘What everybody is thinking’ skit falls off the rails after a promising start. Hey, at least they’re trying new things. But Billy hits right back with the funniest joke of the night when he pokes fun at one of the heads of the Academy.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Christopher Plummer – Beginners (Winner!)
Kenneth Branagh – My Week With Marilyn
Nick Nolte – Warrior
Jonah Hill – Moneyball
Max Von Sydow – Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
Thoughts – Plummer’s performance is simply superb – touching and funny. A deserved winner – and, as it turns out, the oldest actor to win an Academy Award. Best acceptance speech of the night.
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Hugo (Winner!)
Real Steel
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Thoughts – Rise of the Planet of the Apes should have won this. A shame for Weta Digital and their incredible work on this film.
3:52 p.m. – Emma Stone is brilliant. Love her.
3:50 p.m. – The Melissa McCarthy skit is pretty funny. Nice opening to the Visual Effects category.
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE:
A Cat in Paris
Chico & Rita
Kung Fu Panda 2
Puss in Boots
Rango (Winner!)
Thoughts – No Tintin. So Rango is probably the best of the rest?
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE:
Pina
Hell and Back Again
If A Tree Falls: The Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Paradise Lost 3
Undefeated (Winner!)
Thoughts – Not seen it. Will make a note to though.
3:39 p.m. – Downey Jr. is a funny man. Love him.
3:32 p.m. – The Muppets skit doesn’t really hit, but the Cirque du Soleil performance (with music by Danny Elfman) is simply stunning. Could watch that again and again. And it gets a standing ovation!
BEST SOUND MIXING:
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Moneyball
Hugo (Winner!)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse
Thoughts – Given the previous win, this is no surprise. Hugo is out clearly out in front now. Can The Artist come back? Marty Scorcese is getting lots of props tonight – and so he should!
BEST SOUND EDITING:
Drive
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo (Winner!)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse
Thoughts – This was a close category. The sound work on the other films is top notch too. On a side note: This shouldn’t have been Drive‘s only category.
BEST FILM EDITING:
The Artist
The Descendants
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Winner!)
Hugo
Moneyball
Thoughts – Ok, didn’t expect that. The editing on the film is great, but thought this category might go with the popular vote.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Berenice Bejo – The Artist
Jessica Chastain – The Help
Melissa McCarthy – Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer – The Help (Winner!)
Thoughts – Big win for The Help (although many predicted it). The Artist and Hugo aren’t gonna get it all their own way tonight. Heartfelt acceptance speech from Octavia.
3:08 p.m. – Crystal cracks a funny about Christian Bale – ‘Be careful, you’re in his eyeline’. Bale’s stoney face and lack of acknowledgment says it all. Watch your back Billy.
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM:
Bullhead (Belgium)
Monsieur Lazhar (Canada)
A Separation (Iran) (Winner!)
Footnote (Israel)
In Darkness (Poland)
Thoughts – Think this was the leading contender. Haven’t seen it, but apparently it’s fantastic.
3:03 p.m. – Classic. The Oscars just showcased the best cinema has to offer, and then Sky TV shows an ad for The Smurfs.
3:00 p.m. – They are really playing up ‘the love of cinema’ stuff. Hmm, I wonder which of the Best Picture nominees showcases that very idea. Does somebody know something?
BEST MAKEUP:
Albert Nobbs
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
The Iron Lady (Winner!)
Thoughts – Again, a bit of surprise. The makeup for the other nominees was top notch.
BEST COSTUME DESIGN:
Anonymous
The Artist (Winner!)
Hugo
Jane Eyre
W.E.
Thoughts – A bit of a surprise there given the other nominees. The Artist pulls one back. There’s only two horses in this race tonight. On a side note, are there any blokes out there who didn’t like the butt shot Lopez and Diaz gave us?
2:45 p.m. – It’s little scary how enthusiastic the lady drummer in live band is. She loves her work.
BEST ART DIRECTION:
The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Hugo (Winner!)
Midnight in Paris
War Horse
Thoughts – Two nil. Hugo.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:
The Artist
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo (Winner!)
The Tree of Life
War Horse
Thoughts – Well deserved. The film is stunning. Must’ve have been close though – The Tree of Life is an amazing looking film.
2:40 p.m. – Crystal’s musical number is a bit hit and miss, but good on him for remembering all of that.
2:33 p.m. – Nice nod by Crystal to Tintin in the opening skit. “Should have been nominated…”
2:31 p.m. – Clooney kisses Crystal in opening skit!
2:30 p.m. – We are underway.
2:15 p.m. – Red Carpet coverage is very so so. Bulk standard questions followed by bulk standard answers. George Clooney is sickenly handsome and his Mrs, former WWE wrestler Stacy Keibler, looks stunning. Not surprisingly so does Natalie Portman.
2:00 p.m. – Red Carpert coverage begins.
Pre 2:00 p.m. – Sasha Baron Cohen turns up on the red carpet as The Dictator, and while talking to Ryan Seacrest “mistakenly” dumps the ashes of his friend Kim Jong-il all over the E! host. Sounds pretty funny. I’m sure that will be up on You Tube very soon.
