As expected, the 96th Oscars ceremony was quite the night with a peak of 1.1 million viewers, including myself, tuned in.Â
Hollywoodâs biggest event of the year also incorporated the biggest films which led to a tight competition for all nominees.
The predicted frontrunner at 13 nominations, âOppenheimer,â swept in unsurprising victories while many others faced snubs from the Academy.
Opening Remarks
In light of all of Barbieâs Oscar snubs, with both Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie not being nominated, fourth time host Jimmy Kimmel opened the ceremony with a âBarbieâ related skit.
He went on to address the controversy before touching on other stars like Robert Downey Jr., nominated for the notable film âOppenheimer.â
Kimmel also commented on the length increase in movies at an average of 2 hours and 23 minutes, up 30 minutes from three years ago. This fact definitely goes against older generationâs gripes that our attention span is dimming.Â
It was quite the tumultuous year for Hollywood with the SAG-AFTRA strikes which struggled over numerous issues, like AI usage in the fields. Kimmel joked how AI could have written ‘Transformer: Rise of the Beasts’ but ultimately praised the protests for better rights.
For his last bit, Kimmel brought out all the behind the stage workers at the Oscars to honor all that they do for the ceremony, celebrating those unnamed, but vital to the show.
The Winners
The first win of the night went to Da’Vine Joy Randolph for her performance in ‘The Holdovers,’ a well deserved and tearful win.
Miyazaki’s ‘The Boy and the Heron’ took animated feature film which upset many who were vying for ‘Spiderman: Across the Spider-Verse.’
While this Oscar winner didn’t get enough publicity or praise for my personal liking, ‘American Fiction’ secured ‘Best Adapted Screenplay.’
After, ‘Poor Things‘ took ‘Best Costume Design.’ The costumes were stunning, a reflection of the film’s eclectic feel mixed with 19th century garb, so the win just made sense.
‘Zone of Interest’ director Jonathan Glazer spoke on the war in Gaza during his acceptance speech for international films.
“Our film shows where dehumanization leads, at its worst. It’s shaped all of our past and present. Right now we stand here as men who refute their Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation which has led to conflict for so many innocent people,” he said.
Robert Downey Jr. won his first ever Oscar as supporting actor for ‘Oppenheimer,’ a film that swept seven wins during the night which included ‘Best Cinematography,’ editing and original score.
Cillian Murphy and Christopher Nolan both foreseeably took home the prize for leading man and director respectively. This was their first Oscar win.Â
Another emotional award went to Emma Stone for leading actress where in her acceptance speech, she proclaimed sharing the award with fellow nominee Lily Gladstone. âI am in awe of you,â she said, talking to the âKillers of the Flower Moonâ star. âIt has been such an honor to do all of this together.â
To end the night, ‘Oppenheimer’ won ‘Best Picture,â another anticipated, but relatively well deserved win.
The Snubs
What should’ve been a historical win for Lily Gladstone in her impeccable performance in ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ ended with Emma Stone taking home the trophy.Â
Nonetheless, Gladstone still made history with her Oscar nomination as the first Native American nominee and took home both the SAG award and Golden Globe for her performance previous to this event. It was disappointing to see the film win nothing, despite its numerous nominations and significant story highlighting the true events against the Osage tribe.
Production design with ‘Barbie’ and ‘Poor Things’ was another close fight that did not give the recognition of the ‘Barbie’ set that it deserved. Every element was considered within the Barbie mansions to immerse viewers straight into the world of elevated girlhood.
But in contrast, the âPoor Thingsâ set highlighted a vibrant world that Bella finds herself navigating that draws viewers into her full experience.Â
So it was sad, but understandable.
Another snub went to ‘Past Lives’ who also won nothing, despite their original screenplay and ‘Best Picture’ nominations. The film focused on childhood best friends who reconnect years later, which pulled at heartstrings, in director Celine Song’s debut film.
Where was her Oscar?
Key Moments
When the ceremony started up the infamous ‘Anatomy of a Fall’ dog, Messi, made an appearance on televisions at home, much to fans’ delight.
A standing ovation occurred Billie Eilish’s chilling orchestral performance of ‘What Was I Made For?,’ an Oscar winning song.
Emily Blunt and Ryan Gosling had a playful exchange regarding the ‘Barbenheimer’ event of the summer while celebrating the stunt community.
Then, John Cena came out nude to present costume design in a nod to the 1974 Oscar streaker.
In another ‘Barbie’ related performance, Ryan Gosling donned a glittery pink suit with other original Kens like Simu Liu. Slash, the legendary guitarist from Guns N’ Roses, also made a surprise appearance. This was definitely a fan-favorite performance – especially for myself who was singing along right at home.
Jimmy Kimmel ended his set by poking fun at Donald Trump complaining about Kimmel’s jokes. “Isn’t it past your jail time?” he quipped.
Ultimately, the wins led to no particular surprise as ‘Oppenheimer’ had been predicted to overrun this year, but showcased another grand year for cinema.
