Well, another Academy Awards is in the books and I'm not sure we really gained anything from it. There were a few nice moments, three amazing speeches and one fairly big upset award, but otherwise it was a fairly predictable night all around. It moved a bit faster than it usually does, which was nice, but ever since "The Slap," the event has felt very safe and homogenized. With that said, here are a few of the best and worst moments of the 2024 Academy Awards.
Best: Messi the Dog. Messi gave what might be the best animal performance of all time in "Anatomy of a Fall," so it was nice to see him being adorable as hell at the event. The running joke of treating Messi like he was there by himself just chilling and enjoying the festivities was funny and him peeing on Matt Damon's star on the Walk of Fame post credits was the perfect predictable dig at host Jimmy Kimmel's best frenemy.
Best: Ryan Gosling in general. Everyone's favorite baby goose brought his full Kenergy to bear with not only a charming and hilarious performance of "I'm Just Ken," but some delightful banter with Emily Blunt about his painted-on abs. I think Gosling has always been a very funny actor (his physical comedy in "The Nice Guys" is hugely underrated), but I think we might be entering an entirely new period of his career that will lean into his comedic chops and move away from his brooding attractiveness.
Worst: Stunts. There has been a running complaint for the last few years about the Academy Awards needing a category for stunt performers in the Oscars. The fact that for next year's awards they will have added an award for casting (which is also well deserved), but still not for stunts seems insulting. But then parading Blunt and Gosling out to basically sell their summer movie ABOUT STUNT MEN, "The Fall Guy," while talking about how stunts add to the magic of Hollywood felt like a complete cop-out. Paying lip service to stunt performers while still not offering them a chance to compete in the Oscars is pretty mean.
Best: John Cena. While I wasn't a big fan of Jimmy Kimmel and his very specific brand of schtick, I did appreciate that they sprinkled a few skits throughout the night to break up the moments of self-seriousness throughout. Coming out completely naked except for the envelope awarding Best Costume was an inspired idea that was completely sold by Cena and easily got the biggest laughs of the night.
Worst: The length of movies. Yes, I get it. Some movies are really long that really don't need to be. I'm getting a little tired of the complaint though, because most people won't hesitate to binge three episodes of "Love is Blind" or watch an entire season of "The Office" in a single sitting. I know it's getting harder for a lot of people to be off of their phones for two hours or longer (or even 10 minutes) but stories take time to tell. Sure, "Killers of the Flower Moon" and "Oppenheimer" are both three hours or longer, but people complaining about their lack of an attention span isn't the flex they think it is.
Best/Worst: The winners and losers. Depending on who you were rooting for, you either had a good night or a bad one. The biggest upset was Emma Stone winning Best Actress for "Poor Things" instead of Lily Gladstone for "Killers of the Flower Moon," but even that wasn't really upsetting because, as much as Gladstone carried most of that movie with her steely glare, Stone also gave a truly remarkable and layered performance. I probably would have given "The Creator" the award for Visual Effects, but seeing the entire "Godzilla Minus Zero" team come on stage with matching Godzilla shoes was pretty fantastic.
Best: Speeches. Three winning speeches in particular were powerful. Jonathan Glazer's impassioned plea for peace after winning Best International Feature for "The Zone of Interest" was a gut punch: Glazer said, "All our choices were made to reflect and confront us in the present — not to say, 'Look what they did then,' rather, 'Look what we do now.' Our film shows where dehumanization leads at its worst. It 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. Whether the victims of October the seventh in Israel or the ongoing attack on Gaza, all the victims of this dehumanization, how do we resist?"
Or Cord Jefferson winning the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay; he reached out directly to the people who want to see more non-blockbuster movies getting made. Jefferson opined: "I understand that this is a risk-adverse industry, but 200-million-dollar movies are also a risk. But you take it anyway. Instead of making one 200-million-dollar movie, make 20 10-million-dollar movies or 50 4-million-dollar movies. I want people to experience that joy. The next Martin Scorsese is out there. The next Greta Gerwig is out there. The next Christopher Nolan is out there. They just want a shot, and we can give them one."
Most stirringly, director Mstyslav Chernov winning the Best Documentary Feature award for his film, "20 Days in Mariupol," which chronicles the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Chernov gives his impassioned plea: "This is the first Oscar in Ukrainian history and I'm honored, but I probably will be the first director on this stage who will say 'I wish I never made this film.' I wish to be able to exchange this for Russia never attacking Ukraine, never occupying our cities. I wish for them to release all the hostages, all the soldiers who are protecting their lands, all the civilians who are now in their jails. But I cannot change the history. I cannot change the past. But we all together — among you are some of the most talented people in the world — we can make sure that the history record is set straight and that the truth will prevail. And the people of Mariupol and those who have given their lives will never be forgotten. Cinema forms memories and memories form history."
What were some of your favorite and least favorite moments of this year's Oscars?
