The first Oscars of the post-slapping era – the milestone of Will Smith's physical assault on Chris Rock in 2022, which host Jimmy Kimmel took it upon himself to commemorate – passed with amiable normalcy in which he found himself in missing a bit of vandalism.
In the evening in which Asian domination was imposed with the overwhelming success of All at once everywhere (seven Oscars, including the most valuable ones for best film, director, original screenplay, actress and the two actors secondary), even the speeches were characterized by a higher level than usual (one in song format), without shrillness or provocations.
It was a night of debutants, with the first statuette for an Asian woman as best actress, Michelle Yeoh, or, on the male side, for damn Brendan Fraser, a B-movie actor who had never received a nomination , risen from the ashes like a human whale.
It was also the first reward for another veteran of genre cinema like Jamie Lee Curtis, 64, who took the Oscar for best supporting actress against the odds. This distinction was denied to his legendary parents, Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, real idols of Hollywood from the golden age who never got a statuette. "Dad, mom, I've won an Oscar!", he addressed them, in the eternity of celluloid.
As one commentator argued, "the era of good feelings prevailed". Apart from the bad loss of Angela Bassett (she did not repress her displeasure when Jamie Lee Curtis kept the title she aspired to), only Hugh Grant, who in the preview left an interview not in agreement with the sympathy that it is attributed to him, he scored a goal for the guardians of the linguistic morality of the ABC network. Last year they censored Will Smith's compliments to Rock, leading viewers to think the banter was part of the show. Grant, 62, appeared with co-star Andie MacDowell in 1994's Four Weddings and a Funeral to present the production design honor, which went to Nothing Again in the West. This was the second most awarded film, with four awards, the most important being the best international film.
So, in the opening joke, he threw flowers on the fair skin of his companion's face, for using moisturizing creams, he said, while he, who did not use those products, it looked like "a scrotum". This word, according to the old memorialists, is also the first time it was pronounced in the history of this courtship.
"If something unpredictable or violent happens during the ceremony, do the same as last year, nothing," he said. Although he quipped that "the aggressor will be recognized as the best actor and will be given 19 minutes of speech", the presenter warned: "We have a crisis team ready".
But "the ceremony was, above all, monitored", emphasized Richard Brody in The New Yorker, despite the fact that the intervention of that supposed team was not necessary. The attendees practiced self-restraint so as not to fall into ridicule again.
"The illustrious array of presenters seemed afraid to clash with the air of cheerful decorum that prevailed, as if anyone spoiling the evening's promotional facade would incur the wrath of the Academy and the industry in general,” remarked Brody.
The promotion is explained by the fact that there were advertisements in the middle of the gala, from Disney, Warner Bros and the Academy museum, arguments to sell Hollywood as a product and a value in itself.
The good vibes were demonstrated in an impromptu manner in the last installment. Once Harrison Ford announced that All at once everywhere had won the big one, the film team jumped on the floor. Ke Huy When he hugged Ford effusively, a reminder that, when he was a child, he had been the driver of the car in one of Indiana Jones' escapes, when he was looking for the lost temple.
Ke Huy Quan, 51 years old, had already received the Oscar for best supporting actor at that time, which made him give the most meaningful speech of the day. "My journey started on a boat, I spent a year in a refugee camp, until I ended up on the big Hollywood set", he explained.
His family escaped from Vietnam during the war with the United States. Once in Los Angeles, and after working in Indiana Jones and The Goonies, he stopped acting for two decades due to the impossibility of getting roles.
"I thank him for all the sacrifices for me to get here", he remarked.
In addition to Jamie Lee Curtis, irrepressible all night in her expressions of joy, another one who was more than happy was Michelle Yeoh, whose words offered another profound testimony.
"For all the boys and girls who look like me and who are watching me, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities," he said. "This is proof that dreams - dream big! - do come true," he added.
"And ladies, don't ever let anyone tell you that your prime time has passed," a message in reference to a CNN anchor who disqualified Nikki Haley as a possible Republican candidate for the presidency of the United States because he is 51 years old.
And others radiant in that final passage were "the Daniels", as Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert are known, decorated above all for their victorious multiverse, and a portentous advertising campaign.
They make up the third duo to win the best director section, after Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins for West Side Story (1961) and the Coen brothers for No es país para viejos (2007). The sweep of major prizes that they starred in has few precedents.
The ceremony had its moment of awareness with the recognition for best documentary of Navalny, the Russian dissident imprisoned for denouncing President Vladimir Putin and his war in Ukraine.
"My husband is in prison for telling the truth, for defending democracy. Aleksei, I dream of the day when you will be free and our country will be free", proclaimed his wife, Iulia Navalnaia.
The Oscars punished Los Fabelman and Steven Spielberg, Elvis , Tár , El triangulo de la tristeza or Almas en pena de Inisherin , although one of its stars, Jenny the donkey, received a tribute from Kimmel. Avatar and Top Gun, at least, do not go empty-handed (a statuette).
There were other peaks such as that of Ruth Carter, the first African-American woman with two Oscars, both for the costumes of Black Panther (in 2019 and now, in 2023).
And the big surprise corresponded to Sarah Polley, the director awarded for the best adapted screenplay for Ellas hablan when no one was betting on her. His speech was one of the most challenging: "I thank the Academy for not being too offended by the words 'women' and 'speak' so closely together."
But in short, no one was beaten. Hugs predominated, even if they were from a movie.
