Academy Awards 2021

[+ WilliamM]

Mostly agreed, except for Chadwick Boseman losing. I was hoping the win would give the excellent film a second and third renewal

[bostonman]

I can barely say that I watched the ceremony. I had it on, to the bitter (and terribly miscalculated) ending, but it couldn't hold my attention. Regina King set the tone with her rambling and self-consciously "witty" (?) repartee, and it just droned on from there. I want my evening back...

 

(I won't say there weren't highlights that did get my attention, but they were few and far between. I'd say that Glenn Close was the unexpected winner of the broadcast, even though she didn't win the award.)

[bostonman]

What was with Best Picture not being presented last? Why best actress BEFORE best actor? C'mon Academy, get it right!

 

Yup - totally incompetent. Especially when your "best actor" winner is absent. "Not with a bang but a whimper."

 

I'll also agree with William - I was very surprised that Boseman didn't win. Obviously he wasn't at the ceremony either, but his win would have been a much more moving way to end the night.

[+ Cash4Trash]

My feeling is that they had a very moving tribute planned for when he won but the best laid plans and all that...

[+ purplekow]

There was no doubt a change in the schedule to allow some sore of honor to Boseman but then he did not win. I suppose they could have just said that while he did not win, Boseman was a great actor with a bright future and then roll the celebration Unless of course it included mention of his 2021 Oscar win.

[BSR]

Ratings for the Oscars cratered to an all-time low. From last year's 23.6 million viewers (the previous record low), 2021 ratings dropped 58% to 9.85 million. Those numbers are a fraction of the 40-50 million the Oscars used to draw in its heyday. The 1998 broadcast drew almost 60 million viewers.

[+ purplekow]

The people that saw the movies are not interested in the awards. Those that are interested in awards did not see the movies. Few big stars. Little controversy. All in all, not much of a draw. The only movie of the bunch that I saw was the documentary My Octopus Teacher which was beautifully filmed and a call to arms about protecting nature and its creatures.

[+ Pensant]

I’ve never watched them.

[+ tassojunior]

The spin is that ratings tanked because the theaters were closed. But with us locked at home and all the nominated movies free (at least on the streamers almost everyone has) I don't understand that. Maybe it means people used to watch the Oscars to see what films they want to go to theaters to see, but now everyone's seen everything before the awards.

Edited April 27, 2021 by tassojunior

[+ WilliamM]

The spin is that ratings tanked because the theaters were closed. But with us locked at home and all the nominated movies free (at least on the streamers almost everyone has) I don't understand that. Maybe it means people used to watch the Oscars to see what films they want to go to theaters to see, but now everyone's seen everything before the awards.

Several films highly honored last night are playing in a theater in Philadelphia with five. screens

[+ keroscenefire]

I think a lot of the crater this year could be because most of us spent the last year not watching movies in person. I actually liked the Oscars this year, though sad Chadwick Boseman didn't win as well.

[jjkrkwood]

Boseman was a phenomenal talent and humanitarian, BUT just because his story had a tragic ending does not IMO mean he should have won. Was HIS the BEST performance ? That is the criteria for the win. Based on results, apparently Not.

 

I am also NOT a fan of Francis McDormand. Just because she shows up in a movie, and is considered a SERIOUS artist who is all about the work, should noe automatically garner her a win. I have seen a few of her performances and for me they are all interchangeable. She is often sullen, dour and just odd. Frances is a "capable" actress, but highly overrated by her peers. But beware all actresses that are nominated in a McDormand year..... You WONT win. Somehow, she has a lock on the statue.

 

I watch for the FASHS'HON.......which was fine this year coming out of a pandemic..... Everyone did it up BIG, and the men turned it out in less traditional, more stylized evening wear.... I am a fan of that.... But i am on the fence about the format. I found myself dozing off at times, and the "allowed" speeches were just way to long and self indulgent. I kind of enjoyed the virtual, fast paced format last year.

Edited April 27, 2021 by jjkrkwood

[+ WilliamM]

Occasionally actor/actress are honored for their work over the years.

 

Jeff Bridges is an example. How many people remember the film that won Jeff best actor

[+ stevenkesslar]

Ratings for the Oscars cratered to an all-time low. From last year's 23.6 million viewers (the previous record low), 2021 ratings dropped 58% to 9.85 million. Those numbers are a fraction of the 40-50 million the Oscars used to draw in its heyday. The 1998 broadcast drew almost 60 million viewers.

 

The huge drop this year is typical of what happened with the whole awards seasons, as the Variety article you cited noted. I didn't watch any of the other shows. As awkward or flat as some of this year's Oscars was, it was way better than three hours of Zoom.

 

Here's a tidbit from a very similar Hollywood Reporter story that caught my attention:

The Oscars also held on to their usual spot as the most watched awards show, though for the second straight year the Grammys had the higher 18-49 rating (2.28, and pending updates for the Oscars).

 

So the real driver seems to be the general fragmentation of audiences and the decline of awards shows. Although younger viewers perhaps lean to music rather than film. If we get to the point where an award show for Tik Toks is more popular than the Oscars, I want to be dead by then. Thinking about what the various categories for "Best Tik Tok" might be seems like a great way to spend a few years in dementia. I apologize to anyone young reading this who loves Tik Tok. And to Glenn Close, who would at least win a Best Tik Tok even if she never wins an Oscar.

 

 

There was an irony to me. Let's stipulate for a minute that Hollywood knows how to do two things well. Put on a show, and put on a liberal conspiracy. At one point I think it was Lil Rel Howery who blurted out, "This is the Blackest Oscars ever!" Having the star of Hillbilly Elegy do Da Butt was a nice way of symbolizing that.

 

Nomadland and a Chinese American woman winning Best Director fit nicely into that diversity picture. (China apparently censored Chloe Zhao's winning the Best Director award. So much for ethnic or national pride.) But the logical conclusion to the Hollywood conspiracy would be either Andra Day or Viola Davis winning Best Actress (I love Frances, but I was rooting for Andra) followed by a moving tribute to Boseman. I agree with @purplekow that either a tearjerker speech or a moving film tribute or both was likely already in the can. So if we go with my conspiracy assumptions, how did liberal Hollywood manage to fuck up the ending to their own otherwise relatively entertaining and diversity-promoting show?

 

This is why God is a Black woman, and she made rewrites.

Edited April 27, 2021 by stevenkesslar

[+ stevenkesslar]

I am also NOT a fan of Francis McDormand. Just because she shows up in a movie, and is considered a SERIOUS artist who is all about the work, should not automatically garner her a win. I have seen a few of her performances and for me they are all interchangeable. She is often sullen, dour and just odd. But beware all actresses that are nominated in a McDormand year..... You WONT win. Somehow, she has a lock on the statue.

 

You're probably right as always, my Beloved Sister In Cock.

 

But there is an alternative explanation. It's about time that Hollywood chose someone who could represent the wolf demographic.

 

[Rocca]

Boseman was a phenomenal talent and humanitarian, BUT just because his story had a tragic ending does not IMO mean he should have won. Was HIS the BEST performance ? That is the criteria for the win. Based on results, apparently Not.

 

I am also NOT a fan of Francis McDormand. Just because she shows up in a movie, and is considered a SERIOUS artist who is all about the work, should noe automatically garner her a win. I have seen a few of her performances and for me they are all interchangeable. She is often sullen, dour and just odd. But beware all actresses that are nominated in a McDormand year..... You WONT win. Somehow, she has a lock on the statue.

 

I watch for the FASHS'HON.......which was fine this year coming out of a pandemic..... Everyone did it up BIG, and the men turned it out in less traditional, more stylized evening wear.... I am a fan of that.... But i am on the fence about the format. I found myself dozing off at times, and the "allowed" speeches were just way to long and self indulgent. I kind of enjoyed the virtual, fast paced format last year.

My vote would’ve been for Chadwick Boseman. Everyone knows the best performer doesn’t always win those things though. Unfortunately. Also award shows are lame because art is so subjective

Edited April 27, 2021 by Rocca

[+ tassojunior]

The whole distinction between "TV" and "Movies" is so ridiculous now. 1999 ish.

 

People binge 8 hours of The Crown or Queen's Gambit at a time commercial-free, not tuning in CBS Sunday nights for half-hour commercial-filled episodes like 1955. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom or Octopus Teacher on Netflix are no more "movies" because they're 2-hour shows released at once. The acting and production quality has nothing to do with the arbitrary outdated release format. Is a 3-hour piece released at once on Netflix a "movie" but a piece released as 3 1-hour episodes at once on Netflix "TV"? Hollywood's getting less and less relevant. And thanks to the pandemic, most people have seen almost everything nominated so who cares about the Oscar's recommendations.

[jjkrkwood]

You're probably right as always, my Beloved Sister In Cock.

 

But there is an alternative explanation. It's about time that Hollywood chose someone who could represent the wolf demographic.

 

 

Well now I'm confused, since SHE was wearing Ostrich feathers...... Someone tell her to Pick a creature and stick with it. (and brush your hair and put on some lipstick)

Edited April 27, 2021 by jjkrkwood

[+ stevenkesslar]

My vote would’ve been for Chadwick Boseman. Everyone knows the best person doesn’t always win those things though. Unfortunately.

 

That's the interesting thing. Without disclosing anything about the plot, the character Bozeman played wasn't exactly the best person in the rehearsal room. After the ending I was suffering from a mild dose of reverse White liberalism, and I had to think about it. What I decided is that when I see a sort of message movie I like being beaten over the head with the message. August Wilson was too subtle for that. So he communicated a message through that character's actions. Some of that subtlety may have been lost to the voters.

 

The powerhouse in that movie IMHO was Viola Davis. It was an ensemble work, and Bozeman was great. But it was her show, literally and figuratively. I haven't seen The Father but I'm guessing Anthony Hopkins dominated that film in the way he has other ones, and in a way Bozeman did not dominate Ma Rainey. That may have had something to do with the outcome as well. If there is a reason for a Best Ensemble Oscar a movie like Ma Rainey is it, because that's what made it so fun to watch for me. It was in fact one of the five nominees for the SAG Ensemble Cast award.

 

What you said about Bozeman is why I was rooting for Andra. The interviews I've seen of her, like on Trevor Noah talking about her work on the Equal Justice Initiative, left me feeling like she's a really good person who should be a rising star. And that she is, whether she won the Oscar or not.

[JayCeeKy]

The only part of the Academy Awards that I caught was the last 15 minutes. THUD. *crickets*

 

I only saw two movies this year that were nominated for anything: Borat 2 and One Night in Miami - and that's only b/c they were free on Prime Video. I was afraid that One Night would be boring but it had a lot of thoughtful and memorable dialogue, even though a lot of events depicted were not historically accurate (e.g. Sam Cooke recorded "A Change is Gonna Come" a month before the Miami meeting). Leslie Odom Jr. was hot and turned in a great performance.

 

I agree that Francis McDormand seems to have a lock on the Best Actress Award and I thought her behavior at the Oscars last night was off-putting and bizarre.

[+ keroscenefire]

Boseman was a phenomenal talent and humanitarian, BUT just because his story had a tragic ending does not IMO mean he should have won. Was HIS the BEST performance ? That is the criteria for the win. Based on results, apparently Not.

 

I am also NOT a fan of Francis McDormand. Just because she shows up in a movie, and is considered a SERIOUS artist who is all about the work, should noe automatically garner her a win. I have seen a few of her performances and for me they are all interchangeable. She is often sullen, dour and just odd. But beware all actresses that are nominated in a McDormand year..... You WONT win. Somehow, she has a lock on the statue.

 

 

I haven't seen the Father, so it's hard for me to judge if Anthony Hopkins' performance was better than Chadwick Boseman's. I really did like his role and performance. His tortured trumpeter was at turns charismatic, sinister, and sympathetic. The fact that he performed it while in immense pain from his cancer treatments is an incredible feat.

 

The only other performance I saw was Riz Ahmed's in Sound of Metal. The fact that he learned sign language and was so believable as someone who undergoes hearing loss was also an amazing acting challenge and I would've been happy had Riz won as well (plus I find him incredibly good looking).

 

I agree with you about Frances McDormand. I liked Nomadland but her performance wasn't as strong as some of her fellow nominees in my opinion. Let Frances have the Oscar for producing the film but let Carey Mulligan or Viola Davis have the statue for what I though were incredible, dynamic, complex performances (Never saw Vanessa Kirby or Andra Day's performances so cannot judge them).

[jjkrkwood]

That's the interesting thing. Without disclosing anything about the plot, the character Bozeman played wasn't exactly the best person in the rehearsal room. After the ending I was suffering from a mild dose of reverse White liberalism, and I had to think about it. What I decided is that when I see a sort of message movie I like being beaten over the head with the message. August Wilson was too subtle for that. So he communicated a message through that character's actions. Some of that subtlety may have been lost to the voters.

 

The powerhouse in that movie IMHO was Viola Davis. It was an ensemble work, and Bozeman was great. But it was her show, literally and figuratively. I haven't seen The Father but I'm guessing Anthony Hopkins dominated that film in the way he has other ones, and in a way Bozeman did not dominate Ma Rainey. That may have had something to do with the outcome as well. If there is a reason for a Best Ensemble Oscar a movie like Ma Rainey is it, because that's what made it so fun to watch for me. It was in fact one of the five nominees for the SAG Ensemble Cast award.

 

What you said about Bozeman is why I was rooting for Andra. The interviews I've seen of her, like on Trevor Noah talking about her work on the Equal Justice Initiative, left me feeling like she's a really good person who should be a rising star. And that she is, whether she won the Oscar or not.

 

I was rooting for either Andra or Viola. I felt they achieved the most transformative roles.

[bostonman]

Viola, as Ma Rainey, was wonderful and riveting as always (IMO). Though for me, when I think of her, I always go back to this bravura monologue from King Hedley II - which in watching it again now, seems more timely than ever.

 

[+ E.T.Bass]

I did appreciate Daniel Kaluuya's acceptance speech, how he wanted to "thank my parents for having sex."

How many of us fail to look at the big picture like that?

[bostonman]

I did appreciate Daniel Kaluuya's acceptance speech, how he wanted to "thank my parents for having sex."

How many of us fail to look at the big picture like that?

 

Of course, it's common for people not to want to think about their parents having sex, lol. (Likewise, I assume most parents really don't want to think about their kids doing it either...)