So now I’m done with that<\/em> topic, and finally moving on to reviewing the actual show<\/em> now. (In the order that it happened, of course.)<\/p>\n One of the three recipients of special Oscars the night before, (along with Elaine May and Liv Ullman,) Samuel L. Jackson. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n I’m sorry that I’m not commenting on the inanity of the arrivals<\/em> this year. I was too busy watching the real<\/em> emotion of the NCAA basketball games to watch the nauseating phoniness of everyone telling each other how gorgeous they look. My stomach couldn’t take it this year with all the sadness going on in the world.<\/p>\n But…as I was waiting for the show to begin, I got to see the idiotic Vanessa Hudgens<\/strong> attempt to interview classy Penelope Cruz<\/strong>, and then someone named Sofia, (who I have no idea who she is,) fawn all over Denzel Washington<\/strong>, expecting him to answer her non-question, and then finally whisper one, so he had to lean in and ask what she said. Just those two tiny snippets made Mr. X and me almost bail on the actual Oscars! He asked me, \u201cHow can you watch this???\u201d So I doubt I’ll go back and view it again at some point. Not enough time in my life.<\/p>\n The show itself was very long, but didn\u2019t go too slowly, so that was a bonus. And at least they didn\u2019t do any stupid \u201cfeed the audience\u201d bits!<\/p>\n But it’s so unclassy that they never say \u201cAcademy Awards\u201d anymore. Enough with thinking that the shorter \u201cOscars\u201d somehow makes it hip!<\/p>\n My overall impression of it was that the producers were so desperate to attract viewers that a lot of the show bordered on, or just plain was<\/em>, offensive.\u00a0I’ll get into some of the specifics as we move along here.<\/p>\n The set-up of the room, with some people seated at tables right in front of the protruding stage, and others (including celebs) sitting in a traditional audience setting behind them, was horrible. It\u2019s like the producers were telling the people not<\/em> in the front that they don’t care if they get Covid. As the show The sometimes-it-worked, sometimes-it-did-not set. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n I did love and appreciate the ever-changing but still shiny, sparkly, silvery backgrounds, though.<\/p>\n I saw exactly two masks all night! Shame.<\/p>\n When they had announced a few weeks ago that there would be several technical awards given out before<\/em> the live show, I was one of the many who thought that was awful of them. But after seeing how they incorporated the videos of the categories into the live show, it turned-out to be pretty okay. And I’m glad I didn\u2019t have to waste any more time on watching the long show than I already did.<\/p>\n If I understood what I saw correctly, they did the deaf interpreters in a great way. They were seated out of the way, with individually little cameras on them, and the deaf people could probably look on their phones to see them, rather than having the interpreters stand in the front the whole time. So good for the person who came-up with that.<\/p>\n Jason Momoa rocking the colors of the Ukraine flag on his pocket square. Good for him!<\/p><\/div>\n I did not see one ribbon for Ukraine during the broadcast. Tyler Perry<\/strong> was wearing one that looked just blue on TV, but I’ve since seen a photo that shows it to be the correct colors. But I’m wondering where he got it then, since it appeared that no one else had one, which would mean they were not being handed-out at the ceremony. Even Ukrainian-born Mila Kunis<\/strong> wasn’t wearing one.<\/p>\n I did<\/em> see a couple of light<\/em> color ribbons, so perhaps they were meant to be in support of Ukraine. And I noticed later that Jason Momoa<\/strong> was rocking a pocket square for Ukraine, for which I applaud him. I\u2019ve<\/em> been doing my nails in yellow and blue since the war began, not to be cutesy or make a fashion statement, but rather to remind people about the war, which seems to have gotten a tad lost amidst all the awards season frivolity.<\/p>\n The show opened with the tennis-playing Williams sisters<\/strong>. They both looked crazy with all their plastic surgery. And Venus<\/strong>‘ boobs were hanging almost all the way out.<\/p>\n Perhaps the reason that Venus Williams was popping her boobs out so much was to distract from Serena’s plentiful plastic surgery! Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Then came Beyonce<\/strong>\u2019s number, which should have been at the theatre. How obnoxious to do it the way they did.<\/p>\n Zendaya looking perfect. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n The opening trialogue was good. Ish. I\u2019ve always liked Wanda Sykes<\/strong>, hated Amy Shumer<\/strong>, and still have no idea who Regina Hall<\/strong> is, but they worked well together.<\/p>\n The best line of the night was about\u00a0Power of the Dog<\/em>. Wanda Sykes said, \u201cI\u2019ve watched it three times, and I\u2019m halfway through.\u201d<\/p>\n And that was the best she ever looked, too.<\/p>\n Now, can you imagine if Jesse Plemons<\/strong> had gotten up and punched Amy Shumer for joking that his girlfriend Kirsten Dunst<\/strong> is a seat-filler??? Of course not, because no one else in an Oscars assemblage has ever been as classless as Will Smith.<\/p>\n And shirtless Timothee Chalamet looking idiotic.<\/p><\/div>\n At one point, I mentioned that it was strange that Timothee Chalamet<\/strong> was alone. So Mr. X asked, \u201cIsn\u2019t Zendaya<\/strong> supposed to be with him?,\u201d\u00a0to which I answered, \u201cNo\u2014that’s Tom Holland.\u201d And without skipping a beat, he came back with, \u201cSame thing.\u201d Can’t say I disagree.<\/p>\n That bit where Regina Hall invited some supposed hot men up to the stage, so she could \u201cswab their throats\u201d for Covid, with her tongue<\/em>, was beyond insulting, in bad taste, and the opposite of me too\u2014I could go on and on. And then she put her hands all over the next two presenters, Jason Momoa and Josh Brolin<\/strong>. What if a man<\/em> had patted down women<\/em> like that??? What is wrong with the writers and producers of the Oscars???<\/p>\n On a side note, why did she not<\/em> call up Jake Gyllenhaal<\/strong>? Does that mean that he’s not considered hot anymore?<\/p>\n The creepy male-abusing bit by Regina Hall, (whoever she is.) She was joined on stage by otherwise-classy actors: (L-R) Simu Liu, Bradley Cooper, Tyler Perry, and Timothee Chalamet. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n And\u2014another sidebar\u2014I never cared about Jason Momoa until his funny Super Bowl commercial last year. Now I sort-of like him. (I’m sure he’s very relieved to hear it.)<\/p>\n Even though I’m a major sports fan, the trio of extreme sports dudes\u2014Shaun White<\/strong>, Tony Hawk<\/strong>, and Kelly Slater<\/strong>\u2014did not belong at the Oscars. They have nothing to do with the industry.<\/p>\n The song presenter from Encanto<\/em>\u2014Stephanie Beatriz<\/strong>–did her part perfectly. She was brief, sweet, happy, and appreciative. And, most importantly, not phony!!!<\/p>\n I adored the entire presentation of the Best Supporting Actor Oscar to Troy Kotsur<\/strong> of Coda<\/em> by last year’s Best Supporting Actress, Youn Yuh-jung<\/strong>.\u00a0 The guy who brings out the trophies, and then guides the celebs where to go, should have moved her out\u00a0of the way after she presented the award to Troy, and held it for him so he could sign. But she was so adorable standing there right up close to him, looking at him lovingly. It was the most charming moment of the night.<\/p>\n Youn Yuh-jung, on the right, gazing adoringly at Best Supporting Actor, Troy Kostsur, as he’s about to begin his acceptance speech. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n The producers did one thing right–they put the Ukraine pleas in the correct place, after Reba McEntire<\/strong>\u2019s sweet, low-key song.<\/p>\n I love Riz Ahmed<\/strong>. His short acceptance speech, for Best Live Action Short, was perfection.<\/p>\n (L-R) Jennifer Garner, Elliot Page, and J.K. Simmons. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n I’m convinced that they \u201ccelebrated\u201d the \u201canniversary\u201d of Juno<\/em> just to parade transgender Elliot Page<\/strong> out there, to show how woke the Academy is.<\/p>\n I could not have been more thrilled for Kenneth Branagh<\/strong> to have won for writing. Belfast<\/em> is my favorite film of the year!<\/p>\n What were Shawn Mendes <\/strong>and Tracee Ellis Ross<\/strong> doing there, presenting???\u00a0 Neither of them has anything to do with films.<\/p>\n And Tracee’s boobs were very unattractively hanging down to her waist!!! Ugh.<\/p>\n Why would Tracee Ellis Ross show off those saggy boobs??? I really don’t get it. Aand oh, that’s Shawn Mendes on the left. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Sian Heder<\/strong> looked the best, in her sparkly gown with her skinny in-shape self.<\/p>\n This is where the idiot Will Smith slapped Chris Rock<\/strong>. And the air went out of the room. Everyone, there and at home, were too shocked to fully enjoy the rest.<\/p>\n Thank goodness Questlove<\/strong> didn\u2019t wear his ever-present hair pick to the Oscars. Great choice.<\/p>\n It was good of Diddy<\/strong> to try to calm the Will Smith situation down at this point, which let the last doubters know that the violence was real.<\/p>\n The men of The Godfather: (L-R) Al Pacino, Francis Ford Coppola, and Robert De Niro. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n But why was Diddy the person introducing the Godfathe<\/em>r tribute to begin with??? How inappropriate! The producers of the Oscars were way too desperate.<\/p>\n So we were very relieved when the trio of important<\/em> people of the films\u2014Francis Ford Coppola<\/strong>, Robert De Niro<\/strong>, and Al Pacino<\/strong>–came out after the film clips.<\/p>\n My favorite moment of the entire night was Nicole Kidman<\/strong> wearing Keith Urban<\/strong>‘s jacket!!! Such a simple thing, but it made me swoon.<\/p>\n My favorite image of the entire evening: Seeing that Keith Urban gave his wife Nicole Kidman his jacket. That’s such a real-couple move. I love it! Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Zendaya looked great. I’m not a fan of hers, but girlfriend knows how to pose<\/em>!!!<\/p>\n I cannot even express just how inappropriate it was to have raucous singing and joyous dancing in front of the In Memorium screen. Whoever thought of that bit of nonsense is the person Will Smith should<\/em> have\u00a0slapped. I’m sure they thought it was some great innovation, but it was jaw-droppingly rude. And annoying.<\/p>\n On a sad personal note, I learned from that segment that my old pal, the lovely producer, Marcia Nasatir<\/strong>, had died. I had barely talked to anyone during the pandemic, but I sent her pretty e-cards, and got back messages that she had viewed them, the latest one only a couple of months ago, so I erroneously had assumed she was doing fine. But it turns-out that she had already passed. I gasped when I saw her on the screen, and had to pause the show for quite awhile. After helping so many for so many years, I hope she’s having a peaceful time in heaven, which she’s probably running!<\/p>\n I\u2019m as crushed for songwriter Diane Warren<\/strong> as she<\/em> was. This was her thirteenth nomination, with nary a win. It was hard to look at her shocked and saddened face; she didn’t even pretend to be happy for the people she lost to. But she rallied by the next morning, tweeting, \u201cOk so who I gotta slap to get an Oscar?\u201d She deserves some kind of award just for that, doesn’t she? Maybe there should be a \u201cTweeties\u201d next year. (You read that idea here first, folks.)<\/p>\n The Eilishes on the left, celebrating their win, while poor perennial-loser Diane Warren suffers on the right. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n And the ones she lost to are the Eilishes<\/strong>, who gave such a classless, silly acceptance speech. They really should have mentioned their fellow nominees, who are, of course, all older than they; they should have said they looked up to them, or some such sentiment.<\/p>\n No songs were particularly great this year, but Van Morrison should have won. His is perfect for Belfast<\/em>, and sounds as authentic as his very old hits. Why was it the only nominated song to not be performed that night???<\/p>\n And why did they do the Bruno<\/em> song from Encanto<\/em> when it wasn\u2019t nominated? Just another time-waster.<\/p>\n Okay, this one is beyond petty, but I took the pic, so I’m using it. Kevin Costner needs to pluck those hairs from on top of the tip of his nose. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n I\u2019m not sure if Kevin Costner<\/strong> could have spoken any slower. Good thing I set my recording for an extra hour!<\/p>\n How did Jane Campion<\/strong> win Best Director? Power of the Dog<\/em>\u00a0is such a non-defined film. Mr. X and I seriously had no idea what was going on the whole time! (You can still read my mini review of it, and all the rest of this year’s crop, here: itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/movie-reviews-mini-movie-reviews-2022<\/a>.)<\/p>\n I voted for Will Smith for the recent Screen Actors Guild Awards because his performance<\/em> deserved it, but after his total thuggishness earlier in the evening, I will never consider him again. He made a complete ass of himself, both in the assault on Chris Rock, and the crude screaming swearing at him from the audience. And he had the perfect opportunity to apologize to Chris in his acceptance speech for Best Actor, but did not use it. [Note: The picture at the top of this page, of the other three top Oscar winners together, shows how Smith ruined the biggest\u00a0occasion of his career\u00a0for himself. He was left out of the pictures of the actor winners in the press room!]<\/p>\n And what is wrong with so many audience members to give him a standing ovation??? I think they were all still in shock, and didn’t know what to do, so their bodies just followed the lead of the cast of Smith’s film, King Richard<\/em>.<\/p>\n Lady Gaga and Liza Minnelli.<\/p><\/div>\n But thank goodness for Anthony Hopkins<\/strong>. His classiness made the moments after Smith left the stage so much better for everyone.<\/p>\n Seeing Lady Gaga<\/strong> give-out the Best Picture award with uber-frail Liza Minelli<\/strong> is the first time I ever had any respect for her.\u00a0 She handled the entire moment perfectly. And I give poor wheelchair-bound Liza credit for showing up.<\/p>\n I’m so happy for everyone involved with Coda<\/em>, (even though I wanted Belfast<\/em> to win. Coda<\/em> was my second choice.) It was a very happy choice, and helped the show end on a high note, after a depressing last hour. (Or two.)<\/p>\n Marlee Matlin<\/strong> looked the best!!!<\/p>\n But why were so many people wearing red? It’s odd they were wearing it, in general, but also red often stand for Russia, so it should be verboten for a while. And why did not one person deign to wear a bit of blue and yellow, to show support for Ukraine? I don’t get it.<\/p>\n Adorable Jude Hill at an after-party. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Belfast<\/em>‘s young Jude Hill<\/strong> should have definitely been on the show! He\u2019s the most charming, adorable kid.<\/p>\n And why did the telecast need three different bands or orchestras? Just more bad judgement from the producers.<\/p>\n And, most importantly, they should have presented the special awards to Elaine May<\/strong>, Samuel L. Jackson<\/strong>, and Liv Ullmann<\/strong> live on the telecast, instead of handing them out someplace the night before. Shame on them. Would it have hurt them to leave-out the inane supposed James Bond tribute? Or the performance of the song Bruno<\/em> from Encanto<\/em> that wasn’t even nominated??? That was sooooo rude of the powers-that-be over there. Horrible.<\/p>\n I may be done with the Oscars from here on out, anyway, because of the nonsense that will be happening in 2024. Their depressing new rules state that: A) At least one\u00a0of the lead actors or significant supporting actors is from an underrepresented racial or ethnic group. So, no as-written fairy tales anymore. B) At least 30% of all actors in secondary and more minor roles are from at least two underrepresented groups. The list goes on and on. Let’s hope they scrap this plan by then because it will be the end of film as we know it. You can’t control creativity like that! (You can read the entire craziness here: itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/movie-reviews-mini-movie-reviews-2022<\/a>.)<\/p>\n I am glad that the exhausting-for-everyone-concerned\u2014participants, fans, viewers, Covid-testers, etc.– awards season is finally over. Now let’s all get back to real<\/em> life.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" OSCARS 2022 If you’re looking for my thoughts on the Will Smith horror portion of Sunday’s Oscars, (of which I have many,) you can read that article here: itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/breaking-newscelebrity-gossipkarens-rants-what-is-there-to-be-done-about-will-smith. So now I’m done with that topic, and finally moving on to reviewing the actual show now. (In the order that it happened, of course.) I’m<\/p>\n![\"One](\"https:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/IMG_6765-e1648669320900-297x300.jpg\")
<\/a> dragged<\/del> went on, seeing everyone in that formation got more annoying.\u00a0 I much prefer the traditional stage set-up. (And they really need to go back to it next year, to make it harder for someone like Will Smith<\/strong> to storm the stage and assault a presenter!)<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/IMG_6797-e1648667934510-1024x562.jpg\")
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<\/a>![\"Why](\"https:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/IMG_6782-e1648668523677-1024x852.jpg\")
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