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No host, no problem.
After months of bad buzz and embarrassing missteps, the 91st Academy Awards appeared to be on their way to an epic fail. But — surprise! — the telecast on Sunday actually exceeded our lowly expectations. Of course, the show, as usual, had some rocky moments, but overall it was a lively, well-paced and entertaining affair.
It even almost came in on time with a running length of 3 hours, 18 minutes — much better than last year’s nearly 4-hour slog.
Here’s are some of the best and worst moments from Oscar night:
Rockin’ our world: Adam Lambert and Queen gave the show an instant jolt of energy with an abbreviated opening medley that had Hollywood A-listers at the Dolby Theatre on their feet and clapping along. Bravo.
So who needs a stilted monologue when you’ve got Queen? And would a traditional host slay the guitar like Brian May? No way. (For the record, though, we would have preferred some “Bohemian Rhapsody”).
Funny ladies: “Saturday Night Live” alums Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph — referred to by an astute Twitter user as the “Holy Trinity of Comedy” — took the stage early on and kept reminding us that they were not our hosts as they presented a mini monologue with (thankfully) just one Trump joke.
Memo to the Academy: Maybe they should be our hosts. Keep that in mind for next year. (Or, our runner-up choice: Awkwafina!)
Open the trap door, please: Makeup and Hairstyling was one of four categories that the Academy thought about pushing off the live show to save time. The winners (from “Vice”) didn’t exactly make a strong case to be included as they stammered and stuttered through an absolutely painful acceptance speech.
Maybe that idea to give out some awards during commercial breaks wasn’t so awful, after all.
Best dressed?: Yes there was a lot of sartorial splendor displayed on the red carpet. But nothing could match the eye-boggling frocks worn on stage by Melissa McCarthy and Brian Tyree Henry.
McCarthy rocked a mash-up of “The Favourite” and “Mary Queen of Scots,” all festooned with stuffed bunnies. Henry, meanwhile, showed off a very lacy look straight out of “Mary Poppins Returns.”
Give them an Oscar for Best Presenters.
No-go on the side shows: One thing that helped the telecast move along at a decent pace was the merciful lack of gimmicks and silly skits. In other words, no one delivered pizzas to the audience, or invited in a busload of tourists.
Oh, Keegan-Michael Key did drop in from the rafters, a la Mary Poppins (with an umbrella). But that gag was short and sweet and worth a chuckle or two..
Our favourite: Oscar shows are always more entertaining if they contain a few surprises. Best actress winner Olivia Colman might have been the biggest one, taking the prize over Glenn Close.
Colman, who seemed just as stunned as anyone, rewarded viewers with heartfelt and amusing off-the-cuff speech.
“It’s genuinely quite stressful,” she said, starting things off. “This is hilarious. I got an Oscar.”
Coleman wrapped things up by giving a shout-out to her children, who were possibly watching at home.
“If you’re not, then, well done,” she said. “But I sort of hope you are. This is not going to happen again.”
The line we didn’t expect to hear: “I can’t believe a film about menstruation just won an Oscar!” blurted Rayka Zehtabchi, director of the short-subect documentary “Period. End of Sentence.”
In delivering the night’s best girl-power moment, she went on to say, “A period should end a sentence, not a girl’s education.”
Her film confronts the stigma attached to menstruation in rural India
Spike’s big night: Spike Lee waited a long time to hold his first Oscar and he made the most of his big moment. After winning for best adapted screenplay (“BlacKkKlansman”), he leaped into the arms of Samuel L. Jackson and delivered an exuberant speech that concluded with a plea to Americans to mobilize for the 2020 presidential election.
“Let’s all be on the right side of history. Make the moral choice between love versus hate.” he said. “Let’s do the right thing! … You knew I had to get that in there.”
Lee would later taste frustration, however, being passed over for best director for “BlacKkKlansman” (Alfonso Cuaron won for “Roma”) and was reportedly that “Green Book” won best picture.
