A Host-Free Oscar Night 2019
Well, The 91st Annual Oscars Ceremony took place last night in L.A.; the first time the event was televised without a host in 30 years, and there were plenty of surprise moments and winners. And, for once in a long while, I actually took the time to see many of the nominated films, including “Black Panther,” “Green Book,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and “Vice.” The Best Supporting Actor award went to the amazing Mahershala Ali from “Green Book,” and The Best Supporting Actress award went to the incredible actress Regina King. Best Actor and Actress awards were won by Rami Malek for his superb portrayal of Freddie Mercury in “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and Olivia Coleman, for, uh, I’m not sure (I guess I should look that up). To no one’s surprise, the award for Best Original Song went to Lady Gaga for her duet with Bradley Cooper, “Shallow.” In fact, it was during their amazing acoustic piano performance of that tune that I, in fact, tuned into the show! Is it just me, or do Lady Gaga and Brad Cooper make a cute couple? The director of “Roma,“ Alfonso Cuaron, won Best Director honors, and finally the Best Picture award winner was “Green Book,” much to the surprise (and some disdain) of critics. Who was your surprise snub at this year’s Oscars? I felt like “Black Panther” should have won best picture, based on the sheer epic-ness of the film, and it was hard to see “A Star is Born” locked out of most awards, but overall I thought the show (or more precisely, what I saw of the show) was well-produced. Maybe The Oscars don’t necessarily need a dedicated host…which leaves open the possibility of me nailing down that narrator gig for next year’s broadcast! Stay tuned…
John Young