Hello, Gorgeous

It's been a LOOONG time since the Sassistas! have been this happy about losing a bet!

Last night, "The Hurt Locker" -- which has grossed only $13 million since it was released --  was named Best Picture over "Avatar" -- the highest-grossing film of all time. Carolyn had bet several of us in the sassosphere a Grape Tootsie Roll Pop that it would win.  Plus, she boldly asked that the stick be tied with "a sunny yellow ribbon, please."  Congratulations, Carolyn, and thanks for pulling for art over entertainment.

If that surprise wasn't enough, Hollywood also presented a very long-overdue Best Director Award to a woman: Kathryn Bigelow for "The Hurt Locker", who was then cheesily sent offstage to the tune, "I Am Woman" (yes, we're afraid it's true).  Best Actress winner Sandra Bullock ("The Blind Side") thanked people who liked her "even when it wasn't fashionable" and also thanked "my lover, Meryl Streep."  Although we were initially disappointed that Bullock won, her acceptance speech was among the best and most gracious of the evening.

Hosts Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin were classy and quippy throughout the night, though we didn't get all the Nazi jokes, i.e. asking Meryl Streep, "What's with all the Hitler memorabilia?"  But can someone please explain why EVERY Oscar show has to begin with the now-required-law, song-and-dance number, this year performed by the ubiquitous Neil Patrick Harris?

The show seemed to drag in places . . . and winners were often cut off mid-breath during their acceptance speeches to allow more unnecessary banter from presenters. Ben Stiller, however, knocked it out of the theater when he came out to present the Best Makeup Award, with blue skin and delivered a speech in Na'vi (the language from "Avatar").

Click here for a complete list of winners.  This link also provides links to the winner acceptance speeches.

So what did you think of the 2010 Academy Awards Show . . . and the results?  Remember, the Sassistas! plan to post more specifically on Oscar fashion tomorrow, so please hold your fashion comments until then. 

Again, congratulations, Carolyn!  We're all suckas (plus we owe you several)!

Comments

[Flannista]

Carolyn, you showed our Oscar trash talk a thing or two. I was flabbergasted when "The Hurt Locker" won Best Picture, but absolutely ecstatic about it -- as Jersey will attest.

The movie deserves everything it won.

[half-a-sista]

I can hear the "conservative" pundits today as they rant and rave about "The Hurt Locker" winning so many Oscars. Oh, well, I'm off to buy grape tootsie roll pops and get them in the mail to Carolyn. Can you send me her address off-line?

[dcsistah]

i loved the oscars, i love the movies, i ate it up. I wanted Precious to pull as many oscars as possible, and it got a couple. and i wanted Hurt Locker to win big and it did! Bigger than i even dreamed. Love Jeff Bridges: the Dude abides. I loved him best in a little seen movie called Fearless. Put it on your netflix queue, girls and boys.

If you're wondering about that weird Kanye-moment when a white woman crashed a black man's acceptance speech about a film in Zimbabwe, here's the 'splanation: http://www.salon.com/ent/movies/2010/03/07/music_by_prudence_burkett/index.html?source=newsletter

loved The Cove and glad it won. Though after seeing the clips of documentary about humans, i thought, we had to pick the one about saving flipper, didn't we. anyway, all the docs looked great. can't find Burma VJ on netflix yet, though.

and now i gotta get my movie-worshipping behind to work.

have a great day, sassy folk!

[Flannista]

Before you get in a dither about "conservative" pundits, half-a, I found "The Hurt Locker" surprisingly apolitical. It was neither anti-war nor pro-war. For me, it brilliantly captured modern warfare in all its tedium. The film did NOT change my opinion about this country's mistake about invading Iraq for weapons of mass destruction that were never found. The film, however, gave me a new appreciation for the brave soldiers who have to cope with OTHER weapons of mass destruction that were very hard to find and dismantle . . . those IEDs. And sharp-shooting snipers.

Every time I watch "The Hurt Locker" I see and appreciate yet another aspect of its artfulness.

Carolyn -- how many of them Grape Tootsie Roll pops do you want?

[Carolyn]

Ain't out to gouge you all, just expecting the one from each loser. Gonna be the sweetest suck ever. Thank you, and thanks to half-a for already planning the delivery. The packaging concerns me, as I'm thinking that my pops may arrive in bitlets. But, whatchagonnado?

[Flannista]

Some year we'll have to watch the Oscars together, dcsistah. Thanks so much for sassing in . . . and for providing the Salon link to that odd Kanye-moment last night. We could not understand what was going about the filmmakers of the documentary short, "Music by Prudence." Well, according to this article, they've been feuding and took the feud to the stage. Wasn't this film about Prudence, the young woman in the wheelchair?

Yes, yes, yes . . . a BIG yes to Jeff Bridges -- I love this dude, too, and agree with you that his BEST performance ever was in "Fearless" -- also a very, very good film that I own.

We, too, were happy about "The Cove." Matissta and I met the director at SilverDocs last year, when we first saw the film. Like we said then, we will never EVER go to Sea World again.

Love your movie-worshipping behind, dc.

[Flannista]

Carolyn -- did you watch the show? What did you think of other winners?

[Flannista]

A link to a New York Times article (published earlier this year) about why Kathryn Bigelow is a great filmmaker:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/21/movies/21darg.html?_r=1

[Flannista]

Hey, Matissta, I just noticed that you chose "The Hurt Locker" to win over "Avatar," too.

What kind of Tootsie Roll Pop do you want?

[babysis]

I enjoyed the show and the results. And while I miss going to a party like I did for many years, it was nice to not have to drive home afterwards.

Okay, I'll make it a point to go see The Hurt Locker now, so PEACE gets her wish.

Appreciate the 'splanation link from DC on that strange moment.

The Oscars will always last too long, have slow moments and goofy opening numbers, but being a night owl helps. I thought this year was better than usual with minimal political tones and the hosts were WAY less annoying than I expected.

[Flannista]

Please go see "The Hurt Locker," babysis. If we lived closer, I'd come on over to your house with my copy, that way, you wouldn't have to drive home afterwards.

Perhaps the most political moment was when that guy from "The Cove" tried to hold up a sign that said something about texting tuna . . . or something. I can't remember. I think dcsistah made a good point about giving the documentary award to a film about saving Flipper and not to ones about saving humans. Oh well.

And what about that saucy acceptance speech from the winner of Best Costume Design? "I already have two of these," she said, looking at the gold statuette. Good for you, missy.

[PEACEsista]

Yes, yes, Flann, I was annoyed by the first part of the costume designer's acceptance speech, but she went on to redeem herself a bit when she dedicated it to all the designers who work on modern and low-budget films, who work just as hard, but don't get recognized for it. Now, I doubt with another statue on her mantel that she will be signing-up to DO a low-budget film any time soon!

Thanks, babysis, for going to see The Hurt Locker. I, too, am thrilled that it won so many awards.

[Flannista]

PEACE -- has nowayasista seen "The Hurt Locker"? I'm really curious about his opinion of that movie.

Also, I can't believe you went to see that movie ALONE last summer. How did you deal with all the tension?

[Flannista]

I had vowed to donate a kidney or something if "The Hurt Locker" did NOT win Best Film Editing. Whew! However, I was disappointed that it did not also win Best Cinematography. To me, those awards are inseparable. Can't make one look really good without the other.

Any opinions on that?

Also, we're assuming Jerseysista is still in bed, but once she wakes up, I'd like her to share with the 'sphere why she did not like "The Hurt Locker."

[PEACEsista]

Flann, the tension of watching the movie was NOTHING compared to that of having a kid deployed to Iraq. No comparison. I would not recommend seeing the movie to anyone with a kid deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan.

Noway is more inclined to accept our veteran son's assessment of the movie (see comment yesterday) than any movie critic's. Peter is not a fan. They were not rooting for it to win anything. I, however, believe that we must really look at war, fictionalized and real, to understand the energy of it, if we are ever going to find a way to peace.

[Flannista]

I guess it is a testament to it's artfulness that "The Hurt Locker" is both appreciated AND despised by Iraq war veterans. I agree with you that we need to understand the "energy" of war if we are ever able to come to peace. I will try and find some links to positive reviews of the film from Iraq war vets.

[Jerseysista]

I do not have the eye that Flann or Matiss has for camera angles, lighting, editing and other tools of the trade that are the true palettes for the directors and cinematographers. Sometimes I need someone to draw my attention to those aspects of a film for me to realize the artistry. I have to say that the first time I saw The Hurt Locker, I was oblivious. The second time I was much more aware, thanks to Flann’s tutoring, and could appreciate Kathryn Bigelow’s talent and skill as an artist.

But, as far as a director making a film that is relevant and meaningful, all I can say is it is a good thing the vast majority of her audience were not people like me. The film did not say much that was worthwhile to me. It seemed to me that the movie was trying to do two things. First, it portrays one of those rare people who get addicted to the constant adrelanline rush and how their relentless and reckless pursuit to satisfy that need endangers those around them and leaves their family abandoned and it seems to say that the military needs a few of that sort of reckless hero. The second goal of the movie seemed to be to present a boots-on-the-ground, first-hand exposure to the life of soldiering. The movie seemed to be urging me to go away saying, “Wow. I never knew it was like that in Iraq.”

The movie’s approach of filming, as if by an embedded journalist or as if it were a documentary, tells me that the goal was to convince me of a reality. Don’t get me wrong. I love movies that try to convince me of something. I imagine I would love The Cove for this reason, if I could summon the courage to watch it. Avatar attempted to convince me that technology assisting corporate control of warfare is a dangerous concoction. I appreciate Avatar’s message though I think it was clumsily conveyed. (I felt kind of clubbed over the head by that message.)

The beef I have with The Hurt Lockler is that it, unlike Avatar, did a masterful and subtle job of delivering its message but the message itself was a deceit. The message was: “Forget about the politics of the left and the right. Look at the individual soldiers and what life is like for them.” I went to the movie expecting to get an exposure of what life must be like for the soldiers but I felt betrayed. Which part of the film was I to take as true life for the soldier. The reckless bomb squad hero? The caricatures of the upper brass or army psychiatrists? Perhaps I was seeing a true reflection of day-to-day life of the ordinary soldier but how would I know? Most people seem to think the movie opened their eyes to a reality. I think, “How would you know?”

For me, fiction is good for conveying abstract messages, like political views or outrage at injustice or contradictions in motives or emotions. Fiction is not the tool to use to convince of facts. If you want to show someone reality, show them reality. Do a documentary. The message could have been much more powerful had Bigelow used her masterful skills in that genre.

[Matissta]

Overall, there were no surprises. (Remember, I selected The Hurt Locker like Carolyn. And I like chocolate.)

I thought that Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin were OK as hosts. Bill Crystal is still my favorite Oscar host.

My thanks to dc as well for posting the link about the Kayne moment. I wasn't sure what was going on. It was odd to say the least.

Although The Cove isn't a movie that you "enjoy," it is an important one to see. I think often we all tend to avoid movies because they're not something we want to witness. Truthfully Jersey, I watched the movie through my fingers and closed my eyes for the difficult parts, but it is something that the public must become aware of. The slaughter of dolphins and porpoises needs to stop.

[Flannista]

Jersey -- your comment is so thoughtful I must sit with it awhile. Thanks so much for taking the time to share your very cogent thoughts with us.

And I agree with Matissta -- you need to see "The Cove." Sorry, you just do.

[Matissta]

Jersey, didn't you say the complete opposite about fiction when it came to writing?

[PEACEsista]

Jersey, thank you for your thoughtful comment. "The reckless bomb squad hero" was one of the elements my veteran son reacted to most, feeling that it portrays professional well-trained soldiers badly. He said the guy would never have been sent out on another mission after his first reckless act. He'd be done.

I'm thinking that to the non-military embedded journalist, who wrote the screenplay, probably all of it seemed reckless. He needed an angle and a "hero" for his story, which is fiction. My son did not quarrel with the way the overall situation was portrayed: the day-to-day tedium and suspense of being deployed, bombs, snipers, the ruin of the cities and making examples of children who befriend soldiers. Those images contained truth and even just for those, I think that it is worth it for people to see the movie.

[Flannista]

Good point, Matissta.

I thought about this a bit . . . not as long as I would have wanted to as I have a full schedule today, but I must rise to Jersey's generous ponderings.

"If you want to show someone reality, show them reality. Do a documentary." Jersey, this is your bottom line. So in a documentary about an Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit in Iraq, we show actual bombs going off? Actual soldiers losing actual limbs? And we work with the enemy to know precisely when the bombs will go off in order to get the best camera angles? I know this is not what you mean, but you get my point.

Many veterans have said that "The Hurt Locker" is "tactically unrealistic." For example, an EOD unit would never split up alone and go chasing bad guys at night through city streets without communications gear. Of course this unit would not do this. The point is that director Kathryn Bigelow and screenwriter Mark Boal chose to focus on explosions as the signature experience of the war. This EOD unit is a perfect microcosm of the endless, metaphorical booby-traps laid by negligent war planners. These explosions are symbols, much the way the game of Russian Roulette was a symbol in "The Deer Hunter." Do you believe that soldiers in Vietnam actually played Russian Roulette? I don't think so, but that game became a symbol for the crapshoot that war was. Do you think soldiers actually surfed while a village was being bombed in "Apocalypse Now"? Surfing was a symbol of how nonsensical that war was and how it was fought by many soldiers in a drug-induced haze.

Even soldiers themselves sometimes resort to invention when crafting their own stories of the war. Who can blame them? Tim O'Brien, a Vietnam veteran who wrote an award-winning, fictionalized account of his in-country service said this through one of his characters in The Things They Carried (again, fiction): "I want you to feel what I felt. I want you to know why story-truth is truer sometimes than happening-truth."

"The Hurt Locker" is story-truth.

[Flannista]

PEACE's comment came while I was composing mine, but I could not agree with her more. "The reckless bomb squad" hero was NEVER INTENDED TO BE REALISTIC. If he had been, we would never have come to appreciate what he does in the short amount of time we have in a film experience.

The difference between writing a story and simply relating facts is that a story, in order to be understood -- and often acceptable -- must have shape and meaning. It is the old idea that art is the bringing of order out of chaos. War is chaos. The men and women who fight in wars deserve the honor of transforming their experiences into art.

[Flannista]

PEACE -- I don't think I properly acknowledged this: "Flann, the tension of watching the movie was NOTHING compared to that of having a kid deployed to Iraq. No comparison." In re-reading that comment right now, I was struck not only by your bravery is seeing "The Hurt Locker" as a way of furthering your peace work, but more, the bravery you and nowayasista had in seeing a child go off to war. Of course that tension is so much worse.

[Jerseysista]

Just got off a conference call and back to the sass. Flann, the symbolism went right by me in The Hurt Locker. If the film had been done in a more traditional fictional format, I may have caught the symbolism but because of the way the film was done I was geared to view it as a straight-forward presentation and, so, took it at face value. So, you can see that, from my perspective, it looked like a straight run of explosion after explosion displayed for little purpose except to exhibit the adrenaline junkie’s fate.