The Artist, Hugo share Oscar spoils
- The Artist and Hugo tied with five Oscars apiece. No surprises in most predictable Oscars in years
That Hollywood loves nostalgia, especially when it is about the movies, is a truism and this year’s Oscars proved exactly that with The Artist [+see also:
film review
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interview: Michel Hazanavicius
film profile] and Hugo picking up five statuettes each.
The ceremony itself was an indication that the Academy needs to pull up its socks and move with the times. James Franco was universally derided for his lack of hosting skills last year and Eddie Murphy was due to redress that this year. However, Murphy had to pull out and was replaced by the reliable Billy Crystal, returning for his ninth spell as host. The result was a bloated evening filled with a plethora of tired jokes. The point being made, endlessly, was that the evening was a celebration of cinematic magic. But surely that’s a given for any Oscar ceremony and why millions of punters tune in yearly anyway. In the absence of any new direction, in retrospect Franco’s choice now seems inspired.
The awards themselves provided no surprises whatsoever with even armchair pundits, let alone cinema experts being able to predict every prize. Hugo provided some early buzz but thereafter it was The Artist all the way. Perhaps the Academy needs to rethink its positioning at the end of a crowded awards calendar because other majors like the BAFTAs and Golden Globes routinely award the same films anyway.
The Artist won most of the coveted awards including Best Film, Best Director for Michel Hazanavicius (pictured), Best Actor for Jean Dujardin, Best Score for Ludovic Bource and Costume Design for Mark Bridges.
Martin Scorsese’s Hugo won most of the top technical awards including Art Direction, Cinematography, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing and Visual Effects.
Meryl Streep duly won Best Actress for The Iron Lady [+see also:
film review
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making of
film profile], Christopher Plummer a long overdue Supporting actor gong for Beginners and Octavia Spencer Supporting actress for The Help.
Full list of winners
Actor in a Leading Role
Jean Dujardin - The Artist
Actor in a Supporting Role
Christopher Plummer – Beginners
Actress in a Leading Role
Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady
Actress in a Supporting Role
Octavia Spencer – The Help
Animated Feature Film
Rango – Gore Verbinsk
Art Direction
Hugo - Production Design: Dante Ferretti; Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo
Cinematography
Hugo – Robert Richardson
Costume Design
The Artist – Mark Bridges
Directing
The Artist – Michel Hazanavicius
Documentary (Feature)
Undefeated - TJ Martin, Dan Lindsay and Rich Middlemas
Documentary (Short Subject)
Saving Face - Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
Film Editing
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
Foreign Language Film
A Separation – Iran
Makeup
The Iron Lady - Mark Coulier and J. Roy Helland
Music (Original Score)
The Artist – Ludovic Bource
Music (Original Song)
Man or Muppet from The Muppets - Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie
Best Picture
The Artist - Thomas Langmann, Producer
Short Film (Animated)
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore - William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg
Short Film (Live Action)
The Shore - Terry George and Oorlagh George
Sound Editing
Hugo - Philip Stockton and Eugene Gearty
Sound Mixing
Hugo - Tom Fleischman and John Midgley
Visual Effects
Hugo - Rob Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossmann and Alex Henning
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
The Descendants - Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash
Writing (Original Screenplay)
Midnight in Paris [+see also:
trailer
film profile] – Woody Allen
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