Last night was The 2014 Academy Awards and I personally felt they were better than they’ve been in the last few years. Here are my top 10 highlights:
1. Ellen Degeneres as host.
Ellen was fun, playful and interactive, going down into the audience frequently to engage with the famous and glitterati with no compunction. She took a selfie of herself and about 10 other huge stars sitting in the front row, that literally crashed Twitter for about 3 minutes. She ordered pizza and stood there handing out slices to Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts and Kevin Spacey. (Brad and Angie asked for pepperoni, by the way). Then she asked them all to pay for it, saying she didn’t have enough money. And later she came out in a Glenda the Good Witch gown! Best part of the night was how the stars all seemed to be having so much fun with Ellen.
2. Pharrell Williams performing “Happy.”
For some reason, this song never gets old, I could listen to it forever. Pharrell wore a black version of his Yogi Bear hat and went down into the audience where he danced with Meryl and Lupita who both rocked it out.
3. Jared Leto’s Best Supporting Actor speech.
Jared gave a beautiful and moving speech about how his single mother Constance (his date for the evening) supported and encouraged Leto and his brother which brought the house down. He gave an honest and thoughtful speech where he recognized his fellow nominees as well as the 36 million who have died from aids.
4. Lupita Nyong’o’s Best Supporting Actress Speech.
Another moving segment of the evening. This beautiful young actress wowed me with her eloquence and poise. She brought the house down with her inspirational speech which closed with her quote: “No matter where you’re from, your dreams are valid.”
5. John Travolta mispronounced Idina Menzel’s name right before her “Let It Go” performance.
She sure must have had to let it go, to have the presence of mind to belt the song out the way she did after having John make such a major faux pas. And, of course, someone put up a twitter handle for “Adela Dazeem” within minutes and they already have over 12,000 followers!
6. Jennifer Lawrence fell down. Again.
And that was even before the show started, while she was still walking down the red carpet. And once again, she proves herself to be the most charming person who we all want as our BFF, because she just held her head high and laughed it all off.
7. The Divine Miss M poured her heart out and made us all cry.
Bette Midler sang right after the In Memoriam segment which had me crying as soon as the first image of James Gandolfini went up. And she looks gorgeous, by the way.
8. Pink brought the house down singing “Somewhere Over The Rainbow.”
Who knew that Pink would be able to hold her own with Hollywood’s best and brightest? She sang passionately and looked gorgeous in a classy red gown.
9. Cate Blanchett called out the industry for not paying enough attention to women.
Cate won for best actress (not a surprise as she’d won so many other of the seasons award shows) and during her speech she spoke about the need for more films starring women, catering to women since we all spend money and women’s films make money! She also wore one of the evenings most stunning flesh colored gowns embellished with beautiful beading and pailettes.
10. Matthew McConaughey’s best actor award.
Alright, alright, alright! His lovely reference to his dad “sitting up there in heaven with a beer” was so true to his persona.
What did you think? What were your favorite Oscar moments?
Sarah Rudell Beach says
Agreed on your top 10 – I loved Ellen as host, and loved Pink’s performance. And the speech about his mom? Oh my, lovely! I thought it was a great show!
Claudia Schmidt says
Wasn’t it a fun night, Sarah!? So much fun!!
conniemcleod says
I completely agree with your top ten list. It was a fun night to enjoy. Now I’ve got a long list of movies to see.
Claudia Schmidt says
Thanks, Connie! I haven’t seen all of them either, the one I most need to see is Ten Years a Slave, but I just need to be in the right frame of mind, because I think it will be extremely tough to watch. Ellen was such fun, she made the night!
Tina Gordon says
Great job on the recap. I totally agree with everything here. Tina Gordon
Claudia Schmidt says
Why thank you, Tina! High praise from you, who are such a movie aficionado. I realized I forgot to include Darlene Love’s singing acceptance speech, which left me cheering!
Kathleen O'Donnell says
I thought Ellen killed. She was just biting enough. I even thought her Liza Minnelli joke was funny. But, that’s just me. I read an article today about Jared Leto…the transgender community is mad at him…but what stuck out to me is…he’s 42 years old! WTF? I need a surgeon.
Claudia Schmidt says
Yeah, she was so much fun, the audience just loved her, which made it even more fun. That whole pizza episode was a riot, I can’t believe they were snorfing down pizza with those gowns on! I can’t believe he’s 42 either, he sure does not age!
Jennifer Steck says
I think you caught all of mine, Claudia. The only thing I didn’t like was Ellen’s mean comment to Liza Minnelli. Jared and Lupita were fabulous!
Claudia Schmidt says
It was surprisingly snarky for Ellen, I agree. I also forgot to mention the Darlene Love singing acceptance speech which was so fun!
Nancy's Point says
Hi Claudia, Fabulous recap. I try to watch the Oscars every year because it’s another way for me to remember my mother. She loved movies and never missed this event. I miss all the “movie talking” we always did. My favorite moment was when “Twelve Years A Slave” won best picture. It was my choice hands down and I was a little worried “Gravity” was going to keep winning. I also enjoyed all the things you mentioned. I love Ellen Degeneres and she was great all night, except for when she made the mean-spirited comments to Liza Minnelli. I was sorta surprised by that. All in all, a fun show this year. Thanks for the terrific recap!
Claudia Schmidt says
Hi Nancy, I used to watch all of these shows with my parents too, both my mom and dad were big movie buffs. We would all get ready and sit around waiting for it to start….such nice memories. I thought Ellen’s comment about LIza Minelli was unexpectedly mean of her also, she’s usually so nice, but I thought she was really fun for the rest of the night. When they announced Twelve Years a Slave, I was sooo excited! What a momentous event.
Josie says
Nice recap Claudia! I totally agree with all of your reviews, but did have to go “youtube” some because I went to bed early.
Pink is a bodacious woman whom I admire because she gutsy but smart enough to tone it down when needed. She showed her true — mature– colors with her Oscar night performance.
Thanks,
Josie
Claudia Schmidt says
I love Pink, she’s such a one of a kind. She’s really matured as a strong and powerful performer. Thanks for stopping by!
Cathy says
I think you got all of my thoughts, Claudia. So great recap!
The “In Memoriam” always gets to me. And, yes, I teared up when seeing James Gandolfini, and then again with Harold Ramis.
A fun night of viewing! Great post.
Claudia Schmidt says
They were both so young and so full of life that it was very sad, and Bette just belted that song out, I’ve always loved her. Thanks for reading!
Lisa @ Grandmas Briefs says
Ah, I’m with you 100% on each and every one of your points. Well, except Jennifer Lawrence stumbling; I didn’t see that (not sure where I was!). I was surprised and thoroughly touched by Matthew McConaughey’s speech. Loved it.
Most of all, I love Ellen. She made all the difference!
Claudia Schmidt says
I know, I think the reason it was so successful and had such strong ratings is because of Ellen, she’s really fun. Google Jennifer Lawrence’s fall, you’ll see it all over youtube. Very funny, she just laughed it all off, it was just so predictable after last year.