Economy Doesn't Keep Glamour Away at Oscars

When the economy starts to flounder, glitz and glamour are often traded in for more reasonable uses of money. The Academy Awards, though, did not suffer from this economic downturn; they were, in fact, glitzier than ever. The show, in an effort to regain viewers (2007 Oscars had 40 million viewers, the 2008 had only 32 million) restructured the awards show and created something magical.

The focus of the 81st Annual Academy Awards was on the presentation itself. For the many actors, producers, directors, editors, and others at the Kodak Theatre, the Academy Awards is the end all be all of great shows. In past years the feeling of glamour and beauty is poorly translated to television but this year the audience felt all of the fantasy and magic come through. The set of the Kodak Theatre was ornate and very old Hollywood. The crystal curtains were stunning and enveloped all those who were on stage. The stage floor resembled patterns that Michelangelo used in his plazas. In keeping with the old Hollywood theme, a showy bandstand was set up and the musicians played jazzy renditions of the typical Oscar themes.

During segments of the show the set was changed from simple backdrops to lavish sets to present the awards for Best Art Direction (“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”), Best Costume Design (“The Duchess”), and Best Make- Up (“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”). Before announcing the nominees for the Best Original Song, A.R. Rahman and Thomas Newman performed a medley of “Jai Ho”, “O Saya”, and “Down to Earth” bringing in Indian choreography.

Another performer of the night was Queen Latifah singing, “I’ll be Seeing You” in memoriam of the many people involved in the movie business that passed away within the last year. Generally, this moment leaves the crowd and at-home audience in tears. The crowd at the Kodak Theatre may have been moved but at-home audiences were far from moved. During this segment the camera, in an effort to portray the feel of the show, moved wilding about following the different screens on stage. Instead of being encompassed by the images of these people who are no longer with us the movement of the camera was distracting.

The glamour of the show continued by bringing back five previous winners in each category of Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress. The sense of awe from the crowd looking upon such talent was obvious and the Academy’s choice to present the awards in this was much stronger than in years past.

The Awards ended, quite sweetly with the awarding of the Best Picture, “Slumdog Millionaire”. Members of the cast and crew swarmed the stage and the excited amongst them and the rest of the audience was apparent. Danny Boyle, director of “Slumdog Millionaire” mentioned that the entire Academy Awards from the Kodak Theatre was, “Bloody wonderful”.