The 2011 Oscars: Memorable Moments

From the moment I read that James Franco and Anne Hathaway were tapped to host the 2011 Oscars, I knew the 83rd year for the Awards was going to be a troubling one. The Academy Awards have been declining in relevance for more than a decade, but instead of changing the format meaningfully to reverse that trend, the show insists each year on showcasing progressively less entertaining hosts, more awkward musical numbers and increasingly baffling montages.

While Franco and Hathaway are two likable actors, even together they couldn't amount to one worthwhile host. The duo lacked chemistry, Franco looked vacant and disengaged, and their performance only got worse and more tired as the event drudged along. Franco and Hathaway were ostensibly hired as a gimmick to attract a younger audience, but that failed predictably -- the 2011 Oscar ratings fell by almost 10%. I can understand why. The techno-savvy 18 - 25 age bracket is just going to watch the highlights on YouTube or wait for someone to post the most entertaining clips on a blog or in a Facebook feed. Academy Award bigwigs majorly underestimate this coveted demographic: the only way they'll ever attract that advertiser-friendly age bracket is by serving them something other than dreck, which, so far, is an idea they've refused to entertain.

The three best moments of the night had nothing to do with the awkward hosts. Kirk Douglas' appearance as an award announcer was both compelling and heartwarming. The thrice nominated actor (he was awarded an honorary Oscar in 1996), nonagenarian and stroke survivor deserved the standing ovation he received, although Justin Timberlake thoughtlessly belitted that moment later in the evening when he (albeit gently) poked fun at Douglas' stroke-affected, somewhat rambling announcement. The second best moment of the 2011 Oscars: a visibly pregnant, totally adorable Natalie Portman accepting her well-deserved Best Actress Oscar for "Black Swan." Portman is at the height of her career, and is clearly thrilled about it. The Harvard educated, refreshingly lucid actress beamed as she accepted her statue, although she, like other award recipients, seemed a bit lost in the ultra-minimal, black hole of a stage. Christian Bale offered up the night's only other watchable moment when he emotionally thanked his wife during his Best Supporting Actor acceptance speech for "The Fighter."

The three worst moments of the night, though, also weren't the bland hosts' faults. While some people liked the auto-tuned movie montage, I didn't find it funny; it was one of a series of failed attempts at "youth culture" that instead insulted the demographic (the joke might have been relevant in, like, 2007). During a similar assault on the ears, I actually had to look away during Gwyneth Paltrow's "True Grit" related singing performance. Paltrow is so painfully un-self aware. But the biggest disappointment of the evening was "The King's Speech" taking home all the most important awards, including Best Original Screenplay (David Seidler), Best Director (Tom Hooper), Best Actor (Colin Firth) and the highest award, Best Picture. Yes, "The King's Speech" was a good film. But it was also overrated and played it too safe in an obvious bid for Oscar attention (it worked!). The movie's most glaring flaw, aside from a few historical inaccuracies, was the bizarre attempt to give it a happy ending. Who cares if the king kicked his stutter? The movie has a real historical context that it blithely ignored. "Black Swan" used color, symbolism, obvious archetypes and horror movie-esque camera work to tell three or four stories simultaneously, resulting in a nuanced, meaning-rich film that demanded viewers use critical thinking and decoding skills. "Black Swan" deserved every award "The King's Speech" received.

BBC News: "Oscar Ratings Drop by 10% in US"
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-12605869