Thoughts on Last Night's Oscars: The Winners and Losers

So last night was the Oscars, and there really weren't any super big, spellbinding surprises with the winners and losers. Once the Golden Globes and SAG awards happened, we were pretty much told who the winners and losers were going to be. However, even when there are clear favorites, nothing's ever for certain, so let's take a look at the major categories of the night.

Let's take at look at Best Picture...

"127 Hours"
"Black Swan"
"The Fighter"
"Inception"
"The Kids Are All Right"
(Winner) "The King's Speech"
"The Social Network"
"Toy Story 3"
"True Grit"
"Winter's Bone"

I was actually surprised that after all of the accolades that "The King's Speech" was getting all night, that "The Social Network" didn't nab this award. "Inception" was another dark horse contender, but I was almost shocked that the only thing "The Social Network" won was "Best Adapted Screenplay." The other movies? All good, but no chance they were going to win.

Best Actor

Javier Bardem, "Biutiful"
Jeff Bridges, "True Grit"
Jesse Eisenberg, "The Social Network"
(Winner) Colin Firth, "The King's Speech"
James Franco, "127 Hours"

It was Colin Firth's turn, and pretty much a lock that Colin Firth was going to win. Not much to report on there. Jesse Eisenberg maybe was a thought, but it was Firth's night.

Best Actress

Annette Bening, "The Kids Are All Right"
Nicole Kidman, "Rabbit Hole"
Jennifer Lawrence, "Winter's Bone"
(Winner) Natalie Portman, "Black Swan"
Michelle Williams, "Blue Valentine"

Again, Portman was the clear winner as soon as award season started, but I think this was more hype induced than actual better acting being rewarded here. The Academy tends to have a habit of rewarding a younger actresses first well done novelty role. See Hudson, Kate and Paltrow, Gwyneth, rather than recognize a seasoned actress with a completely faceted performance in a rather ordinary movie. Annette Bening should have won last night. Hands down.

Best Supporting Actor

(Winner) Christian Bale, "The Fighter"
John Hawkes,"Winter's Bone"
Jeremy Renner, "The Town"
Mark Ruffalo, "The Kids Are All Right"
Geoffrey Rush, "The King's Speech"

When the nominees came out, Geoffrey Rush was the clear favorite, but as "The Fighter" gained steam with critics, and became more and more recognized in awards ceremonies, Christian Bale pulled further and further ahead to become the clear favorite. His performance was riveting, and in a completely different class as the rest in the group.

Best Supporting Actress

Amy Adams, "The Fighter"

Helena Bonham Carter, "The King's Speech"

(Winner) Melissa Leo, "The Fighter"

Hailee Steinfeld, "True Grit"

Jacki Weaver, "Animal Kingdom"

Supporting Actress, might have been the only category more up for grabs than the rest. All of the actresses gave superb performances in their movies, but in the end, Melissa Leo was going to pull ahead and win it all. She even gave us the highlight of the night with the famous F-bomb dropping in her acceptance speech.

Best Director

Darren Aronofsky, "Black Swan"

David Fincher, "The Social Network"

(Winner) Tom Hooper, "The King's Speech"

David O. Russell, "The Fighter"

Joel and Ethan Coen, "True Grit"

Again, if there were a category I thought "The Social Network" was going to take, I thought it might be this category or "Best Picture." I also wouldn't have been all that surprised if Darren Aronofsky walked away with the Oscar for "Black Swan" because he managed to roll so many different genres into one. But in the end, "The King's Speech" took this title as well, and gave Tom Hooper the Oscar.

Last night's Oscars was probably one of the most uneventful awards shows in recent history. In a year of wonderful movies, it was rather anticlimactic to end it with such a predestined ceremony. What did you think of the winners? Did the right people win or would you have like to have seen someone else with the trophy?