It's An Honor Just To Be Nominated

After reading countless articles and reviews of last night's Oscar ceremonies, I sadly say that I agree with too much of what's already been said, beginning with the overarching theme of the evening being just "Good." It was a standard "Good." For more reasons than not, I'll need to elaborate on this as the post goes on.

Now I was nowhere as up to speed with seeing the Best Picture nominees this time around as I have been in years past. But I saw Frozen! And that was pure joy. I did, however, invest time in the Globes and the SAG Awards to get somewhat of an idea of what the Oscars would bring, and I wasn't far off with my predictions at all. 

Ok, Gina, who are you to give your two cents about the Oscars if you didn't even see these films?

An excellent point, snarky know-it-alls. Sure, I didn't see these films. But I can read good, real real good. And I do an exceptional job with keeping myself up to speed with film culture as well as what the HFPA (Hollywood Foreign Press Association) and the Academy look for when nominating films. I would HATE to have that job, though. How could I possibly narrow my decision down to 1 person, 1 film, 1 director, etc.? I'd be the one who suggests everyone gets a participation ribbon because I'd feel bad that you might've gone home with nothing. 

The timeline of the evening (unaware that it would actually run for 3.5 hours...*cough GRAMMYS cough*) began with the iconic red carpet showcasing; the epitome of Hollywood glam.

Best Dressed:

Women

Sandra Bullock

Charlize Theron

Kerry Washington

Jessica Biel

Men

Bradley Cooper

Jason Sudeikis

Matthew McConaughey

Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Granted there were many others who looked absolutely stunning, these folks stood out to me the most. Even Lady Gaga toned it down, and that's saying something.

As the ceremony portion took off, I had high hopes for what would be a cakewalk for someone like Ellen Degeneres. Unfortunately, most of the delivery was missed. Whoever wrote her lukewarm jokes with slow comedic timing did a 'good' enough job, and in hindsight, she should've written her own material. All in all it was really just so-so. A lot of improvisation on her end, especially the pizza bit leading into the infamous selfie that broke Twitter for a some amount of time. 

I will say though, that Ellen made the best of what she had to work with. The Glinda costume switch, hilarious. Jokingly calling the voters racist if 12 Years A Slave didn't win anything, uncomfortably funny. I can foresee her hosting again, maybe after Billy Crystal has another swing at it, and maaaaaaybe handing the opportunity over to Team Fey-Poehler? Yes? Ok?

And the Oscar Goes To:

It was clear the favored Lupita Nyong'o and Jared Leto would take home both Supporting Role Oscars.  'Gravity' earned everything it possibly could've for technical work, which is fair because...um..well..it takes.. place in outer space. Ha..ha...h. 

Nothing about the flow of the rest of the evening made it seem spectacular or whimsy, just 'good.' Other than those presumed wins, I didn't have a clue as to how the rest of it would pan out. Best Picture was still up in the air as well as Director and Actress. And although there were so many other categories in-between, it was clear that no movie was going to sweep every major award. This was Matthew McConaughey's first Oscar win (and he's been in the game about as long as Leo...awkward) and from all the hear-tell of his performance in 'Dallas Buyers Club,' you can guess that I'll probably be renting it in the Redbox future. Other winners like Cate Blanchet (who I don't particularly care for but LOVED in Blue Jasmine) and Alfonso Cuaron ended up received awards for Best Actress and Best Director. 

Most of the films nominated this year rushed to be in the nominating pool. It seemed like a majority of them were all released in late November through December just to make the voting cut. Logistics aside, I'm sure anyone who has ever attended the ceremony with purpose has genuinely said at one point that it's simply,

"An Honor Just To Be Nominated."

Even though actually receiving an award is considered the highest honor, you still earn a place in history just for being nominated, like being chosen to represent your country at the Olympics. YOU, made an impact somewhere in your craft and many people noticed it and want to recognize you for it. YOU, worked very hard for X amount of months, maybe years, on a production that may have kept you away from family and friends. YOU, did your homework by taking the time to research your character, or the time period, or understanding the technology it would take to better that film. 

The point of any awards show is not a matter of who won what, but who was chosen to have their name on the ballet. And that merit alone, is worth it.