"Thank you movie god," he
said, praising "all 3,000" people who worked on the movie with him --
as well as Taiwan, where some of the film was shot.
The film, a dark horse in
the best picture race, also won best score, best cinematography and
best visual effects. Cinematographer Claudio Miranda seemed particularly
overcome when accepting his honor, giving a rambling speech as he tried
to catch his breath.
James Bond is finally a musical winner.
After five decades and
countless hit theme songs, one of them finally won best song at the
Oscars: Adele's "Skyfall," which she co-wrote with Paul Epworth.
Quentin Tarantino won
best original screenplay for "Django Unchained." "This will be the
writers' year, man," he said, praising his fellow nominees.
Chris Terrio won adapted screenplay for "Argo," the film's second award of the night.
Anne Hathaway won best supporting actress for her performance as the doomed Fantine in "Les Miserables."
"It came true," she said, gazing at the trophy.
After several heartfelt
thank-yous, she looked at her husband of six months, Adam Shulman,
sitting in the audience. "Far and away the greatest moment of my life
was when you walked into it."
For the most part, the
85th Academy Awards have been a fairly low-key affair. However, high
notes have come from musical performances.
Shirley Bassey, the
original James Bond hit singer, dazzled with a version of "Goldfinger."
Soon after, Jennifer Hudson raised the roof -- and got a standing
ovation -- for a remarkable version of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not
Going," from "Dreamgirls." Hudson won an Oscar for playing Effie, who
sings the song, in 2006's film version. Adele sang her James Bond theme
song, "Skyfall," and Barbra Streisand sang "The Way We Were" for
co-writer Marvin Hamlisch, who concluded the "In Memoriam" segment.
The Oscars also had an
unusual occurrence -- a tie. It's happened before -- Katharine Hepburn
and Barbra Streisand famously tied for 1968's best actress -- but it's
rare enough that presenter Mark Wahlberg was caught off guard.
"We have a tie," he said, slightly stunned. "No BS, we have a tie."
This year's tie was in sound editing, with "Zero Dark Thirty" and "Skyfall" sharing the honor.
Waltz an early winner, MacFarlane an affable host
Christoph Waltz, who played a bounty hunter in "Django Unchained," won the first award of the night, best supporting actor.
"My unlimited gratitude
goes to Dr. King Schultz -- that is, his creator and the creator of his
awe-inspiring world, Quentin Tarantino," he said. Schultz was his
character in the movie.
Tarantino is up for original screenplay, though not best director. The film is up for best picture.
"Amour" won best foreign-language film. The Michael Haneke-directed work is also up for best picture.
"Brave" won best animated feature. "Searching for Sugar Man" won best documentary feature.
Host Seth MacFarlane
showcased a casual affability that, at times, made him seem more like a
guy in your living room telling jokes than an Oscar host. His
opening was uneven, but if audiences were worried about off-color
jokes, they found little to offend them -- except, perhaps, for one
remark: describing the violent "Django Unchained" as a "date movie" for
Chris Brown and Rihanna.
"This is what we were
afraid he'd do," MacFarlane said as an aside. A later crack about
Abraham Lincoln led to groans and the remark, "A hundred-fifty years,
and it's still too soon?"
The early jokes were
quickly interrupted by William Shatner, in costume as "Star Trek's"
James T. Kirk, telling MacFarlane what he could do to improve headlines
from the future stating he was the "worst Oscar host ever." The
suggestions included a handful of song-and-dance numbers, though there
was also a performance of the movie "Flight" with sock puppets.
MacFarlane demonstrated a fine singing voice -- though anybody familiar
with the musical numbers in his animated TV shows already knew that.
MacFarlane's jokes got
sharper as the show went on. Welcoming Michael Douglas and Jane Fonda to
give the best director honor, he quipped, "They remember when this town
was cocaine trees as far as the eye can see."
"My taste aside, this is
a great show for people who love Seth MacFarlane and musical theater.
Which is pretty much Seth MacFarlane," tweeted Time's James Poniewozik.
Red carpet raves
On the red carpet, Jessica Chastain's dusty rose Armani gown earned particular raves.
"It was a 'Happy
birthday, Mr. President' type of dress," Chastain told CNN's Piers
Morgan, referring to the snug dress Marilyn Monroe wore for a John F.
Kennedy tribute years ago. Chastain's well-tailored outfit, combined
with her cascading reddish hair, evoked classic Hollywood glamor of the
'40s, fashion expert Joe Zee said.
The actress was as
excited as a child on Christmas morning as Morgan interviewed her. "I'm
at the Oscars!" she exclaimed. The performer is up for best actress for
her turn as a single-minded CIA officer pursuing Osama bin Laden in
"Zero Dark Thirty."
Aside from Chastain's
stunner, one of the more interesting outfits was worn by a man: that of
Mark Andrews, the director of the Pixar film "Brave." In honor of the
film -- about a champion Scottish archer who saves her family -- he was
wearing a kilt. The tartan pattern has been registered and the attire is
available for purchase, he told Morgan.
Lawrence, who's up for
best actress for her performance in "Silver Linings Playbook," was
wearing a flowing white-and-pink Dior number.
She refused to put on
airs, however. Told by Morgan that people are saying she's one of
Hollywood's rising stars, she laughed off the compliment.
"Are you sure that's not just my mom?" she replied.
Fashion, of course, is
as big an attraction as the films themselves on this, Hollywood's
biggest night, when "Who are you wearing?" becomes as commonplace an
utterance as "The Oscar goes to ..."
"It's a wonderful part of the Cinderella experience," Adams told CNN.
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