Despite some mumbled fears that The Academy might repeat its policy of using shock tactics as a form of publicity, Sunday night saw a comfortingly predictable ceremony pass off without too much fuss and devoid of any real controversy.
If a shock was to be had it was in the amount of awards The Bourne Ultimatum won, taking three of the nine technical categories, although you have to be looking pretty hard for a surprise to single that out! No Country for Old Men was the big winner, taking four of the major awards including Best Picture and Best Directors, as well as a thoroughly deserved Best Supporting Actor for Javier Bardem. Best Supporting Actress went to Tilda Swinton for Michael Clayton, a film which some considered to have a real outside chance of pipping No Country to the post for the Best Film nod.
In the Best Actor and Best Actress stakes The Academy again closely followed BAFTA in its choices with Marion Cotillard and Daniel Day-Lewis receiving yet more awards for their personal trophy cabinets. Cotillard provided the speech of the night, rather bizarrely thanking, amongst other things, ‘love’ and declaring that ‘this truly is a City of Angels’.
Every film night should have its own pantomime villain and the Oscars had theirs in the form of The Golden Compass which completely undeservedly claimed the award for Best Special Effects. Laying aside for a second that it is an awful, travesty of a film which completely wastes its stars and subject material, it was up against the impressive Transformers which made considerably greater use of technology than creating a few fluffy animals and one giant polar bear.
In many ways this particular ceremony was a no win situation for The Academy. Choosing, as they did, to back the safe bets led to a slightly stale night and very little publicity in the following day’s press. However, a repeat of previous year's slightly farcical, highly politicised awards (Martin Scorsese’s Best Director, Crash over Brokeback Mountain) would have turned the ceremony into a borderline joke. No such restraints on next year however, so eyes down and looking now for a series of outside bets to turn the tables on the sure things. The build-up starts now.
Full List of Winners:
Best Picture: No Country For Old Men
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis, There Will Be Blood
Best Actress: Marion Cotillard, La Vie En Rose
Best Supporting Actor: Javier Bardem, No Country For Old Men
Best Supporting Actress: Tilda Swinton, Michael Clayton
Best Director: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, No Country For Old Men
Best Animated Film: Ratatouille
Best Foreign Language Film: The Counterfeiters
Best Documentary: Taxi To The Dark Side
Best Original Screenplay: Diablo Cody, Juno
Best Adapted Screenplay: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, No Country For Old Men
Best Cinematogrpahy: Robert Elswit, There Will Be Blood
Best Editing: The Bourne Ultimatum
Best Art Direction: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street
Best Costume Design: Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Best Makeup: La Vie En Rose
Best Original Score: Atonement
Best Original Song: Falling Slowly, Once
Best Sound Editing: The Bourne Ultimatum
Best Sound: The Bourne Ultimatum
Best Visual Effects: The Golden Compass
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