Oscar Yawner

Wow, that was a pretty boring Oscar telecast last night. I had a great time at the party I went to, but the show itself left much to be desired. Some random observations:

• James Franco and Anne Hathaway ventured into David Letterman/Whoopi Goldberg territory as all-time worst hosts. Franco in particular was really, really bad. The taped bit at the beginning was good, but once they were live, all downhill.
• I lost the pool because I was the only one to pick Hallie Steinfeld for "True Grit." The little punk lost and so she joins Amy Adams on my list (I lost the pool when I went solo on picking Amy Adams for "Junebug" and she didn't come through).
• The presenter/winner combination of Kirk Douglas and Melissa Leo was pretty weird and at times a little cringe-worthy.
• Our host, Carolyn, won the pool after a long drought (no one ever dominates, we all take turns winning). She also made some excellent shrimp!
• Oh to be like Randy Newman where you can sing so poorly yet reap such a long career.
• I was the only one to successfully pick "God of Love" for best live action short film. I have no idea what significance that holds, but figured I might as well put it out there.
• One of the biggest standing ovations of the night was when Billy Crystal came out as a presenter. Hmm, perhaps the Academy should take note and book him now for 2012?
• Humming any of the nominated songs from last night? Didn't think so.
• Best acceptance speech? Uh, I guess the old dude who won screenplay for The Kings Speech and the Director who thanked his mom.
• Worst acceptance speech? Pretty much everyone else, but Melissa Leo set the bar high with her F-bomb, rambling speech.
• Carolyn kept us informed of Tweets by Roger Ebert, Bill Maher, and others. These were as entertaining as anything on the show.
• They no longer allow the audience to clap during the dead people montage. So now, you no longer here the loud applause for the big movie star followed by a few random claps for the the costume designer from "Gigi."
• Why do the hosts announce someone to the stage, and then this person's sole reason for being there is to announce someone else to the stage to do the actual presentation?
• Cheesy as it often was, sometimes I miss the Oscar telecasts of old, complete with Rob Lowe and Snow White, endless clips, big production numbers, and Jack Nicholson grinning from the front row.

Oscar Movies, Part II

Some more of this year's nominees:

Best Picture Nominee: The King's Speech
Colin Firth plays Prince Albert, who becomes King of England when his brother abdicates the throne to marry his American mistress. Problem is, Albert has a major stammering problem, which wreaks havoc for someone that's expected to give public speeches. This is even more pronounced as this takes place in the run-up to World War II. So he seeks out the help of a speech therapist, played by Geoffrey Rush. Both Firth and Rush were nominated for acting awards, as was Helena Bonham Carter, who plays Albert's wife. Very good movie, one that seemed made for Oscars. This is considered the front runner, but I still believe The Social Network was better, but you won't go wrong seeing this one, it is still very good. Note: The movie is inexplicably rated R. This is basically for two brief outbursts of profanity, part of his "therapy," that is all done in a very humorous manner, not offensive at all. The rest of the movie is perfectly clean. Take away those instances and this is a very good movie for all ages.

Best Picture Nominee: Inception
Big summer movie that I missed when it was in theatres. Wasn't enticed by the previews, seemed too convoluted or another variation on The Matrix. But I was very wrong. This is an excellent movie. All about Leonardo DiCaprio who specializes in entering people's dreams and extracting info. But this time he is hired to enter someone's dream and plant info. I know, sounds kinda strange, but it is all easy to follow and the movie hums along quickly, even at 2 1/2 hours. Directed by Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins, Dark Knight). He knows his way around action movies. Very original concept, although movie buffs may recognize the basic concept from an 80's movie with Dennis Quaid. Highly recommended, and of the Best Picture nominees, I'd call this one my 2nd favorite behind The Social Network.

Best Picture Nominee: Winter's Bone
Obscure movie that no one saw when it was released. Young girl with a do-nothing mom is basically raising her little brother and sister. Finds out their house and land will be taken away if her dad (who long deserted them) doesn't show up for a court date. Quiet movie, rather bleak, but still well done. Oscar nominations for unknowns Jennifer Lawrence as the daughter and someone else who I can't remember as one of her uncles, who is quite good. It won't win anything, but it's worth checking out, but it's not the most uplifting movie you'll ever see.

Rooting Against the Steelers

It's not that I have anything against the Pittsburgh Steelers, it's just that, okay, yeah, I do have a LOT against them. Every team I've ever rooted for have had their aspirations one way or another thwarted by this team.

The first team I ever rooted for were the Dallas Cowboys, back in the Landry, Staubach years. Later on, after moving to Indiana, I picked up the Colts. The moving to Arizona, I was there when the Cardinals came to town and was a season ticket holder their first two years (so I can truly say I've been an Arizona Cardinals fan all my life). But woven amongst all three of those teams, have been the Steelers.

• 1976 - Super Bowl X. Cowboys v. Steelers. Lynn Swann makes an incredible acrobatic catch that Bradshaw threw from his own end zone. This got them out of trouble and lead the way to victory.
• 1979 - Super Bowl XIII. Another Cowboys v. Steelers matchup. Featured the most agonizing dropped ball in history as Jackie Smith, wide open, dropped an easy Staubach pass for a sure touchdown. Had to settle for field goal. They ended up losing by 4 points.
• 1995 - AFC Championship. Colts v. Steelers. The Colts had the game won so many times, but kept letting the Steelers back in. One play left, Jim Harbaugh of the Colts throws a Hail Mary pass to the end zone. The ball bounces up and comes down right on top of a Colts receiver. I mean, it lands right on his stomach. But he can't grab ahold of it and it fall to the ground. Game over.
• 2004 - AFC Divisional Playoffs. Colts v. Steelers. The Colts are about to lose as Pittsburgh drives for a touchdown to seal the win. Then Jerome Bettis fumbles at the goal line, Colts run it back to midfield. Peyton Manning drives them downfield. Time for a field goal to send it into over time . . . . not even close.
• 2009 - Super Bowl. Steelers v. Cardinals. The most agonizing loss ever for a team I've rooted for. Cardinals ready to go up by 4 points at halftime and Kurt Warner throws an interception. Time has expired. But wait, the Steeler defender is still running, still running. Somebody stop him!!! No one does. Touchdown, Steelers up by 10. But in the second half, Cardinals come back. Time running out, Warner hits Larry Fitzgerald running across the field and he scampers in for a touchdown. The kickoff pins the Steelers deep into their own territory. They just have to hold Roethlisberger. They don't.

Curse you Steelers and your six Super Bowl rings. Sorry, but here's hoping you don't win another. Yes, I'm a SORE LOSER!!