Here are some of the evening's winners:
Best picture: Slumdog Millionaire
Best Actress: Kate Winslet (The Reader)
Best Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz (Vicky Christina Barcelona)
Best Actor: Sean Penn (Milk)
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight)
Best Animated Feature: Wall-E
Best Make-up: Greg Cannom (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button)
Best Costume Design: Michael O'Connor (The Duchess)
Best Original Screenplay: Dustin Lance Black (Milk)
In my opinion, the two best speeches of the evening were those of Dustin Black and Sean Penn, both for Milk. They spoke about their pride for the movie but also for the rights of gay, lesbian, and bisexual people all over the world. Mr. Black even had tears in his eyes during both speeches.
Now, on to one of the most talked about aspects of the Oscars: the oufits!
We'll start with the men:
Seth Rogen showed up wearing a very nice (very classy) tux. The twist, however, was that the jacket was made out of velvet.
Robert Downey Jr. looked as handsome as he always does. The only two things that I didn't care for was his tie -it was much too thick, it looked like it was trying to eat his lapel- and his hair.
Mickey Rourke, nominated for his part in The Wrestler, went down a different path. He wore a white suit with -if memory serves me correct- a black vest and no tie. He had multiple chains on his vest as well as his pants. His outfit, not the best but not the worst, but his hair looked as though he hadn't seen a shower in a few months and he wore sunglasses throughout the entire evening.
My favourite part of the evening was seeing all the beautiful gowns make their way down the red carpet. One major asset: sequins. Anne Hathaway, Marion Cottilard, Tina Fey, Kate Winslet and Jennifer Aniston were all sporting this theme. Shall we begin with the best?
Marissa Tomei looked absolutely stunning in her creamy-gray Versace gown. One shouldered, it had intricate folds everywhere:
Another woman sporting a gown of similar colour was Evan Rachel Wood. She wore a cream coloured gown and paired with her fair skin and lighter hair, it looked radiant. One concern though was that the chest did look a bit too large on her.
Another interesting gown was seen on Marion Cotillard. It was designed by John Galliano for Dior and it seemed that many women tried this look but only she got it. Although I think it could have done without the necklace, is the belt too much?
And there are always a few who don't quite get it:
And there are always a few who don't quite get it:
Beyonce - although the neckline was excellent, the rest of the dress left me wanting more. It seemed as though someone had ironed on the golden intricacies and the whole dress reminds me of tapestry.
Other fashion misses included Miley Cyrus (wearing a Zohamarod multi-layered sequined piece), Meryl Streep (wearing an army-green floor-length t-shirt), Sophia Loren (wearing a too-tight, too vomit-yellow dress with floating sleeves) and Sarah Jessica Parker (wearing what appears to be a princess' prom dress).Seeing as how it is only the day after the oscars, not too many pictures are out. I will get some as soon as possible to show you the pieces of art and the atrocities that made the 81st Academy Awards Ceremony.