Academy Awards

The Academy Awards look toward next year

by Jake Davis

The 83rd annual Academy Awards occurred last week and there weren't many surprises.

"The King's Speech," behind a late push from the British theater and the Producer's Guild Association, took the spoils in Best Picture. More impressing than that, however, Tom Hooper's film is the first film to be awarded four of the Big Five (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Screenplay) since "American Beauty" in 2001.

"The Social Network" brought in a disappointing haul. The early favorite only received awards for three of its eight nominations. Director David Fincher must still await his long desired directing Oscar.

Natalie Portman and Wally Pfister were amongst the first time Oscar winners for their respective work in "Black Swan" and "Inception."

"Inceptions" unmatched imaginative prowess swept the sound editing and visual effects awards. While palpable performances by Christian Bale and Melissa Leo aided "The Fighter" in knocking out the supporting role categories.

The awards were not much for surprises; however, outside of a creative opening piece, the hosts were entirely shocking.

Anne Hathaway was so surprised and thrilled that she was asked to host the Oscars that she forgot how to act. Or maybe she never really knew how. You can't really blame the poor girl though. Despite an overly raunchy and overtly steamy appearance in "Love and Other Drugs," it seems she will always be the awkward, excessively giddy "tween" from "The Princess Diaries."

James Franco on the other hand was too "exhausted" to remember why he was asked to be a host. His lackluster approach stuck out like a sore thumb next to the overeager babbling of his counterpart.

The 83rd Oscars were down nine percent in ratings from 2009 and failed to appeal to a younger audience as the Academy had hoped. But this is not due to a less spectacular list of award winning movies.

"The Social Network" will be a film that defines a generation and speaks volumes about society. Inception pushed the boundaries of reality and moved blockbusters to a new level. The Coen brothers remade John Wayne's "True Grit" with absolute class regardless of a need for Cogburn subtitles. Danny Boyle's repackaging of the amazing story of Aron Ralston shook audiences and retold a painful story of redemption with gut-wrenching tangibility.

Source : The Samford Crimson