When covering last year’s Academy Awards, I described the Academy as “playing safe” by bringing back Jimmy Kimmel as the master of ceremonies. Given that the late-night host famously became embroiled in a heated X exchange with then presidential candidate Donald Trump, the Academy played it even safer this year by selecting comedian and former late-night host Conan O’Brien to host the 97th Academy Awards. (RELATED: Let’s Make the Oscars Great Again: Trump Invades the Academy Awards)
Given Trump’s return to the White House in January, O’Brien, a first-time Oscar host, thought that it would be impossible to completely exclude political commentary from the ceremony but that he would avoid focusing on it, commenting in a press conference last Friday: “I think as host I cannot ignore the moment we’re in right now, but also it’s threading a needle … I want to do it with humor and also make sure the night doesn’t drift into only about that.”
O’Brien was, for the most part, true to his word. However, Friday’s heated exchange between President Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office was too much for the comedian to resist. About two hours into the ceremony, when referencing the Oscars awarded to the film Anora, which concerns a relationship between an American sex worker and the son of a Russian oligarch, he quipped, “Anora is having a good night. Two wins already. I guess Americans are excited to see somebody finally stand up to a powerful Russian.” (RELATED: Volodymyr Zelenskyy Deserved the Best Actor Oscar)
The evening included a few other political comments. Actress Darryl Hannah opened her presentation of the award for Best Editing proclaiming Slava Ukraini, which translates to “Glory to Ukraine.” The directors of No Other Land, the film awarded the Oscar for Best Documentary, used their acceptance speech to call for an end to the “ethnic cleansing” of the Palestinian people. One of the directors, Yuval Abrahim, criticized U.S. foreign policy for “blocking the path” to a potential peaceful solution for Israel and Palestine.
The aforementioned comments aside, Oscar’s biggest night was, as intended, an entertaining celebration of the seventh art. The independent film Anora was the big winner with five academy awards for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Editing, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Actress for Mikey Madison. Director Sean Baker (The Florida Project) is the first person in cinematic history to produce a film awarded Oscars for directing, producing, writing, and editing.
Ingenue Mikey Madison’s (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) Best Actress win for her beautifully nuanced performance as a sex worker who falls in love with the son of a Russian oligarch was a bit of a surprise. Although Madison, 25, had recently picked up the Best Actress award at BAFTA and the Spirit Awards, prognosticators were predicting Demi Moore, 62 (who had been awarded Best Actress prizes by SAG and Golden Globes) would take home the Oscar for her bold performance as an aging media personality in the body horror film The Substance. Madison, like Baker, acknowledged and thanked the sex worker industry in her acceptance speech, commenting, “I want to honor the sex worker community.”
Madison also praised her fellow nominees: “I also just want to recognize the thoughtful, intelligent, beautiful, breathtaking work of my fellow nominees. I’m honored to be recognized alongside all of you. This is a dream come true.” Not surprisingly, the camera pivoted to Moore during these remarks. And if anyone was expecting to catch the 40-year industry veteran looking upset, they were disappointed as Moore’s face was brimming with warm admiration for her fellow nominee.
As predicted, Adrian Brody was awarded the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in The Brutalist, marking his second Oscar win. Brody was previously awarded the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in The Pianist (2002), where he also played a holocaust victim. Brody, at the time just 29, was the youngest actor in history to be awarded the Best Actor Oscar.
Brody acknowledged the vicissitudes of his Hollywood career in his acceptance speech: “One thing that I’ve gained, having the privilege to come back here, is to have some perspective. No matter where you are in your career, no matter what you’ve accomplished, it can all go away. And I think what makes this night most special is the awareness of that.” These beautifully articulated reflective comments were a little overshadowed by Brody prolonging his time on the stage and instructing the technicians to shut off the exit music, claiming that “it was not his first time at the rodeo.”
Zoe Saldana, as anticipated, was awarded the Best Actress Oscar for her role in Emilia Perez by French director Jaques Audiard, a film that explored the life of four Mexican women. Emila Perez has been the subject of much controversy, including backlash from the Mexican community and the surfacing of controversial tweets that were described as racist from the film’s star, transgender Best Actress nominee Karla Sofía Gascón.
While Saldana stayed away from discussing her co-star, she did reference the feelings of the Mexican community in her acceptance speech:
These women are still very universal women that are struggling every day, but trying to survive systemic oppression and trying to find the most authentic voices. … So I will stand by that, but I’m also always open to sit down with all of my Mexican brothers and sisters, with love and respect, have a great conversation on how Emilia Pérez could have been done better. I welcome it.
Saldana also had a powerful moment when she declared, “I am a proud child of immigrant parents with dreams and dignity and hardworking hands, and I am the first American of Dominican origin to accept an Academy Award, and I know I will not be the last.”
Kieran Culkin provided humor to the evening when he accepted his Best Supporting Oscar for Jesse Eisenberg’s A Real Pain. He regaled attendees by recalling a memorable past conversation with his wife Jazz where she promised the father of two that she would give him a fourth child if he won an Oscar. “I just have this to say to you, Jazz — love of my life, ye of little faith — no pressure. I love you. I’m really sorry I did this again, and let’s get cracking on those kids.”
The 97th Academy Awards ceremony had several moving, reflective segments. The evening opened with a tribute to Los Angeles, the individuals who had lost their homes in the recent fires, the bravery of the firefighters, and the generosity of the individuals and businesses who play a key role in the community’s rebuilding efforts. Members of the LA Fire Department were even brought on stage, where they participated in a humorous bit by reading lines off of the teleprompter.
The Oscars’ annual tribute to the industry professionals who have passed away over the last year was particularly emotional since it included a tribute to two-time Oscar winner Gene Hackman, who was found dead in his home along with his wife earlier this week.
The evening included an appearance by the Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger, who presented the award for Best Original Song. The legendary artist joked that he wasn’t the first choice, but first choice Bob Dylan declined the invitation. Conan O’Brien also made a similar comment. The statement that Dylan turned down the invitation has proven to be true. It was probably just as well since A Complete Unknown, the Dylan biopic starring Timothée Chalamet, failed to win any Oscars despite eight nominations.
Overall, Conan O’Brien did a great job of keeping the awards ceremony moving, and the majority of the jokes were genuinely funny without being offensive.
Anora’s Sean Baker closed the ceremony by reminding the audience of not only the cultural significance of film but also the importance of the cinematic experience:
It’s a communal experience you simply don’t get at home, and right now, the theater-going experience is under threat. Movie theaters, especially independently owned movie theaters, are struggling, and it’s up to us to support them. During the pandemic, we lost nearly 1,000 screens in the U.S., and we continue to lose them regularly. If we don’t reverse this trend, we’ll be losing a vital part of our culture. This is my battle cry.
The 97th Academy Awards ended on a high note with a positive call to action. How refreshing! Let’s hope that the 98th awards ceremony follows this example.
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