Open Thread: The Oscar Morning After

by Latoya Peterson

On Friday, I joined Alyssa Rosenberg on Bloggingheads.Tv, to chat about the Oscars, which is my least favorite subject. We covered stereotypes, the expectations of the academy, and how to determine what is “a best picture.” But last night had some interesting upsets.

Kathryn Bigelow took home the award for the Best Picture for The Hurt Locker. Thea points out “Much to the shock and delight of all my tweeps, Kathryn Bigelow was the first woman to win Best Director, the day before International Women’s Day no less. And for a movie that is actually pretty great; that among other things, provides an unadulterated shot at what it means to be the harbinger of Western, American imperialism against wholly humanised civilians (of colour).”

Sandra Bullock won for Best Actress in a Leading Role for The Blind Side. As was expected, Mo’Nique took home Best Supporting Actress for Precious.

Mo’nique’s backstage post-acceptance speech is also worth discussing. Explaining that her outfit is a tribute to Hattie McDaniel (the first African-American winner of an Oscar, for her supporting role in Gone with the Wind), she goes on to discuss her motivation in the role. She says: “This role was not about my acting career. This role has shaped my life. To allow me not to judge and to love unconditionally.”

And Avatar didn’t sweep the Oscars, but they still netted 3 awards.

Oh, and guess who else took home a statue?

Pixar’s Up floated away with Best Animated Picture and Best Original Score.

Your thoughts?

ETA: Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist points out that missed another historic first: ‘Precious’ win: Geoffrey Fletcher first African American screenwriter to earn Academy Award