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The 2003 Academy Awards are - as always - fun for all
by Rachel Westerhof
Staff Writer
FILE PHOTO
Steve Martin hosted the 2003 Academy Awards on Sunday night. It was shown live to the troops overseas.
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The Oscars. This past Sunday the nation took its eye off troubles overseas and focused on a more lighthearted occasion—or at least that’s what the sponsors want us to think. Many rumors were flying around Hollywood about the state of the red carpet preshow and whether or not the press would even be allowed at the after-parties. Some feared terrorist attack, and others speculated that stars did not want the world to watch them strut around before the show and party after during this time of anxiety. Despite all this the show went on.
Since this was the 75th Anniversary of the Academy Awards, every living Actor or Actress who was awarded the coveted statue over the years was invited to participate in a photo shoot during the ceremonies. Although it made for a boring 20 minutes hearing the names of everyone who showed up and what they won for, it was interesting to see some of the greats hobnobbing with the newer stars.
The show started simpler than past years with host Steve Martin cracking jokes about anyone who caught his eye. As with all stand-up comedy, some jokes were hits and some misses. And really, I can’t help but reprint some of the better ones here: “The Oscars are being broadcast for the first time in high-definition television. So, I’d like to say big ‘hello’ to the three guys watching at Circuit City!” “Writers, directors and actors...if we’re stuck here tonight and we run out of food, that’s the order of whom we eat.”
He then broke out into a musical homage to a ‘movie star,’ this being one of the funnier bits of the night. A movie star, he said, can be “tall, thin, short or skinny,” “young” (cue shot of Haley Joel Osment), “middle-aged” (cue a picture of Natalie Portman) or “old” (cue picture of Reese Witherspoon) and “straight” (cut to Harrison Ford)...or “gay” (cut to Jack Nicholson, who played along admirably). He also quipped about how movie stars adore the spotlight but still have the decency to not brag if they’ve slept with him, which led to the camera turning on a number of the more famous starlets of past and present whose reactions were, well, fun to watch to say the least. (Julie Andrews gave him a big thumbs up.)
On to the awards: Chris Cooper won for Best Supporting Actor. Most did not anticipate his winning, but he wasn’t by any means the underdog. “Chicago” started its winning streak early on with art direction and costumes, while “The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers” won for Best Visual Effects. They were really cracking down on acceptance speech time, giving the three guys from “LOTR” hardly enough time to open their mouths before the music came up and the mike went down. A beautiful and very pregnant Catherine Zeta-Jones accepted her award for Best Supporting Actress in “Chicago” graciously.
Throughout the presentation of awards, clips of the movies up for Best Picture and live performances of the songs nominated have been going on. U2 stole the show with their nominated song “The Hands That Built America.”
The most intense moment of the night was during one of the least interesting awards. Who knew the award for Best Non-Fiction Documentary could be so interesting. Then again, when the award goes to “Bowling for Columbine” by Michael Moore, what can one expect? He proceeded to take all the nominees of the category up on stage with him so he could speak about what they all stood for. I could tell they all agreed because they all wore the same button, not to be confused with the popular peace pin and the ever-present AIDS ribbon. He announced that they were all on stage because they like nonfiction, especially in these “fictitious times where we have fictitious election results that elect a fictitious president.” Amidst cheers and boos (although the cameraman couldn’t seem to find the sources) he went on to decry the war: “We live in a time where we have a man who’s sending us to war for fictitious reasons, whether it’s the fiction of duct tape or the fiction of orange alerts. We are against this war, Mr. Bush. Shame on you, Mr. Bush. Shame on you.”
After a mercifully less controversial award for Best Documentary Short, Martin brought some levity to the situation with a well-timed joke. “It was so sweet backstage,” he said. “The Teamsters are helping Michael Moore into the trunk of his limo.”
The next few awards flew by surrounded by more songs and a memorial tribute to those stars who passed away this year.
Then came the award for Best Actor, whose nominees included Daniel Day-Lewis, Nicolas Cage, Michael Caine, Adrian Brody and Jack Nicholson. To the surprise of many, including himself, Brody won for The Pianist. After kissing Halle Berry square on the lips, he gave a sweet, poignant speech that captured the moment perfectly. Although the music came up, Brody shushed it. “Wait one second, one second, please, one second, cut it out...I’ve got one shot at this,” he said, as the music died down. “This fills me with great joy, but I’m also filled with great sadness tonight, because I’m accepting an award in such a strange time. My experiences making this film made me very aware of the sadness and the dehumanization of people in times of war, and the repercussions of war. And whatever you believe in, whether it’s God or Allah, may he watch over you, and let’s pray for a peaceful and swift resolution,” said a teary Brody to a standing ovation. “I have a friend from Queens, who’s a soldier right now in Kuwait, Tommy Zarobinski, and I hope you and your boys make it back real soon. God bless you guys, and I love you.”
The award for Best Song was given to Eminem for “Lose Yourself” from “8 Mile,” who was a no-show for the night. Funny that the song that won was the only one not performed at the evening’s festivities.
A teary Nicole Kidman accepted the Best Actress award for her performance in “The Hours.” And if the shock of Brody winning Best Actor wasn’t enough, the Best Director award went to an absent Roman Polanski for “The Pianist.” Harrison Ford accepted the award on behalf of the director who is living as a fugitive in exile in Paris (he fled the United States after being convicted of a crime, and if he did show up, he would have been arrested immediately upon arrival). And, last but not least—surprise, surprise, “Chicago” won for Best Picture. Thanks were given to all, and Steven Spielberg wrapped up the show.
For a few hours Sunday night, the eye of the nation were turned to a more light-hearted event, and Hollywood did its best to entertain. Although stances were firmly taken and those who many thought should not have won did, it was nice to focus on something that meant nothing for a while.
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