Photo courtesy of Billboard.
The 91st Academy Awards remained true to its purpose of being Hollywood’s biggest night. Going without a host, something that has not happened in the past 30 years, meant the Oscars had a lot riding on it. Kevin Hart was originally announced to host this year’s Oscars. Not only would Hart have accomplished one of his goals, but he would have also been making history by becoming the fourth black Oscars host. Not even a full day after his confirmation to host the Oscars, reports of Hart’s homophobic tweets from 10 years ago resurfaced on the internet. Though Hart had already apologized multiple times for these tweets in the past, he found it best to step down from the position, as he felt his situation would take away from the true meaning of the night: to honor and acknowledge those in the film industry.
The night started with a performance by Queen, featuring Adam Lambert. “We Will Rock You” and “We Are The Champions” made for perfect songs to kick off the night. An inspiring slideshow starring some of 2018’s hottest movies followed. Then, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler and Maya Rudolph stepped on stage to deliver the opening speech. All three helped to release the tension in the room, not forgetting to throw in the expected political joke. The awards started at once, with Reina King winning the award for best supporting actress. Her tearful speech filled with raw emotion touched audience members, especially King’s mother. She ended her speech uniting the crowd with the popular saying, “God is good all the time; all the time, God is good.”
Though films are at the forefront of the night, fashion makes for a close runner-up. While most kept it classy with basic black and white, pink and sparkle made the memo. Jason Momoa sported a blush corduroy suit jacket with a matching scrunchie. Kacey Musgraves, Sarah Paulson, Angela Bassett and Rudolph also took on the pink theme in their stunning dresses. Jennifer Lopez lit up like a disco ball in her Tom Ford gown. Brie Larson, Michelle Yeoh and Awkwafina followed in J-Lo’s footsteps by rocking the glitz. Billy Porter nearly broke the Internet in a gown. Spike Lee wore a purple suit – in honor of Prince – with a matching hat and gold high tops.
Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper stole the show with their unannounced duet of “Shallow.” Other musical guests included Jennifer Hudson, Bette Midler, Gillian Welch and David Rawlings.
Various trailers for the nominees of best picture were shown. Two-time Academy Award winner Barbra Streisand presented an award, but not before delivering a touching speech about the film “BlacKkKlansman.” The honorary obituary slideshow, which included legends such as Stan Lee and Margot Kidder also aired. The slideshow failed to include any people of color, which was unfortunate considering the event took place during Black History Month.
However, this year’s Oscars was filled with many exciting wins. Rami Malek took the Best Actor award for his work in “Bohemian Rhapsody.” English actress Olivia Colman received the Best Actress award for “The Favourite.” “Green Book” won Best Picture. Spike Lee, having been nominated for an Oscar five times, celebrated a big win, receiving his very first Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. Though he won this award, he still felt “BlacKkKlansman” was worthy of the Best Picture title. Lady Gaga won her first Oscar award in the Best Original Song category for “Shallow.”
Overall, the 2019 Oscars was filled with many laughs, cries and smiles. Despite the fear of having no host, many actually seemed to enjoy the speedy pace of the program. So, accept this honorary award, Oscars, for making a show not as difficult to get through for once.
