Topic: The Oscars went to hell.

[Pugnate]

http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/showbiz/2011/02/28/bts.melissa.leo.apologizes.cnn?hpt=C2

WOW... that bad?

EDIT:

For some reason I can't find the right link. Just click on "OSCARS AWKWARD MOMENTS" in the menu.

OK here is the link:

http://cnn.com/video/?/video/showbiz/2011/02/28/natpkg.oscars.highlights.ampas

[Cobra951]

No, it wasn't that bad.  Yeah, the male host (what's his name, Marco?) sucked, but Anne Hathaway was good.  Billy Crystal was far from awkward.  He's one of the best hosts for this show from the past, and the audience remembered with a big ovation when he came in.  Kirk Douglas, yeah.  He's 94 and has had a stroke.  That was awkward.  Someone should have been with him to move things along when he faltered.

Like other such shows, I had it playing in the background while doing stuff on a PC (this time a laptop at Sandy's).  I can't imagine anyone just sitting there watching the whole thing.  But there was some decent entertainment sprinkled throughout.  I liked the opening where the hosts were in Inception, and the dream they were in included sequences from all the movies nominated.  This was done pretty well, with real scenes from the movies edited in to make it seem like the hosts were in the movies themselves.  Musical performances were entertaining too, as were a few of the presenters and a couple of the winners.

Edit:  The Inception opening

[Pugnate]

I didn't see the whole thing, but those were some really awkward moments though. I guess they seem worse put together.

[Cools!]

I watched the first 15 or so minutes; I couldn't take more. It was boring, uninspiring, badly written, etc. There was just nothing to it that made it interesting at all. Sure Anne Hathaway was cute, Franco was his usual stoned self (I guess you had to be to live through that), but they just weren't given anything interesting to say or do. It was just awkward. What happened to the dance routines?

I guess it just highlights how good the old presenters where (like Billy Crystal who's amazing in my opinion). They know how to grab the crowd and when to push it.

Oh, but I loved the stage design. Very fancy.

[angrykeebler]

I don't find award shows entertaining anymore after the Golden Globes with Ricky Gervais. He's set the new gold standard imo

[iPPi]

I'm more interested in seeing the results than the actual show.

[gpw11]

I watched maybe five min of the "pre show" which consisted of a bunch of clowns talking about dresses.  I then changed over to watch Vanilla Ice flip houses and never looked back.

[Ghandi]

I was listening to NPR on the way home today and the hosts were an attempt to get younger viewers to tune in. That failed...numbers were significantly down from last year in that demographic, and were down overall.

That can be explained by the fact that most young people just wait for clips online...but he still sucked.

[Ace_O_Spades]

I watched the whole thing and laughed my ass off the entire way. F-bombs, awkward Kirk Douglas, Anne Hathaway's Hugh Jackman song, the prerequisite preachy acceptance speech... I mean for chrissakes, NINE INCH NAILS won an Oscar! Badass. Anyway, I really enjoyed watching them, but I appear to be in the minority. Meh, I liked it.

[Quemaqua]

I think basically all awards shows are part of one of the most complete wastes of time mankind has come up with thus far.