In that same seat, I got served my tequila shot promised by Guillermo Rodriguez, and giggled at the nude John Cena bit and John Mulaney’s brilliant “Field of Dreams” description. From my vantage point, the somber “In Memoriam” segment felt beautiful and respectful, even though the dancers apparently made for a distracting sidebar in the telecast. Meanwhile “The Zone of Interest” deservingly winning sound over some of the bigger budget/high-tech entries like “Oppenheimer” and “Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One” collected the night’s biggest gasp. That win, which was met by a standing ovation (a rare feat for a Sound category), was bested only by Glazer himself, the only winner in the room to deliver a statement that acknowledged what’s happening in Gaza right now, sentiments also voiced by the Pro-Palestine protests I drove through on my way to the show. “Our film shows where dehumanization leads at its worst,” Glazer, who is Jewish, said. “It shaped all of our past and present. Right now, we stand here as men who refute their Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation, which has led to conflict for so many people. Whether the victims of October the 7th in Israel or the ongoing attack in Gaza, all the victims of this dehumanization, how do we resist?”
Later, Emma Stone’s win shook up the Dolby at a night when Lily Gladstone in “Killers of the Flower Moon” was largely expected to win. Charming as ever, a visibly shocked Stone gracefully accepted her award, and not without a mention of her former “La La Land” co-star Gosling. “Oh boy, my dress is broken. I think it happened during ‘I’m Just Ken,’ I’m pretty sure.”
Unlike last year, I didn’t have access to the Governors Ball this time. But I did notice of who was the very first in line to take the escalator up to the festivities: Steven Spielberg, responsibly masked, ready to party. His eagerness was in fact a good recap of a night marked not only by fresh faces and young winners, but the old-school Hollywood—names like Pacino, Nicolas Cage, Danny DeVito, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rita Moreno, Martin Scorsese, Sally Field and more—that showed up and made the Oscars what we want them to be: a night where cinema’s past and future march arm in arm. Perhaps that future looks a little bleak right now, but the enthusiastic response to Cord Jefferson when he called for a greater number of mid-budget fare in his “American Fiction” Best Adapted Screenplay acceptance speech signaled a little hope. Perhaps one day, studios will re-learn and remember that instead of one $200-million film, there could be ten successful $20-million films for a healthier industry with longevity.
My night ended at the NEON soiree where the “Anatomy of a Fall” Best Original Screenplay winner Justine Triet danced the night away with her actors Swann Arlaud and Milo Machado-Graner, and shared a hug with double-nominee Sandra Hüller, who made an appearance late. Dragging myself to my condo late at night, I felt like a winner for having the good sense to stuff a pair of foldable ballerina flats into my little evening purse. Let’s just say that I learned my lesson the hard way last year.
