The 85th Oscars aired last night on ABC and early ratings put the three-and-a-half hour event the highest since 2007 when Ellen DeGeneres hosted. Nielsen reports give the show a 4% increase from last year at 26.6 household and 41 share, compared to 27.7 and 42 in ’07.
Some of the highlights of the evening included an appearance of William Shatner as Captain Kirk who warns host Seth MacFarlane of bad reviews, Jennifer Hudson’s performance of “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going,” and Barbra Streisand singing “The Way We Were” after the traditional In Memoriam presentation. Another highlight, strangely enough, was Jennifer Lawrence falling over her dress while accepting her award, a mishap she handled elegantly as the crowd gave her a standing ovation.
Some of the worst moments may have been spread over MacFarlane’s parts, which at times made the Oscars feel more like a roast than the prestigious Academy Awards. Critics have called his performance tasteless, boring and offensive, although the comedian did seem to keep his cool throughout the evening. Adele’s performance of “Skyfall” may have sounded OK in Dolby Theater, but to the home audience the performance couldn’t have ended quick enough. And, the much hyped James Bond tribute was nothing more than an extended MGM trailer, which we’ve seen over and over again.
The top awards of the night went to Daniel Day-Lewis for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Lincoln), Jennifer Lawrence for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Silver Linings Playbook), and Ang Lee for Best Director (Life of Pi). Best Actor in a Supporting Role went to Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained), while Best Actress in a Supporting Role went to Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables).
The winner for Best Picture, as always presented last, was given to Argo. Producers Grant Heslov, Ben Affleck, and George Clooney were there to accept the award, which prevalied over a total of nine films nominated in the cateogory including Amour, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Django Unchained, Les Misérables, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, and Zero Dark Thirty.
For a full list of winners visit The Oscars website.
