It’s too early to see the ratings for last night’s Oscars, but I suspect that they will be up from last year, at least in the first hour, when everyone tuned in to see what Chris Rock had to say. I hoped that Chris Rock would burn the house down with his opening monologue, but I tried to moderate my expectations. When he finally came out, everything felt… tense. I think Chris was genuinely nervous and honestly, I felt sorry for him – he was never going to make everyone happy, and who says that should have been his goal? He seemed to warm up as he went on, but the first few minutes were BRUTAL. Like, he basically said that in the 1960s, people had “real” problems so they didn’t care about not being represented at all. It’s an unfair comparison – people can have real problems AND still want the Oscars to represent more diversity. You can care about #BlackLivesMatter AND #OscarsSoWhite, I’m just sayin’. Then that conversation morphed into Chris Rock basically telling everyone that yes, of course Hollywood is racist.
Watch @ChrisRock's opening monologue at the 2016 #Oscars.https://t.co/1Mb3eVy2Tu
— Complex (@ComplexMag) February 29, 2016
Here are some highlights from the 88th Oscars, in no particular order and no, this is not comprehensive, these are just some random thoughts and moments I found interesting. You can see the full list of 2016 Oscar winners here.
The Stacey Dash moment. Stacey Dash was actually there! And it was AWKWARD. Like, was the joke that she doesn’t think there should be a Black History Month and the Academy voters agree with her? Is the joke that she’s too stupid to understand that Chris Rock was making fun of her? Was it a meta moment? Dash posted on her blog about her appearance and I still don’t really get it. Go here to read.
The black-casting spoof. It was AMAZING. Whoopi trying out for Joy was great, but the best moment was Tracy Morgan doing The Danish Girl. That was like… Tracy Morgan just owning the fact that he’s a national treasure. Leslie Jones attacking Leo in The Revenant? Awesome. Chris Rock as the black astronaut that no one wanted to save? Perfect!
Some of @ChrisRock's favorite deleted scenes. #Oscarshttps://t.co/TwhpqMEfdK
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) February 29, 2016
Mad Max’s technical sweep. Considering how visually thrilling Mad Max was, all of the awards were completely justified.
The Girl Scouts bit. Chris Rock was trying to do some kind of Ellen DeGeneres-esque viral moment, but it sort of worked. Everyone loves Girl Scout cookies (THIN MINTS) and yes, why not sell Girl Scout cookies at the Oscars? The Girls Scouts of America is a great, inclusive and positive organization.
Best bit so far @chrisrock daughter's Girl Scout troop selling cookies #Oscars pic.twitter.com/1nA2LQGzt6
— celebitchy (@celebitchy) February 29, 2016
The Weeknd. He performed his nominated song “Earned It” and he seemed nervous (understandably) at first, but then he warmed up when the Fifty Shades boudoir dancers started gyrating and, like, rolling around spread-eagle. The sh-t?
Jacob Tremblay. The best part of his night was seeing C3PO, R2D2 and BB-8.
Here's that GIF of @JacobTremblay getting up to look at C-3PO you've been searching for. #Oscars pic.twitter.com/gSOyRRn0St
— Yahoo Movies (@YahooMovies) February 29, 2016
Mark Rylance’s surprise win. Most people thought Sylvester Stallone had this locked up because of nostalgia, etc. But people underestimated Rylance and he won. He’s considered one of the finest actors across the pond, and I don’t think most people are “upset” about the win, you know?
Chris Rock goes to Compton. I took it as “this is what moviegoers actually talk about” and less about some kind of hardcore racial thing. It was really funny!
.@ChrisRock goes to Compton to talk movies. #Oscarshttps://t.co/Tj8sEaVbDb
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) February 29, 2016
Joe Biden & Lady Gaga. The Vice President got a standing ovation when he came out to present Lady Gaga’s performance of “Til It Happens To You.” As for Gaga’s performance… seriously, I’ve been saying this for months now, but she just seems and sounds so different. I think Gaga has been replaced. A lot of people thought her performance was very powerful.
SAM SMITH WON! Love it. Love everything about it. Love that Gaga lost. Love that Sam Smith dedicated his award to LGBT people around the world. Love that he name-checked Ian McKellen.
Brie Larson & Leo DiCaprio. Everyone knew that they would win, so it was sort of predictable, but I enjoyed seeing both of them unclench a bit and finally enjoy the night at the tail end. Leo came across as rather smug, and Brie came across as somewhat twee, but at that point in the evening, I was genuinely happy for both of them.
The Spotlight/Revenant split. I don’t know why it surprised me but it did – I didn’t think the Academy would give Alejandro Innaritu yet another Oscar (for Directing) and give Spotlight the much-deserved Best Picture. Oh well… I’m happy!
Nice shot huh? pic.twitter.com/9QglfE5KcX
— Liev Schreiber (@LievSchreiber) February 29, 2016
Biden gave me $20 for cookies… #Oscars pic.twitter.com/rCLbrNXIZI
— Chris Rock (@chrisrock) February 29, 2016
Photos courtesy of Chris Rock’s Twitter, Getty.
Huh. I haven’t seen any of Chris Rock’s parts yet but I will watch them after work. Overall, I’m just not invested in the Oscars this year. Except … okay, that first pic of Chris and Leo is ridiculous. Dude, you’re like 40, don’t pose like that. Did The Big Short win anything? That was the only one of the nominated movies I cared about a little.
The Big Short won for adapted screenplay.
Personally, I thought Chris was great. He bagged on Hollywood big time and yeah, he tagged the Pinkett-Smiths too.
So true about Leo. I want to be like, “Psst! Dude! Stop embarrassing yourself.”
As far as the Oscars are concerned; last night I had a scary movie happy hour w/ some friends, then I watched TWD and Colony when my fella came home. Didn’t have a chance to watch, but I read the monologue transcript at Gawker and could not stop laughing. Overall he did the best he could do given the awkward as hell circumstances, and made some good points.
Like, Hollywood is sorority racist. It’s like — “We like you, Rhonda, but you’re not a Kappa.” Lol
And I love Paul Giamatti too. He’s so talented, and seems like some one it’d be nice to have a whiskey with.
If I take Leo’s gesture in the British way, I kind of like it. (And I do not like him at all.)
I was really nervous for him when he came out – I think he was initially nervous too. If I had been in the audience, I think I would have not known whether I should laugh or not.😳 I need to watch his intro again, but it seemed like he was all over the place with the controversy. But I still think he did a good job. Yeah, I’m confused, lol.
The part with Stacy Dash fell flat, imo. It seemed like the audience was “we know what stupidity you spout; why are you even here?” I wonder if she even got that she was/is the joke?! If anyone has good insight into this, please share. That was beyond awkward.
Like I said in the Leo post, I loved Leslie Jones as the bear 😄, Chris R, Whoopi, but I really loved Tracy Morgan as The Danish Girl. 😂😂😂
Kaiser, you’re right – Stacy’s blog didn’t clear it up.
Chris was nervous and yes I too was nervous for him. He did a great job and it was by no feat an easy job. He managed to get a strong point across mixed in with the right amount of humour. I don’t think he alienated anyone ( maybe Jada and will) in the room. The movie paradories where ficking great!!!
I don’t think Stacey Dash was the joke, I think she was part of the joke. It was actually quite brilliant! Chris was “joking” that to solve the issue of minority representation in the Academy, the Academy names someone who has publicly bashed anything that supports minority representation as the head of their minority outreach program. It was more of a calling out of the bullsh*t “diversity efforts” in filmmaking, I think.
It wasn’t meant to be funny, I think. It was meant to be an “ooooh sh*t” awkward moment.
Yes, that’s exactly it. It was far to subtle and subversive for most people to get. You had to know S. Dash’s “politics” to get the joke. And she of course is a tool who would show up for anything if it gives her exposure.
I’m familiar with Stacey Dash’s politics. She’s a Right Wing Repulican who doesn’t think we should have Black History month. Her bit on the Oscars was so quick, blink & she’s gone. I think she was extremely nervous..I don’t even recall what she said now. YouTube to the rescue!
I think Chris should have opened with the black actors in white movies video to warm people up so they could brace themselves for his monologue. It was a good skit, could have been longer too.
-TheRealPinky
Did not get the Stacy Dash joke at all. It was just cringe worthy. I didn’t see Rock’s monologue in its entirety but the clips were funny. And agree with Kaiser’s highlights completely.
BTW – Sylvester Stallone looked like he was one breath away from a heart attack. Why does he look so bloated?
He looks great considering he spent the last 40 years abusing his body with steriods and HGH. He was over sixty during that last cop bust in Australia where he tried to flush away the HGH, so its actually surprising his organs havent caved in.
Yikes!!! That would explain how weird he looked. I guess Mickey Rourke is taking HGH too.
Oh i didnt see the Civil Rights Movement remark as a sneer to the #oscarsowhite, i saw it a a sneer to the people who complain about ‘why now suddenly #oscarsowhite?’.
Now Im confused.
I can see it both ways now. I’m confused too, lol. I actually have a huge headache after watching the entire show.
I agree with you. And I was nervous for Rock, doing stand up in front of a room full of white people! But he didn’t pull punches, which I thought was brave. Kudos to him!
-TheRealPinky
That’s exactly how I saw it too. Basically, he called them out on being racist for 88 years. I thought he did a fantastic job and I’m not always a Rock fan. But this night – he nailed it. Not an easy thing to do.
I wasn’t real happy that CR started criticizing AskHerMore, but he came out and initially criticized OscarsSoWhite too…like I said, I found it kinda all over the place. I guess he was taking shots at everyone. I did like when he started yelling at the millionaires to fork it over for the Girl Scouts. 🙂
that is what i was thinking.
why did he have to mention women?
on another note, he nailed it with Smith comment about making 20 millions for Wild, Wild West.
overall, he was okay.
The Wild Wild West jab didnt make sense either. That movie was one of the highest grossing films of the year. It made white studio execs and producers very wealthy, why on earth shouldn’t the black star get a slice? Will and Denzel were the first black stars to have their wages dictated by the market rather than by the Hollywood white boy pay structure that takes whatever a white guy would be offered on that film, divides it by half and thats the offer made to the person of color or woman. If the gag was that it was a fluffy summer film then 99 per cent of the people had no business laughing seeing as they’ve all taken checks for films that were far from art. Rock included. It was an under reasoned “joke”, I expect better from Chris. But not from the audience, obviously critical thinking isnt their strong suit.
@Naya I agree so much with your comment. If there was a like button I would be pressing it. Perhaps if he had said “After Earth” than maybe.
It also seems as if he had to make a point to dump on Will and Jada. I get the bit about him saying Jada wasn’t invited. Why Boycott something you weren’t invited to. But how does he know she wasn’t invited? Did he ask the Academy folks if she was invited or not? It seems as if he was trying to be extra jokey about The Smith’s. I didn’t like it and I am not a fan of Jada.
Naya
I get what you are saying but the Smiths were not looking at the big picture. They made it about themselves. They are just as bad as those producers.
Denzel is a class act. He can act, he looks classy, elegant, he takes various roles, he simply does not belong in the same category as Will and his wife.
Rock was in a hard position. It was like he was torn. He tried too hard, but can you really blame him? I respect him for not backing out, for trying to send a message. And he did it, since people are talking about it. Sure, Leo won an Oscar is the headline, but no one is acting like there was no Chris. And I am not even his fan.
“I get what you are saying but the Smiths were not looking at the big picture. They made it about themselves. They are just as bad as those producers.”
Did I just read this correctly? You really think that the successful black actor who wants to be treated equally to his white peers is the same as the producer who under casts and/or under pays non-white actors? Help me Lord. And why shouldnt a party who feels unjustly treated speak up for himself. Are you suggesting that once minorities are no longer speaking “from the hood”, they should shut up and take the injustice? That being privileged above many white people means you should be content to be treated beneath your own peers? That if you feel victimised you should wait for some white liberal to speak on your behalf? In any case, Will spoke mulitiple times on this and he was extremely gracious in articulating the grievance but he is still a threat to status quo so you need his head on a platter. No doubt if Denzel had spoken he would be facing the same fate and is only getting a pass now because he smartly kept his mouth shut.
Naya
I am just saying what I would say about any actor, of any color, age, gender.
Some things are about race. But when it comes to Jada, it was about Smith. It is sad that previous generations had Mandela, MLK. We have Jada, part of the cult…
Denzel simply cannot have the same treatment, cos he is not that guy. He has earned respect. Do you really think his family would campaign cos he was not nominated?
Making it about yourself just proves that you do not care about the cause, you are just using the problem to create media hype about you. It has nothing to do with color, gender, age. Not everything is about color. You can be open minded and still see that some people are simply not worth it.
As for actresses, they get paid to wore those dresses. So, since they are not making as much money as (white) actors, they have ads and promotions to get extra money. Can we blame them?
Upon watching the monologue again, with MY nerves out of the way. I thought Chris Rock was great!
BTW, with no POC actor nominees, will we get any diversity on the red carpet roundup? I haven’t seen any nonwhites except for Vergara, who is par for the course at every event.
-TheRealPinky
I loved he did that! I support them being asked more but they should say who made their dress and if they don’t want to then they need to BUY THE DRESS!! This moment is important to brands, it is unbelievably expensive to do this and effects their wholesale to because of samples.
Both men and women should be asked but if they don’t pay for the dress then THEY NEED TO SHILL FOR THE FREEBIE!!
Sorry but physically can’t stomach Cate Blanchett anymore because of her dress behavior. She wouldn’t be famous if not for the red carpet she doesn’t do big enough movies.
I support the designers and brands on this one they can say who gave them a dress that on average Costs more then people’s car!
Agreed! And he was hilariously spot-on about why women are asked and not men.
Yes. There needs to be more in the way of equal treatment of women, but the “askhermore” movement was just nonsense.
K – excellent point! I really hadn’t thought about the designers. Shame on me. Absolutely they need to promote the dress if the designer has loaned it to them.
It’s weird though..and I don’t even watch the Red Carpet shows anymore, so I may not be best qualified to comment. However, I will. The Oscars, overall, itself still feels to me as if there is more gravitas regarding the Best Actor award than the Best Actress award. That, director & best pic seem to be the golden triad. Best Actress always seems like it’s not as big of deal. That’s not how I think – it’s just the sense I have. Since white men still dominate most of the categories & women still aren’t equal, I think women get less important questions lobbed at them. They’re invited now – remember, on the stage in England, women weren’t allowed on stage! Men played all the women’s roles – but they don’t have the same status.
I think he did well, but nothing legendary. I really wish he would have found a moment for other minorities. This is not only a black/ white issue, far from it. Instead of unifying or challenging it was just Chris Rock’s standard black people/white people humor. Then they had some weird stuff with the kids and Asians being “good at math”? The Carol as “girl on girl” joke? Kind of tone deaf for the current mood.
Well, I didn’t hear any other people of color besides black actors and actresses and directors, take a stand about the Oscars.
Not one.
He doesn’t have to be everybody’s saviour in his comedy skewer.
Well you missed Inarritu’s speech then.
And he spoke of diversity overall, not opportunities for Mexicans only.
Rock didn’t have to be, but he COULD have been. It lessened his impact but the routine was fine.
@Mia4s that was the most articulate & wonderful speech of the night at least he said it as it is. Also honorable mention to Kevin Hart when he presented but took a moment about moving forward & that hopefully this #OscarsSoWhite is a lesson for everyone is Hollywood.
I don’t think Chris Rock (or black people) should speak on behalf of everyone, but it pisses me off so much when people act like the other minorities don’t care and haven’t talked about this.
Just because you didn’t hear them doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. There were lots of conversations happening in the Native community, for example.
#notyourmule
“I didn’t hear any other people of color besides black actors and actresses and directors, take a stand about the Oscars.”
Eva Longoria did.
Maybe you didn’t hear it because you’re not listening
there certainly is truth to it. diversity nowadays mostly means blacks.
Well, apparently some people think diversity and black mean the same thing.
I just think it’s sad that black people have been taking the brunt of the criticism and backlash for speaking out about diversity, and the other POC have stayed silent.
I think the reason for that is blacks take the brunt of the criticism and do the brunt of the work. I saw this on Twitter last night and I agree that black shouldn’t have to shoulder the burden for every single group. Why should other groups be silent and let us to the work for them to reap the benefits?
@Alex: I believe this is exactly what Patricia Arquette said last year, and she was skewered for it.
@chelsea
no that is NOT what Patricia Arquette said. She said: “we have fought for everybody else’s equal rights. It’s our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America.” Which is straight up made up fantasy because Black people where right there fighting for their own rights while being tear-gassed, lynched from trees, shot in the back, and being burnt inside their own homes with their children. Oh and blowing up Black churches with little children in them.
White women were just as prejudiced as their white fathers, grand fathers and brothers. Viewing Blacks as beneath them, telling them to go to the back of the line so THEY can get ahead of them. Patricia Arquette is completely clueless about Black lives and worst Black women if her tweets are anything to go by.
That is totally different from the fact that every civil rights victory that Blacks have won, trickled down to every other minority. That’s a historical fact. Blacks pay, others gain. Blacks are always in the front line protesting, getting slammed for being complainers, the N-word etc. Other minorities may agree with them but they don’t come out in front of the media, do interviews etc. and risk being called complainers and racial epithets. No one wants to speak too loudly and lose their model minority status. Black lives matters is making changes in policing that is going to also help fellow Hispanics who get pulled over for their skin color. But who is heading the protests?
And now the new thing is “well you didn’t mention other minority groups so I can’t take you serious”. LMAO. Really? Sorry but something tells me the “but you didn’t mention group X” are the same Black haters who are just looking for another excuse to dismiss them. Especially since I hear this compliant the most from White women in real life. Other minorities I meet are usually supportive because they know this country’s racism against all “others” stem from the original sin of inhumanity against Blacks.
Drops her mic
Agree with TC and co totally.
Chris did a good job, only thing…it was only about white oscars…Do I think it makes a difference? No, he’s making fun of them n they’re laughing it up.Who wins? Nobody. I dont like the whole white oscars thing seeing that so many ethnicity’s are ignored but some win. Like Will Smith, is he not ever going to the oscars again? What did this really do? Want to make a difference?Do not go see the films,that’s where they feel it,in their pockets, as for actors, forget Oscars, it’s studios who need to make films of diversity.But..who will go see them?#1 films are transformers,fast n furious,star wars…ACTION!!! We as a society have bigger issues than Oscars,sorry Will, but your $20million paycheck doesn’t make me feel for you.But the people of Flint still have no water,yet did anyone speak for them?
It made a lot of difference, trust. As they say, the squeaky wheel gets the oil. If voters were not aware of their own latent (cause maybe it’s not overt) racism and bias, they are now. Nothing changes behavior like having a light shined on it.
Yes! MIA4S – the Asian jokes, etcetc. revealed a lack of insight . Disappointing, to say the least.
He sounded like an Academy apologist in his opening bit.
Yes.
Yes he did. I was thinking the same thing. He got better as he went along but the opening seemed as if the Academy had given him some kind of warning.
It really felt like he was trying to acknowledge the controversy, while at the same time not step on too many toes. I’m sure there are some people who were offended by his monologue, but he was still trying to get a laugh from the audience, so for the most part he gave them something safe to laugh at. I don’t envy the position he was in. I thought he did a good job under the circumstances and still got the point across that yes, Hollywood is racist.
Agreed. Surprising given his old stand up and his interviews in the last few years. This is what happens when one is co-opted by the organization they are supposed to be critical of. You start to see the people behind the institutional problems as regular folk, so you rationalize their behavior and maybe even become a little protective.
Yes. And I wanted to punch the people who were laughing politely in the throat. Especially Matt Damon. It annoys me that people who are in a position to effectuate change don’t and make excuses for it.
does it matter that he didn’t sign up for that role of advocate originally? The controversy wasn’t there when he was announced, he didn’t self-elect to be the spokesperson. He has to walk the line between addressing the issue and maintaining relationships so he can continue to work in the industry WITH the people he would be blasting. I do think there is an element of self-preservation, addressing the issue and being a voice to those who are tone-deaf about it.
Good point – agree.
I’ll say this, there was some of Rock’s monologue that I liked but tbh it felt like a copout in a lot of ways. Least of doing an interview not too long ago about how black actresses have it the worst in Hollywood then going in on Jada Pinkett Smith like that for pushing for diversity.
So while he was spot on with certain things, a lot left a bad taste in my mouth.
His hosting and jokes feel way short of making up for how white the Oscars were.
So it’s the host’s responsibility to make up for Hollywood’s shortcomings? That’s totally fair.
I agree with Kitten that that wasn’t really his job, but I do think he did an admirable job of including a lot of people who should have been included in the first place.
@Kitten: The point is some people think that having Rock host and make a few jokes makes up for how white the Oscars are. But it doesn’t.
I didn’t watch, on the basis that the guy had an impossible job on the back of so much intense (and righteous) emotion going into this gig. I cannot even begin to imagine how one would approach something as big as this in this febrile atmosphere.
But will be paying attention to how you and other respected commenters hereabouts saw it, Marty.
For the Civil Rights bit, going on what’s reported, I thought his intent was probably something like: this is why we are talking about this NOW and we weren’t talking about this THEN.
Maybe it was Sixer, but Rock is intelligent enough with his writing where he could have made the distinction.
He was never going to be all things to all people, and frankly I’ve never seen Rock as an advocate for PoC but, for me, he lacked something I can’t seem to articulate into words.
I’m kind of laughing, cos if you can’t put it into words – definitely best this gal here keeps her mouth shut! I think best treated as a learning exercise if you are Sixer!
Ha! I get it. I do think the Jada stuff bugged me the most because it felt unnecessary to go after her that way.
I mean the OscarsSoWhite conversation has been going on for years in some form or another but it’s mostly just stayed a conversation. When Jada got involved and put her message out there you started to see a shift from conversation to movement. She really put things into motion and looked what happened? The Academy changed it’s voting rules, a lot members showed their true colors, and it was the most diverse group of presenters they’ve ever had. So whether people think Jada was genuine or selfish in her motivation she actually contributed to positive change in the industry.
So for people like Rock, and from what I hear other presenters as well, to s**t on the very person who helped widen their platform felt very second-rate to me.
Well that makes sense. Like people accusing Beyonce of mercenary motives with Formation? Same thing, right?
Same for me Marty but then ive always enjoyed his interviews more than his stand up, sure he Bagged on them plenty but he wasn’t funny and some of that stuff was really uncomfortable i.e acting like Black people should be more worried about other things (our poor overstretched brains?!) lynching was a bigger concern so we didnt care about Oscars? the In memorian will be all the black people killed by police?? Then Although it became a read I was super uncomfortable with the Compton bit, some of those people were played for laughs
Yes, my thoughts as well Q. It almost seems as if they set out to find certain types of Blacks to do that Compton bit.
A lot of his jokes just felt cheap to me.
He has done that Compton bit in previous HBO shows, I think its supposed to point out differences between black and white viewing differences but instead it just peddles offensive stereotypes (theres even a clip in which all the interviewees think that Madea should win all the awards)
Yes I’ve seen him do bits like this before but I don’t think this one should have made the cut for the Oscars. It can be taken a couple of ways. Black people in Urban communities don’t give a damn about the Oscars because they don’t see those types of films, or it can be taken as these are the Black people complaining about #OscarsSoWhite; no wonder. It seems as if he was seeking out the most uneducated sounding people in that community. That’s a slap in the face to some Blacks.
The only funny part about that skit was when Chris asked the lady what was her favorite movie last year and the lady responded “By The Sea” and Chris said something like I don’t even think Brad and Angie would have said that.
Why is no one talking about how gorgeous Jacob Tremblay’sdad is?
Because it’s more fun to discuss the trainwrecks? 😉 I’ll second that -he’s gorgeous. Jacob’s mom is too. And Jacob is so adorable.
I will also add, in the gorgeous and probably better looking then any other actor there, why is no one talking about Julianne Moore’s husband, Bart? He’s gorgeous too!
Oh wow yeah he is!
I find his mother even more gorgeos. Stunning family all around.
He has the most beautiful parents — what a family!
YES!!!
Kaiser, I like how you said replaced. It’s so bizarre but has to be true. I mean, what other explanation is there?
Totally agree. While the song is powerful, Gaga was absolutely terrible! I miss the days of The Fame Monster. She’s a wonderful pop star who takes herself waaaay too seriously. I recently rediscovered Telephone and she and Beyoncé were so fun on it, but now they are Super Serious and Important Artists. I roll my eyes so hard at them now. And not to rag on someone’s looks but I’m so mystified by Gaga looking like she is in her 40’s. That wig and makeup were atrocious. She goes for severe and it ages her in this bizarre way. I showed my husband before pictures and he thought she looked much better when her look was more natural and I agree!
And I forgot to mention that her voice, her voice! It sounds nothing like it used to. Definitely replaced and it’s pretty obvious if you go back and listen to her old stuff.
I’m here just for that pic of Chris with Common and John Legend. I’d take that combo (minus Chris) any day…
Seems like the awards were quite O.K., let’s see the ratings….
Wherever Common speaks, I listen. He’s so great at public speaking. And he’s hot.
I would do naughty, naughty things to Common.
That is my favorite photo from the Oscars.
Mmmmm…Common.
Love Common. John Legend is quite handsome too, but he is no Common.
Yes, John Legend is a cutie – he kinda looks like a little kid to me. And Common looks like a man! Hehe
Okay..Sarah Silverman. I’ve seen her crash & burn before. It’s not pretty. I wonder if she totally winged it – because it felt like it.
Was anyone else happy about Composer Ennio Morricone finally winning an Oscar at age 87?! I was verklempt. I grew up listening to his soundtrack for The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. I thought he had won already. V. happy for him!
I was thrilled~he’s a legend. 🙂
I was jumping in my bed saying YASSSSSSS, finally Ennio gets an Oscar.
THAT is the only Oscar I cared about through this whole thing, and I didn’t get to watch that part of the show. I was so glad this morning to see that he had won. For a lifetime of work, yes, but that score in particular was fantastic. He truly deserved it. In general, I think Hateful Eight was robbed. They should have had cinematography and original screenplay as well.
Very happy, this man is a musical genius, I have all his soundtracks even his more unheard of italian film soundtracks, absolutely love his music, he so deserved it, and he seems like a lovely humble man too, bravo Ennio!
I was also pleased that the great Gena Rowland won lifetime achievement. Not a Chris Rock fan, I feel ashamed to say that I find his delivery, including his high Pitched voice, so annoying that I can’t actually listen to the gags.
I’ve got a soft spot for Sarah because of my love for Wreck It Ralph but oh my goodness did she bomb. UGH! I don’t get what she was going for and she gave me second hand embarrassment.
Pinetree13 – I like Sarah Silverman too, but it’s so weird to me that she can go from funny to absolutely un-funny from appearance to appearance. I wonder what the heck happens? She’s also a pretty good actor.
Well…he tried his best I think. I’m not sure who could be the best host for this kind of situation. It’s not easy.
I have to agree. I didn’t envy him last night at all.
it was not easy. but i have more respect for those who showed up. KH gave a great, short speech. this is just one year. lets change things, but not with stupid hashtags, give people of color better roles. it is that simple. give women better roles.
I’m still confused by Stacey Dash’s part.
I considered her a mirror. The general H’wood consensus is that Fox is awful and she is awful, but some of her opinions aren’t so different from the people in the room. Must be tough to swallow for all those ‘enlightened thespians’.
and she never would have been invited if she were white, so that is some food for thought for her.
so am I, what was that about, really not funny.
I really want someone to explain it. I am still totally confused. It made no sense.
I also liked his comments on “Ask Her More”. I’m sorry- but I fast forward the red carpet to see the fashion. What can these people say (men or women) that hasn’t already been said? Frankly I don’t care what any of them have to say. We’ll be here all day looking at blogs talking about the fashion, and that’s ok. I don’t get why we have to pretend the red carpet is anything but a fashion show lol
Totally agree LA
Agree! It’s the Red Carpet for God’s sake…we want to know who you’re wearing!
I was hoping the camera would pan to Reese because wasn’t “Ask her More” her brainchild?
Much of his monologue was about varieties of privilege, mostly oh boohoo us poor asshole millionaires, so it certainly had a place in there.
And when journalists actually started asking about feminism, equal pay, diversity in representation, many of the women celebrities came off as jaw droppingly unaware. I don’t feel Chris Rock needed to belittle AskHerMore though.
I don’t think it needs to be about heavy topics like that on the red carpet though, it just needs to not be 100% about physical appearance only.
His comments on it took it to the extreme of no fashion talk at all, which isn’t the case.
Totally. Just look at the threads on this forum today. Red carpets are the pinnacke of pop culture superficiality. It’s a a fashion show with more famous models – and absolutely nothing else. If any of these people have something smart and interesting to say, they can say it in a magazine or another serious forum.
“Oh but they don’t ask men those things” Well of course not, men’s fashion is usually a bore. You can only talk so much about it.
Ask her more? No. Ask her less. Actually, stop asking her altogether. For every Viola Davis there is you get 15 Meryl Streeps. Hollywood actors are not intellectuals and should not be looked as such.
LOVED IT!!!
Yes people care about the dresses, that is why the fashion review posts get the most views and comments. People watch for the clothes!
I do kind of agree. Sure, I’d love to hear their thoughts on other subjects, but not during the red carpet. This isn’t a sit down interview. We’re all here for the dresses!!
Incidentally, as far as men’s outfits being boring goes… I thought Jared Leto looked fab! So fancy.
For me the ask her more campaign shouldn’t be for the red carpet where they have a free dress valued more then a lot of people’s cars, and in some cases annual salary.
They should be attacking the magazines, tv interviews etc that don’t ask them real questions that reduce them to their favorite beauty secret and what it’s like to be a mom or their romantic partner. That is where the issue is- not the red carpet that is all about the fun fashion. They have every reason to be mad annoyed that men get asked about their process or what they look for in a role and they get what skin cream do you use. But it’s the magazines and tv shows not the RED CARPET.
Exactly right!
I thought the Stacey Dash bit was actually one of the biggest punches of the night.
The joke is that to resolve the issue of minority representation in film and in the Academy, the Academy names Stacey Dash the head of its new minority outreach program… When girlfriend has publicly not cared about proper representation.
I don’t think it was meant to be laugh-out-loud funny. I think it was meant to be super awkward and uncomfortable. And it was brilliant.
That’s what I took it as too. What confuses me is wether Stacey Dash was actually aware she was the butt of the joke.
I completely agree but perhaps for different reasons. In the overall context first though …. I thought Chris Rock was fabulous. I’ve always been a huge CR fan if for no other reason than he tells the truth and he spares no one. Last night was no exception. His monologue was great, the film of the best movies with black actors interspersed to prove the point over lack of opportunity–wonderful. Yes Hollywood is racist……and its a bigger deal on the 88th because of how far we’ve come and #OscarsSoWhite demonstrates there is still so much more room for improvement. Yet at the same time…….everything isn’t always racist or sexist. (Loved the “if George Clooney wore a pink tux with a flamingo out his @$$ everyone would be asking ‘George, what are you wearing?'”) Calling out the stupidity of a boycott (boy did Jada get zinged and IMO appropriately so). And in its own way, Stacey Dash’s appearance as awkward as it seemed also had aunique take away…..every one is an individual with their own experiences and opinions, so don’t stereotype on the basis of anything. THis was overall classic CR and brilliant.
I think so too. The boycott was useless because none of this years major players joined in and in the long run was ineffective.
I loved Chris, he spoke the truth.
Rock was a major disappointment. It seemed like he spent more time ridiculing the black people and didn’t really come for the racist white Academy, but than I shouldn’t be surprised since I doubt the Oscars committee was really going to let someone rip them a new one on their big night.
Normally his biggest fan, consider him very intelligent he had some very good moments. But I do feel like some of the jokes were almost more about mocking the blacklivesmatter/oscarssowhite protesters than the white male Hollywood establishment. That disappointed me.
I mean, I think Chris Rock would be a more accurate authority on racism in Hollywood than most people. If people think he was dismissive, they didn’t listen to the rest of the bit. He was saying that the reason black people are “complaining” about the Oscars now, which seems trivial to white people, is because they have gotten over the larger hurdles of the Civil Rights movement and this is what’s left to go through-even though it’s just an awards show, it’s still what’s left, racism isn’t “over.” And I think he made that clear when he said he told Obama that not even the liberal white America that claims the right is so bigoted won’t give people of color the same opportunities in movies as they do white people. I thought that was the most audacious thing he said actually, it didn’t get much of a laugh because it resonated. He was right about Jada, she wasn’t invited and Will’s movie was not good.
As for “Ask Her More”, he’s totally right, I wish he would have slammed it home more by saying the reason women get asked what they’re wearing is because they were given those gowns for free to advertise the fashion house.
Agreed on all fronts. I tonight he did a fantastic job of balancing between brutally honest and still trying to do his job as host. And “Ask Her More” is one of the biggest overreactions to a non-issue out there.
Agree on your points bar the jada joke. Jada wasn’t invited because she’s on a tv show and hasn’t got a movie out. Ok then so far so good. Well sorry but that joke fell flat the minute they trotted out Kerry Washington and priyanka chopra. Both tv actors too, quite obviously ” invited” because they needed some poc faces on the show and not because they were in some critically lauded Oscar nominated movie. My biggest bone to pick was probably the patronising way poc was presenting awards to white people, in the name of diversity. It was so transparent and cringeworthy.
Priyanka Chopra has more right that Jada to show up at the Oscars for simple fact that 95% of her career has been in film NOT television. Sure, her american breakthrough is TV, but the woman has a film catalogue a mile long.
Kerry Washington has also put in more film hours than Jada. Sure, she’s currently famous for television, but again, more time on film than TV sets.
Kerry is like a SJP ie lots of film work then a long running TV show.
Jada has always been a TV actress. Perhaps 5films tops, and that’s me being generous and not bothering to google.
@ LA
None of these ladies have stellar movie careers. None of them are in that league at all. Jada has a lot more then 5 movie credits yeah I had to google that I don’t follow her career at all.I honestly couldn’t care less about her as an actress just calling it like I see it.
Feel like you missed my point a bit this wasn’t about who put in more hours in the movies.He made a joke about jadas work being irrelevant to the oscars this year. Very true, but so is Washington and Chopras. The reason chopra and Washington was invited was to put some diversity in there ( obviously they couldn’t find enough poc actors from movies so they had to go find some in TV which kind of illustrates the problem) Those two would never have been invited if not for all the controversy, believe me, they don’t have that kind of currency in movies right at this moment. It would have been some up and coming ( white actress/actor) presenting as usual.
@Jess–The Jada joke was to say that she can’t boycott something nobody cares if she goes to, not about her television work. He actually seriously slammed her career, and then her husband. It wasn’t about her being on TV, it was about her being somebody whom nobody cares about. Kerry Washington is very relevant to the Oscars because she was in 3 Oscar-nominated films and Chopra is one of the hardest working foreign film actress, forget about her ABC show.
I think he was basically saying it’s stupid for Jada to boycott the Oscars because it doesn’t help their cause at all and that it looks more like she was boycotting because felt her husband didn’t get nominated for racism, when really it was more that the film wasn’t very good (when he did an impression of Smith’s movie accent, it was more of a “hey remember that line,” rather than “yes he was so good.”)
Yeah but the joke still works because if Washington or Chopra had declared they were boycotting it would have been a bit of a shrug. Sure maybe they would have invited Jada to present but if she said no…so what? The only “boycott” that would have been noticed would have been the acting nominees. Spike Lee’s not being there doesn’t count because he declined to call it a boycott. His perrogative.
Jada does have a lot more than five movie credits, plus she has credits as a producer for films. Comparing these actresses and what they have done is silly. The main reason Kerry and Priyanka are there is because they are on hit ABC television shows and the Oscars were on ABC. The reality is if Jada wanted to present I am sure her agent could have gotten her that gig. Also bet if Will had been nominated she would have presented. It was a joke not meant to be taken literally, as she really isn’t a star in the Oscar range. Don’t think she is going to get nominated for Magic Mike XXL. I thought it was funny, and that most of Chris’ jokes were pretty good, not Stacy Dash, but nice attempt and Chrissy Teigan’s face made up for that joke. I loved the interviews at the theatre. They were funny.
@sassback
I count at least two Oscar nominated movies that jadas been involved in so I don’t see much of a difference between her and Washington. There are lots of actresses with tons of credits in the foreign market that are never invited more highly rated actresses than chopra so I still maintain her and washingtons presence was mainly to put some poc faces on screen.
At the end of the day we all know Will smith would have been invited if he wanted to come he’s Hollywood a list and jada would have been there as his date at the very least. She’s also a producer and I am sure there were people in that auditorium with less credits than her. It’s just silly to pretend she couldn’t have been there if she had wanted to.
I feel like rocks dismissal of oscarssowhite protesters as unemployed or not invited fell a bit flat
Did he mention that poc pioneers like spike lee chose to stay at home or that the director for creed choose to go to Flint instead? I can’t remember.
Agree with Jess.
Putting all those POC presenters on the show looks like a band aid. Like they can present but they can’t be nominated. Almost rather they didn’t do that at all it was patronising.
Kerry and Priyanka star in television show that air on the same network that broadcast the Oscars. The network always gets to use the broadcast to promote its shows. And, as others have pointed out, Kerry and Priyanka have both done more and better quality film work than Jada.
When Jada did her video, sorry, but I had the same reaction as Chris Rock’s statement – but you weren’t invited. When Jada has gone, it has been because her man was invited, not because of anything Jada herself had done. And sorry, but I found the statements of others, like Viola Davis, far more on point. Jada really seemed to be all about Jada.
And Angela Basset was everything last night
Agreed. This was my take as well
I found rock boring, but then I usually do.
I didn’t watch. I haven’t for the past few years since we already know who is going to win. I guess the only surprise was Sylvester Stallone. I was happy to hear Leo won though, even though it was inevitable.
I was really disappointed sly didnt win, he deserves it, he has made a great contribution to films, Rocky and Rambo;s are still great entertaining films, and he is a legend, wish he had won.
I think he did fine. Hosting the Oscars is a tough gig and it was even more so this year. I think the audience was uncomfortable because it’s a touchy subject. He was in a lose-lose situation. If he didn’t address the controversy he would be criticized and if he did he would be criticized for some of his jokes. Chris is at his best when he does those segments when he goes out to the community. That lady was funny, the one who told Chris he was making up movies!
I felt uncomfortable during his Oscar intro. It wasn’t because of the subject matter, it’s because he was clearly nervous and seemed disjointed. I liked his quips about Jada, Clooney, and grandma hanging from the tree, but the rest didn’t move me to laugh or to think more about the issue. I think he could have done better, but it seemed that he was trying to please everyone and that’s impossible. He should have treated it like one of his stand up segments and let it rip.
Graham Norton recently asked Ice Cube his opinion on the diversity issue, and I think he said something like ‘You can’t boycott something you were never invested in.’ He said Straight Outta Compton received so many positive reactions and accolades, that he didn’t feel left out of anything. I haven’t watched the awards in over ten years, because that’s the last time I remember just being exhausted with it. I never found the nominations to be carefully considered, just a bunch of time and again tested formula flicks and the throwaway ‘foreign’ category. I think they should fire the whole ‘Academy’ and replace it with contemporary filmmakers of every kind and put some popular percentage vote out there to those social networking youths.
The quality of the “throwaway” foreign categorie is certainly the best of the night.
“Social networking youths” would’ve given Kristen Stewart an Oscar for her work in Twilight. I’m not sure that’s a good idea.
Yep, I get it, but neither is the Old White Dude For All Time vote. If there’s an African American woman heading the Academy, I can’t tell. I watch more movies that would fall under the foreign category, that’s why I call it throwaway. Those films are an afterthought. What’s considered for Best Picture is always the same stuff: period piece with severely changed version of real events, character drama with severely changed version of real events, bunch of dudes saying ‘fuck’ a lot in tense situations with close shots, Ladies Wearing The Clothes, etc. The Lord of the Rings made it in there the one year, but that was all about how well dressed the story was for Hollywood.
They already have an awards show with a popular vote. It’s called the people’s choice awards.
Hey, thanks for the information, no matter how tersely presented. I do know that.
I loved the black casting spoof–Whoopie and Tracy were hilarious. Great comedy that made the point!! By the way, I thought Whoopie looked great last night and enjoyed her commenting that her dress was inspired by one Bette Davis wore in All About Eve.
I always enjoy Whoopi; or at least I did until she started at ‘the view’. I’m convinced the person at ‘the View’ is someone masquerading as Whoopi. Last night felt like the old pre-the view Whoopi.
I can’t stand Whoopi these days, but that clip reminded me of why I did like her back in the day.
Leslie was great as the Revenant bear, but Tracey as the Danish Girl was hilarious.
The montages were great. Tracy Morgan and Leslie were hilarious. Whoopi is older now but I loved a glimpse of her former self. I just think she has mellowed.
My cousin’s wife posted on Facebook that she couldn’t watch it this year and “how is this even allowed?” Then some of her friends made comments like “everyone is equal, if you want something you’ve got to get off your ass and work for it.” Other comments, “I’m turning this off, I’m disgusted.”
I hadn’t watched it yet, TWD came first but when I watched it, I was like really, they’re up in arms over that?? There were a couple cringeworthy moments but for the most part I thought he did well trying to bring humor to a very serious and very real problem. Racism is alive and well in America and those comments on Facebook just highlighted the fact that so many people are so damn ignorant to that fact.
I like the fact that Chris acknowledged that racism is different now as a lot of it is not as overt. Sure some Trump supporters are very obvious, but a good portion of it is from as Chris put it the nicest liberal white people you will meet who still won’t hire blacks the same way they hire their white friends. My problem with not recognizing the difference is twofold. One from a history aspect, people ignore the supreme sacrifices that some civil rights leaders made in order to have the rights that people have now. Yes we have moved forward, and those people deserve our respect and acknowledgement that their sacrifices have improved things. The second reason is the worst part, with racism being not as overt a lot of good people ignore it. A lot of people will stand up and scream when someone says I am beating you up because you are a poc, but if you don’t hire someone because they are a poc and you don’t say it out loud you probably get little reaction. it doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt society as whole too.
Yes, yes, yes and yes.
People think that because there is a black man in the Oval Office, black doctors, black millionaire actors…that racism is a thing of the past?!? Wrong! Maybe it’s not “sit in the back of the bus” racism but it’s there, perhaps even more dangerous because people are clueless about it.
One of my best friends likes Trump, that’s hard for me even to admit. How can I love someone who actually might vote for that lunatic?!?! When I said he’s racist she actually said he wasn’t and said he’s just trying to make the U.S “safer.” I just looked at her in amazement and disgust. Trump is doing an excellent job of turning fear into hate.
@mgsota
RE: Trump, I too have a friend that is supporting Trump. It was hard for me, but I’ve decided that we can’t be friends anymore. Trump is a racist and a misogynist and anyone that tolerates him, much less supports him is too. The worst people in the South during the 60’s weren’t the vitriolic hose wielding racists, they were the privileged white people that stood by and didn’t do a thing (and then later professed that they weren’t racists).
“Washing one’s hands of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless means to side with the powerful, not to be neutral. ” Paulo Freire
C3PO? Jacob was excited to see BB8.
Spoof excellemt, Stacey Dash bit incredibly awkward and weird.
Yeah, a little underwhelming in the begining but it got better throughout the night. There were some funny jokes, especially all the mocking of the Smiths (he really went to town there). I Thought The Weeknd’s performance was a mess, his trembling vocals and those embarrasing dancers, just a mess all around. LOVED Sam Smith and I must say Gaga’s performance really moved me but that Oscar went where it should. I was hoping since Mad Max was sweeping all of its categories that it would take best director, but no such luck. REALLY glad Spotlight won BP and did you guys noticed how all the speeches were kept at minimum till it was Leo’s turn? Guess the Academy was preparing for it and planned accordingly. It was an ok show. No more, no less.
Best Original Song seems to be one of the more diverse and/or intersectional categories?
i wonder if it reflects the different industries as a whole.
music being more welcoming (even this is debateable),
while acting/hollywood, i feel, is much more beige-r?
The Oscars is a tough gig period and I think he did it well. I don’t know if anyone else could have done a better job under the circumstances and let’s face it- it was tough. He was funny & classy, and after this I’d hire him to do just about anything.
I think he did a good job. The best snark of the night was from the severely underrated Andy Serkis!
I was on the whole, underwhelmed with his host turn. He was in an unenviable position to be sure, but while there were really strong parts, I think it suffered from trying to be too much and not enough at the same time.
The Stacy Dash moment-WHO THOUGHT THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA???? I’ve rarely seen a joke fall so horribly flat.
Loved the black casting spoof (I’m a Danish girl!), LOVED the girl scouts (I really hope they won that $65K), Jacob Tremlay’s reaction to BB8 was everything and so ridiculously adorable.
MARK RYLANCE. Good actor, oddly attractive and definitely on mu husband list.
Love the Compton segment.
Actually liked the Biden/Gaga segment, and that they brought out survivors to put a real face to the subject manner.
Sam Smith-Part Two of Who thought this was a good idea??? Apparently I’m in the minority here, I thought it was a terrible song to begin with, that he made it worse by singing it live and P.S. Sam, other openly gay people beat you to the Oscar win punch.
I guess I don’t care that much about Leo winning, but god-quit taking yourself SO SERIOUSLY. Like, you can’t even laugh at the bear in the audience joke? And all the false modesty in the speech-like it wasn’t a lock that you were going to win it? Please. I can’t believe that he got a standing ovation.
I don’t know that Sam Smith song but all I know is that he sounded awful last night. Out of tunes in some part. And, is he sick? He lost so much weight.
And about Leo, didn’t think he deserved to win in that Revenant role but i guess ‘long overdue’ reason is enough for the Academy voter. And I did notice that everyone’s speech had time limit except for Leo. They let him talk and never interrupted him. Although I’m glad that he is talking about Climate change / Global warming issue but I don’t think last night was the right time. You won already, you don’t need to do this I’m a good guy who loves to save the world PR.
I think the Stacy Dash moment fell flat because 99% of the people in that theater had no clue who she was and didn’t know why the hell she was there. That’s why there was dead silence during that entire skit.
So basicaly Leo said that it was so freaking hot there was no snow and i thought that they all sufferend so much because they all were so damn cold the whole time shopting the revanent. And now that he has his soulmate ( oscar) with him he can hop on that private jet and get his ass to france and party on a huge ass boat.
and he’s an idiot. the Chinook winds that blow around where they were filming are very common, and not at all a result of climate change. its just a thing that has always happened in there. No one in Canada would seriously count on snow not suddenly melting in and around the Calgary area at that time of year.
I’m so disappointed in Chris Rock.
His monologue was awful, it felt as if he was diminishing the problem. Also not cool to make fun of Jada (I don’t like her or her talentless kids but this felt cheap). The bit with Stacey Dash was bizarre and cringe-worthy. His sketch outside the movies theatre was so poorly thought, I mean, what was the point? In theory Oscars should be given to the best movie, regardless of the audience. And audience-wise Latinos are the minority which goes the most to the movies, so I really don’t see the point.
Also, an Asian joke during this OscarsSoWhite issue?… Really?!
Kevin Heart short speech felt way more inclusive and heartfelt. And for me Louis CK and Sacha Baron Cohen were surprisingly highlights of the night.
Yasss for Sharmeen and her brilliant speech, for Alejandro González Iñárritu, “Chivo” Lubezki, Leo DiCaprio and the Chilean guys of Historia De Un Oso. I’m also super happy for Spotlight.
Louis CK was hillarious when he was anouncing the winner for the prize he was presenting. “And the winner is, Mad M- no, i’m kidding”. So funny.
Well, it was too much. As if there are no other topics to joke about. Rock acted passive-aggressive and his speech was weird.
It got to be really tiring when, at every break in the presenting, they went back to the diversity issue. And Deadline is reporting that the ratings hit an eight-year low.
Yeah I thought it was good he talked about it in his opening monologue, but then through out the night he kept referring to the lack of Black people nominated. It was too much. He already made his point at the beginning. I was hoping he’d make fun of the actual celebs in the audience, but to be honest, looks like there weren’t a lot of A listers there last night.
I thought he was terrible. His monologue was fine but as the night went on he grated on me. Bringing up the issue every single waking moment actually turned people off.
I’m not surprised the ratings hit a low. I know a lot of black people who were boycotting due to the acting nominees being all white yet I also had white people on my Facebook say they weren’t watching because they didn’t want to be “lectured to” and they had no interest listening to “whining” (their words) all night long.
Rock’s previous hosting gig was poorly-rated too if I am remembering correctly.
Yes because I’m sure listening to us “whining” about it was much more frustrating than us living it.
#whiteprivilege
No black nominees? I’m confused, so, The Weeknd did not get nominated?
In the acting categories…
I loved his opening monologue, the truth is he couldn’t win, some people were going to feel he didn’t go far enough, some where going to think he went to far. He had to figure out the best way to handle it and I think he did it beautifully.
I think he was trying to put it in prospective- especially when he said that about the in Memorium being just black people killed by cops on the way to the movie.
I think his point was the boycott specific not that #Oscarssowhite isn’t important it is but he went hard on the racism and lack of hiring of black actors, he made huge points about not being given opportunities and serious issue facing our country especially black people. I could be wrong but I didn’t get him saying either or just more let’s call out the hiring practices so there is more opportunities for minorities to work and thus be nominated. Because if they won’t hire them then can’t award them. Don’t forget he called out the Michael B Jordan should have been nominated during his introduction. He made strong points.
Either way I loved it, I thought the Compton and Girl Scout bit was fantastic. He did an excellent job and I think he won in a no win situation.
Many weird moments such as Stacey Dash and Jada Pinket Smith moments. Bad jokes that belittled the issues at hand. Asian joke was horribly tone deaf given the circumstances of this years awards.Glad Leo got that win out the was so we don’t have to hear about the injustice of it all anymore. But seriously what is it with this notion that hes this long suffering loser?? Al Pachino didn’t have an oscar until he was in his 50s. Scorsese was almost 70 when he won the oscar for best director.
I don’t think the audience had any clue who Stacy Dash was or the controversy surrounding her. They just weren’t in on the joke. It wasn’t funny really though, either was the part where he brought out the Asian kids…but I think that was the only moment where Asians were represented last night and that’s super sad.
I don’t think I will ever watch the Oscar’s again.
I think Chris Rock did a great job. He addressed things that needed to be addressed. I’m not saying it was perfect, but I thought it was good. I fully believe the audience was completely uncomfortable 95% of the time, and there were some parts that made me uncomfortable at home–like when he said that black people used to worry about things that were important, and he used a grandmother being lynched as an example. IDK if that was for shock value or if he was genuinely trying to drive home the point that black people are no strangers to terrible treatment and inequality, but it was a “whoa he went there” moment.
Stacey Dash WAS the joke. Chris Rock isn’t stupid, he trolled her HARD by inviting her to do that. If you read Chris Rock’s interviews, you’ll know that he is ALWAYS pro-black and he isn’t afraid to speak up about things. My personal take on it is that he thinks Stacey Dash is a moron and he took the opportunity to make a joke out of her. Not sure he thought she would crash and burn that badly, but she was supposed to be the joke. It’s hilarious that she believes she was in on the joke or that there was some other deep meaning that involves her blackness, as she is trying to claim that the message was that people say she isn’t black enough. Her blog post serves as proof that she really is a moron who just doesn’t get it.
Overall, I think there were painfully obvious attempts at being diverse all throughout the show that had nothing to do with Chris, but rather the producers of the show and I guess the Academy. At one point, they cut to commercial with the orchestra playing “La Bamba.” I mean come on. It’s good that they made the effort, but it felt forced and very obvious.
I like CR, but it felt like he was pushing the controversy way too much. Loved the Jada Pinkett-Smith jab. She deserved that one. Stacy Dash moment was stupid and confusing. If the majority of your audience doesn’t know the background of the joke, don’t do it. The Girl Scout cookie sale, was just a poor repeat of the pizza delivery by Ellen. CR could have come up with something more original. I think instead of people getting mad at the Oscars and such for no nominated roles for black actors, why not aim it a little more towards the people that do the casting for these movies? To be sure there is someone of color out there that could have done The Martian (even though I love Matt Damon), and also Mad Max. I can see how The Danish Girl and Brooklyn needed to be someone white, but what about Room? It’s not that hard and there are plenty of people of all races and colors and nationalities that can sell a story just as well as the Leo Dicaprio’s and Jennifer Lawrence’s can. IMO of course…
“I think instead of people getting mad at the Oscars and such for no nominated roles for black actors, why not aim it a little more towards the people that do the casting for these movies?”
I thought Chris Rock did that when he mentioned that white liberals only hire other white people.
I thought he did a really good job. I felt for the first time as a white person that I understood what the issue really is.
My favourite moment was Tracy Morgan as The Danish Girl. Brilliant.
Black casting spoof: WINNING!!
I knew it was going to be one of Chris’s most difficult performances. God, what pressure. It was like he had so much to say, tried to say it in so many ways, trying to be funny, trying to kind of smooth things over. It was all over the place. And I’m glad he got through it. Something odd…Kevin Hart. I love him, but it was like he was almost a co-host. Just weird. And then Stacy Dash. WTF?!!!!!!!!!!!! At first I thought it was Kristen Wiig dressed up as a spoof. Then I realized it was her and I think I said “Wuuuuuuuuuuuuuut”.To myself, the cat and my Skyy &cranberry. It was all odd. But Tracey Morgan as The Danish, Girl! LOLOLOLOLOL. Hilarious. For me, the best.
I feel a bit sorry for Stacey Dash, she’s like Palin, not very bright with delusions of intelligence and given a huge microphone to embarrass herself with. It was the most cringeworthy thing I’ve seen in a while. She didn’t get that she was the joke. The audience was confused. I felt mortified for her (may as well, shes not going to!). It’s such a pity, she’s so beautiful, if only she could keep her mouth closed. Talking isn’t for everybody.
Uncomfortably embarrassed by its lack of humor. Bored.
I really enjoyed Dave Grohl playing the In Memorium – which is usually one of my least favorite parts, aside from any sort of Debbie Allen dance number. The simplicity was really lovely.
Whoohoo for Leo. Not the role he should have won an Oscar for but most definitely ‘Best Actor’ worthy for numerous past roles, so all good.
Beyond that, the Oscars 2016 was so filled with dreary nothing.
The BAFTAs rule.
Chris ROCKS! This was an impossible job. I think when all the dust settles, that Stacey Dash thing will go down in comedy history. She wasn’t in on the joke, she WAS the joke. It was brilliant and cruel and totally deserved.
I thought he did well but I hated the girl scout cookie bit. To me that totally fell flat and felt awkward.
The Stacy Dash thing fell short. I knew the issue around her but I juse didn’t get it. I don’t get how the show ran 30 minutes over. Lady Gaga. Sigh. Her voice did sound good but just over the top for me. Didn’t mind Rock being in everyone’s face with the issue as it should have been in everyone’s face.
I thought Chis was great. He stayed on point and dedicated all 10 minutes to the issue of racism. He wasn’t making jokes ricky garvais way allienating the audience and in my opinion delivered the message. It’s not that this year oscars are so white and not even that black people are not nominated but that black people lack opportunity and one nomination for a black actor this year would not change that. There needs to be a change in how stories and which stories are made into the movies, who work on set in front and behind the camera, how films are distributed, etc. And he is right. This is the extent of a problem in one of the most liberal businesses on earth. Just imagine what is happening elsewhere.
I think he did the best possible job anyone could, I think it was important to address it but he also managed to find genuine humour with bite. Maybe a little to heavy on the “the world’s gone p.c. mad” slant but if he’d gone in over earnest it wouldn’t have played well. It is supposed to be a frothy awards show after all. And Jada and Will kind of deserved to be targeted imo, for pressuring other people to boycott when they obviously did have a personal stake in feeling slighted by the Oscars this year. I really loved the piece from Compton, it was funny and highlighted how few people watch most Oscar nominated movies (I think he could have done this in most neighborhoods too) anyway. The guy whose favorite movie was Superfly was too good!
WORST OSCARS EVER!!!!!!
Chris Rock made me very uncomfortable in the sense that I am married and monogamous and I wanted to hit that so hard. What is sexier than a funny, smart man at the peak of his power? Somebody fetch my smelling salts!
He was doing great until that Asian-gag bit and later on with Sacha Baron Cohen’s “yellow people with tiny dongs” joke, which just made the discussion about diversity a big, fat joke.
If one thing became clear, is that Rock’s problem isn’t about bigotry and stereotypes of ethnic groups in general, but only when they’re directed towards blacks. If that wasn’t the case, I can’t understand how he could so easily use these questionable stereotypes and classless jokes on a different minority group.
Thanks a bunch.
Eh, are you serious?
He mocked the black lives movement, made awful jokes about lynching (which everyone laughed at, it was disturbing), rape jokes about black women,sexist jokes about Rihanna and misogynoir aimed at jada. He basically roasted black people like 90% of the time.
And what are you trying to say? That black “jokes” are A-OK but asian jokes or other minority jokes are bad? Wow.. So it’s ok to degrade and mock black people because the host is black huh. If you haven’t noticed most black people are furious at Chris and changed the channel after he made those tasteless jokes about lynching etc
Also check out #notyourmule on twitter.
Btw, those jokes about asians you are talking about were not made at their expense, you clearly didn’t get it and it was the tamest joke of the night.
I genuinely don’t understand where you got that I was “A-OK” with black jokes, at the same time I don’t understand why it has to be one or the other. I think almost all the jokes were awkward. Including the opening monologue, where Rock also had to do the whole “you can only go for one cause!” thing as well. Some parts I genuinely liked, like the bit with the movie-goers or even the bit where they had the whole black-people-cast-in-this-year’s-Oscar-movies bit.
And alright, please tell me what I missed on those jokes. Because perhaps I didn’t understand what it was all about.
I really think a lot of people in that room had no idea who Stacey Dash even is.
Sam Smith was embarrassing. I’m pleased Gaga didn’t win (although sad for Diane Warren who had to put up with a dubious Gaga co-credit for a song she wrote herself, and then lost anyway) but Smith’s performance was awful, and the song is probably the worst Bond theme ever. Then he said he thought he was the first openly gay winner (dude no, there’s been like a dozen before you), then when people pointed out in the press room that he wasn’t he said he was happy to be second (no, try again), then he joked about how he should date the guy a journalist name-checked, except the man died of AIDS like twenty years ago. The more Smith spoke, the deeper he dug himself into a hole that he couldn’t get out of. I can’t say I’ve ever paid much attention to him but he’s clearly not the sharpest tool in the shed. Gay twitter, understandably, gave him hell.