Oscar Party

Last night our friends Dan & Trina came over to watch the Oscars as well as some of the pre-show event in HD. Overall the higher resolution and wider format was very enjoyable, but it especially made a difference in the pre-show. It was fun to see what was happening in the background behind the interviewee, with the fans or attendees who weren't being interviewed.

During the show, I couldn't help but feel a sense of discomfort coming from the celebrity audience. It was maybe due in part to the awkward efforts of the nervously giggling host, but I wonder if it's also from their often-discussed sense of disconnection with the rest of the country. They almost seemed resentful of our viewing presence.

As a host, Jon Stewart came across as an unwelcome outsider. On The Daily Show he's much more animated and receptive to his political guests than he is to celebrities, who often get the minimum amount of very fluffy interview time. That irreverence either worked to make the audience uncomfortable in advance or Stewart just couldn't pull off any genuine interest in his crowd. He seemed almost as shocked about being there as we were, while the funniest segments were Stephen Colbert's spoof campaign ads.

As far as the actual awards go, I only saw a few of the nominees this year and so had a limited basis for judgement. I really liked Crash but for political reasons was disappointed Brokeback Mountain didn't take Best Picture. "Family values" didn't quite win again (see 2004 election), but it wasn't the in-your-face rebuke I was hoping for.