Oscar surprises and predictability

I watched the Academy Awards last night - sort of. My version of watching the Academy Awards is setting the DVR to record it, letting it record for at least an hour and then watching it. That gives me the ability to fast forward through all the speeches by people I've never heard of before. It really speeds up the three-and-a-half hour show.

I found the hosts this year, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, funny enough most of the time. I have to give the edge to Alec for the funnier lines. The show was produced by Alan Shankman, who is a judge on "So You Think You Can Dance" and has been involved in dance movies such as "Step Up," "Step Up 2: The Streets" and "Hairspray." Knowing that, I wasn't at all surprised when a dance troupe took the stage for the presentation of the award for best score. But a lot of other viewers may have wondered about it.

The presentation of the best actor and actress awards also was a surprise. This year, five people took the stage and paid homage to each of the nominees - most often a costar, sometimes a director and in one case a producer. It was a little too much of a pat on the back for me. Yeah, we all know the Academy thinks these people are great. Do we really need an awkward tribute as the camera switches back and forth between the nominee and the person talking about how awesome they are? Of course, it was nice to see Jeff Bridges get a little weepy-eyed as Michelle Pfeiffer talked about him. The only tribute that was truly worth listening to, however, was Stanley Tucci's to Meryl Streep. He was funny and clever in a way that paid respect to the great actress without feeling overly earnest.

As always there were some surprises among the winners and some that were totally predictable. This year I'd seen more of the best picture nominees than I usually see - partly since I see a lot more movies since I've started writing a movie column for the Weekend Pinnacle and partly because there were 10 movies nominated. Of the nominees I saw "Up in the Air," "District 9," "Blind Side," "Avatar," and "Up." Back when I wrote up my predictions in February, I was rooting for "Up in the Air" to win though I thought the honor might go to "Avatar" for James Cameron's awesome new technology.

In the end, the best picture award went to "The Hurt Locker," which has long been on my list of movies to see since a few people I know said it was really good. I will be sure to see it now since one of my resolutions is to see all the Best Picture winners.

When I wrote my predictions back in February, I wanted George Clooney to win for his performance in "Up in the Air." But then I saw "Crazy Heart" and Jeff Bridges blew me away as Bad Blake, a country singing who is more than just a little down and out. Bridges just encompassed the role so much I forgot it was him on the screen. Bridges turn is heartbreaking and moving, and he does his own singing on screen. He won and he deserves it.

One of the big surprises for me was the winner for best actress. Though I had not seen the movie, I thought Helen Mirren had the best shot at the award. But the Oscar went to Sandra Bullock for her turn in "The Blind Side." It was a great performance.

The one category I was certain about was best animation. If there was ever a cartoon that deserved an Oscar it is "Up." The movie somehow condensed a life worth of loving someone into a four-minute interlude. When they showed the clips during the Award, I almost got weepy again just thinking about it.

Avatar, surprisingly, did not get wins for Best Picture or Best Directing. It did get Oscars in two deserving categories, including Best Art Direction and Best Cinematography. The art direction award was deserved for the creation of Pandora, with its lush forests, wild creatures and the way it looked. Of course, a great cinematography was needed to make it all look great.

See the complete list of winners here.