#visuals were epic!!!!!!!! i like the fire :] and her makeup was so so good

[the-gayest-tree-you-ever-did-see]

okay that was fun!!! liked it had a good time

[thearkhound]

Kojima Cinema Vol. 3: The English Patient and Vukovar: A Story

Double Feature in Kojima Cinema

I’m always concerned about the movie I will discuss every time I’m thinking about writing the manuscript for this column. It has to be important to some extent and it also has to be relevant at the moment. There were many movies premiering during these past two months. Picking just one movie was very difficult. So I decided to follow Kazutoshi Iida’s advice and decided to cover two movies for a change of pace. While the two movies have different themes, they both depict a man and a woman who are at the mercy of history (war).

Are Academy Award-Winning Movies Actually Good?

I haven’t seen an Academy Award-winning movie yet. Perhaps it’s because it’s not compatible with my personality. Even before actually winning an award, such a movie is given way too much lip service. I really can’t be fond of those big Hollywood epics that aggressively try to push emotions. Therefore, I haven’t yet seen Rain Man, Schindler’s List or even Forrest Gump. I ended up seeing The English Patient because one of my favorite actresses, Juliette Binoche, was in it. I’m glad that she won “Best Supporting Actress” for her role in this movie.

Visiting the English Patient in the Marunouchi Louvre

I saw The English Patient and felt immediately asleep during the beginning, but that’s probably because I haven’t been sleeping well lately. While it has its good points, like its elegant shots and elaborate editing, ultimately it feels like a mediocre movie that happened to won an Oscar. The details in the historical background was also pretty light, so it felt less like the story of a couple affected by war and more like a common tale of selfish adultery.

Anthony Minghella’s Cute Direction

Personally I was more enchanted by the innocent romance between Hana (Binoche’s character) and Kip than I was with the passionate drama between Almasy and Katharine. I’ve never seen any of Minghella’s other films, but I get the impression that his previous title, Mr. Wonderful, was really popular with female audiences. The direction with those characters was pretty cute, much like a Japanese “trendy drama” show, such as when Kip guides Hana with a torch or when they find a painting with a smoke bomb. Perhaps female audiences might be moved.

The Mona Lisa Smile of Juliette Binoche

Perhaps one of the highlights of this movie is Juliette Binoche herself. In contrast to Kathaline (Kristin Scott Howard), who wears a dress and has an erotic affair while living an elegant life, Hana, who is devoted to nursery while covered in dust from the ruins, is pretty and divine. Scenes such as when Binoche cuts her hair or when she washes away the dirt from her body, serve to well-visualize her inner beauty without relying on makeup or fancy dresses. I can even remember her natural behaviors that does not give up her worth as a person even after throwing away her pride. I can feel a beauty that goes beyond sex and a radiance for life. It’s worth seeing this movie just for Binoche’s smile and angelic face, especially when she’s taking care of Almasy and that last scene when she’s on the carriage.

Seeing Vukovar from Cinema Square Tokyu

I saw Vukovar: A Story [Vukovar poste restante] just two days after watching The English Patient. Unlike the nationally released nine Academy Awards-winning Patient, Vukovar was only released in art house theaters. To be honest, I didn’t any expectations for it, so I was overwhelmed by its awesomeness. Even though it’s not a big budget epic, the impact it conveys is unmeasurable. Vukovar is a city in old Yugoslavia that most Japanese people are not familiar with. It starts with a happy Serbian-Croatian newlywed couple. When the Berlin Wall falls, an ethnic conflict that would be incomprehensible to the Japanese ignites and the two are driven apart. People who were friends yesterday are suddenly exchanging fire and even spouses and relatives are becoming enemies. Why did the conflict started? Was it for race? Land? A dispute? Patriotism? Perhaps this is a masterpiece that depicts the sickening Europe as faithfully and as neutral as possible. 

A Movie That Aims to Convey Faithfulness

The structure, which features a lot of news footage edited in, while fictional, feels very much like a documentary. The ruins, sandstorms, bullet holes, dry gunshots, modest explosions and such all feel painfully real. I feel a terrifying sense of dread in the final scene, where it’s an aerial shot of actual ruins that goes on forever. It’s some that is completely impossible to replicate with special effects or CGI. The obsession of the film crew who risked their lives capturing reality is respectable. Even in the final scene, when the couple go on their separate ways on bus, there’s no dramatic reunion between them, just ruins and despondency. War could completely ruin one’s heart completely.

Moreso than being mere entertainment. Vukovar is a movie that educates you.

The Roles of Movies, Novels and Games

I believe movies and novels serve two purposes. The first purpose is entertainment that focuses primarily on amusement that “charm people with dreams.” The other meaning is to “bring attention to historical facts and events that people must never forget.” However, in the game world there still aren’t any titles that have traces of or brings attention to a theme. At the end, games still remain in the realm of playthings. What I want to make is an entertainment that has a trace of theme through interactive media. Metal Gear Solid, which has a theme of anti-war and anti-nukes, will be one step of that ideal. Oh, when will games have the power to appeal to reason?

Source

Game Hihyō Vol. 15 (July 1997)

[chicagoindiecritics]

New from Every Movie Has a Lesson by Don Shanahan: OSCAR PREDICTIONS 2020: The visual and artistic categories

(Image: hypable.com)

PART 3: THE VISUAL AND ARTISTIC CATEGORIES

The short turnaround 92nd Academy Awards arrive host-free for the second consecutive year on Sunday, February 9th, barely a month after nominations were announced. The pace has added excitement and urgency right on down to my website’s 2020 Awards Tracker. Let’s start calling some winners. As always, that prognostication data is cited in these predictions. This column examines the visual and artistic categories of designs, editing, effects, and more. As I say every year, stick with me and I will win you your Oscar pool!

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

The nominees: The Irishman, Joker, The Lighthouse, 1917, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood

Who should be here: I’ve got two picks for you where one is indie and one is mainstream. On the big end, I thought Hoyte van Hotema’s work in Ad Astra deserved recognition. On the smaller end, Claire Mathon’s dazzling natural beauty for Portrait of a Lady on Fire has won the second most cinematographer awards this season and did not get a nod.

Who should feel lucky to be there: Like much of the talent involved with The Irishman, Robert Richardson is a rightful legend in his field, but other than a few Scorsese specialty long tracks and slo-mo moves, nothing about his camera work is special in the crime epic. His inclusion feels, again like just about all of the The Irishman nominations, like a token resume inclusion.

Who should win and will win: This one is not even close and it’s going to Roger Deakins for 1917. His long takes combining monstrous crane, tracking, drone, and Steadicam work is beyond comparison and some of the insane best in history. That entire movie is a jaw-dropping “how did they do that” reel and it starts with Deakins’ open lenses.

BEST EDITING

The nominees: Ford v Ferrari, The Irishman, Jojo Rabbit, Joker, Parasite

Who should be here: Even if the single-take fakery is a gimmick for 1917, it’s a pretty damn well executed one in terms of economy and hidden smoothness from editor Lee Smith. Less is more and he should be there. More in the “more” department, the massive work it took to take thousands of hours of footage and hone the perfect documentary Apollo 11 also deserved consideration. It’s hard for documentaries to crack this category and I’ll never understand why because editing is everything in that medium.

Who should feel lucky to be there: Take all the things I said about Robert Richardson in cinematography for The Irishman and repeat it here for Thelma Schoonmaker. We get it. She’s a legend working for a legend on a big deal film, but, goodness gracious, that movie is night tight, taut, or sharp in editing. There’s a lot of fat on steak, no matter what truck it fell off of.

Who should win: Much like the sound categories, I think this is a spot where Ford v Ferrari should prevail. The work to merge the second unit shots, stunt performances, and acting inserts with practical sets and props over CGI is incredible. It deserves this outlier consideration for the win.

Who will win: I’m going to be daring here and say this one is going to Parasite. Many people love to point to Best Editing as being married to the Best Picture winner, but that only happens about 60% of the time (including last year with Green Book). A Parasite win here could rile some TV viewers up about Parasite’s Best Picture chances, and rightfully so. However, with no 1917 in here, this award goes to the next best and that’s Parasite and, luckily, the craft of the reveals of its thriller match the award itself in a fair way.

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

The nominees: The Irishman, Jojo Rabbit, 1917, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, Parasite

Who should be here: Even if 80% of the film takes place in a single location, that macabre mansion in Knives Out created by production designer David Crank and his team would have been a fun and eclectic addition to this field. For the single location vote, it looks like Parasite got that spot.

Who should feel lucky to be there: I don’t think any of these five finalists are inferior to the craft and category. Any of them would be excellent winners, even with the Knives Out wish.

Who should win: If my jaw was dropping from the camera work of Roger Deakins in 1917, the trait that dropped it even lower was the towering desolation and created destruction of the outdoor locations and sets for 1917 by Dennis Gassner. He wowed us with Blade Runner 2049 and 1917 is just as good from the guy who cut his teeth carving a baseball field in the corn for Field of Dreams. He’s got an Oscar in his living room from Bugsy but has deserved two or three more.

Who will win: Barbara Ling is a first-time nominee in this category for crafting Quentin Tarantino’s 1969 for Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood. The industry loves celebrating its golden past and this award is a perfect bouquet thrown to Tarantino’s fairy tale to go with Brad Pitt’s future win. From the cars to the ashtrays, the look of the movie was positively dreamy. This is a worthy winner.

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

The nominees: The Irishman, Jojo Rabbit, Joker, Little Women, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood

Who should be here: There is no question Black Panther Oscar winner should be there to defend her title, so to speak, with her flamboyant work on Dolemite is My Name. Her work has won more costuming awards this season than any other film. This counts as a slight.

Who should feel lucky to be there: Here’s one more for The Irishman and its parade of resumes. Three-time Oscar winner Sandy Powell soaked up the era beautifully for Scorsese’s film, but we’ve seen this work before. Solid as it may be, it’s not a standout. That’s where a swap for Carter would have fit.

Who should win: Movies are a chance to really play with changing looks and characterization. The double volume of on-screen show-within-the-show roles and off-screen main characters in Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood was outstanding. Like the production design, not a stitch was out of place and always just garish enough to let the actors have fun. It could still win, but we know older period pieces get more love.

Who will win: .That’s why, and it’s not a bad thing, that Little Women finally wins an Oscar during this ceremony and party. Jacqueline Durran is a veteran with solid work who won back in 2012 for Anna Karenina. This is where finery gets its due.

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIR-STYLING

The nominees: Bombshell, Joker, Judy, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, 1917

Who should be here: If I were to ask you to close your eyes and picture Elton John, the eyebrows would raise and the wild looks being remembered would be a hoot. That flashy variety in Rocketman should have earned a nomination.

Who should feel lucky to be there: Angelina Jolie and her enhanced cheekbones were enough to get Maleficent: Mistress of Evil a spot in the final five as the weakest of the bunch.

Who should win: It’s not massive, but I really want to put Joker here and not just for Joaquin Phoenix’s frightening look. I think the dinge and class warfare of the movie looked incredible for this award. Give me the daring over the attractive.

Who will win: That’s because attractive is going to win. All you need to do is show a picture of Charlize Theron as Megyn Kelly and this category is wrapped up for Bombshell. If you needed a second dose to convince you, try to find John Lithgow inside of that Roger Ailes facade. Game, blouses.

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

The nominees: Avengers Endgame, The Irishman, 1917, The Lion King, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Who should be here: I’ve dropped this title before and here’s another. Ad Astra has won the second most visual effects awards of the year and it was omitted from the finalists.

Who should feel lucky to be there: So help me God, if The Irishman and its crappy de-aging effects actually win, I’m going to break something. When free software fit for YouTube can do a better job that a nine-figure budget, your work shouldn’t be here to win.

Who should win: Call it lifeless all you want, but when you realize that every shot but one (the opening sunrise, in fact) in The Lion King is completely created from a marriage of CGI and cinematography innovations, you have to bow to that newfangled royalty. Their work and detail is staggering.

Who will win: I’d love to see the 1917 train keep going (and it could), but I’m going to push wishful thinking that the saga-capping effects of Avengers: Endgame take the statuette. I think there’s something worth rewarding with the volume and culmination that is its big ending. I’ve been burned here before in this category when I constantly thought the Planet of the Apes reboot effects would and should win. I think with Marvel it’s different. If it wins, I need ABC to cut to Martin Scorsese for a reaction shot of his magnum opus being beaten by the non-cinema MCU “roller coaster.” Take that, you old coot.

NEXT: The writing and directing awards

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[inkwellco]

REVIEW - WONDER WOMAN

I absolutely love it when a movie meets my expectations. For years I’ve been looking forward to the Wonder Woman film. It did not disappoint. I would go so far as to say, it is the best superhero film I’ve ever seen. Definitely part of the top 10 films I’ve ever seen. I loved this film. Between the humour, action and notes reflecting on history, we as an audience were taken in. Director Patty Jenkins is a genius and credit to her craft, in my opinion she has created a world that surpasses the stories previously told in the superhero universe.

The audience was captured by top notch storytelling. Both in the flow of the story and the performances on screen. For years we’ve been waiting for a solo story to be told on the scale of a full on blockbuster epic. Wonder Woman meets that criteria. There are elements of a 300 meets Captain America way of storytelling. I say Captain America because that is the best Marvel solo story and 300 because of the action sequences combined with the flow of the story, completely reminiscent in Wonder Woman, but on a higher scale.

Gal Gadot absolutely encapsulates Wonder Woman. Like I’ve said before in my Suicide Squad review discussing Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, I’m finding it hard to imagine someone else in to role of Diana. Gal Gadot is absolute perfection. She has the emotion, characteristics, mannerisms, everything down pat. I think it helps Gadot has skills when it comes to fight sequences. Her movement is absolutely amazing. That combined with brilliant camera work and directing, create scenes that make me think, I’m taking this to my gym and I will transform. Like I felt when I was a child, I want to be Wonder Woman. It’s been a while since I left the cinema thinking, I want to be that character. A while since I left the cinema feeling invigorated, as if a part of that character imprinted on me. That was the case with Wonder Woman.

Chris Pine as Steve Trevor one of my new favourite characters of all time. His interaction with Wonder Woman and his overall being really resonated with the audience. He was us, the person coming in to this new situation and explaining the realities of life. There were some really funny and lovely scenes between Steve and Diana. The way this relationship grows over the film is a testament to the writers and their delivery in storytelling, having a friendship like that grow in amongst the other stories, all the while not distracting us from the other plot lines is pure genius. The bathing scene is so well done, and helps establish the tone in their story. The growth in all the characters is so well achieved too. You come to love these characters and can’t wait to see what happens next.

Lucy Davis as Etta Candy is another new favourite character. If we were like any character in this film, we would definitely be Etta Candy. She’s the one that brings grounding to every situation. She is hilarious, bringing a light, fun hearted quality to the film. What she brings to the story, just adds to the overall appeal of the film. She’s fun and quirky, so the humour she brings to the story is honestly a breath of fresh air. It’s the type of humour that is more a comment on a situation in passing that has a really honest element to it. Her relationship with both Steve and Diana really makes her a loveable character. For that matter, I really like the use of love, or more so the idea of love in this film. How it relates to the start, middle and ending of this particular chapter. Almost like a thread that connects the different plotlines, and emotions in each of these scenes, together. Another notable mention, David Thewlis (who you may remember as Harry Potter’s beloved, Professor Lupin) stars as Sir Patrick, someone who is instrumental in the going ons of the war, he funds the mission for Diana and Steve to stop Doctor Poison. It was interesting to see Thewlis take on this character, in contrast to characters he’s played in the past. There’s dimension to his character and ultimately the delivery of his role throughout the film really adds another layer to the story in itself. Especially when it comes to his interaction with the team and that includes Etta.

Another great element to this film was the team Diana and Steve formed, Charlie (Ewan Bremner), Sameer (Saïd Taghmaoui) and Chief (Eugene Brave Rock). We start the film off with Diana in present day, receiving something from Bruce Wayne aka Batman. That package is a photo of Diana’s team. The letter reads, I’d love to know the story, it is this device that launches Diana into the telling of said story. Our beginning, and ultimately her origins story. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, it is the best origin story I’ve seen yet. You go on such an amazing journey over the two hours of this film. Each part contributes to the story, it adds to the development of not just the plot but the characters. Starting off Diana is a tad unsettled by her team members as they don’t show to have the particular values she shares, but over time Diana learns you can’t judge from first impressions. Underneath each person there’s something that has made them who they are standing in front of you. With each experience you are shaped into the person you are. That photo represents that.

There was a point during one of the action sequences where I was brimming, smiling like a cheshire cat. I was elated to see a character I’ve looked up to for decades, become a role model to a whole new generation. Add to that how amazing the action sequences were. The slow motion coupled with the amazing moves really created a feast for the eyes. This was also achieved in the training fight sequences. The Amazons on the island of Themyscira created such a cool dynamic of training and then ultimately fighting. There was a good mix between the action and story in this part too. Learning about the history and how it relates to Diana’s story, and how she then takes that mantle on to bridge that into the larger picture of the film. Connie Nielsen and Robin Wright are great both in the way they took on the roles of Queen Hippolyta (Nielsen) and General Antiope (Wright). I honestly want to be a mix between the two, particularly because both have a different type of strength. A strength that can be seen in Diana. You can see over the course of the film that Diana was given the correct arsenal of strength thanks to these two ladies. Over the course of the film with every person she meets, she gains something new, particularly understanding and a new scope on the greater meaning of the world.

Ares God of War is the villain in this film. A being whom Wonder Woman sees as the catalyst for the current World War, the main reason she has journeyed beyond the seas of Themyscira to save the World. Diana believes Ares has corrupted the minds of men and is the sole cause of the World War. That he has taken on a role within the high ranks of military to influence a nation. General Erich Ludendorff (Danny Huston) fits this bill and Maru aka Doctor Poison (Elena Anaya) is by his side creating a gas that will assist their goals. Both are a different type of villain. That’s the thing with the DC villains, two different villains may have the same goal but they each achieve it differently, in their own style. Again, a varying male – female villain duo with their own style. There are some epic fight scenes throughout and the visuals are brilliant. At one point Steve Trevor infiltrates their camp site and upon escaping, nonchalantly drops a hand bomb into a space. The visual effects in the blasts and fire work within the film are so well done. Overall the special effects were above average in Wonder Woman. There were two moments where I felt some of the imagery looked a tad blurred, particularly when it came to panning in moments that were at times moving fast, but ultimately those small problems paid no consequence to the whole aspect of the film. The costume design is Oscar worthy. Between the outfit Diana wears in the present (I want that outfit), to her Wonder Woman warrior outfit, to her London style, the fashion in this film was beautiful. I loved Etta’s outfits too. That’s the thing, each character had an outfit that was specifically designed to represent the persona and how they relate to the situation they’re in. The hair and makeup complimented these looks, especially the hair. A lot of what I saw in the film could translate into every day life (just my excuse to look like Wonder Woman every day), between the gladiator sandals, to the royal blues and reds, along with the gold, I’m pretty sure I’ll be re-organising my wardrobe this weekend. Speaking of colours, the cinematography in this film is stunning. The contrast between the rich colours in Themyscira to the dull colours of London was achieved well, and summed up perfectly by Diana. I have to also mention how brilliant the music in the film complimented scenes. The Wonder Woman theme playing as she broke through a window in slow motion to then launch into one of the most epic fight sequences was so brilliantly done. I could not stop smiling. Overall it’s a complex story, with complex characters that create a fantastic story, that audiences can respond to. It’s the first superhero film directed by a woman, Patty Jenkins, a director who has created cinematic brilliance. It’s truly inspiring, both in how this story was achieved/delivered and the content created. It’s very rare that I come across a film that I love this much. That gives me different levels of feeling and emotion using a variety of techniques, like humour, heart and action. Which is why I rate this film 5 stars. I will definitely watch this film again. Walking out of the theatre I was asked, “how was it?” (I was wearing a Wonder Woman top, grinning and enthusiastically analysing the film with my colleague. I replies, “It’s honestly the best, the best superhero film I’ve seen.

Rating: 5/5

☆☆☆☆☆

[sometimesrosy]

What are your thoughts on how Bellamy/Clarke scenes are shot in comparison to those of Clarke/Finn, Clarke/Lexa?

I haven’t looked at Clarke/Finn scenes in a while, so it might be hard to compare, but I think I remember them being very innocent and childlike. Glowing forests, playing in the water, wishing on falling stars. I’m not sure what the cinematography was like because I wasn’t paying attention, but I know I *felt* like C/F scenes were very much boy meets girl, the love interest, simple teen love story. He was dashing and trying to win her over with his light hearted ways and protection. 

I found C/L scenes to be very glamorous. Especially in season 3. Perhaps not as pronounced in season 2. Which showed L as more fierce and badass. And Clarke trying on that badass persona, too (as opposed to her innocent, defenseless persona who would cut you as soon as you let her close enough.) I didn’t see mutual romance in season 2. I saw L falling for Clarke and Clarke focused on her people. But in season 3, CL was shot with glamorous makeup, glamorous music, glamorous settings, glamorous lighting. It was all beauty and dark romance. L sold Clarke a bill of goods and The 100 sold the audience a bill of goods. It was “heroic epic romance, protection, glamour, comfort and beauty as long as you bow before me, sell your people and your soul and stay here in my tower.” Sell your soul and be mine and you can have “true love.” 

VERY dramatic. VERY EPIC. The lighting! The sweeping views. Those beautiful backdrops with all the candles. You make me want to go back and look at the cinematography to see how they place the two in the scenes. If there are visual clues about what their relationship means. I mean other than the fact that Clarke doesn’t look like herself at all when she’s with L in Polis. And L is always looking at her with those big soft doe eyes. So pretty. All of it. 

One thing I noticed about scenes with Bellamy and Clarke from the very beginning though, is the way they keep placing them as Light and Dark in many many scenes. She is often lit while he is in shadow. Her blonde hair is hilighted while his dark hair and clothes proved contrast. This is one of the reasons I’ve paid attention to the yin yang symbolism, the light in the darkness and the darkness in the light, the two sides of the same coin. Shadows created by the light.  And not always pretty.

 I thought it was interesting that Clarke went from being with Pretty L in polis in season 3a, with all the beauty, back to Bellamy in 3b, and his (pretty) face was badly cut up and scarred. They were hiding in caves. In pain, all of them. It was literally a switch between the beauty and the battered.  Between avoiding herself and facing the pain of her life. 

They are also frequently lit by fire. Torches. Camp fires. Bonfires. They play a pretty key part in a lot of the shots with Bellamy and Clarke. So much light and darkness in Clarke and Bellamy shots. Chiaroscuro. To use a painterly term. 

And season 4. I am simply amazed at how close they are in all their shots. How they are in the same frame of tight shots all the time. How close to do you have to be standing to share the screen for a close up? This is a big difference between season 3 and 4 and it’s pretty extreme. No one else gets so many tight couple shots without actually being in an intimate romantic moment. 

[phooll123]

Academy Awards Unfold Amid Changing Movie Business – Variety

Guillermo del Toro won a best director statue at the 90th Annual Academy Awards on Sunday for his work overseeing the fantasy romance “The Shape of Water.” “I am an immigrant,” he noted, in a politically charged speech, “The greatest thing our art does and our industry does is to erase the lines in the sand. We should continue doing that when the world tells us to make them deeper.” Del Toro is the fourth Mexican director to win a best filmmaking Oscar in the last five years, joining his friends, Alfonso Cuaron (“Gravity”) and Alejandro G. Iñárritu (“Birdman,” “The Revenant”). Gary Oldman won the lead actor award for his chameleonic work as Winston Churchill in “Darkest Hour.” “The movies, such is their power, captivated a young man from South London and gave him a dream,” said Oldman. “Darkest Hour” also earned a makeup award, honoring the team that turned the slender Oldman into the portly prime minister. Sam Rockwell and Allison Janney picked up supporting actor and actress honors. Rockwell was recognized for his performance as a bigoted police officer in “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” while Janney was rewarded for her turn as a caustic parent in “I,Tonya.”

Related

Honored for his first nomination, Rockwell thanked his parents for instilling a love of movies in him and dedicated his award to Philip Seymour Hoffman, the Oscar-winning actor who died of a drug overdose in 2014. Both actors gave shout-outs to their fellow nominees, with Janney saying her competitors “represent everything that is good and right and human about this profession.” Jordan Peele, a Comedy Central star, nabbed a best original screenplay honor for “Get Out,” a horror film that examines race relations. “I knew if someone let me make this movie that people would hear it and people would see it,” said Peele. It was an evening of politics, one that overflowed with denunciations of Trumpism, and pledges of support for immigrants and minorities. There were also moments that seemed tailored to pluck the heartstrings of both red and blue states, including a montage dedicated to military films. “Phantom Thread” and “Darkest Hour” got on the board early, picking up costume design and makeup awards, respectively. “Dunkirk” picked up editing, sound editing, and sound mixing honors. “A Fantastic Woman,” a Chilean drama about a trans woman, nabbed a best foreign language film statue. And “Icarus,” a look at Russia’s doping program, earned a best documentary statue, picking up a statue for Netflix, a streaming service that’s viewed warily by more traditional movie studios. “At least we know Putin didn’t rig this competition,” host Jimmy Kimmel joked in one of many Trump administration jabs. Best Animated Feature winner “Coco” also injected politics into the evening. Accepting the award, Darla K. Anderson, the film’s producer, said, “‘Coco’ is proof that art can change and connect the world and this can only be done when we have a place for everyone and anyone who feels like an ‘other’ to be heard.” There were records during a yawning broadcast. At 89, James Ivory became the oldest competitive Oscar winner, picking up a best adapted screenplay Oscar for “Call Me By Your Name.” Sometimes waiting plays off. Roger A. Deakins, finally won an Oscar for lensing “Blade Runner 2049” after 14 previous cinematography Oscars. The science-fiction epic also nabbed a visual effects Oscar. “Blade Runner 2049” may have scored with Oscar voters, but it failed to excite crowds, collapsing at the box office and resulting in an estimated $80 million in losses. Backstage, Deakins said that he wasn’t sure if wanted his name to be called. “I mean, a big part of me was saying, ‘Please no,'” Deakins said. “I find it very hard,” he said of having to get an acceptance speech on the Oscars stage. “I’ve worked with a lot of the same people for years. I think it’s recognition for their work.” Despite unfolding from a stage encrusted with sparkling Swarovski crystals and flanked by glittering Roman columns, there is a shadow over this year’s broadcast. The Oscars unfold at a time of dramatic social and economic change in the movie business. The fall of Harvey Weinstein — arguably the person responsible for inventing modern awards season campaigning of marathon glad-handing and lavish receptions for voters — has triggered an industry-wide conversation about sexual harassment and discrimination. In October, Weinstein was accused by dozens of women of sexual misconduct and assault. He denied all allegations of nonconsensual acts, but in the ensuing scandal he was drummed out of Hollywood, and fired from his perch at the Weinstein Company, which is now being sold after teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. The fallout didn’t stop with Weinstein. Other major media figures, including Dustin Hoffman, Brett Ratner, Louis C.K., James Franco, and Kevin Spacey have been engulfed in their own scandals related to allegations of sexual misdeeds. In the days before the Oscars, Ryan Seacrest, whose genial soft-ball questions are a staple of awards show red carpets, was accused by his former stylist, Suzie Hardy, of harassment and assault. Seacrest has hit back hard, claiming that Hardy extorted him and noting that an independent investigation commissioned by his employer E! could not find “sufficient evidence” that he behaved inappropriately. Seacrest took  his spot on red carpet despite the fact that some publicists privately said they would steer their clients clear of the E! host. He did manage to corral some stars, with the likes of Allison Janney, Christopher Plummer, and Taraji P. Henson stopping to talk to Seacrest, and also avoided any embarrassing on-air confrontations. Kimmel managed to find a way to make light of the litany of alleged abusers, quipping in his opening monologue that the golden Oscar statue is an ideal Hollywood man. “He keeps his hands where you can see them,” said Kimmel. “Never says a rude word. And most importantly no penis at all. He is literally a statue of limitations.” There were many more somber moments. Ashley Judd, Salma Hayek, and Annabella Sciorra, three of Weinstein’s accusers, took the stage to introduce a series of interviews about the Time’s Up movement and the push for more diversity on screen. “This year many spoke their truth and the journey ahead is long, but slowly a new path has emerged,” said Sciorra. That was the hopeful part. But Sciorra, once one of the industry’s rising stars with films like “The Hand That Rocks the Cradle,” also noted the professional consequences for women who turned down powerful predators. “It’s nice to see you all again,” she said, a seeming reference to a career derailed by men like Weinstein. “It’s been awhile.” Despite the theme of the evening, a celebration of women’s empowerment, Kobe Bryant, the former NBA star who was accused of sexual assault in 2003, won an Oscar for best animated short film for his work co-creating “Dear Basketball.” The charges against Bryant were dropped and the case was settled out of court. It wash’t all politics and advocacy. There was still old school glamor. As the Oscars inches towards its centenary, the show was in a nostalgic mood, inviting back past winners from its nine-decade history such as Eva Marie Saint and Rita Moreno. In addition to an industry-wide reckoning about systemic abuse, there are also corporate concerns that are roiling Hollywood. The business is undergoing a period of intense consolidation. AT&T is trying to get government approval for its purchase of Time Warner, Disney is snapping up the bulk of Fox’s film and television assets, and Viacom is flirting with joining forces with CBS. Fox and Fox Searchlight has a leading 27 nominations, but it’s unclear if the company will continue making awards-bait fare after it is folded into Disney, which prefers to be in the tentpole business. All these mega-mergers are taking place while the kinds of films that the Oscars tend to celebrate, smaller, more human-scale dramas are being eclipsed by comic book movies and special effects-driven fantasies. The gap between popular tastes and those of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, the group that hands out the Oscars, seems to be widening. This year’s crop of best picture nominees are the lowest-grossing since 2011, with only two films, “Get Out” and “Dunkirk,” topping $100 million at the domestic box office. At the same time, fewer people are tuning in for awards show. Last year’s edition was the third-least-watched of the 21st century. Despite the sagging ratings, ABC has brought back Kimmel as host. This year’s broadcast will try to avoid recreating an eleventh hour snafu that made Kimmel’s first stint as emcee so memorable — an envelop mixup that saw presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway mistakenly proclaim “La La Land” the best picture victor. The real winner, “Moonlight,” was later announced in a moment of sheer pandemonium that will join Cher’s Bob Mackie dress and David Niven’s streaker in Oscars infamy. Kimmel made light of the mistake seen round the world in his opening monologue. “This year when you hear your name called don’t get up right away,” he quipped. “Just give us a minute.” More to come…

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