The BAFTAs
Feb. 19th, 2024 08:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shallownessI watched the BAFTAs (aka the only movie award show it’s feasible for me to watch) and basked in having seen quite a few of the nominated films. David Tennant was presenting, so we had a Staged referencing skit to open. Oh well, Tom Hiddlestone turned up and ‘Bark Ruffalo’ was a very cute dog. Extending the joke to Andy Serkis’s introduction of an award made it funnier. Tennant was fine and wore a modern kilt (until he changed into something ugly towards the end of the show.)
Mainly, the winners were as expected, with a few surprises – American Fiction getting adapted screenplay, and the great British public not going for her off Bridgerton or him off Saltburn, as I’d expected. (The Fug Girls reminded me that getting nominated can be win enough.) I don’t know how much British bias (or love of Irishmen – All Of Us Strangers seemed to get a lot of love from the festival hall audience) played into it, but Oppenheimer ultimately won big, with Poor Things getting a lot of visual award wins and, obviously, Emma Stone (Lily Gladstone wasn’t nominated) winning best actress. The Zone of Interest won Best British Film (always a head-scratching category) AND Best Foreign Language Film and sound. (I’ve since learned that the first two were slight surprises and that Nolan hasn’t won best director before.) Having seen Oppenheimer, while I had some quibbles (its length because of some of the narrative decisions, didn't love much of what they did with Florence Pugh's character and the use of sex) it was thought-provoking and well made, and I am pleased that Cillian Murphy won best actor here.
The award for contribution to British cinema to June Givanni (sp?) seemed well deserved, although what a night to lose your voice, as did giving the Fellowship to Samantha Morton, who must be one of the youngest winners. Like the award for best debut was to Savanah Leaf, it was clearly a big deal for her.
Which reminds me, I laughed at the Ken…Loach gag. Cate Blanchett (great dress) seemed to be playing Princess Kate, sitting next to Prince William, on a night when there were many and varied comments about diversity, representation and getting it right or not. (But whoever invited Michael J. Fox to give the final award got it very right.) It got mildly political, with references to the actors and screenwriters strikes, the slaughter of innocents, nuclear non-proliferation and children in care, but there were a couple of points where you could see the edits for the TV show.
The whole show got better as it went on. Sophie Ellis-Bextor reprising ‘Murder on the Dance Floor’ was fine, (it probably says more about me that I’d have gone for something Wonka related), and a shiny faced Hannah Waddingham didn’t get in the way of the ‘in memoriam’ version of ‘Time After Time’. Blanchett, Elba, Ejofor, Anderson and, of course, Hugh Grant were the best presenters, RDJ’s speech was supremely pitched and mothers got referenced a lot.
Lookswise, for me, the people in red (or what I took to be red) got it most right, Adjoah Anboe, Dua Lipa (and her traaaaaaaaaaain) and Andrew Scott were probably my favourite looks.
Mainly, the winners were as expected, with a few surprises – American Fiction getting adapted screenplay, and the great British public not going for her off Bridgerton or him off Saltburn, as I’d expected. (The Fug Girls reminded me that getting nominated can be win enough.) I don’t know how much British bias (or love of Irishmen – All Of Us Strangers seemed to get a lot of love from the festival hall audience) played into it, but Oppenheimer ultimately won big, with Poor Things getting a lot of visual award wins and, obviously, Emma Stone (Lily Gladstone wasn’t nominated) winning best actress. The Zone of Interest won Best British Film (always a head-scratching category) AND Best Foreign Language Film and sound. (I’ve since learned that the first two were slight surprises and that Nolan hasn’t won best director before.) Having seen Oppenheimer, while I had some quibbles (its length because of some of the narrative decisions, didn't love much of what they did with Florence Pugh's character and the use of sex) it was thought-provoking and well made, and I am pleased that Cillian Murphy won best actor here.
The award for contribution to British cinema to June Givanni (sp?) seemed well deserved, although what a night to lose your voice, as did giving the Fellowship to Samantha Morton, who must be one of the youngest winners. Like the award for best debut was to Savanah Leaf, it was clearly a big deal for her.
Which reminds me, I laughed at the Ken…Loach gag. Cate Blanchett (great dress) seemed to be playing Princess Kate, sitting next to Prince William, on a night when there were many and varied comments about diversity, representation and getting it right or not. (But whoever invited Michael J. Fox to give the final award got it very right.) It got mildly political, with references to the actors and screenwriters strikes, the slaughter of innocents, nuclear non-proliferation and children in care, but there were a couple of points where you could see the edits for the TV show.
The whole show got better as it went on. Sophie Ellis-Bextor reprising ‘Murder on the Dance Floor’ was fine, (it probably says more about me that I’d have gone for something Wonka related), and a shiny faced Hannah Waddingham didn’t get in the way of the ‘in memoriam’ version of ‘Time After Time’. Blanchett, Elba, Ejofor, Anderson and, of course, Hugh Grant were the best presenters, RDJ’s speech was supremely pitched and mothers got referenced a lot.
Lookswise, for me, the people in red (or what I took to be red) got it most right, Adjoah Anboe, Dua Lipa (and her traaaaaaaaaaain) and Andrew Scott were probably my favourite looks.
