81st OSCAR AWARDS

The 81st Academy Awards ceremony was held by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to honor its selection of the best films of 2008 on February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States. The ceremony was televised in the United States on ABC. Australian performer Hugh Jackman hosted the ceremony for the first time.[4] Oscar-nominated Laurence Mark served as the event's producer, while Oscar-winning writer and director Bill Condon served as executive producer.[5] The Academy hoped to revitalize the ceremony through an entirely new production team sworn to secrecy, and the telecast received mixed reviews from critics.

The nominees were announced on January 22, 2009,[6] by AMPAS president Sid Ganis and Oscar-winning actor Forest Whitaker at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in the Academy's Beverly Hills headquarters.[7] The Curious Case of Benjamin Button led the nominations with a total of thirteen while Slumdog Millionaire received ten. The Dark Knight and Milk received eight nominations, and Doubt, The Reader, and Frost/Nixon each received five. WALL-E, the winner for Best Animated Feature, received six nominations, tying it with Beauty and the Beast for the most nominated animated film in Oscar history.[8] In an Academy Award rarity, all five of the Best Picture nominees were also the five Best Director nominees. This has happened only four other times in Oscar history: 1957, 1964, 1981, and 2005.

Slumdog Millionaire won eight awards, the most of the evening, including Best Picture and Best Director (Danny Boyle). The Curious Case of Benjamin Button came in second with three awards, followed by both The Dark Knight and Milk with two awards. Jerry Lewis was honored with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.[9] For the first time since the 60th Academy Awards (1987), no Honorary Award was presented.

On February 7, 2009, in a ceremony at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, the Academy Awards for Technical Achievement were presented by host Jessica Biel.[10]
Contents
[hide]

* 1 Winners
o 1.1 Major awards
o 1.2 Other awards
o 1.3 Honorary awards
o 1.4 Multiple nominations and awards
* 2 Schedule
* 3 In Memoriam
* 4 Presenters and performers
* 5 Advertisements
* 6 Voting trends and summary
o 6.1 Winners
* 7 Controversies
o 7.1 Disputes over Ledger's statuette
o 7.2 Faked winners leak
o 7.3 Other controversies
* 8 News and recap
o 8.1 Notable events
o 8.2 Memorable quotes
o 8.3 Special segments
+ 8.3.1 Animation
+ 8.3.2 Romance
+ 8.3.3 Comedy
+ 8.3.4 Documentary
+ 8.3.5 Action
o 8.4 Critical reviews
o 8.5 Reception
o 8.6 Criticism
o 8.7 Film previews
* 9 International broadcasters
* 10 See also
* 11 References
* 12 External links

[edit] Winners

Winners are listed first and highlighted in boldface.[11][12]
[edit] Major awards
Best Picture Best Director

* Slumdog Millionaire
o The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
o Frost/Nixon
o Milk
o The Reader



* Danny Boyle – Slumdog Millionaire
o Stephen Daldry – The Reader
o David Fincher – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
o Ron Howard – Frost/Nixon
o Gus Van Sant – Milk

Best Actor Best Actress

* Sean Penn – Milk as Harvey Milk
o Richard Jenkins – The Visitor as Walter Vale
o Frank Langella – Frost/Nixon as Richard Nixon
o Brad Pitt – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button as Benjamin Button
o Mickey Rourke – The Wrestler as Randy "The Ram" Robinson



* Kate Winslet – The Reader as Hanna Schmitz
o Anne Hathaway – Rachel Getting Married as Kym
o Angelina Jolie – Changeling as Christine Collins
o Melissa Leo – Frozen River as Ray Eddy
o Meryl Streep – Doubt as Sister Aloysius

Best Supporting Actor Best Supporting Actress

* Heath Ledger – The Dark Knight as The Joker
o Josh Brolin – Milk as Dan White
o Robert Downey, Jr. – Tropic Thunder as Kirk Lazarus
o Philip Seymour Hoffman – Doubt as Father Brendan
o Michael Shannon – Revolutionary Road as John Givings



* Penélope Cruz – Vicky Cristina Barcelona as Maria Elena
o Amy Adams – Doubt as Sister James
o Viola Davis – Doubt as Mrs. Miller
o Taraji P. Henson – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button as Queenie
o Marisa Tomei – The Wrestler as Cassidy

Best Original Screenplay Best Adapted Screenplay

* Milk – Dustin Lance Black
o Frozen River – Courtney Hunt
o Happy-Go-Lucky – Mike Leigh
o In Bruges – Martin McDonagh
o WALL-E – Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon and Pete Docter



* Slumdog Millionaire – Simon Beaufoy from Q & A by Vikas Swarup
o The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Eric Roth and Robin Swicord from The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald
o Doubt – John Patrick Shanley from Doubt by John Patrick Shanley
o Frost/Nixon – Peter Morgan from Frost/Nixon by Peter Morgan
o The Reader – David Hare from Der Vorleser by Bernhard Schlink

Best Animated Feature Best Foreign Language Film

* WALL-E – Andrew Stanton
o Bolt – Chris Williams and Byron Howard
o Kung Fu Panda – Mark Osborne and John Wayne Stevenson



* Departures (Japan) in Japanese – Yojiro Takita
o Waltz with Bashir (Israel) in Hebrew – Ari Folman
o Revanche (Austria) in German – Götz Spielmann
o The Class (France) in French – Laurent Cantet
o The Baader Meinhof Complex (Germany) in German – Uli Edel

[edit] Other awards
Best Documentary Feature Best Documentary Short

* Man on Wire
o The Betrayal - Nerakhoon
o Encounters at the End of the World
o The Garden
o Trouble the Water



* Smile Pinki – Megan Mylan
o The Conscience of Nhem En – Steven Okazaki
o The Final Inch
o The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306

Best Live Action Short Best Animated Short

* Toyland (Spielzeugland)
o On the Line (Auf der Strecke)
o Manon On the Asphalt
o New Boy (Ireland)
o The Pig (Grisen)



* La Maison En Petits Cubes – Kunio Kato
o Lavatory - Lovestory – Konstantin Bronzit
o Oktapodi – Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand
o Presto – Doug Sweetland
o This Way Up – Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes

Best Original Score Best Original Song

* Slumdog Millionaire – A. R. Rahman
o The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Alexandre Desplat
o Defiance (2008 film) – James Newton Howard
o Milk – Danny Elfman
o WALL-E – Thomas Newman



* "Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire – A. R. Rahman (music), Gulzar (lyrics)
o "Down to Earth" from WALL-E – Peter Gabriel and
Thomas Newman (music), Peter Gabriel (lyrics)
o "O Saya" from Slumdog Millionaire – A. R. Rahman and M.I.A.

Best Sound Editing Best Sound Mixing

* The Dark Knight – Richard King
o Iron Man – Frank Eulner, Christopher Boyes
o Slumdog Millionaire – Tom Sayers
o WALL-E – Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood
o Wanted – Wylie Stateman



* Slumdog Millionaire – Resul Pookutty, Richard Pryke, Ian Tapp
o The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce, Mark Weingarten
o The Dark Knight – Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo, Ed Novick
o WALL-E – Tom Myers, Michael Semanick, Ben Burtt
o Wanted – Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño, Petr Forejt

Best Art Direction Best Cinematography

* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Donald Graham Burt, Victor J. Zolfo
o Changeling – James J. Murakami, Gary Fettis
o The Dark Knight – Nathan Crowley, Peter Lando
o The Duchess – Michael Carlin, Rebecca Alleway
o Revolutionary Road – Kristi Zea, Debra Schutt



* Slumdog Millionaire – Anthony Dod Mantle
o Changeling – Tom Stern
o The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Claudio Miranda
o The Dark Knight – Wally Pfister
o The Reader – Chris Menges, Roger Deakins

Best Makeup Best Costume Design

* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Greg Cannom
o The Dark Knight – John Caglione, Jr. and Conor O'Sullivan
o Hellboy II: The Golden Army – Mike Elizalde, Thom Floutz



* The Duchess – Michael O'Connor
o Australia – Catherine Martin
o The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Jacqueline West
o Milk – Danny Glicker
o Revolutionary Road – Albert Wolsky

Best Film Editing Best Visual Effects

* Slumdog Millionaire – Chris Dickens
o The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Kirk Baxter, Angus Wall
o The Dark Knight – Lee Smith
o Frost/Nixon – Mike Hill, Daniel P. Hanley
o Milk – Elliot Graham



* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton, Craig Barron
o The Dark Knight – Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber, Paul Franklin
o Iron Man – John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick, Shane Mahan

[edit] Honorary awards

* Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award - Jerry Lewis
* Gordon E. Sawyer Award - Edwin Catmull

[edit] Multiple nominations and awards

The following 15 films received multiple nominations.

* 13 nominations: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* 10 nominations: Slumdog Millionaire
* 8 nominations: The Dark Knight and Milk
* 6 nominations: WALL-E
* 5 nominations: Doubt, Frost/Nixon, and The Reader
* 3 nominations: Changeling and Revolutionary Road
* 2 nominations: The Duchess, Frozen River, Iron Man, Wanted, and The Wrestler



The following three films received multiple awards.

* 8 awards: Slumdog Millionaire
* 3 awards: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* 2 awards: The Dark Knight and Milk

[edit] Schedule
Date Event
Wednesday, December 3, 2008 Official Screen Credits forms due
Friday, December 26, 2008 Nomination ballots mailed
Monday, January 12, 2009 Nomination polls closed at 5:00 p.m. PST (01:00, Jan. 13 UTC) (8:00 p.m. EST)
Thursday, January 22, 2009 Nominations announced at 5:38 a.m. PST (13:38 UTC) (8:38 a.m. EST) at Samuel Goldwyn Theater
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 Final ballots mailed
Monday, February 2, 2009 Nominees Luncheon
Saturday, February 7, 2009 Scientific and Technical Achievement Awards presentation
Tuesday, February 17, 2009 Final polls closed at 5:00 p.m. PST (01:00, Feb. 18 UTC) (8:00 p.m. EST)
Sunday, February 22, 2009 81st Annual Academy Awards presentation
[edit] In Memoriam
Main article: List of 81st Academy Awards In Memoriam tribute honorees

Queen Latifah performed "I'll Be Seeing You" during the annual In Memoriam tribute to honor individuals who died since the previous year's Academy Award ceremonies. Listed below are those who were honored during the tribute.[13]

* Cyd Charisse
* Bernie Mac
* Bud Stone (executive)
* Ollie Johnston (animator)
* Van Johnson
* J. Paul Huntsman (sound editor)
* Michael Crichton (writer & director)
* Nina Foch
* Pat Hingle
* Harold Pinter (writer)
* Charles H. Joffe (producer)
* Kon Ichikawa (director)
* Charles H. Schneer (producer)
* Abby Mann (screenwriter)
* Roy Scheider
* David Watkin (director of photography)
* Robert Mulligan (director)
* Evelyn Keyes
* Richard Widmark



* Claude Berri (director)
* Maila Nurmi
* Isaac Hayes
* Leonard Rosenman (composer)
* Ricardo Montalbán
* Manny Farber (film critic)
* Robert DoQui
* Jules Dassin (director)
* Paul Scofield
* John Michael Hayes (screenwriter)
* Warren Cowan (publicist)
* Joseph H. Caracciolo (producer)
* Stan Winston (special effects)
* Ned Tanen (executive producer)
* James Whitmore
* Charlton Heston
* Anthony Minghella (director & producer)
* Sydney Pollack
* Paul Newman

Note: Several notable individuals including Sam Bottoms, George Carlin, Don S. Davis, Mel Ferrer, Beverly Garland, Estelle Getty, Eartha Kitt, Harvey Korman, Jerry Reed, Don LaFontaine, John Phillip Law, Patrick McGoohan, Anita Page, and Robert Prosky were not included in the "In Memoriam" tribute, though they died within the last year. Heath Ledger died shortly before the year before, and a tribute to him was included then.
[edit] Presenters and performers

The following individuals presented awards or performed musical numbers.[14]
[show]
Presenters (in order of appearance)
Name(s) Role Activity
Gina Tuttle Announcer Co-Announcer for the 81st Annual Academy Awards
Whoopi Goldberg
Goldie Hawn
Anjelica Huston
Eva Marie Saint
Tilda Swinton Presenters Best Supporting Actress
Tina Fey
Steve Martin Presenters Best Original Screenplay
Best Adapted Screenplay
Jennifer Aniston
Jack Black Presenters Animation 2008 Montage
Best Animated Short Film
Best Animated Feature
Daniel Craig
Sarah Jessica Parker Presenters Best Art Direction
Best Costume Design
Best Makeup
Robert Pattinson
Amanda Seyfried Presenters Romance 2008 Montage
Natalie Portman
Ben Stiller Presenters Best Cinematography
Alan Arkin
Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Joel Grey
Kevin Kline
Christopher Walken Presenters Best Supporting Actor
Bill Maher Presenter Best Documentary Feature
Best Documentary Short Subject
Jessica Biel Host of the Academy Awards for Technical Achievement and Presenter Academy Awards for Technical Achievement (awarded on February 7, 2009)
Gordon E. Sawyer Award
James Franco
Seth Rogen
Janusz Kamiński Presenters Best Live Action Short Film
Will Smith Presenter Best Sound Editing
Best Sound Mixing
Best Film Editing
Best Visual Effects
Eddie Murphy Presenter Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award
Alicia Keys
Zac Efron Presenters Best Original Score
Best Original Song
Introduced A. R. Rahman, John Legend, and Mahalaxmi Iyer performing the Best Original Song nominees
Freida Pinto
Liam Neeson Presenters Best Foreign Language Film
Queen Latifah Presenter and Performer In Memoriam tribute
Reese Witherspoon Presenter Best Director
Halle Berry
Marion Cotillard
Nicole Kidman
Sophia Loren
Shirley MacLaine Presenters Best Actress
Adrien Brody
Michael Douglas
Robert De Niro
Anthony Hopkins
Ben Kingsley Presenters Best Actor
Steven Spielberg Presenter Best Picture Segment
Best Picture
[show]
Performers (in order of appearance)
Name(s) Role Performed
Michael Giacchino Musical Arranger Orchestral
James Marvel Last-minute addition Violinist Orchestral
Hugh Jackman
Anne Hathaway Performers Opening Number
Hugh Jackman
Beyoncé Knowles
Zac Efron
Vanessa Hudgens
Amanda Seyfried
Dominic Cooper
Spirit of Troy[15] Performed a medley created by Baz Luhrmann of songs from movie musicals

"Top Hat, White Tie and Tails" from Top Hat
"Singin' in the Rain" from Singin' in the Rain
"Big Spender" from Sweet Charity
"Maria" from West Side Story
"You're The One That I Want" from Grease
"Maria" from The Sound of Music
"All That Jazz" from Chicago
"Lady Marmalade" from Moulin Rouge!
"One Night Only" from Dreamgirls
"You Can't Stop The Beat" from Hairspray
"I Don't Know How To Love Him" from Jesus Christ Superstar
"At Last" from Orchestra Wives
"Last Chance" from High School Musical 3: Senior Year
"Mamma Mia" from Mamma Mia!
"Don't Cry For Me Argentina" from Evita
"Over the Rainbow" from The Wizard of Oz
"Somewhere" from West Side Story
[16]
A. R. Rahman Performer "O Saya" from Slumdog Millionaire
John Legend
Soweto Gospel Choir Performers "Down to Earth" from WALL-E
A. R. Rahman
Mahalaxmi Iyer Performers "Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire[17]
Queen Latifah Presenter and Performer "I'll Be Seeing You" during the annual "In Memoriam" tribute
[edit] Advertisements

ABC aired a number of themed commercial advertisements which were shown during the ceremony. The Academy's ban that had previously disallowed film commercials to be aired during the telecast was lifted in mid-2007, thus allowing film companies to promote their upcoming films for the first time during the broadcast.[18] Thirty-second commercials cost between $1.4 million and $1.7 million, compared to up to $1.8 million during last year's show.[19] The decrease was due to the recent global economic crisis.[19]
[edit] Voting trends and summary
This section may contain original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting only of original research may be removed. More details may be available on the talk page. (March 2009)

Continuing a trend in recent years, the field of major nominees did not include a bona fide blockbuster at the U.S. box office, with all but one of the nominees for Best Picture performing even more poorly than those of the previous year. In fact, The Dark Knight earned more money than all the Best Picture nominees combined in its first four days of release.[citation needed] However, the top money earner in this year's field of Best Picture nominees performed slightly better in box office receipts compared to last year's highest grossing Best Film nominee, Juno. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was the highest earner among the Best Picture nominees with $104.4 million in domestic box office receipts (compared to Juno which grossed $87 million prior to its nomination).[citation needed] The film was followed by Slumdog Millionaire which earned $44.7 million, Milk with $20.7 million, and Frost/Nixon with $8.8 million.[citation needed] The Reader rounded out the Best Picture nominees with $8.3 million.[citation needed]

Among the rest of the top 50 releases of 2008 in U.S. box office before the nominations, 32 nominations went to eight films on the list. Only The Dark Knight (1st), Kung Fu Panda (3rd), WALL-E (9th), Bolt (19th), Tropic Thunder (20th), and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (21st) received nominations for best picture, directing, acting, or screenwriting. The other top-50 box office hits that earned nominations were Iron Man (2nd), and Wanted (16th).[citation needed] The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Iron Man, WALL-E, and Wanted each received more than two nominations.

For the first time since 2004, two films received more than eight nominations: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button received thirteen and Slumdog Millionaire received ten.

For the fourth consecutive year, four of the Best Picture nominees were rated R (under 17 requires an accompanying adult). Of the 86 nominations awarded to non-documentary feature films (apart from the Foreign Film category), a majority of 46 went to R-rated films (down from 50 one year earlier), 35 to films rated PG-13 (up from 29 the previous year), two to PG-rated films (down from 4 the year before) and eight to a G-rated film (up from five from last year).[citation needed] Duplicating the rating-related division among the nominations for the past three years, R-rated films captured 27 of the 40 nominations for Best Picture, directing, screenwriting and acting; while non-R-rated films received 25 of the 43 nominations in the remaining categories, primarily those in "below the line" areas.[citation needed]
[edit] Winners
81st Academy Awards Presentations, Hollywood and Highland, Hollywood

For the tenth consecutive year, at least one lead acting award went to an actor playing a real-life person (Sean Penn for his portrayal of Harvey Milk). Penn's win was viewed as something of a surprise, Mickey Rourke having been the favourite to win. Penn received a standing ovation for his win.[20][21] This is also the eleventh year in a row that any of the acting awards went to the portrayal of a real person. For the second year running, the Best Actor trophy has been awarded to a previous Best Actor recipient. Also for second year running, a Spaniard (Penélope Cruz) has won in a supporting category (previously Javier Bardem), and for the fourth year a British actress (Kate Winslet) has won an award (previously Tilda Swinton, Helen Mirren, and Rachel Weisz consecutively).[22] This year also marks the second time Stephen Daldry has directed an actress into a Best Actress win (the other was Nicole Kidman, who also was a presenter), and the third time an actress he directed was nominated (Julie Walters). It was also the fourth time Woody Allen directed an actress into a Best Supporting Actress win (the others were Dianne Wiest, twice, and Mira Sorvino). This is also the first time the Award for Best Supporting Actor has been awarded posthumously, to Heath Ledger, and only the second posthumous acting award in Academy history. (The first was to Peter Finch for Best Actor in Network in 1976.)
[edit] Controversies
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The examples and perspective in this list of controversies may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page.

Like the previous year's awards, last year's Oscars had also faced multiple controversies.
[edit] Disputes over Ledger's statuette

Because Best Supporting Actor winner Heath Ledger died in January 2008 making his nomination one of posthumous recognition, the Academy had disputes over who should accept the award and who should gain ownership of it should Ledger win. Following talks with Ledger's family in Australia, the Academy ruled that his previous domestic partner Michelle Williams could not accept the award as the two were not married. They then decided that Ledger and Williams' three-year-old daughter, Matilda Rose Ledger, would own the award. However, due to Matilda's age, she will not gain full ownership of the statuette until her eighteenth birthday in 2023.[23] Until that time, Michelle Williams will hold the statuette in trust for Matilda.[24] Ledger's family attended the ceremony and his parents accepted the award on stage on his behalf.[25]
[edit] Faked winners leak

Shortly after the voting polls were closed for the awards, a purported list of winners was posted online.[26] The list, which bore a purported signature from Academy president Sid Ganis, stated that Mickey Rourke won for Best Actor, Kate Winslet won for Best Actress, Amy Adams won for Best Supporting Actress, Heath Ledger won for Best Supporting Actor, and Slumdog Millionaire won for Best Picture. It was later confirmed as a fake list. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences spokeswoman Leslie Unger later revealed that the list was "a complete fraud",[27] and that PricewaterhouseCoopers had just begun to count the ballots. The list was proved false as the first award of the night, Best Supporting Actress, was awarded to Penélope Cruz, not Amy Adams, the purported winner in the falsified list. (The last time names of award winners were leaked prior to the ceremony was at the 12th Academy Awards for 1939, before the Academy adopted the use of sealed envelopes for voting results.)
[edit] Other controversies

Prior to the nominations announcement, it was suggested that the 2008-09 Screen Actors Guild labor dispute could affect the awards by discouraging actors' attendance at the ceremony, However, as talks to end the dispute between the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) were ongoing,[28][29] the expected strike did not affect the awards ceremony,[30] although a resolution between SAG and AMPTP has not yet been reached.[31][32]

Peter Gabriel, who was originally scheduled to perform his nominated song "Down to Earth" from WALL-E during the live broadcast, declined to perform after learning that he would be allowed to sing only 65 seconds of the song during the ceremony's Best Original Song nominee performances.[33] Gabriel still attended the ceremony. John Legend performed the song in place of Gabriel, backed by the Soweto Gospel Choir.
[edit] News and recap

Due to the declining viewership of the recent Academy Awards ceremonies, the Academy had contracted an entirely new production team in an attempt to revive the award ceremony and revamp its general script and theming. Marketing for the ceremony had even gone so far as to advertise it as "The Biggest Movie Event of the Year". Producers Bill Condon and Laurence Mark announced their plans to rewrite the script, and they made attempts to keep the entire premise of the ceremony a secret, even from the presenters and performers.[34] Film director Judd Apatow aired a new short film during the ceremony which starred Seth Rogen and James Franco reprising their roles from Pineapple Express. Previously, Apatow directed a short film aired during the 74th Academy Awards which starred Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller. Chris Harrison hosted "Road to the Oscars",[35] a weekly behind-the-scenes video blog on the Academy's website, oscar.com.[36] David Rockwell designed a new set and stage design for the ceremony.[37] The red carpet was directed by Robert Osborne.[38] Host Jackman expressed his anticipation of the awards in the few days preceding, and had commented that he was thrilled with preparations for the ceremony.[39] The recent global economic crisis caused a decrease in spending on the telecast from last year's awards, as well as a decrease in the cost to air advertisements during commercial breaks. The recession was mentioned by Jackman who said

this year, everything is being downsized because of the recession. Next year I'll be starring in a movie called New Zealand, and due to cutbacks, the academy said they didn't have enough money for an opening number; I'm gonna do one anyway

The presentation of the four acting awards was styled differently than in previous years (see Notable events section). among other changes, some celebrities presented multiple awards rather than only one or two as in previous years, and 2008 film genre segments replaced usual clip collections.

The telecast received a 6 second tape delay in some areas on the east coast during a section in which Host Jackman thanked Academy president Sid Ganis, and introduced Reese Witherspoon, who would present the Oscar for Directing. This was due to ABC, who panned out from the screen during the delay to present powerball numbers. This delay also occurred at the beginning of the The Oscars Red Carpet 2009. There was also a 30-second delay at the start of the telecast, though not a tape delay, but a direct delay which affected the ceremony. Errors also occurred directly following Jackman's opening monologue. After he introduced the Best Supporting Actress category, USA Today reported that a stage hand could be heard yelling to director Roger Goodman for "cutting him off!". Next, Goodman could be heard yelling at the stage hands to open the curtain which covered a projection screen in the theater. The curtain had not been opened when a montage of past Supporting Actress winners began, but was opened 2–3 seconds following. The telecast received a mixed reception from media personalities and critics, yet a more positive response from viewers at home.
[edit] Notable events

* During his opening monologue, Hugh Jackman joked that the Academy had not been able to prepare an elaborate opening number due to the recession, so he had created his own. Jackman's opening number parodied Slumdog Millionaire, Milk, The Dark Knight, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, The Reader, Iron Man and The Wrestler with cardboard sets and backup dancers. It was given a standing ovation by the crowd.
* The presentation of the Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Actress, and Best Actor awards changed significantly from recent years. Instead of the previous year's winner of the opposite sex presenting the award with clips of the nominees in each film being shown, there was a montage of past winners in each category. Then, five past winners in the specific acting category appeared onstage and each gave a detailed characterization of an individual nominee. Finally, the most recent recipient of the award (except in the Lead and Supporting actor categories) announced the winner.
* When Ben Stiller and Natalie Portman appeared onstage to present the award for Best Cinematography, Stiller spoofed Joaquin Phoenix's recent appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman, telling Portman "I'm trying to be a serious actor" and joking that Slumdog Millionaire was filmed entirely on a cell phone.
* After "Man on Wire" won Best Documentary, Philippe Petit joined the producers on stage, making a coin vanish from his hands while thanking the Academy for "believing in magic" and then balanced the Oscar by its head on his chin.
* The 81st Academy Awards ceremony would be the last during Sid Ganis's tenure as president of the Academy. Host Hugh Jackman acknowledged that Ganis was stepping down from his position, one which Ganis has held since 2005.
* Throughout the ceremony, instead of montages of past films being shown, the ceremony incorporated a "movie yearbook" that showed montages of various genres of movies released in 2008. The yearbook was composed of montages of the animation, romance, comedy, documentary, and action film categories.
* Instead of a pre-recorded instrumental tune, the annual In Memoriam tribute was accompanied by a live performance of "I'll Be Seeing You" sung by Queen Latifah, making the 81st Academy Awards' In Memoriam tribute the first with live vocal accompaniment.
* The Best Picture nominee segments which are usually seen throughout the telecast were instead incorporated into one whole montage preceding the presentation of the award, with each nominated film being compared to various past nominees and winners in the category.
* After five failed nominations for Sense and Sensibility, Titanic, Iris, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Little Children, Kate Winslet finally won an Oscar on her sixth nomination (for The Reader). In her speech, she thanked many who have helped her along the way, even giving thanks to recently departed producers, Sydney Pollack and Anthony Minghella.

[edit] Memorable quotes

* "Fifteen career Oscar nominations. That's a record. I hate to say it but when someone puts up numbers like that, it's just hard not to think steroids." – Host Hugh Jackman to Meryl Streep (during his opening monologue).[40]
* "It's not going to be 45 seconds, I can say that right now. Has anybody ever fainted here? Because I might be the first one." – Penélope Cruz, accepting the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for Vicky Cristina Barcelona.[40]
* "I wish to say something in Tamil, which is 'Ella Pugazhum Iraivanukke', God is Great" - A. R. Rahman on Receiving the award for Best Original Music Score, Slumdog Millionaire.
* "All my life I had choices of 'love' and 'hate', I chose LOVE and I'm here" - A. R. Rahman on Receiving the award for Best Song "Jai Ho!" Slumdog Millionaire.
* "You know, it's serious, we have a 30 second delay but if you win, we switch to a twenty minute delay." - Host Hugh Jackman to Mickey Rourke during Jackman's opening monologue.
* "When I was 13 years old my beautiful mother and my father moved me from a conservative Mormon home in San Antonio, Texas, to California, and I heard the story of Harvey Milk and it gave me hope. It gave me the hope to live my life." – Dustin Lance Black, accepting the Best Original Screenplay Oscar for Milk.
* "There are certain places in the universe you never imagine standing. For me, it's the moon, the South Pole, the Miss World podium and here." – Simon Beaufoy after winning the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for Slumdog Millionaire.[40]
* "Who do you think is a better actor? Ronald Reagan, or Barack Obama?" - Saul Silver (James Franco) to Dale Denton (Seth Rogen) during the Comedy 2008 montage.
* "This award tonight would have humbly validated Heath's quiet determination to be truly accepted by you all here – his peers within an industry he so loved." – Kim Ledger, accepting the Best Supporting Actor Oscar on behalf of his son Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight.[40]
* "I'd be lying if I said I haven't made a version of this speech before. I think I was probably 8 years old and staring into the bathroom mirror, and this would have been a shampoo bottle. Well, it's not a shampoo bottle now." – Kate Winslet, upon winning Best Actress for The Reader.[40]
* "Each year I do one DreamWorks project, then I take all the money to the Oscars and bet it on Pixar." - Jack Black explaining his animation movie career plan to Jennifer Aniston prior to them presenting the nominees for best animation movies.[41]
* "You commie homo-loving sons of guns! I did not expect this, but I — I want to make it clear I know how hard I make it to appreciate me." – Sean Penn, upon accepting his Oscar for Best Actor in Milk.[40]
* "I think that it is a good time for those who voted for the ban against gay marriage to sit and reflect and anticipate their great shame and the shame in their grandchildren's eyes if they continue that way of support. We've got to have equal rights for everyone. And there are, and there are, these last two things. I'm very, very proud to live in a country that is willing to elect an elegant man president and a country who, for all its toughness, creates courageous artists." - Sean Penn in his acceptance speech, commenting on California's vote for Proposition 8.[42]
* "When we started out, we had no stars, we had no power or muscle, we didn't have enough money really to do what we wanted to do. But what we had was a script that inspired mad love in everyone who read it. ... Most of all, we had passion and we had belief and our film shows that if you have those two things, truly anything is possible." – Producer Christian Colson accepting the Best Picture award for Slumdog Millionaire.[40]
* "Dōmo arigatō, Mr. Roboto." - Kunio Katō, Japanese director of La Maison en Petits Cubes, accepting the award for Best Animated Short.[43]
* "I shall pass through this world but once. Any good, therefore, that I can do or any kindness that I can show to any human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again." – Jerry Lewis, quoting Mohandas Gandhi, upon Lewis accepting the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.
* "How come comic-book movies never get nominated? How can a billion dollars be unsophisticated?" - Host Hugh Jackman, on the controversy surrounding the lack of a Best Film nomination for The Dark Knight.[44]
* "These are the Oscars and this is my dream! / I am a Slumdog, I am a Wrestler, I am The Reader, I’m Wolverine!" - Hugh Jackman, finishing his opening routine.[45]
* "Ever since you've been a star you always say that you want to be here on this very day we really wish you were but we proudly accept this award on behalf of your beautiful Matilda" Kate Ledger, sister of Heath Ledger.

[edit] Special segments

The telecast featured multiple yearbook style montages of film genres seen in 2008. They were made up of the animation, romance, comedy, documentary and action film categories.
[edit] Animation

The animation segment began in a scene from WALL-E where the title character cuts open a damaged refrigerator revealing a VHS tape and an Oscar stauette. Wall-E plays the VHS tape on a tape recorder, which features the actual segment. At the end of the segment, multiple animated characters from the clips are revealed to be watching the tape with Wall-E. Listed below are the films featured in the segment.

* Kung Fu Panda
* Horton Hears a Who!
* Space Chimps
* Bolt
* Star Wars: The Clone Wars
* The Tale of Despereaux
* Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa

[edit] Romance

Listed below are the films featured in the segment.

* Iron Man
* Milk
* Slumdog Millionaire
* The Reader
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* Last Chance Harvey
* Vicky Cristina Barcelona
* The Incredible Hulk
* The Dark Knight
* Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist
* Sex and the City
* What Happens in Vegas
* Mamma Mia!
* Revolutionary Road
* Twilight
* High School Musical 3: Senior Year
* WALL-E

Background music: 'Lovers in Japan' by Coldplay
[edit] Comedy

The segment begins in a set from Pineapple Express. Dale Denton brings Saul Silver every film that was not nominated for an Oscar to watch (though many were). After viewing the movies, Saul wonders why Janusz Kaminski is with a film crew in his apartment. They invite Kaminski to watch the remaining movies with them.

Listed below are the films featured in the segment.

* Slumdog Millionaire
* The Love Guru
* Step Brothers
* Tropic Thunder
* Doubt
* Milk
* Mamma Mia!
* The Wrestler
* Forgetting Sarah Marshall
* You Don't Mess with the Zohan
* The Reader

[edit] Documentary

The segment featured the directors and co-directors of each of the five nominated Best Documentary Feature films discussing their thoughts on the art of documentaries.

Listed below are the films featured in the segment.

* The Betrayal - Nerakhoon
* Encounters at the End of the World
* The Garden
* Man on Wire
* Trouble the Water

[edit] Action

Listed below are the films featured in the segment.

* Rambo
* Iron Man
* Speed Racer
* The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
* Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
* The Incredible Hulk
* Wanted
* Hancock
* Journey to the Center of the Earth
* Hellboy II: The Golden Army
* The Dark Knight
* The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
* Death Race
* Quantum of Solace
* Valkyrie

Background music: 'Tick Tick Boom' by The Hives
[edit] Critical reviews

The show received a mixed reception from media publications. Some media outlets received the broadcast more positively. Perez Hilton called the performance "wonderful";[46] E! Online said that "Jackman nailed it";[47] the Associated Press stated that "the key word was charm" and that Hugh Jackman "gave his all";[48] and Salon.com said "Hurray for the Recession Oscars, the sincerest, sweetest, most heartfelt Oscars ever!"[49] Roger Ebert said of Jackman: "I had a feeling Hugh Jackman would be a charmer as host, and he was." Of the show itself, Ebert added, "It was the best Oscar show I've ever seen, and I've seen plenty."[50] The Toronto Star, Japan Today, and The Sydney Morning Herald also gave positive reviews,[51][52][53] and many in the British media were particularly favourable of Hugh Jackman's hosting performance.[54]

Others media outlets were more critical of the show. The Los Angeles Times says the show "fell flat" and from "Jackman's strangely self-conscious, low-rent opening musical number to Ben Stiller's obscure spoof of Joaquin Phoenix's recent appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman, the awards had a tone problem — they tried to be something for everyone, coming off like a movie script that had its edginess and guts airbrushed out by too many studio notes."[55] The Los Angeles Times' awards insider page The Envelope says host Hugh Jackman surely "obliterated all memory of the Uma-Oprah thing", in reference to the negative reception David Letterman received when hosting the 1995 Academy Awards ceremony.[56] The Boston Globe states the show "aimed for flash...but ultimately, fizzle prevailed."[57] The Baltimore Sun says "the Oscars show itself took a different direction this year: It went Tony with a vengeance. It was like a concept musical with a flaccid concept, badly in need of a Parisian riot or an exploding chandelier."[58] The Chicago Tribune states the "New format, host are unable to rescue a plodding telecast."[59] The New York Times says of the ceremony as "it was fun for a while, but then it just started to seem long."[60]
[edit] Reception

Results from online polls conducted by Newsday[61] and Entertainment Weekly[62] showed a mostly positive response from viewers.

The 81st Academy Awards was watched by 36.94 million people, which was a 13% increase in viewership compared to last year's telecast. The telecast also attained higher Nielsen ratings with 21.68% households watching over a 32.44 share. However, the ceremony was the third least watched ceremony since individual viewership figures began being compiled in 1974 and the third lowest rated since Nielsen ratings for the Oscars have been recorded since 1967, ahead only of the previous year's 31.76 million with an 18.66 Nieslen rating and the 33.04 million with a 20.58 rating for the 2003 ceremony.[63]

At July 16, 2009, the ceremony presentation received 10 Emmy nominations at the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards, and won 4 of them.

* Outstanding Art Direction For Variety, Music Or Nonfiction Programming, David Rockwell, Joe Celli, David Edwards
* WIN - Outstanding Choreography, Rob Ashford
* Outstanding Directing For A Variety, Music Or Comedy Special, Roger Goodman
* Outstanding Lighting Direction (Electronic, Multi-Camera) For Variety, Music Or Comedy Programming, Robert A. Dickinson, Robert Barnhart, Andy O'Reilly.
* WIN - Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics, Hugh Jackman Opening Number: William Ross, John Kimbrough, Dan Harmon, Rob Schrab
* WIN - Outstanding Short Form Picture Editing, Best Motion Picture Moontage: Kyle Cooper, Hal Honigsberg
* WIN - Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Variety Or Music Series Or Special, Sound Mixing Team
* Outstanding Special Class Program
* Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video Control For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Special, Technical Director & Camera teams
* Outstanding Writing For A Variety, Music Or Comedy Special, Writer team

[edit] Criticism

Baz Luhrmann, who has been dismissed in the past by the Australian media as a postmodern for his adaption William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, put together a performance for Jackman hailing the comeback of musicals. This divided the critics, with one Australian journalist saying it was "perhaps overstated" and others applauding the (apparent) focus upon a younger audience.[64][65][66]

Many critics expressed surprise and/or disdain at some of the nominee lists, such as the omission of WALL-E and The Dark Knight from the Best Picture category,[67][68] Sally Hawkins for Happy-Go-Lucky (for which Hawkins had won a Golden Globe), and the omission of Clint Eastwood's performance in Gran Torino from the Best Actor category.[69] The Academy also surprised critics when it only put forward three nominations for the Best Song category, excluding Bruce Springsteen's "The Wrestler" and the theme from Gran Torino.[70] The shortened list led Rolling Stone to accuse the Academy of snubbing Springsteen.[70]

Some critics also showed disgust at the telecast due to the Academy's decision to not present their Honorary Oscar.
[edit] Film previews
See also: 2009 in film

Due to the Academy's action of lifting their ban on film previews being aired during commercial breaks, commercials for upcoming films were seen for the first time during the telecast. Though some websites, such as Yahoo!, had expected commercials for summer blockbusters to be aired, most commercials were for films due for release in the spring season. Film commercials aired included Knowing, The Soloist and The Proposal.

During the end credits of the telecast, instead of clips from the preceding ceremony being aired, there were instead various clips of films which were released in 2009. Listed below are the films that were previewed during this segment, in the order in which they were shown.

* Sherlock Holmes
* Funny People
* The Taking of Pelham 123
* Public Enemies
* Julie and Julia
* The Soloist
* Up
* Fame
* Terminator Salvation
* 500 Days of Summer
* Amelia
* Whatever Works



* Inglourious Basterds
* Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
* Monsters vs Aliens
* Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
* Angels and Demons
* Old Dogs
* Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
* The Boat That Rocked
* An Education
* State of Play
* Imagine That
* G-Force

[edit] International broadcasters

Some of the broadcasters outside the United States (telecasted on ABC) showing the event live:[71]

* Argentina - TNT Latin America
* Australia - Nine Network and Movie Extra
* Austria - ORF1
* Bangladesh - STAR Movies
* Belgium - Prime
* Belize - Tropical Vision Limited (Channel 7)
* Brazil - TNT Brasil
* Canada - CTV
* Chile - La Red
* China - CCTV-6 and STAR Movies
* Colombia - RCN TV and TNT
* Costa Rica - Teletica and TNT
* Croatia - HRT1
* Czech Republic - HBO Czech
* Denmark - TV 2 Film
* Finland - Nelonen
* France - Canal+
* Germany - Pro 7
* Greece - Filmnet
* Hong Kong - TVB Pearl and STAR Movies
* Hungary - RTL Klub
* India - STAR Movies
* Ireland - RTE
* Italy - Sky Italia
* Japan - WOWOW
* Malaysia - ntv7 and Star Movies



* Middle East - Fox Movies
* Middle East - Star Movies
* Mexico - Channel 7 TV Azteca & TNT
* Netherlands - Film1
* Panama - RPC Channel 4
* Peru - Frecuencia Latina
* Philippines - ABS-CBN
* Poland - Canal+
* Portugal - TVI
* Puerto Rico - WAPA Channel 4
* Romania - Pro Tv
* Russia - Channel One
* Serbia - RTS 1
* Singapore - MediaCorp TV Channel 5 and STAR Movies
* Spain - Canal+
* Sweden - Kanal 9
* Taiwan - STAR Movies
* Thailand - STAR Movies
* Trinidad and Tobago - CCN TV6
* Turkey - NTV
* United Kingdom - Sky Movies
* Uruguay - Canal 4 Montecarlo Televisión
* Venezuela - Venevisión
* Vietnam - VTC1

[edit] See also
Academy Award portal

* 2008 in film
* 61st Primetime Emmy Awards
* 63rd Tony Awards
* 51st Grammy Awards
* 66th Golden Globe Awards
* 15th Screen Actors Guild Awards
* 62nd British Academy Film Awards
* 29th Golden Raspberry Awards