About Stephania Varalli
Stephania Varalli was sweetspot.ca’s first employee and is currently off on one of her many adventures (though thanks to her life motto of "seemed like a good idea at the time," she still has a myriad of stories archived to enjoy).
The Oscar Top Five
canada
(Feb.23.09)
My new favourite show has a first name, it's O-S-C-A-R. And even though half the blogs in the world are posting on this right now, I feel the need to add in my two cents. Herewith the top five highlights of Oscar night:
1. Hi, this is Hugh Jackman's agent calling. So we're going to need a hell of a lot more money for, um, everything. Because this kid is gold. Did you see that opener? Did you SEE that opener? (If you didn't, I did the YouTubing for you...)
2. What's better than one star presenter? Five star presenters. The conglomerate of fame tactic for the key awards was a brilliant twist by the Academy. And I don't think I was the only one awestruck; did you see Anne Hathaway over the moon as THE Shirley Maclaine talked about her role in Rachel Getting Married? She may have been the first actress who ever truly believed "it's just an honour to be nominated". Love her for that (she also deserves a standing O for her opening number cameo).
3. There are always a few acceptance speeches that leave me smiling big or tearing up or both. This year there were too many to count, but I must shout out to Penelope Cruz for her brilliant bit on the importance of the arts, Dustin Lance Black (he won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for MILK) for his honest and inspirational gay rights talk, and the entire nation of India for appearing on stage to accept Best Picture for Slumdog Millionaire.
4. I'm on the fence on whether I loved or hated this moment: Jen Aniston on stage, camera cuts to Angelina Jolie. It was like a live telecast bitchslap by Oscar. So caddy. The fact is, my emotional wheel has gone from Meh to Blech to Yay for Jenny. Leave the lady alone.
5. I usually watch the Oscars from my couch; this year I upped the class factor and viewed them on a jumbo screen at a gala: To Oscar With Love. They deserve a round of applause for putting together an amazing event (complete with Tastemakers Swag Lounge!) all in support of Leave Out Violence, a charity that helps youth overcome violence. Take 30 seconds from your day and read the story of how LOVE started. I cried more than in WALL-E. Seriously inspirational.
