Ellen DeGeneres was the host of the 86th Oscars, and added some unique touches to the ceremony. She set a Twitter record with a star-studded selfie and she ordered pizza for the audience during the show, and much more. The television critics have had their say. Check out a roundup of reviews and see some highlights.
After last year’s host, ‘Family Guy’ creator Seth MacFarlane received mostly negative reviews and was generally not well received, to say the least, due to some of his edgier jokes that were at the expense of a variety of celebrities, the Academy clearly was hoping for a crowd pleasing choice. The comedian and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres seemed to fit the bill and she had hosted the Oscars seven years ago.
But the question, did she deliver? Well, she did the unprecedented and had pizza delivered at the Oscars! And perhaps just as unprecedented, collected money from the A-listers to tip the delivery people. Then, as noted, there was that Twitter-record crashing selfie (picture above) which saw her and several gathered and fitting in the frame including Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence as well as Lupita Nyong’o's brother Peter Nyong’o Jr. She Tweeted: “If only Bradley’s arm was longer. Best photo ever. #oscars” and within an hour the picture had received more than a million retweets and at the time of this writing, it is closing in on 3 million retweets.
There were memorable moments, as well as some pointed humor. In her opening monologue, Ellen DeGeneres did make a few stabs, at the actors in general “Between all the nominees here tonight, you’ve done over 1,400 films and a total of six years of college.” Although a joke aimed at a visibly displeased Liza Minnelli fell flat: “I have to say, one of the most impressive Liza Minnelli impersonators I’ve seen in my life. Really, seriously, good job, sir.”
Granted, hosting the Oscars, has been hit and miss for the most capable and seasoned of entertainers. As for the television critics, Ellen DeGeneres’ reviews were mixed. Here is a roundup.
“….The preternaturally congenial DeGeneres was so intent on establishing herself as the anti-Seth to the live audience — “let’s try to make this all about you,” she said early with more sincerity than sarcasm — that she seemed to forget she was at the helm of a famously unwieldy live television show.
A show that was, it must be noted, already bogged down by a theme (heroes), which demanded a bunch of non sequitur clips (of movie heroes) and its own special song (“The Wind Beneath My Wings”) that helped stretch the telecast well past the three-hour mark. So while wading into the audience to snap a selfie with Streep and a slew of stars in the hopes of breaking the retweet record turned out to be funny, most of the other comfy, cozy, “we’re just hangin’ at the Oscars” bits did not…….” — LA Times
“….She was warm. She was funny. She was likeable. But, unlike MacFarlane, she was forgettable. DeGeneres moved from matt black tuxedo to white tuxedo to shiny black tuxedo, the only element of adventure being a short stint in a fairy princess costume, presumably in tribute to double winner Frozen. Her running gags about selfies seemed a little dated, and returning to the pizza joke after every ad break got stale fast. She even passed up the opportunity to rib Julia Roberts about Mystic Pizza while standing next to her holding some…….” — The Guardian
“…..As a television event, this year’s Oscars was more like an endurance test – turgid, badly directed, poorly produced and featuring an endless string of tired or wince-inducing moments from host Ellen DeGeneres.
‘Even the best comedians have off nights. Even paragons of happiness and good cheer come out and tank – as DeGeneres did with her opening jokes that seemed oddly mean spirited for her (poor Liza Minnelli) and set a flat tone that the telecast could never overcome.’
It added: ‘She was spotty and flat in those early comments and then tried to spice things up by appearing in the audience not just once, not just twice but — did anyone count? – what felt like 47 times…..” — The Hollywood Reporter
“….DeGeneres’ task was not an easy one: An Oscar host has to entertain viewers at home, many of whom want to see stars mocked – along with the actors in the hall – most of whom don’t want to be mocked. Go too far pleasing one side, and you lose the other.
‘That’s a tough balancing act, but DeGeneres has mastered it. The key is that she both exudes and creates goodwill. The crowd stays with her because they know that while jabs will be thrown, no blood will be drawn…..” — USA Today
“….she did land a cracking zinger with her prediction for the last award: “Possibility number one – 12 Years A Slave wins best picture. Possibility number two – you’re all racists.”
‘But she also absolutely bombed when she suggested it was not actually Liza Minnelli in the audience but a man in drag. The camera cut to Minnelli – there to celebrate the 75th birthday of The Wizard Of Oz which starred her mother Judy Garland – and she did not look at all amused.
‘The vibrations from so many shuffling awkwardly in their seats were probably felt throughout California. Fortunately, the night went on so long – there was only one award presented in the entire first half hour – that there was time enough for DeGeneres to recover….” — BBC
“….She tackled everything from Hollywood’s obsession with youth, Jennifer Lawrence falling down, the Hunger Games-like quality of the awards season, sex at the rodeo, Liza Minnelli impersonators and possible Oscar racism.’….” — EOnline
“….Everything else about her opening monologue, however, screamed of a desire to dial the show back to safer terrain — playfully bantering with the nominees and joking about Hollywood foibles, as if Bob Hope or Johnny Carson was in the driver’s seat. Stripped of any pyrotechnics — no song-and-dance number, no film montage — the opening actually worked reasonably well, mostly because it placed the focus on the movies and the stars, which pays off when someone delivers a heartfelt acceptance speech, like best supporting actor winner Jared Leto. …..” — Variety
The show, in total, was three and a half hours long, but thanks to the Internet, there’s no need to slog through every single second for those memorable viral video moments. Check out some of the highlights of Ellen DeGeneres’ turn at hosting the Oscars in the clips below!
Opening Monologue
Oscar selfie
Pizza delivery
Pictures: Twitter
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RightCelebrity/~3/3L89BnDMjJs/
Jessica Simpson Zooey Deschanel Aaliyah Abbie Cornish Adriana Lima
No comments:
Post a Comment