What Men Really Think: Why The Oscars Suck

The Oscars is uptight, rigid and stuffy. No one has any fun, they put too much emphasis on useless entertainment segments instead of letting the people that win these awards, open up and enjoy the moment.

Now... if you want to know what a real award ceremony should be like... Check out Mickey Rourke's SIX MINUTE acceptance speech at the Spirit Awards. This took place Saturday night. One night before the Oscars. All the same stars were there, but it was a REAL and exhuberant night where everyone was glad to be there. If the Oscars want to be a great venue again... rethink the music segments and montages. Give the night back to the actors.

NOW before you watch this video. Fair Warning. Mickey drops the F word and makes a number of off-color remarks. It is NOT safe for young children to watch.

The 81st Annual Academy Award Winners

What a show it was at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood for the 2009 Oscar ceremony! As predicted it was the year for "Slumdog Millionaire" with the film taking in eight awards including Best Picture of the Year. There were no dry eyes in the house when the late Heath Ledger won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role as the Joker in The Dark Knight. The award was accepted by his parents and sister, and their speech was quite moving. Other big winners were Sean Penn as Best Actor for his role in "Milk" and the lovely Kate Winslet finally took home a golden statue for Best Actress in "The Reader". (See below for a complete list of winners)

As promised the style of this year's award ceremony was a bit different, and I think it definitely worked. It was great to see the winnner's from years past introuducing the nominee's as a group, and it gave the show a much more intimate feel. Also, it was a great idea to speed things along by having one presenter hand out mulitple techinical awards that could be grouped in the same vein, instead of awarding each one individually.

In my opinion, I thought host Hugh Jackman gave a solid performance as host, and the musical numbers were certainly enteraining. Be sure to stay glued to PopCultureMadness.com for all the latest post-Oscar news, fashion, and memorable moments!

Winners List
BEST PICTURE "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) A Celador Films
Production, Christian Colson, producer

LEAD ACTOR Sean Penn in "Milk" (Focus Features) LEAD ACTRESS Kate Winslet in "The Reader" (The Weinstein Company)

DIRECTOR Danny Boyle for "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight)

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM "Departures" -- Japan (Regent Releasing) A Departures Film
Partners production

SUPPORTING ACTOR Heath Ledger in "The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros)

SUPPORTING ACTRESS Penelope Cruz in "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" (The Weinstein
Company)

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY Dustin Lance Black for "Milk" (Focus Features)

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY Simon Beaufoy for "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight)

ANIMATED FEATURE Andrew Stanton for "WALL-E" (Walt Disney)

ANIMATED SHORT FILM Kunio Kato for "La Maison en Petits Cubes" (A Robot
Communications Production)

ART DIRECTION Donald Graham Burt for art direction and Victor J. Zolfo
for set decoration on "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
(Paramount and Warner Bros)

COSTUME DESIGN Michael O'Connor for "The Duchess" (Paramount Vantage,
Pathe and BBC Films) MAKEUP Greg Cannom for "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
(Paramount and Warner Bros)

CINEMATOGRAPHY Anthony Dod Mantle for "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox
Searchlight)

LIVE ACTION SHORT FIRM Jochen Alexander Freydank for "Spielzeugland (Toyland)", a
Mephisto Film production

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE James Marsh and Simon Chinn for "Man on Wire" (Magnolia
Pictures) A Wall to Wall production

DOCUMENTARY SHORT Megan Mylan for "Smile Pinki", a Principle production

VISUAL EFFECTS Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron for
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner
Bros)

SOUND EDITING Richard King for "The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros)

SOUND MIXING Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty for "Slumdog
Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight)

FILM EDITING Chris Dickens for "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight)

ORIGINAL SCORE A.R. Rahman for "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight)

ORIGINAL SONG "Jai Ho" from "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight),
music by A.R. Rahman, lyrics by Gulzar

Beyonce Hard At Work

Yesterday afternoon, Beyonce was busy logging the hours during a brand new music video shoot on the beaches of Malibu. We are liking this flowing green dress she's rocking, very sheek!

What's the latest with Beyonce? It was just announced that Beyonce will be taking the stage this Sunday night at the Academy Awards. Hugh Jackman is hosting this year, very excited!

Miss Knowles will be teaming up with High School Musical co-star couple Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens, as well as host Hugh Jackman and Mamma Mia!’s Amanda Seyfried in a song and dance piece during the show. That should be interesting! Was 'Zanessa' the best that the Oscars could do this year as far as performers? No offense, guys, but really!

2009 Oscar Nominations Announced!

The Oscar nominations were announced, and as expected, Heath Ledger has earned an Academy Awards nomination on the one-year anniversary of his death.


(moment of silence)

Ledger is among supporting-actor nominees for his last completed role, as the diabolical villain the Joker in the Batman blockbuster "The Dark Knight." Other supporting-actor nominees are: Josh Brolin, "Milk"; Robert Downey Jr., "Tropic Thunder"; Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Doubt"; Michael Shannon, "Revolutionary
Road."

Ledger has been considered a likely Oscar nominee virtually since his death a year ago from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs. The actor's honors this awards season include the supporting-actor Golden Globe.

The full list of nominees are:
Best Picture
'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'
'Frost/Nixon'
'Milk'
'The Reader'
'Slumdog Millionaire'

Best Director
Danny Boyle, 'Slumdog Millionaire'
Stephen Daldry, 'The Reader'
David Fincher, 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'
Ron Howard, 'Frost/Nixon'
Gus Van Sant, 'Milk'

Best Actor
Richard Jenkins, 'The Visitor'
Frank Langella, 'Frost/Nixon'
Sean Penn, 'Milk'
Brad Pitt, 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'
Mickey Rourke, 'The Wrestler'

Best Actress
Anne Hathaway, 'Rachel Getting Married'
Angelina Jolie, 'Changeling'
Melissa Leo, 'Frozen River'
Meryl Streep, 'Doubt'
Kate Winslet, 'The Reader'

Best Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin, 'Milk'
Robert Downey Jr., 'Tropic Thunder'
Philip Seymour Hoffman, 'Doubt'
Heath Ledger, 'The Dark Knight'
Michael Shannon, ' Revolutionary Road'

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams in "Doubt" (Miramax)
Penélope Cruz in "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" (The Weinstein Company)
Viola Davis in "Doubt" (Miramax)
Taraji P. Henson in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
Marisa Tomei in "The Wrestler" (Fox Searchlight)

Best Animated Feature Film
'Bolt'
'Kung Fu Panda'
'Wall-E'

Best Foreign Film
'The Baader Meinhof Complex' (Germany)
'The class' (France)
'Departures'(Japan)
'Revanche' (Austria)
'Waltz With Bashir' (Israel)

Best Original Screenplay
Dustin Lance Black, 'Milk'
Courtney Hunt, 'Frozen River'
Mike Leigh, 'Happy-Go-Lucky'
Martin McDonagh, 'In Bruges'
Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Pete Docter, 'WALL-E'

Best Adapted Screenplay
Eric Roth, Robin Swicord, 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'
John Patrick Shanley, 'Doubt'
Peter Morgan, 'Frost/Nixon'
David Hare, 'The Reader'
Simon Beaufoy, 'Slumdog Millionaire'

Best Documentary Feature
'The Betrayal'
'Encounters at the End of the World'
'The Garden'
'Man on Wire'
'Trouble the Water'

FULL LIST HERE

Anyone Notice Who was Missing From the Oscars?

Brangelina! Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie skipped out on the Academy Awards this year maybe it was because earlier that day, the couple revealed Angelina's growing baby bump at the Film Independent Spirit Awards. The couple decided to relax at home with the kids instead of attend the Oscars.

Though neither attended the Oscar ceremony, that didn't stop Jon Stewart, from including Jolie in a joke about pregnant actresses, saying, "Obviously, Angelina Jolie couldn't be here..it's hard to find 17 babysitters on Oscar night."

We definitely missed seeing the gorgeous couple!

Oscar winners

The Coen brothers' "No Country for Old Men" was the big winner at last night's Academy Awards. The movie, adapted from a Cormac McCarthy novel, won Oscars for Best Motion Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay. The Coens won the Academy Award for Best Director and Javier Bardem (pictured above) received the Best Supporting Actor Award for his role as in the film.

Bardem's win marked the first time a Spanish actor received an Oscar in the award show's 80-year history.

A complete list of winners follows:

Best Motion Picture: "No Country for Old Men."
Lead Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis, "There Will Be Blood."
Lead Actress: Marion Cotillard, "La Vie en Rose."
Supporting Actor: Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men."
Supporting Actress: Tilda Swinton, "Michael Clayton."
Director: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, "No Country for Old Men."
Foreign Language Film: "The Counterfeiters," Austria.
Adapted Screenplay: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, "No Country for Old Men."
Original Screenplay: Diablo Cody, "Juno."
Animated Feature Film: "Ratatouille."
Art Direction: "Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street."
Cinematography: "There Will Be Blood."
Sound Mixing: "The Bourne Ultimatum."
Sound Editing: "The Bourne Ultimatum."
Original Score: "Atonement," Dario Marianelli.
Original Song: "Falling Slowly" from "Once," Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova.
Costume: "Elizabeth: The Golden Age."
Documentary Feature: "Taxi to the Dark Side."
Documentary Short Subject: "Freeheld."
Film Editing: "The Bourne Ultimatum."
Makeup: "La Vie en Rose."
Animated Short Film: "Peter & the Wolf."
Live Action Short Film: "Le Mozart des Pickpockets"
Visual Effects: "The Golden Compass"
Academy Award winners previously announced this year: Honorary and technical Oscars: Robert Boyle; Eastman Kodak Co.; David A. Grafton.

2008 Academy Wards - 80th Annual Oscar Nominees

The complete list of 80th annual Academy Award nominations were announced Tuesday:
1. Best Picture: "Atonement," "Juno," "Michael Clayton," "No Country for Old Men," "There Will Be Blood."

2. Actor: George Clooney, "Michael Clayton"; Daniel Day-Lewis, "There Will Be Blood"; Johnny Depp, "Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street"; Tommy Lee Jones, "In the Valley of Elah"; Viggo Mortensen, "Eastern Promises."

3. Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Elizabeth: The Golden Age"; Julie Christie, "Away From Her"; Marion Cotillard, "La Vie en Rose"; Laura Linney, "The Savages"; Ellen Page, "Juno."

4. Supporting Actor: Casey Affleck, "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"; Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men"; Hal Holbrook, "Into the Wild"; Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Charlie Wilson's War"; Tom Wilkinson, "Michael Clayton."

5. Supporting Actress: Cate Blanchett, "I'm Not There"; Ruby Dee, "American Gangster"; Saoirse Ronan, "Atonement"; Amy Ryan, "Gone Baby Gone"; Tilda Swinton, "Michael Clayton."

6. Director: Julian Schnabel, "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"; Jason Reitman, "Juno"; Tony Gilroy, "Michael Clayton"; Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, "No Country for Old Men"; Paul Thomas Anderson, "There Will Be Blood."

7. Foreign Film: "Beaufort," Israel; "The Counterfeiters," Austria; "Katyn," Poland; "Mongol," Kazakhstan; "12," Russia.

8. Adapted Screenplay: Christopher Hampton, "Atonement"; Sarah Polley, "Away from Her"; Ronald Harwood, "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"; Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, "No Country for Old Men"; Paul Thomas Anderson, "There Will Be Blood."

9. Original Screenplay: Diablo Cody, "Juno"; Nancy Oliver, "Lars and the Real Girl"; Tony Gilroy, "Michael Clayton"; Brad Bird, Jan Pinkava and Jim Capobianco, "Ratatouille"; Tamara Jenkins, "The Savages."

10. Animated Feature Film: "Persepolis"; "Ratatouille"; "Surf's Up."

11. Art Direction: "American Gangster," "Atonement," "The Golden Compass," "Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street," "There Will Be Blood."

12. Cinematography: "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," "Atonement," "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly," "No Country for Old Men," "There Will Be Blood."

13. Sound Mixing: "The Bourne Ultimatum," "No Country for Old Men," "Ratatouille," "3:10 to Yuma," "Transformers."

14. Sound Editing: "The Bourne Ultimatum," "No Country for Old Men," "Ratatouille," "There Will Be Blood," "Transformers."

15. Original Score: "Atonement," Dario Marianelli; "The Kite Runner," Alberto Iglesias; "Michael Clayton," James Newton Howard; "Ratatouille," Michael Giacchino; "3:10 to Yuma," Marco Beltrami.

16. Original Song: "Falling Slowly" from "Once," Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova; "Happy Working Song" from "Enchanted," Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz; "Raise It Up" from "August Rush," Nominees to be determined; "So Close" from "Enchanted," Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz; "That's How You Know" from "Enchanted," Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz.

17. Costume: "Across the Universe," "Atonement," "Elizabeth: The Golden Age," "La Vie en Rose," "Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street."

18. Documentary Feature: "No End in Sight," "Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience," "Sicko," "Taxi to the Dark Side," "War/Dance."

19. Documentary (short subject): "Freeheld," "La Corona (The Crown)," "Salim Baba," "Sari's Mother."

20. Film Editing: "The Bourne Ultimatum," "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly," "Into the Wild," "No Country for Old Men," "There Will Be Blood."

21. Makeup: "La Vie en Rose," "Norbit," "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End."

22. Animated Short Film: "I Met the Walrus," "Madame Tutli-Putli," "Meme Les Pigeons Vont au Paradis (Even Pigeons Go to Heaven)," "My Love (Moya Lyubov)," "Peter & the Wolf."

23. Live Action Short Film: "At Night," "Il Supplente (The Substitute)," "Le Mozart des Pickpockets (The Mozart of Pickpockets)," "Tanghi Argentini," "The Tonto Woman."

24. Visual Effects: "The Golden Compass," "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," "Transformers."


HONORARY AWARD will go to Robert Boyle