THE 98TH ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS

The 98th annual Academy Awards, a celebration of awarding the best achievements in cinema, was an enjoyable yet long evening filled with over three hours of honoring the historic moments and film excellence of the previous year. 

For a second year in a row, Conan O'Brien returns to host, beginning the show with a hilarious, filmed segment of his being made up to look like Aunt Gladys in the horror film, "Weapons" and has him running from possessed children through scenes of all of the nominated movies this year. Clearly more comfortable this time, O'Brien brought a little more edge to his jokes, even delivering a few political zingers although he wasn't too harshly direct. He also found a moment to offer sincere thoughts on the importance of the globalization of cinema and the collaborative attempts in creating something of "beauty" before launching into a grand, comedic musical number with Josh Groban singing about if O'Brien became an Oscar winner with an "eagle" flying down to hand him the award.

Speaking of politics, it was relatively quiet on that front with only presenter, Javier Bardem calling out "No to War and Free Palestine" before announcing the Best International Feature winner. Other more subtle expressions included Joachim Trier, the director of the winner, "Sentimental Value", closing his speech with a quote from James Baldwin to remember that all adults are responsible for all children and not vote for politicians who don’t take this seriously and David Borenstein, who co-directed the winner of the Best Documentary Feature, "Mr. Nobody Against Putin", stated that his film is about how you lose your country through countless small, little acts of complicity.

Once again, the Best Original Song nominees were not all performed on the telecast, which is simply outrageous and not fair to the writers of these honored compositions. Only "I Lied To You" from "Sinners" which recreated the powerful moment in the film which surreally linked the past, present and future of African-American music and "Golden", the smash hit from the eventual winner of Best Animated Feature, "KPop Demon Hunters", were performed during the show. The producers claimed they wanted to highlight the cultural impact of music and storytelling last year using these songs. That is all fine and good but they still could have found time to have the other three songs performed in some capacity during the program.

The highlight of the evening turned out to be the always melancholic segment of the program; In Memoriam. We lost some major talents last year; Robert Redford, Diane Keaton, Robert Duvall, Rob Reiner to name a few and it did seem more than fitting to pay extended tribute to some of them. Billy Crystal started with a remembrance of Reiner, the director of many classic films that included "The Princess Bride", "A Few Good Men" and "When Harry Met Sally", and was joined on stage by many of the cast members who starred in his films. Rachel McAdams appeared next to talk about the impact of Keaton and then Barbra Streisand came on stage to speak warmly about her "The Way We Were" co-star, Redford and even closed by singing briefly the movie's iconic theme song. 

And one final thought: there really needs to be a better way to move the show along than cutting off a winner's acceptance speech. It was noticeably bad this year. Perhaps shorten the attempts at witty banter during the introduction of the categories which for the most part are strained and not usually amusing. But cutting the mic off from someone who has won during their brief moment in the spotlight is really rude and downright insulting.

"One Battle After Another" wound up becoming victorious in wining Best Picture after a tight race of going back and forth with "Sinners" throughout award season. With his tenth feature and numerous previous nominations, Paul Thomas Anderson would finally receive three awards for this film by the end of the evening, also winning Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. "One Battle" would lead with six awards total including Best Film Editing, the very first Best Casting award and Sean Penn taking Best Supporting Actor (becoming the seventh actor to have won three Oscars) but was a no-show at the ceremony, apparently deciding to visit Ukraine instead. "Sinners" had a good night as well, winning four Oscars with Coogler receiving Best Original Screenplay, Michael B. Jordan awarded a well deserved Best Actor prize and Best Cinematography went to Autumn Durald Arkapaw who became the first woman to win this honor.

The wins by these two films, along with Amy Madigan for Best Supporting Actress in "Weapons", helped Warner Bros. do very well this evening by collecting eleven awards, tying the record of the most wins for a studio in a single night. This was also a bittersweet victory as the future of this legendary movie studio is up in the air as its about to be acquired by Paramount with steep layoffs and reduced production is certainly going to occur when (or more hopefully if) this deal is finalized.

What made this Oscars ceremony such a thrilling, nail bitter is that it was such a strong year of great movies with most of the nominees in each category would be a well deserved winner. This was played out with there even being a very rare tie (only the seventh time in Oscar History with the most famous occurring with Katharine Hepburn and Barbra Streisand being a draw as Best Actress in 1968) for Best Live Action Short. As we officially say goodbye to 2025, this current year has already delivered some promising films that have a credible possibility to be recognized during the next award season.

Here is the complete list of winners of the 98th Annual Academy Awards:

Best Picture: "One Battle After Another"
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, "One Battle After Another"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Paul Thomas Anderson, "One Battle After Another"
Best Original Screenplay: Ryan Coogler, "Sinners"
Best Actress in a Leading Role: Jessie Buckley, "Hamnet"
Best Actor in a Leading Role: Michael B. Jordan, "Sinners"
Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Amy Madigan, "Weapons"
Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Sean Penn, "One Battle After Another"
Best International Feature: "Affeksjonsverdi (Sentimental Value)" (Norway)
Best Documentary Feature: "Mr. Nobody Against Putin"
Best Documentary Short: "All the Empty Rooms"
Best Animated Feature: "KPop Demon Hunters"
Best Animated Short: "The Girl Who Cried Pearls"
Best Live Action Short: "The Singers" and "Two People Exchanging Saliva" (Tie) 

Best Casting: Cassandra Kulukundis, "One Battle After Another"
Best Cinematography: Autumn Durald Arkapaw, "Sinners"
Best Film Editing: Andy Jurgensen, "One Battle After Another"
Best Production Design: "Frankenstein" (Production Design: Tamara Deverell; Set Decoration: Shane Vieau)
Best Original Score: Ludwig Göransson, "Sinners"
Best Original Song: "Golden" from "KPop Demon Hunters" (Music and Lyrics by EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seon and Teddy Park)
Best Sound: Gareth John, Al Nelson, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Gary A. Rizzo and Juan Peralta, "F1"
Best Costume Design: Kate Hawley, "Frankenstein"
Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel and Cliona Furey, "Frankenstein"
Best Visual Effects: Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon and Daniel Barrett, "Avatar: Fire and Ash"

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award: Dolly Parton

Honorary Oscars:

Debbie Allen

Tom Cruise

Wynn Thomas

OSCAR MADNESS

The Oscars are just a few days away which also means the conclusion of another awards season. Here for fun are a few Oscar-related (or adjacent) articles to peruse until the big night:

Vulture has once again taken the bold step of ranking all of the nominated feature and short films that received Oscar nominations this year. It is noted that six films received eight or more nominations but there is a grand total of fifty movies that earned the honor of being recognized by the Academy. I can tell you right now I don't agree where some of these films fell in this ranking and I'm certain some of you will find many that deserved higher (or perhaps lower, in some cases). But it's still a daring and amusing endeavor that you should check out.

Please click below to read the article:

Vulture: Every 2026 Oscar-Nominated Movie Ranked

The New York Times have put together video clips of the filmmakers behind eight of the nominated Best Picture films where each discusses the details in how they put together pivotal sequences from their movies.

Please click below to read the article:

NYT: Behind the Scenes of This Year’s Best Picture Oscar Nominees

This year marks the first presentation of a new Oscar category: Best Achievement in Casting. Michael Schulman of the New Yorker has decided to look back in Hollywood history to consider some films that not only would have been nominated but more than likely could have won the award.

Please click below to read the article:

New Yorker: The Best Casting Jobs in Hollywood History

I love movie posters, especially those that really try to expand beyond the tried, true and expected of this underrated artform. Adrian Curry of Mubi Notebook has done his annual selection of what he considered the top ten best posters of last year along with an explanation on exactly why they were chosen. And there is a bonus of twenty well deserved runner-ups.

Please click below to read the article:

Mubi: The Best Movie Posters of 2025

2026 OSCAR NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED

The wait is finally over. With actors, Danielle Brooks and Lewis Pullman up extremely early this morning, the nominations for the 98th Annual Academy Awards were announced today and Ryan Coogler's "Sinners" became the all-time record holder for the most nominations with sixteen, breaking the previous record of fourteen total that the films, "All About Eve", "Titanic" and "La La Land" all shared. "One Battle After Another" was not far behind with thirteen which included Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for Paul Thomas Anderson. The other Best Picture nominees, "Frankenstein", "Marty Supreme" and "Sentimental Value" all received nine nominations, "Hamnet" with eight and "Bugonia", "F1" and "Train Dreams" each with four total. "The Secret Agent" (a total of four nominations) and "Sentimental Value" are the 12th and 13th non-English language films to be nominated for both International Feature Film and Best Picture in the same year.

This year, the nominees for the new category, Best Casting was announced with the casting directors of the films, "Hamnet", "Marty Supreme", "Sinners", "The Secret Agent", and "One Battle After Another" being recognized for the first time. With "Bugonia", Emma Stone became the youngest woman to achieve seven career nominations, earning nods this year for Best Picture and Best Actress while Timothée Chalamet became the youngest actor since Marlon Brando to receive three Best Actor nominations by the age of thirty. Amy Madigan heard her name called for the first time in forty years, being recognized as Best Supporting Actress for her eerie turn in "Weapons". She had been nominated in the same category of Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the drama, "Twice in a Lifetime" back in 1985. And Diane Warren earned her seventeenth career nomination for Best Original Song with "Dear Me" from the documentary about the songwriter, "Diane Warren: Relentless" but she still hasn't won a competitive Oscar. But one of the major surprises was the follow-up musical, "Wicked: For Good" being completely shut-out after the first part of the film scored an impressive ten nominations last year.

The 98th Academy Awards will be held Sunday, March 15th, at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood and broadcast live on ABC and Hulu with Conan O’Brien returning as host.

Here is the complete list of nominations for the 2025 Academy Awards:

Best Picture:

"Bugonia"
"F1"
"Frankenstein"
"Hamnet"
"Marty Supreme"
"One Battle After Another"
"The Secret Agent"
"Sentimental Value"
"Sinners"
"Train Dreams"

Best Director:

Chloé Zhao, "Hamnet"
Josh Safdie, "Marty Supreme"
Paul Thomas Anderson, "One Battle After Another"
Joachim Trier, "Sentimental Value"
Ryan Coogler, "Sinners"

Best Original Screenplay:

Robert Kaplow, "Blue Moon"
Jafar Panahi (Script collaborators: Nader Saïvar, Shadmehr Rastin, Mehdi Mahmoudian), "It Was Just an Accident"
Ronald Bronstein & Josh Safdie, "Marty Supreme"
Eskil Vogt and Joachim Trier, "Sentimental Value"
Ryan Coogler, "Sinners"

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Will Tracy, "Bugonia"
Guillermo del Toro, "Frankenstein"
Chloé Zhao & Maggie O’Farrell, "Hamnet"
Paul Thomas Anderson, "One Battle After Another"
Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar, "Train Dreams"

Best Actress In A Leading Role:

Jessie Buckley, "Hamnet"
Rose Byrne, "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You"
Kate Hudson, "Song Sung Blue"
Renate Reinsve, "Sentimental Value"
Emma Stone, "Bugonia"

Best Actor In A Leading Role:

Timothée Chalamet, "Marty Supreme"
Leonardo DiCaprio, "One Battle after Another"
Ethan Hawke, "Blue Moon"
Michael B. Jordan, "Sinners"
Wagner Moura, "The Secret Agent"

Best Actress In A Supporting Role:

Elle Fanning, "Sentimental Value"
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, "Sentimental Value"
Amy Madigan, "Weapons"
Wunmi Mosaku, "Sinners"
Teyana Taylor, "One Battle after Another"

Best Actor In A Supporting Role:

Benicio Del Toro, "One Battle after Another"
Jacob Elordi, "Frankenstein"
Delroy Lindo, "Sinners"
Sean Penn, "One Battle after Another"
Stellan Skarsgård, "Sentimental Value"

Best International Feature Film:

"O Agente Secreto (The Secret Agent)" (Brazil)
"Un simple accident (It Was Just an Accident)" (France)
"Affeksjonsverdi (Sentimental Value)" (Norway)
"Sirāt" (Spain)
"صوت هند رجب (The Voice of Hind Rajab)" (Tunisia)

Best Animated Feature Film:

"Arco"
"Elio"
"KPop Demon Hunters"
"Little Amélie or the Character of Rain"
"Zootopia 2"

Best Animated Short Film:

"Butterfly"
"Forevergreen"
"The Girl Who Cried Pearls"
"Retirement Plan"
"The Three Sisters"

Best Documentary Feature Film:

"The Alabama Solution"
"Come See Me in the Good Light"
"Cutting Through Rocks"
"Mr. Nobody against Putin"
"The Perfect Neighbor"

Best Documentary Short Film:

"All the Empty Rooms"
"Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud"
"Children No More: "Were and Are Gone"
"The Devil Is Busy"
"Perfectly a Strangeness"

Best Live Action Short Film:

"Butcher’s Stain"
"A Friend of Dorothy"
"Jane Austen’s Period Drama"
"The Singers"
"Two People Exchanging Saliva"

Best Cinematography:

Dan Laustsen, "Frankenstein"
Darius Khondji, "Marty Supreme"
Michael Bauman, "One Battle After Another"
Autumn Durald Arkapaw, "Sinners"
Adolpho Veloso, "Train Dreams"

Best Film Editing:

Stephen Mirrione, "F1"
Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie, "Marty Supreme"
Andy Jurgensen, "One Battle after Another"
Olivier Bugge Coutté, "Sentimental Value"
Michael P. Shawver, "Sinners"

Best Production Design:

"Frankenstein" (Production Design: Tamara Deverell; Set Decoration: Shane Vieau)
"Hamnet (Production Design: Fiona Crombie; Set Decoration: Alice Felton)
"Marty Supreme" (Production Design: Jack Fisk; Set Decoration: Adam Willis)
"One Battle after Another" (Production Design: Florencia Martin; Set Decoration: Anthony Carlino)
"Sinners" (Production Design: Hannah Beachler; Set Decoration: Monique Champagne)

Best Original Score:

Jerskin Fendrix, "Bugonia"
Alexandre Desplat, "Frankenstein"
Max Richter, "Hamnet"
Jonny Greenwood, "One Battle After Another"
Ludwig Göransson, "Sinners"

Best Original Song:

"Dear Me" from "Diane Warren: Relentless" (Music and Lyrics by Diane Warren)
"Golden" from "KPop Demon Hunters" (Music and Lyrics by EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seon and Teddy Park)
"I Lied To You” from "Sinners" (Music and Lyrics by Raphael Saadiq and Ludwig Göransson)
"Sweet Dreams Of Joy" from "Viva Verdi!" (Music and Lyrics by Nicholas Pike)
"Train Dreams" from "Train Dreams" (Music by Nick Cave and Bryce Dessner; Lyric by Nick Cave)

Best Casting:

Nina Gold, "Hamnet"
Jennifer Venditti, "Marty Supreme"
Cassandra Kulukundis, "One Battle After Another"
Gabriel Domingues, "The Secret Agent"
Francine Maisler, "Sinners"

Best Costume Design:

Deborah L. Scott, "Avatar: Fire and Ash"
Kate Hawley, "Frankenstein"
Malgosia Turzanska, "Hamnet"
Miyako Bellizzi, "Marty Supreme"
Ruth E. Carter, "Sinners"

Best Makeup And Hairstyling:

Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel and Cliona Furey, "Frankenstein"
Kyoko Toyokawa, Naomi Hibino and Tadashi Nishimatsu, "Kokuho"
Ken Diaz, Mike Fontaine and Shunika Terry, "Sinners"
Kazu Hiro, Glen Griffin and Bjoern Rehbein, "The Smashing Machine"
Thomas Foldberg and Anne Cathrine Sauerberg, "The Ugly Stepsister"

Best Sound:

Gareth John, Al Nelson, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Gary A. Rizzo and Juan Peralta, "F1"
Greg Chapman, Nathan Robitaille, Nelson Ferreira, Christian Cooke and Brad Zoern, "Frankenstein"
José Antonio García, Christopher Scarabosio and Tony Villaflor, "One Battle After Another"
Chris Welcker, Benjamin A. Burtt, Felipe Pacheco, Brandon Proctor and Steve Boeddeker, "Sinners"
Amanda Villavieja, Laia Casanovas and Yasmina Praderas, "Sirāt"

Best Visual Effects:

Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon and Daniel Barrett, "Avatar: Fire and Ash"
Ryan Tudhope, Nicolas Chevallier, Robert Harrington and Keith Dawson, "F1"
David Vickery, Stephen Aplin, Charmaine Chan and Neil Corbould, "Jurassic World Rebirth"
Charlie Noble, David Zaretti, Russell Bowen and Brandon K. McLaughlin, "The Lost Bus"
Michael Ralla, Espen Nordahl, Guido Wolter and Donnie Dean, "Sinners"

MY VIEWING DIARY: PART SIXTEEN

"Daisy Kenyon" (1947)

After winning the 1945 Best Actress Academy Award for her turn as the harried mother in "Mildred Pierce", Joan Crawford's stagnant career was fully revitalized. One of the films she made following her win was "Daisy Kenyon", a melodramatic love triangle, that was daring at the time due to its more pragmatic handling of these complicated emotional affairs. The director, Otto Preminger was responsible for pushing as far he could go in this torrid story with the Motion Picture Production Code. Years later, the infamously temperamental filmmaker would aggressively go even further in handling banned subjects in his movies, effectively helping to bring an end to imposed censorship in American cinema.

Set in New York City shortly after the end of WWII, Crawford plays Kenyon, a commercial artist who is having an affair with Dan O'Mara (Dana Andrews), a smooth-talking, married lawyer. Fed up with waiting around for him and the empty promises of divorcing his wife (Ruth Warrick), Daisy informs Dan she has made other plans for dinner. As he's leaving her home, Dan runs into Daisy's new suitor, a war veteran widower named Peter Lapham (Henry Fonda). While Peter still grieves for his wife and Daisy is not over Dan, these two wind up getting married. After discovering her husband's affair with Daisy, she wants to file for divorce with full custody of their children. Dan asks Peter and Daisy to allow him to reveal the details of his former relationship with Daisy during the divorce trial. This request affects her marriage to Peter and the trial publicly damages her reputation.

Not well received at the time of its initial release, "Daisy Kenyon" has been reevaluated by modern audiences, giving the film a newfound respect. Neither Andrews or Fonda really cared for the script yet fulfilled their contractual obligations, still providing solid performances. But this is actually Crawford's opportunity to deliver a star turn with plenty of her usual hard-boiled flair and monumental emoting. She had wanted to buy the rights years before but was beat out by 20th Century Fox and campaigned hard to get to play the lead. Considering the restrictions of the era, Preminger managed to make "Daisy Kenyon" feel modern with credible characters reacting to challenging love situations believably and honestly.

"Dead Man" (1995)

"Dead Man" is Jim Jarmusch's version of a western; a dark, trippy and surreal adventure involving a meek, soft-spoken man who ends up becoming a wanted, gun-toting outlaw. Johnny Depp plays William Blake who we meet on a train heading west to the frontier town of Machine from Cleveland. Selling everything he owns to get there for an accounting position he had been promised at the Dickinson metal shop, Blake discovers there is no job available with the owner (Robert Mitchum in his final film role) showing him to the door at gunpoint. Broke and homeless, the mild mannered Blake encounters Thel (Mili Avital), a lovely former working girl now making a living selling paper flowers, and offers him to stay with her for the night. But they are interrupted by Charlie (Gabriel Byrne), her former lover, who is not thrilled with this situation. Bullets soon fly across the room ending with Thel murdered by Charlie and (in self-defense) Blake shoots him dead. As Charlie happens to be the son of Dickinson, the distraught businessman sets a bounty out on Blake, wanted dead or alive, and hires a posse of outlaws (Lance Henriksen, Michael Wincott and Eugene Byrd) to track him down. On the run, a wounded Blake encounters a Native American named Nobody (Gary Farmer) who helps heal him and believes he's the reincarnation of the English poet, William Blake.

The filmmaker has no interest in the deeply embedded, nonsense found in many Hollywood westerns where most white men were the virtuous heroes while the Native Americans are nothing more than blood-thirsty primitives. In "Dead Man", the Natives are presented as humane and enlightened with the pale faces appear unpredictably crazed and dangerous. And since this is a Jarmusch film, this quirky western features offbeat comedic moments, unhurried pacing and sudden bursts of bloody violence. Shot in crisp black & white by cinematographer, Robby Müller and with a rousing original musical score by rocker, Neil Young, "Dead Man" is far from top-notch Jarmusch. Yet the film still manages to engage with an eccentric sense of style and unsettling mood.

"Marty" (1955)

I had avoided for years watching "Marty", the story of a lonely butcher seeking love and companionship, despite the film winning the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and the Oscar for Best Picture back in 1955 (one of only four films that managed to accomplish this feat). Despite all the acclaim I remained hesitant, feeling like it would be nothing more than an overwrought melodrama. But I recently gave in and finally watched "Marty". Now I must admit I made a huge misjudgment about this film. With a poignant screenplay by Paddy Chayefsky (another Oscar winner) and some outstanding naturalistic performances, "Marty" is a well-crafted and expressive small-scale drama filled with grand, complex human emotions.

Working as a butcher in the Bronx, Marty Piletti (Ernest Borgnine) is continuously scolded by the nosy neighborhood women that he should be ashamed for not settling down and getting married. But it's not like he hasn't tried meeting a nice girl. Tending to be shy and socially awkward, this makes dating very difficult for Marty. With his brothers and sisters already off and married, Marty is still living at home with their mother (Esther Minciotti) who worries about her son. One evening, with Marty at home and no plans on going out, Teresa pushes him to go dancing.

Reluctantly, Marty heads out to a dancehall with his also-single, best friend, Angie (Joe Mantell) with the hope they might meet some women. Marty runs in to Clara, (Betsy Blair) a high school teacher crying after being dumped by her blind date. They spend the evening together talking with these two lonely people making a deep emotional connection. But his friend and mother, feeling Clara is not good enough for him, both encourage him to move on and keep looking for a more suitable mate. Marty is left with a struggle between following his heart or listening to people he thinks knows what's best for him.

"Marty" began as a teleplay in 1953 during the early days of television with Rod Steiger playing the title role. For the film, Chayefsky expanded the script and after Steiger declined to take part, Borgnine took over playing Marty, going on to win the Academy Award for Best Actor and become a movie star. Borgnine and Blair have a lovely chemistry as two people, isolated and assuming they're unattractive, helping each other to feel less alone and desirable. After directing hundreds of hours of live television, Delbert Mann got his first opportunity to direct a feature film with "Marty". Having only sixteen days to shoot and a very low budget, Mann used his experience to craft an economical yet substantial drama and would receive the Best Director Oscar for his efforts. Please don't make my mistake: "Marty" is a beautifully moving film filled with absorbing passion and unfortunate heartbreak that should be sought out and seen.

DIANE KEATON (1946 - 2025)

I am shocked and sadden about the passing of Diane Keaton, the Oscar-winning actress who dazzled audiences with her many screen performances. It was announced that the Los Angeles born and raised actor had died on October 11th at the age of seventy-nine with no cause disclosed to date. With a charming quirkiness, self-deprecating wit and an eccentric, spontaneous spirit, Keaton brought to mind the classic screwball movie comedian while still capturing a unique modern sensibility. And the distinctive wardrobe she wore off screen which usually consisted of tailored menswear, extra wide belts and a bowler hat made Keaton become a style icon. 

Born Diane Hall, she had gotten into theater during high school which sparked her interest in pursuing acting as a career. She briefly attended college in Santa Ana before dropping out and heading to New York. Discovering there was already a "Diane Hall" in the Actors' Equity Association, she took her mother's maiden name of "Keaton" as her stage name. Her first stage opportunity came when she was cast as part of the ensemble in the original Broadway production of "Hair" with Keaton famously declining to appear nude on stage even with the offer of a fifty dollar bonus. But Keaton's career would take off in 1969 after meeting Woody Allen and being cast in his play, "Play it Again, Sam". The comedy would earn Keaton a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play. Heading back to Los Angeles, she would appear in several television sitcoms, dramas and commercials.

Keaton's first significant film role was as Kay Adams-Corleone in "The Godfather" with director, Francis Ford Coppola casting her after noticing the actress in her 1970 film debut, "Lovers and Other Strangers". The film was a critical and box-office success, winning the Academy Award for Best Picture. Keaton would appear in the film's sequel two years later (also winning Best Picture) with her role far more substantial.

In 1972, Keaton co-starred with Allen in the film version of "Play it Again, Sam", directed by Herbert Ross. Once Allen decided to begin to direct his screenplays, he cast Keaton (who had a brief romantic relationship with him and remained life-long friends) in many of his features beginning with "Sleeper" in 1973 and "Love and Death" two years later. Allen has said that the character of "Annie Hall" was inspired by Keaton and the film would become a big box-office hit and received wide critical acclaim, winning four Academy Awards including Best Actress for Keaton and Best Picture. She would appear in his other films, "Interiors", "Manhattan" and "Manhattan Murder Mystery".

Other notable films that starred Keaton include the dramas, "Looking for Mr. Goodbar" (where she played against type as a schoolteacher for deaf children who at night hung out at bars to pick-up men), "Reds" (receiving a Best Actress Oscar nomination), "Shoot the Moon" and comedies, "Crimes of the Heart", "Baby Boom", a remake of "Father of the Bride" and the sequel. Keaton soon turned her attention to directing, first music videos, episodes of drama series and two films for television before making a documentary feature, "Heaven" in 1987 about the possibility of an afterlife. Her first feature film as a director was in 1995 with "Unstrung Heroes", a '60's set comedy-drama about a boy dealing with his mother struggling with cancer with Andie MacDowell and John Turturro. She would also direct and co-star in the 2000 comedy (featuring a screenplay by Nora and Delia Ephron), "Hanging Up" with Meg Ryan and Lisa Kudrow.

Keaton continued to perform as an actor appearing in "The Godfather Part III", "Marvin's Room" (where she received another Best Actress Oscar nomination), "The Family Stone", "Mad Money", "Book Club", "Something's Got to Give" (receiving her final Best Actress Oscar nomination) and "The First Wives Club", the popular box-office smash with Goldie Hawn and Bette Midler which has developed a cult following. Keaton's final screen appearance was last year in the comedy, "Summer Camp" which she co-starred with Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard.

Keaton was actively involved in the art scene in Los Angeles, particularly photography, and restoring then selling landmark homes throughout the area. And while she was involved in several high profile romances which included Allen, Al Pacino and Warren Beatty, Keaton was never married. She is survived by her two children, Dexter and Duke Keaton who were adapted when she was in her 50's.

Not all of the movies that Keaton appeared in were well received or memorable but the actress was consistently pointed as the highlight of any given film, praising her gift for an offbeat approach to her characters while remaining authentic with every performance. Diane Keaton was a true original and her remarkable artistry will absolutely be missed.

ROBERT REDFORD (1936 - 2025)

Robert Redford, the handsome and charismatic actor who moved behind the camera to become an Oscar-winning filmmaker, has passed away in his sleep on September 16th at the age of eighty-nine. Not only did Redford become one of the biggest movies stars on the planet but he was a political activist who used his fame to bring attention to several causes that were important to him like environmentalism and indigenous people's rights. He also went on to help create the Sundance Film Festival which became one of the first and largest festivals that focused on independent cinema.

From the beginning after deciding to become an actor, Redford sought out roles that would challenge him, never wanting to be typecast in parts that focused on his looks. He appeared in numerous television dramas and small roles in feature films before getting his first big break on stage in 1963 after being cast in Neil Simon's latest Broadway show, "Barefoot in the Park", a romantic-comedy directed by Mike Nichols. The show was a hit, helping to create some buzz around the fledgling actor. In 1965, Redford was given a supporting role in "Inside Daisy Clover", a Hollywood-set drama starring Natalie Wood. It wasn't much of a critical or box-office success but they appeared together again the following year as co-stars in "This Property Is Condemned", directed by Sydney Pollack, that managed to achieve some acclaim. Redford also appeared for the first time with Jane Fonda that year in the all-star flop, "The Chase" (that included Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall and Angie Dickinson in the cast) before they starred together in the film version of "Barefoot in the Park" in 1967. This became a smash hit, helping to create Redford as a true film star.

But what made Redford go from a popular movie actor to an international cinema superstar began with George Roy Hill's western, "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" in 1969. Paired with another major star, Paul Newman, the film followed these Wild West outlaws on the run from a posse after their string of train robberies. The film went on to earn over one hundred million dollars at the box-office and won four Academy Awards including Best Original Screenplay for William Goldman and Best Original Song for "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head". This was followed by a string of popular films starring Redford: "The Way We Were" (with Barbra Streisand), "The Sting" (which reteamed him with Newman), "Jeremiah Johnson", "The Great Waldo Pepper", "Three Days of the Condor" and "All the President's Men"

Redford soon began to look for a new challenge which lead him to sit in the director's chair. The 1980 drama, "Ordinary People", based on the novel by Judith Guest, follows the disintegration of a wealthy family following the accidental death of one of their two sons and the attempted suicide of the other. Another box-office hit, the film was nominated for six Academy Awards, taking home four which included Best Director and Best Picture. Redford would go on to direct "The Milagro Beanfield War", "A River Runs Through It", "Quiz Show", "The Legend of Bagger Vance", "Lions for Lambs" "The Horse Whisperer" and "The Company You Keep"

He was born Charles Robert Redford Jr. on August 18th in Santa Monica, California of Irish, Scottish, and English ancestry. He had suffered from a mild case of polio when he was eleven but recovered and excelled in sports during high school. But Redford also had an interest in the creative arts. After graduating from high school in 1954, he attended the University of Colorado but spent too much time partying and ended up getting expelled from the school. He then went off to Europe to travel for a period before coming back home with a clear focus on trying to become an actor.

Redford remained a sought after performer throughout the 1980's to well into the twenty-first century. He would appear in the baseball drama "The Natural", the 1985 Best Picture winner, "Out of Africa", "Indecent Proposal", "Up Close & Personal", "Sneakers" and Marvel superhero film, "Captain America: The Winter Soldier". The last major film Redford starred in before retiring in 2018 was "The Old Man & the Gun", a crime-drama directed by David Lowery.

THE 97TH ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS

The Oscars has always been the official end of award season, mainly because the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was the very first organization to honor cinema almost one hundred years ago. The Academy is at an awkward moment in its time where it wants to preserve the long traditions of the ceremony yet still wants to be viewed as moving the show into the modern era. The Oscars just made itself available to stream live this year (on Hulu) so their pace of advancement is not exactly speedy.

The show kicked off with a montage from films set in Los Angeles, highlighting various spots throughout the city. Then we have nominee, Ariana Grande for "Wicked" performing a rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" from "The Wizard of Oz" before her co-star, Cynthia Erivo does "Home" from "The Wiz". Then the two share the stage to conclude this mash-up with "Defying Gravity" from their musical based on L. Frank Baum's story. As the first time host, Conan O'Brien fit in quite nicely, bringing a good energy and kept the humor at caustic yet good-natured levels, and it's bit of a surprise he wasn't asked before. He started with a filmed take-off on "The Substance" and made some well-placed jokes on the nominated movies (""A Complete Unknown". "A Real Pain". "Nosferatu". These are some of the names I was called on the red carpet"). And O'Brien was talking about a dress code when he singled out Adam Sandler, sitting in the audience wearing his standard uniform of a hoodie and baggy gym shorts, creating a very funny moment.

The producers of this year's telecast wanted to shake up the routine but not too much. Instead of the acting categories, we had five actors come out to sing the praises of the costume designers and cinematographers. While it was a nice touch, it just wasn't as effective as when the previous acting winners honored the nominated actors. But the biggest misstep as far as I'm concerned was the decision to not have the nominated Best Original Songs performed on the show. In it's place we had O'Brien do "I Won't Waste Time" during the opening segment which was pretty funny. But a James Bond musical tribute to Honorary Oscar winning producers, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson (which featured current pop artists, Lisa, Doja Cat and Raye doing popular Bond theme songs) and Queen Latifah honoring the late Quincy Jones (who had won an Honorary Oscar this year) with a rousing rendition of "Ease On Down The Road' from "The Wiz", while entertaining, failed to rise much above time filler. And the selection of the presenters was truly inspired with a nice mix of the legendary (Goldie Hawn, Mark Hamill, Daryl Hannah, Quentin Tarantino and an impressively spry, Mick Jagger) and contemporary (Andrew Garfield, Lily-Rose Depp, Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, Bowen Yang).

"Anora" had gone in with six nominations and went on to take home five Oscars including Best Picture. Mikey Madison win for Best Actress created the night's biggest upset by beating the favorite, Demi Moore for her performance in "The Substance" which oddly echoes the theme of the body horror film. Sean Baker personally received four awards this night with "Anora" for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing and the top prize, tying with Walt Disney for the most Oscars in a single year although the wins were for four different films. With its Best Picture win, "Anora" (which won the Palme d’Or at last year’s Cannes Film Festival) followed in the footsteps of the indie distributor, Neon’s last awards success; the Palme d’Or winning, South Korean drama, "Parasite", the unexpected winner of Best Picture back in 2019.

During his third acceptance speech, Baker encouraged filmmakers to keep making movies for the big screen in order to keep theaters alive and well. My love of going to the movies came directly from my mother who took us regularly to the theater, probably at least once a week. And while this was really the only way to see a motion picture at the time, the thrill of the communal experience of watching a film surrounded with an audience was deeply instilled into me. A theater is really the only perfect setting for me to truly enjoy seeing a film.

Baker also addressed the importance of supporting independent cinema which is so vital in order to tell challenging and innovative stories that the Hollywood system is way too cautious to go anywhere near. As we quickly approach the 100th anniversary of the Oscars, now is the time to support your local theaters, especially the indie-owned screens that are particularly struggling and unfortunately closing at a rapid rate.

So come on people, get off your couches, take your kids and go to a movie theater! Otherwise, there may not be much to celebrate during the upcoming 100th Oscars ceremony.

Here is the complete list of winners of the 2025 Oscars:

Best Picture: "Anora"
Best Director: Sean Baker, "Anora"
Best Original Screenplay: Sean Baker, "Anora"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Peter Straughan, "Conclave"
Best Actress in a Leading Role: Mikey Madison, "Anora"
Best Actor in a Leading Role: Adrien Brody, "The Brutalist"
Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Zoe Saldaña, "Emilia Pérez"
Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Kieran Culkin, "A Real Pain"
Best Cinematography: Lol Crawley, "The Brutalist"
Best Film Editing: Sean Baker, "Anora"
Best International Feature Film: "I’m Still Here" (Brazil)
Best Documentary Feature Film: "No Other Land"
Best Documentary Short Film: "The Only Girl in the Orchestra"
Best Animated Feature Film: "Flow"
Best Animated Short Film: "In the Shadow of the Cypress"
Best Live Action Short Film: "I’m Not a Robot"
Best Original Song: "El Mal" from "Emilia Pérez" Music by Clément Ducol and Camille, Lyric by Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard
Best Original Score: Daniel Blumberg, "The Brutalist"
Best Production Design: Nathan Crowley, Production Design and Lee Sandales, Set Decoration, "Wicked"
Best Costume Design: Paul Tazewell, "Wicked"
Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon and Marilyne Scarselli, "The Substance"
Best Sound: Gareth John, Richard King, Ron Bartlett and Doug Hemphill, "Dune: Part Two"
Best Visual Effects: Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe and Gerd Nefzer, "Dune: Part Two"

2025 OSCAR NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED

After being delayed several times due to the tragic California wildfires, the 2025 Oscar nominations have finally been announced. Bringing a quirky sense of humor to the proceedings early this morning, Bowen Yang and Rachel Sennott revealed this year's picks. "Emilia Pérez", the controversial musical-drama about a Mexican drug kingpin who transforms their gender, leads the field with thirteen nominations. "The Brutalist", an epic drama that explores a Holocaust survivor who immigrates to America, and "Wicked", the long-awaited big screen version of the popular Broadway musical, are both close behind with ten nominations each. "Conclave", the thriller involving the selection of a new pope and "A Complete Unknown", the tale about the early years of folk music legend Bob Dylan, went on to receive eight noms. Along with these five films, the indie dramas, "Nickel Boys" and "Anora"; the body-horror satire, "The Substance"; the Brazilian political drama, "Ainda Estou Aqui (I'm Still Here)" and the sci-fi sequel, "Dune: Part two" round up the Best Picture category.

Some highlights include Ralph Fiennes, nominated for his amazing performance in "Conclave", who went twenty-eight years between his last Best Actor nomination for "The English Patient". Karla Sofía Gascón in "Emilia Perez" is the first transgender actor nominated for an Oscar. It has been since 1997 that all of the directing nominees are first-timers with Coralie Fargeat’s nomination for "The Substance" makes her the tenth female earning a Best Director nomination. Fernanda Montenegro (who was nominated for "Central Station" in 1998) and Fernanda Torres joins Judy Garland and Liza Minnelli as the only mother-daughter nominated for Best Actress. The Latvian film, "Flow" became the third animated feature to receive duo nominations for Best Animated Feature and Best International Feature. And Diane Warren received her sixteenth nomination for Best Original Song without a competitive win for her work in "The Six Triple Eight", the Tyler Perry WWII drama about an all-black female battalion.

The 97th annual Academy Awards will be held on March 2nd at the Dolby Theatre with first-time host, Conan O’Brien. And for the first time, the Oscars will be livestreamed on Hulu.

Here is the complete list of nominations for the 2025 Oscars:

Best Picture:

"Anora"
"The Brutalist"
"A Complete Unknown"
"Conclave"
"Dune: Part Two"
"Emilia Pérez"
"Ainda Estou Aqui (I’m Still Here)"
"Nickel Boys"
"The Substance"
"Wicked"

Best Director:

Sean Baker, "Anora"
Brady Corbet "The Brutalist"
James Mangold, "A Complete Unknown"
Jacques Audiard, "Emilia Pérez"
Coralie Fargeat, "The Substance"

Best Original Screenplay:

Sean Baker, "Anora"
Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold, "The Brutalist"
Jesse Eisenberg, "A Real Pain"
Moritz Binder, Tim Fehlbaum and Alex David, "September 5"
Coralie Fargeat, "The Substance"

Best Adapted Screenplay:

James Mangold and Jay Cocks, "A Complete Unknown"
Peter Straughan, "Conclave"
Jacques Audiard in collaboration with Thomas Bidegain, Léa Mysius and Nicolas Livecchi, "Emilia Pérez"
RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes, "Nickel Boys"
Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin and John “Divine G” Whitfield, "Sing Sing"

Best Actress in a Leading Role:

Cynthia Erivo, "Wicked"
Karla Sofía Gascón, "Emilia Pérez"
Mikey Madison, "Anora"
Demi Moore, "The Substance"
Fernanda Torres, "I’m Still Here"

Best Actor in a Leading Role:

Adrien Brody, "The Brutalist"
Timothée Chalamet, "A Complete Unknown"
Colman Domingo, "Sing Sing"
Ralph Fiennes, "Conclave"
Sebastian Stan, "The Apprentice"

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:

Monica Barbaro, "A Complete Unknown"
Ariana Grande, "Wicked"
Felicity Jones, "The Brutalist"
Isabella Rossellini, "Conclave"
Zoe Saldaña, "Emilia Pérez"

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:

Yura Borisov, "Anora"
Kieran Culkin, "A Real Pain"
Edward Norton, "A Complete Unknown"
Guy Pearce, "The Brutalist"
Jeremy Strong, "The Apprentice"

Best Cinematography:

Lol Crawley, "The Brutalist"
Greig Fraser, "Dune: Part Two"
Paul Guilhaume, "Emilia Pérez"
Ed Lachman, "Maria"
Jarin Blaschke, "Nosferatu"

Best Film Editing:

Sean Baker, "Anora"
David Jancso, "The Brutalist"
Nick Emerson, "Conclave"
Juliette Welfling, "Emilia Pérez"
Myron Kerstein, "Wicked"

Best Production Design:

"The Brutalist" (Production Design: Judy Becker, Set Decoration: Patricia Cuccia)
"Conclave" (Production Design: Suzie Davies, Set Decoration: Cynthia Sleiter)
"Dune: Part Two" (Production Design: Patrice Vermette, Set Decoration: Shane Vieau)
"Nosferatu" (Production Design: Craig Lathrop, Set Decoration: Beatrice Brentnerová)
"Wicked" (Production Design: Nathan Crowley, Set Decoration: Lee Sandales)

Best International Feature Film:

"Ainda Estou Aqui (I’m Still Here)" (Brazil)
"Pigen med nålen (The Girl with the Needle)" (Denmark)
"Emilia Pérez" (France)
"Die Saat des heiligen Feigenbaums (The Seed of the Sacred Fig)" (Germany)
"Straume (Flow)" (Latvia)

Best Animated Feature Film:

"Straume (Flow)"
"Inside Out 2"
"Memoir of a Snail"
"Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl"
"The Wild Robot"

Best Animated Short Film:

"Beautiful Men"
"In the Shadow of Cypress"
"Magic Candies"
"Wander to Wonder"
"Yuck!"

Best Documentary Feature Film:

"Black Box Diaries"
"No Other Land"
"Porcelain War"
"Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat"
"Sugarcane"

Best Documentary Short Film:

"Death by Numbers"
"I Am Ready, Warden"
"Incident"
"Instruments of a Beating Heart"
"The Only Girl in the Orchestra"

Best Live Action Short Film:

"A Lien"
"Anuja"
"I’m Not a Robot"
"The Last Ranger"
"The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent"

Best Costume Design:

Arianne Phillips, "A Complete Unknown"
Lisy Christl, "Conclave"
Janty Yates and Dave Crossman, "Gladiator II"
Linda Muir, "Nosferatu"
Paul Tazewell, "Wicked"

Best Makeup and Hairstyling:

Mike Marino, David Presto and Crystal Jurado, "A Different Man"
Julia Floch Carbonel, Emmanuel Janvier and Jean-Christophe Spadaccini, "Emilia Pérez"
David White, Traci Loader and Suzanne StokesMunton, "Nosferatu"
Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon and Marilyne Scarselli, "The Substance"
Frances Hannon, Laura Blount and Sarah Nuth, "Wicked"

Best Original Score:

Daniel Blumberg, "The Brutalist"
Volker Bertelmann, "Conclave"
Clément Ducol and Camille, "Emilia Pérez"
John Powell and Stephen Schwartz, "Wicked"
Kris Bowers, "The Wild Robot"

Best Original Song:

"El Mal" from "Emilia Pérez" (Music by Clément Ducol and Camille, Lyric by Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard)
"The Journey" from "The Six Triple Eight" (Music and Lyric by Diane Warren)
"Like a Bird" from "Sing Sing" (Music and Lyric by Abraham Alexander and Adrian Quesada)
"Mi Camino" from "Emilia Pérez" (Music and Lyric by Camille and Clément Ducol)
"Never Too Late” from “Elton John: Never Too Late" (Music and Lyric by Elton John, Brandi Carlile, Andrew Watt and Bernie Taupin)

Best Sound:

Tod A. Maitland, Donald Sylvester, Ted Caplan, Paul Massey and David Giammarco, "A Complete Unknown"
Gareth John, Richard King, Ron Bartlett and Doug Hemphill, "Dune: Part Two"
Erwan Kerzanet, Aymeric Devoldère, Maxence Dussère, Cyril Holtz and Niels Barletta, "Emilia Perez"
Simon Hayes, Nancy Nugent Title, Jack Dolman, Andy Nelson and John Marquis, "Wicked"
Randy Thom, Brian Chumney, Gary A. Rizzo and Leff Lefferts, "The Wild Robot"

Best Visual Effects:

Eric Barba, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser, Daniel Macarin and Shane Mahan, "Alien: Romulus"
Luke Millar, David Clayton, Keith Herft and Peter Stubbs, "Better Man"
Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe and Gerd Nefzer, "Dune: Part Two"
Erik Winquist, Stephen Unterfranz, Paul Story and Rodney Burke, "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes"
Pablo Helman, Jonathan Fawkner, David Shirk and Paul Corbould, "Wicked"

MAGGIE SMITH (1934 - 2024)

Maggie Smith, the highly honored British actor who found great success on screen and stage for over sixty years, has passed away on September 27th at the age of eighty-nine. She gained further international attention and acclaim during this century for her appearance in the Harry Potter film series and later for her sly performance playing the Dowager Countess of Granthamher in the beloved British television series, "Downton Abbey". The two-time Academy Award winning performer was still working having recently appeared in the drama, "The Miracle Club" with Laura Linney and Kathy Bates released in theaters last year. An accomplished and versatile performer, Smith could enliven anything she would appear in by creating rich, indelible characters. With an acerbic wit, razor-sharp tongue and undeniable charm, the actress could effortlessly decimate someone with a clever one-liner.

Smith left high school at sixteen in order to study acting at the Oxford Playhouse. During her time there, she appeared in numerous productions, delivering impressive performances. American producers took notice of her budding talent, casting her in "New Faces of '56" where she played several roles and made her Broadway debut. Smith would make her feature film debut two years later co-starring in the British crime drama, "Nowhere To Go". She also caught the attention of the theater legend, Laurence Olivier who invited her in 1962 to join the National Theatre Company which he had just founded and included in the company, Peter O'Toole, Michael Redgrave, Derek Jacobi and Ian McKellen. And while she was with the National throughout the rest of the 1960's, a tense yet professional rivalry would develop between the formidable Olivier and the tenacious Smith.

She would began to do more film work at this time as well, appearing in "The V.I.P.s" with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton; "The Honey Pot", "The Pumpkin Eater" and the film version of "Othello" which was adapted from the well-received Olivier staging for The National. Smith would receive her first Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actress for playing Desdemona.

Smith's major breakthrough came with the film adaptation of the successful play, "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" in 1969. This story of an effusive teacher at an Edinburgh all-girls school with a tendency to create her own curriculum to mold select students into her worldview would win Smith an Academy Award for Best Actress. Other film roles followed that included George Cukor's "Travels With My Aunt" (which earned Smith another Best Actress Oscar nomination); "Murder By Death"; two Agatha Christie murder mystery adaptations, "Death on The Nile" and "Evil Under The Sun"; "Clash of The Titans" and "Neil Simon's California Suite" with Smith winning another Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Smith would continue to be an in-demand performer, appearing in filmed dramas and comedies, "A Room with a View", "Sister Act", "Richard III", "The First Wives Club", "Tea with Mussolini", "Gosford Park", "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" and "The Lady in the Van".

But Smith did not ever abandon the stage throughout her time doing acclaimed film work. She appeared in numerous productions of works by Shakespeare and plays by Anton Chekov, Noël Coward, Edward Albee, and Tom Stoppard. Smith received six Evening Standard Theatre Awards for her theatrical performances and won the Tony Award in 1990 for the comedy, "Lettice and Lovage".

LOUIS GOSSETT, JR (1936 - 2024)

Louis Gossett, Jr., the groundbreaking actor who found great success on the stage and screen passed away on March 29th. He was eighty-seven. No cause of death has been given to date. Gossett, Jr. became the first African-American actor to receive the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 1982 for his performance of a hard-driving Marine Sgt. Foley in "An Officer and a Gentleman". He had won an Emmy Award  for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama six years earlier for playing Fiddler in the acclaimed television miniseries, "Roots".

The Brooklyn born actor began his career on the Broadway stage; first appearing in the play, "Take a Giant Step" in 1953 before becoming a part of the original cast in Lorraine Hansberry's "A Raisin in the Sun" six year later. Gossett Jr. would reprise his role of George Murchison in the film adaptation of "Raisin" in 1961, making his feature film debut. Also that year, he appeared in the Off-Broadway production of Jean Genet's "The Blacks" which featured an impressive cast that included James Earl Jones, Roscoe Lee Browne, Cicely Tyson, Godfrey Cambridge and Maya Angelou. During this time, Gossett Jr. was also dabbling as a musician, recording and performing folk music and co-writing the anti-war protest anthem, "Handsome Johnny" with Richie Havens in 1966 which Havens would later perform live during his set at the Woodstock music festival.

But acting was where Gossett Jr. put most of the focus throughout his career. He appeared in the films, "The Landlord" which was Hal Ashby's directorial debut; George Cukor's "Travels with My Aunt"; "The Choirboys"; the sci-fi drama, "Enemy Mine"; the Air Force adventure, "Iron Eagle" with three sequels and the underwater thriller, "The Deep". Gossett Jr. made many television appearances on series ranging from "The Six Million Dollar Man" to "Good Times" and playing the late third President of Egypt in the 1983 miniseries, "Sadat". Recently, Gossett Jr. did acclaimed work in the HBO series, "Watchmen" and appeared in the musical remake of "The Color Purple".

THE 96TH ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS

After two lengthy strikes last year that brought the movie business to a grinding halt, the industry is ready to get back to work and celebrate themselves. The 96th annual Academy Awards brings an official end to award season and honors the best in cinema from across the globe.

For his fourth time as host, Jimmy Kimmel seemed even more at ease, playfully joking with his irreverent humor about this year's movies and nominees. The host was in great form and offering nothing too mean spirited except a bit later in the show with him reading aloud a nasty comment about him made on social media by a former President with Kimmel delivering a well deserved, perfect comeback. Following his monologue, Kimmel paid tribute to the below-the-line crew (the folks who handle much of the technical work behind the camera and who are on the cusp of their own contract renegotiations with the studios) and brought out to the stage the show's own crew.

It was fifteen years ago the first time when five previous Oscar winners came out together to present in each of the acting categories. It was thrilling and deeply moving at that time and the return of this remains highly effective. My favorite moment from this was when the amazing ninety-two year old, Rita Moreno was speaking about Best Supporting Actress nominee, America Ferrera and sang a few bars of "America" from the movie version of the musical, "West Side Story" which she won her Oscar for her performance. Now I'm not sure if I would really want to see this every year, for I do enjoy seeing clips from the nominated performances, but this is still a wonderful thrill to witness and honor Oscar winners from the past.

In the most shocking moment of the evening, Emma Stone received Best Actress over the front-runner, Lily Gladstone for her performance in "Poor Things", making her become a two-time winner. It is certainly disappointing for Gladstone but I still strongly believe that she was in the wrong category as her role in "Killers of the Flower Moon" was much more supporting than lead. And if Gladstone had been competing for Best Supporting Actress, it would have been even more of tight race against Da'Vine Joy Randolph who won the award for her emotional performance in '"The Holdovers" and gave one of the most touching speeches of the night. 

"Oppenheimer" had lead with the most nominations with thirteen and ended the evening with the most wins at seven which included Best Picture. Now this would not have been my pick for this award (that would have been "Killers of The Flower Moon") but it is a solid choice and certainly will not be looked back years later as an unfortunate Best Picture selection. Christopher Nolan finally received the Best Director award while his wife, Emma Thomas shared the win for producing the movie. Cillian Murphy won his first Oscar for Best Actor playing the real-life theoretical physicist while Robert Downey, Jr. received Best Supporting Actor for his performance as Lewis Strauss, a high-ranking member of the US Atomic Energy Commission.

One of the biggest hits of last year, "Barbie" managed to take home only one award for Best Original Song for Billie Eilish and her brother, Finneas O'Connell who also became two time winners this night. But another nominated song from "Barbie", "I'm Just Ken" was performed on the show with a very game, Ryan Gosling capturing the spirit of the film. In one of the most rousing performances of the nominated songs, Gosling sang and danced in an extravagant production number surrounded by co-stars, Simu Liu and Kingsley Ben-Adir, a large number of dancing men with even Slash, the guitarist of the band, Guns N Roses, making an appearance. Another moment on the program was when stand-up comedian, John Mulaney came out to present Best Sound. I was wondering why he was actually there (in fact, I don't he's even been in a movie) but Mulaney was hilarious with his bit on "Field of Dreams" that was a highlight of the show. Perhaps he was auditioning for a chance to host a future Oscars? If so, I say give him a shot.

There were a few disappointments; The traditional In Memoriam was poorly conceived this year with the segment feeling extremely rushed with some Oscar winners and nominees omitted while other performer's names were regulated to small print on a screen blocked by the dancers on stage. And when Al Pacino arrived on stage to announce Best Picture, he simply opened the envelope without mentioning the nominees or any acknowledgment of the producers involved in each movie. What makes this even worse is that Pacino has later stated that the producers of the show instructed him to just say the winner.

This year, the show began an hour earlier and ran about twenty-three minutes over the intended three hour runtime. Yet the ratings were up by 4% this year with 19 million viewers tuning in. This uptick of viewership might be the "Barbenheimer" effect but who can know for certain. During this ceremony, there was no slapping, no opening of the wrong envelopes, no overtly political speeches and no streaking (boooo, John Cena). What we had was a fairly standard, traditional Oscars telecast. Now this perfectly fine with me however as we closely approach the centennial of the Academy Awards, what will it take to keep viewers engaged with the Oscars? I do believe the concept of "Barbenheimer" with two original films in the marketplace at the same time is one answer but another bolder vision is what Best Adapted Screenplay winner, Cord Jefferson said in his acceptance speech which in essence is that studios might want to get back to investing less money on films and take a chance on a new filmmaker with a fresh, innovative script.

Here is the complete list of the winners of the 2024 Academy Awards:

Best Picture: "Oppenheimer"
Best Director: Christopher Nolan, "Oppenheimer"
Best Original Screenplay: Arthur Harari and Justine Triet, "Anatomy of a Fall"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Cord Jefferson, "American Fiction"
Best Actress in a Leading Role: Emma Stone, "Poor Things"
Best Actor in a Leading Role: Cillian Murphy, "Oppenheimer"
Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Da'Vine Joy Randolph, "The Holdovers"
Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Robert Downey Jr., "Oppenheimer"
Best Cinematography: Hoyte van Hoytema, "Oppenheimer"
Best Editing: Jennifer Lame, "Oppenheimer"
Best Production Design: James Price and Shona Heath, Production Design; Zsuzsa Mihalek, Set Decoration, "Poor Things"
Best International Feature: "The Zone of Interest" (United Kingdom)
Best Animated Feature: "The Boy and the Heron"
Best Animated Short: "War is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko"
Best Documentary Feature: "20 Days in Mariupol"
Best Documentary Short: "The Last Repair Shop"
Best Live Action Short: "The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar"
Best Original Score: Ludwig Göransson, "Oppenheimer"
Best Original Song: "What Was I Made For?" from "Barbie" Music and Lyric by Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell
Best Sound: Tarn Willers and Johnnie Burn, "The Zone of Interest"
Best Costume Design: Holly Waddington, "Poor Things"
Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Nadia Stacey, Mark Coulier and Josh Weston, "Poor Things"
Best Visual Effects: Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya, Masaki Takahashi and Tatsuji Nojima, "Godzilla Minus One"

Academy Honorary Awards: 

Angela Bassett
Mel Brooks
Carol Littleton

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award: Michelle Satter