Oscars 2006

I talked about the Oscars last year, so I suppose I should do so this year, right? As usual, I had to leave the broadcast early so that I could get to work. I couldn't play as close attention once I arrived at work and kept tabs on the broadcast through the Internet, but the show still seemed to go on forever.

How did host Ellen DeGeneres do? The best thing that can be said is that she wasn't controversial, unlike this past host. Last year's host, Jon Stewart, played to the TV viewer more than the audience; this year, DeGeneres did the opposite. She changed clothes several times, but never put on a skirt or dress.

The Departed was honored with four statuettes - including Picture - the most for any film this year. Martin Scorsese won for Director, and many believe his award was long overdue.

The Academy voted to give Michael Moore a statuette a few years back, so I guess they felt obligated to give one to Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth. He became the first vice president in history to narrate an Oscar-winning film. I wonder if Gore won by a lot of votes, or if the other nominated films should ask for a recount. Wait a minute, this is California, not Florida...

We had another year of winners getting the prize for playing real-life people. Forest Whitaker won for playing Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland, and Helen Mirren grabbed a golden guy for portraying Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen.

The only Oscar-winning film I've watched is Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. It won for Visual Effects.

Here's the complete list of winners.