Underdogs to Milliionaire Slumdogs, 2009 Oscars Go to the Dogs

Posted on February 23, 2009
Filed Under East meets West, Guest Columnist | 2 Comments

by Susan L. Stackpole

Slumdog Millionaire triumphs at the Oscars, taking home a total of eight golden statuettes. Slumdog¸ the little picture that could, seems to be continuing the theme of President Barack Obama’s campaign, “Yes We Can!”. Winner after winner expressed long-held dreams of winning, though never believing those dreams would ever be realized. Even Kate Winslet said, “I’d be lying if I haven’t made a version of this speech before. I think I was probably 8 years old and staring into the bathroom mirror and this (Oscar) would be a shampoo bottle. But it’s not a shampoo bottle now.” 2009 has quickly become the year of impossible dreams come true.

Penelope Cruz set the tone for the Oscars accepting the first award for Best Supporting Actress in Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Cruz iterated that winning was a dream that barely seemed possible to her as a small child. The theme continued when Simon Beaufoy accepted Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay) for Slumdog Millionaire, revealing, “There are certain places in the universe you never imagine standing. For me, it’s the moon, the South Pole, the Miss World podium and here.”

Inspiration and Oscar dreams seem to have begun early for almost all the winners, many crediting the people who have supported them along the way. Andrew Stanton accepted the award for Best Animated Feature Film for Wall-E, sharing, “I’d be remiss if I did not thank my high school drama teacher Phil Perry for 28 years ago casting me as Barnaby in Hello, Dolly!. Creative seeds are sown in the oddest of places so, uh, thank you so much to the Academy for this.” The theme of underdog to Oscar winner continued as James Marsh accepted the award for Best Documentary Feature for Man on Wire. Marsh thanked his wife and daughters, declaring, “This is for you, girls. Nothing is impossible.”

Fabulous music ensembles dazzled the audience, including performances by Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Beyoncé Knowles, Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Amanda Seyfried. Dominic Cooper, Queen Latifah, and more. Comic levity added lovely lighthearted moments from presenters Jennifer Aniston, Jack Black, Steve Martin, and Tina Faye. Black took a shot at Dreamworks, stating once a year he does a Dreamworks picture so he can invest the money in Pixar. The height of comic brevity may have come from Natalie Portman played it straight while Ben Stiller received many laughs from the audience mimicking Joaquin Phoenix’s recent reclusive appearance on The David Letterman Show.Perhaps the most poignant moment in the evening was when Health Ledger won a posthumous Oscar win for Best Supporting Actor in The Dark Night. The emotion in the room was palpable when Ledger’s parents and sister took the stage to deliver the acceptance speech. Kim Ledger summed it up best when he said, “This award tonight would’ve humbly validated Heath’s quiet determination to be truly accepted by you all here, his peers, within an industry he so loved. Thank you.” The emotion continued during a sobering tribute to stars who passed in 2008 as Queen Latifah sang a moving rendition of “I’ll Be Seeing You” nostalgic images flashed on screen.

More emotional moments came as each of the five actresses and actors nominated for best actress and best actor were introduced by a previous winner in their category. An emotional Kate Winslet said, “You just don’t think that these dreams that seem so silly and so impossible could ever really come true,” “Anything is possible”, and “dreams come true” seem to be the dominant themes running through the 2009 Oscar Awards. In a year where the world witnessed the first election of an African-American President, it has also seen the first posthumous win of an actor for best actor in a film and also the first Indian to win an award for sound mixing, among other firsts. It seems that dreaming big pays off. Time to dust off those dreams collecting dust in your brain and get busy. From the dogs to the Oscars, Cheers to the 2009 Academy Award Nominees and Winners!

 



Comments

2 Responses to “Underdogs to Milliionaire Slumdogs, 2009 Oscars Go to the Dogs”

  1. kamaljain on February 25th, 2009 12:38 pm

    OSCCAR AWARDS to SLUMDOGMILLIONAIRE IS great event and history made.But it appears that it is the poverty and expliotiation clubbed with slum life and deprived society, which sells.I wish Producers and Directors pick up other side of the coin of Indian society which lies in barron lands and remote corners.

  2. Ragini on February 26th, 2009 5:34 pm

    Very well said but miseries i suppose is attractive to the world.
    Thanks for the comment

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