Analysis: ‘Everything Everywhere’ shines at an emotional Oscars

CNN
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“Everything Everything All At Own” was all over the Oscars, marking a resurgence for theatrical releases in a year in which Netflix — as the dominant streaming option — still makes its presence felt.
If the Academy wanted a drama-free awards show after last year’s incident involving Will Smith and Chris Rock, the group can breathe a sigh of relief not having to call on the services of a crisis-public-relations team that It retained .
What they got instead was an often heartfelt and moving ceremony, which featured actor Riz Ahmed presenting CNN films “Navalni,” “It’s been an emotional year.”
That it was. “Everything Ever” kicked off its big night by winning supporting honors for Jamie Lee Curtis and Key Huey Quan, both of whom set a very high bar for those who followed their tearful acceptance speeches — Quan taking his win. Said to be the “American Dream”. And Curtis repeated “I just won an Oscar” to everyone, including her late parents, Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis, who were once nominees.
The whimsical science-fiction concept won seven awards, including writing and directing for the team of Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (known as “Daniels”). That’s the most hardware for any film since “Gravity” tied the total in 2009, the last time it had more than a best picture winner with “Slumdog Millionaire” 14 years ago.
Without rivaling the year’s major blockbusters, “Everything Everywhere” was a surprise theatrical hit, grossing more than $100 million worldwide, a record for its independent distributor, A24.
More tears were shed when Brandon Fraser was awarded for his work on “The Whale” (as was the film’s makeup team), while “Everything Everywhere’s” Michelle Yeoh was awarded an Asian woman from another trailblazer, Halle Berry. received the history-making lead actress statuette as , kissing his award for good measure.
Becoming the first black woman to win two Oscars, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” costume designer Ruth E. Carter looked to the sky and asked the late Chadwick Boseman to take care of his mother, who had recently died at the age of 101.
Lady Gaga’s performance of “Hold My Hand” from “Top Gun: Maverick” also featured a tribute to the late Tony Scott, who directed the original in an evening that put star-driven musical performances front and center. maximized its entertainment aspects.
After literally parachuting into the ceremony, host Jimmy Kimmel delivered an opening monologue that poked fun at the event, last year’s tumultuous moments and the high-profile attendees (in the case of Tom Cruise and James Cameron ) who weren’t, seemed pointlessly zealous.
Still, Kimmel also delivered the night’s most critical zinger after the award for editing, saying, “Editors can turn 44,000 hours of violent riot footage into a respectable sightseeing tour of the Capitol,” Fox News said. Host Tucker Carlson’s controversial appearance was cited. From footage made exclusively available to him by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
While the awards come as Hollywood looks to boost its theatrical business, Netflix capitalized on its investment in movies with seven awards. Four of those — international feature, production design, musical score and cinematography — went to the German remake of “All Quiet on the Western Front,” as well as best animated film for stop-motion for “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio,” “RRR’s Best song for.” the cheerful “Natu Natu” and the documentary short “The Elephant Whisperers”.
The Oscars also featured allowances being made for commercial pressure, amounting to promotional plugs aired for Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” and Warner Bros.’ celebration.’ Blurring the line between history, industry and advertising for the show. (CNN is a unit of Warner Bros. Discovery.)
Although the Academy made the crowd-pleasing decision to present all 23 categories in their entirety, it helped Flamaux’s efforts to streamline the more than 3-and-a-half-hour ceremony, telling Kimmel in closing, “We’re now on ‘Good Morning America,’ progress.”
In pictures: 2023 Academy Awards
The “awards season” building to this year’s 95th Oscars has given every indication “everything everything all at once” will emerge with the most coveted prize, known as the Independent Spirit Awards and awards representing actors, directors, writers, producers. Recognized by guilds. and editors, all parts of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, who vote on the awards.
This year’s Oscars come as the entertainment industry remains in a state of flux, trying to recapture the theatrical audiences lost during the pandemic while still building streaming platforms that keep subscribers at home with everyone. Thrives in terms of additions, but those struggling to make gains.
The streaming titles, “CODA” and “Nomadland,” won best picture the last two cycles, though last year’s results were somewhat overshadowed by Smith walking onstage to slap the rock. “Parasite,” a South Korean thriller, became the first non-English-language film to win best picture just before the pandemic took hold.
Major studios are hoping to build on the box-office returns produced by this year’s two best-picture nominees, the long-delayed sequels “Top Gun: Maverick” and “Avatar: The Way Off.” Going into a strong summer of releases. Water,” each of whose global earnings individually fell short of the other eight contenders combined.
One last resort: When it comes to awards, Hollywood’s gratitude for blockbusters only goes so far. “Avatar” and “Top Gun” won one Oscar each Sunday night for visual effects and sound, respectively.