The Oscars 2023 Awards: A Ceremony with Little out of the Script

The ceremony began with a lengthy introductory monologue from Jimmy Kimmel, whose performance as 'host' has divided opinions. Between jokes and jokes, he threw several taunts at the Academy and tried to make a mockery of certain film milestones and situations from previous evenings.

At times, his interaction with the public felt awkward, such as when he had a crossword with activist Malala Youstafzai. Also, he touched viewers when he dated Jenny, the donkey from “The Banshees of Inisherin.” However, he carried out the more than three and a half hours that the delivery of the Oscars lasted.

As expected, "Everything Everywhere All At Once" was the film that swept. Out of 11 nominations, he received seven awards. On the other hand, "All Quiet on the Western Front," a foreign film, was the second most-awarded film.

Between the presentations, Lady Gaga was surprised with such a drastic change in appearance compared to the red carpet. Rihanna opted for an elegant performance in which she proudly showed her pregnancy.

Landmarks of the Night

One of the historical moments of the night was that Michelle Yeoh is now the first Asian woman to win Best Actress, and Ke Huy Quan, the first Asian, to win Best Supporting Actor, both for their roles in "Everything Everywhere All At Once." Also, Brendan Fraser and Jamie Lee Curtis finally got the first statuette in their careers.

For Latin America, the only possibility that materialized as a success was the Best Animated Film award received by the Mexican Guillermo del Toro for "Pinocchio." “Argentina, 1985” lost to “All Quiet on the Western Front,” as the forecast indicated.

Featured Speeches

The night itself began with an emotional charge that was difficult to overcome with the development of the ceremony. At the delivery of the second prize, which was Best Supporting Actor, Ke Huy Quan moved the audience with his speech, and at times he was overwhelmed by nerves.

"My life started on a boat. I ended up in a refugee camp. They say that stories like this only happen in movies. I can't believe this is happening to me. This is the American dream!" Said the actor before concluding tearfully with: "Mom, I just won an Oscar."

On the other hand, Brendan Fraser touched the fibers of those attending the ceremony when he received his award for Best Actor. At times, tears tried to drown out his speech, but he gave it a strong start: "So this is what the multiverse looks like," before thanking the prominent people involved in "The Whale."

And to go from the emotional level to the vindicative one, Sarah Polley received the award for Best Adapted Screenplay. He thanked the academy for "not taking offense that the words' women' and 'speak' are placed close together." In contrast, Daniel Scheinert thanked his parents for "not squashing my creativity when I was wearing drag as a kid, which isn't threatening to anyone."

Read also: Review of "Ellas hablan": conversing to exist

The Surprises of the Night

There was little to surprise during the delivery. With divided opinions, many criticized the triumph in Best Documentary of "Navalny" instead of "Fire of love," but the war between Russia and Ukraine made it a favorite. On the other hand, the award given to Jamie Lee Curtis had more favoritism for Angela Bassett.

Many also assured that the Academy would recognize the work done by Steven Spielberg as Best Director for "The Fabelmans," but they opted for Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert of "Everything everywhere at the same time."

Although it did not have a controversial act such as an assault or a mistake in delivering an award, this Oscar ceremony had more genuine reactions than usual. To give an example, there was the moment in which Jonathan Majors and Michael B. Jordan recognized Angela Basset minutes after losing her nomination.

Another case was that of Samuel L. Jackson when he saw that "The Whale" won Best Makeup and Hairstyling, thus surpassing "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever." When reading the nominees, Salma Hayek showed her favoritism to "Argentina, 1985" and hid her disappointment when "All Quiet on the Front" won.

If there was a unanimous winner at the Oscars, it was the producer A24, with "The Whale" and "Everything Everywhere All At Once," won 9 statuettes.