Joke's on us
"The gods too are fond of a joke."
- Aristotle
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February 29, 2008
February 27, 2008
Bob Uecker Day
I didn't get a lot of awards as a player. But they did have a Bob Uecker Day Off for me once in Philly.
- Bob Uecker
February 26, 2008
It's A Wonderful Oscar ...
Every time an Oscar is given out, an agent gets his wings.
- Kathy Bates
February 25, 2008
There Will Be Blood
"My favorite movie of the year was the one about the heartless con man who's obsessed with finding oil. Its called No End In Sight."
- Bill Maher
The Oscar After-Glow ...
"That was fantastic. I loved it. That was funny and smart. Isn't it great when it's all over?"
- Helen Mirren to Jon Stewart
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"Getting a text from Bono is the biggest thing that can happen to an Irishman."
- Glen Hansard on congratulations from Bono
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"I'm totally overwhelmed with joy and then sparkles and fireworks and everything which goes like bam, bam, bam!"
- Marion Cotillard
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"I'm feeling tremendously relieved that I don't have to go home and explain to all my friends and family about why it didn't happen. Great joy, actually. It's a lovely marker."
- Daniel Day-Lewis, not going home empty-handed
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''I'm an absolute dummy with a computer...so I can't speak to what's happening today so much. But I do miss the community that we had then. People seemed to work together more in those days. They are more separate these days.... I think you have the tools now that you can do anything. Unfortunately, very often you do everything. Discipline in art is also very important. The things you don't say are sometimes as important as what you do say. And if you do too much, you destroy the point you are trying to make.''
- Robert Boyle
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''He's elderly and unhappy, probably not well.''
- Ethan Coen when asked about Roderick Jaynes
February 24, 2008
BEST MOTION PICTURE OF THE YEAR
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These two gentlemen [to Joel and Ethan Coen], I can't think of anybody I would rather be standing here with than the two of you. Thank you so much for this.
Everybody at Vantage and Miramax who financed the movie together. The entire team at Miramax who did a brilliant, brilliant job selling it. Thank you to all of them.
I want to thank Mark Roybal, It's a pleasure to work with him every day.
I want to thank my friend, Sydney Pollack, who taught me that with the responsibility -- with the opportunity to make movies comes the responsibility of making them good. This for him.
- Scott Rudin, Joel Coen and Ethan Coen on accepting the Oscar for "No Country for Old Men"
ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING
Ethan Coen:
I don't have a lot to add to what I said earlier. Thank you.
Joel Coen:
Ethan and I have been making stories with movie cameras since we were kids. In the late '60s when Ethan was 11 or 12, he got a suit and a briefcase and we went to the Minneapolis International Airport with a Super 8 camera and made a movie about shuttle diplomacy called "Henry Kissinger, Man on the Go." And honestly, what we do now doesn't feel that much different from what we were doing then. There are too many people to thank for this. We're really thrilled to have received it, and we're very thankful to all of you out there for letting us continue to play in our corner of the sandbox, so thank you very much.
- Joel and Ethan Coen on accepting the Oscar for "No Country for Old Men"
PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
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My deepest thanks to the members of the Academy for whacking me with the handsomest bludgeon in town. I'm looking at this gorgeous thing you've given me and I'm thinking back to the first devilish whisper of an idea that came to him and everything since and it seems to me that this sprang like a golden sapling out of the mad, beautiful head of Paul Thomas Anderson.
I wish my son and my partner HW Plainview were up here with me, the mighty Dillon Freasier. So many people to thank. One amongst them would be Mrs. Plainview down there, the enchantingly optimistic, open-minded and beautiful Rebecca Miller.
I hope that all those to whom I owe and to whom I feel the deepest gratitude will forgive me if I say just simply, "Thank you, Paul."
I've been thinking a lot about fathers and sons in the course of this, and I'd like to accept this in the memory of my grandfather, Michael Balcon, my father, Cecil Day-Lewis, and my three fine boys, Gabriel, Ronan and Cashel. Thank you very much indeed. Thank you.
- Daniel Day-Lewis on receiving the Oscar for "There Will Be Blood"
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
What is happening? This is for the writers, and I want to thank all the writers. I especially want to thank my fellow nominees because I worship you guys and I'm learning from you every day, so thank you very much. I want to thank the Academy, I want to thank Fox Searchlight, Mr. Mudd, Mandate, Dan Dubiecki. I want to thank our incredible cast including the superhuman Ellen Page. I want to thank Jason Reitman, who I consider a member of my family, and I'm in awe of his talent as a filmmaker. I want to thank Sarah Self. I want to thank Mason Novick who knew I could do this before I did. And most of all, I want to thank my family for loving me exactly the way I am.
- Diablo Cody on receiving the Oscar for "Juno"
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
Cynthia Wade:
Thank you. It was Lieutenant Laurel Hester's dying wish that her fight for, against discrimination would make a difference for all the same sex couples across the country that face discrimination every day. Discrimination that I don't face as a married woman. Sheila Nevins and HBO for making this film have a broadcast and a home on Cinemax later this year. To my husband Matthew Syrett, who took care of our children and held down a full-time job so that we could make this film. And to our incredible team in New York, thank you so much.
Vanessa Roth:
And to all our supporters and families who believe that even a 38-minute movie could change minds and lives and our children who remind us about what's really important. And to Stacie, who's here tonight, who's really auto mechanic by day but hero in life who always did what was right. And she's here tonight. So thank you so much.
Cynthia Wade:
Thank you.
- Vanessa Roth and Cynthia Wade on accepting the Oscar for "Freeheld"
ACHIEVMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY
John Toll won this a number of years ago said that the production designer on his movie, that 50% of it belonged to him. Well, 80% belongs to Jack Fisk and his production crew. And David Crank and Dylan Tichenor. But it really, we all know it really, really belongs to Paul. That this is his imagination and his energy and his extraordinary vision. It sort of enabled us to create the world of "There Will Be Blood." Thank you, Paul. We're really all standing on the shoulders, we know this, of Daniel Day-Lewis, who isn't here right now, but thank you all so much. Thank you. And Helen. Thank you so much.
- Robert Elswit on receiving the Oscar for "There Will Be Blood"
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Alex Gibney:
Wow. Thank you very much, Academy. Here's to all doc filmmakers. And, truth is, I think my dear wife Anne was kind of hoping I'd make a romantic comedy, but honestly, after Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, extraordinary rendition that simply wasn't possible. This is dedicated to two people who are no longer with us, Dilawar, the young Afghan taxi driver, and my father, a Navy interrogator who urged me to make this film because of his fury about what was being done to the rule of law. Let's hope we can turn this country around, move away from the dark side and back to the light. Thank you very much.
- Alex Gibney and Eva Orner on receiving the Oscar for "Taxi to the Dark Side"
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM OF THE YEAR
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- Stefan Ruzowitzky on receiving the Oscar for "The Counterfeiters"
ACHIEVEMENT IN FILM EDITING
Forty-eight years ago, my father was privileged enough to receive an Oscar, and I'm deeply, deeply honored that you put me in his company tonight. To the brilliant Paul Greengrass, to Frank Marshall, thank you, thank you, thank you. To everybody in post-production, led by my good friend and colleague, Mark Fitzgerald, each and every one of you share in this award with me. To Universal Pictures, to the Academy, my deepest, deepest thanks. To the amazing Matt Damon, thank you. And to my family, especially Anne, Anno, Ava and Fiona. My kids, I love you. Thank you so, so much.
- Christopher Rouse on receiving his Oscar for "The Bourne Ultimatum"
PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
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- Marion Cotillard on receiving her Oscar for "La Vie en Rose"
ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC WRITTEN FOR MOTION PICTURES (ORIGINAL SONG)
Glen Hansard:
Thanks! This is amazing. What are we doing here? This is mad. We made this film two years ago. We shot on two Handycams. It took us three weeks to make. We made it for a hundred grand. We never thought we would come into a room like this and be in front of you people. It's been an amazing thing. Thanks for taking this film seriously, all of you. It means a lot to us. Thanks to the Academy, thanks to all the people who've helped us, they know who they are, we don't need to say them. This is amazing. Make art. Make art. Thanks.
Marketa Irglova:
Hi everyone. I just want to thank you so much. This is such a big deal, not only for us, but for all other independent musicians and artists that spend most of their time struggling, and this, the fact that we're standing here tonight, the fact that we're able to hold this, it's just to prove no matter how far out your dreams are, it's possible. And, you know, fair play to those who dare to dream and don't give up. And this song was written from a perspective of hope, and hope at the end of the day connects us all, no matter how different we are. And so thank you so much, who helped us along way. Thank you.
- Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova on receiving the Oscar for "Falling Slowly"
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Joel Coen:
Thank you very much for this. Thank you, Scott Rudin for bringing us this novel and giving us the opportunity to make the movie. I think whatever success we've had in this area has been entirely attributable to how selective we are. We've only adapted Homer and Cormac McCarthy, so thank you.
Ethan Coen:
We, uh and thank you very much.
- Joel Coen and Ethan Coen on receiving the Oscar for "No Country for Old Men"
PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
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And I'm giving this to him because there's no way I would be in America at all ever on a plane, if it wasn't for him. So, Brian Swardstrom, I'm giving this to you. And Tony Gilroy walks on water, it's entirely official as far as I'm concerned, and Jen Fox and Steve Samuels, our incredible producers.
And Sydney Pollack, and George Clooney, you know, the seriousness and the dedication to your art, seeing you climb into that rubber bat suit from "Batman & Robin," the one with the nipples, every morning under your costume, on the set, off the set, hanging upside-down at lunch, you rock, man.
- Tilda Swinton on receiving the Oscar for "Michael Clayton"
ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND MIXING
Scott Millan:
Would it be all right to kiss Halle Berry now? We'd like to thank the Academy, certainly, Per and Karen, just thank you, principally everybody, Frank Marshall, Pat Crowley. Our director, Paul Greengrass. Chris Rouse, our picture editor. Everybody at Universal, Per and Karen, of course. Everybody at Todd AO, our team there.
And I'd like to add one thing, kind of a somber note, this last week we lost a colleague and a friend, who was also a member of the Board of Governors here at the Academy, his name is Paul Huntsman. I would like to dedicate this to Paul. So, thank you very much.
David Parker:
Thanks to everyone who worked on sound for the film and thanks to the Academy. Thank you very much.
- Scott Millan, David Parker and Kirk Francis on receiving the Oscar for "The Bourne Ultimatum"
ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND EDITING
Karen Baker Landers:
Oh my God, I went blank. It's such an honor to be here. I want to thank, we want to thank the Academy. We want to thank Universal Studios.
Per Hallberg:
And the pleasure of doing something like this with filmmakers like Paul, and I'm blanking out, too.
Karen Baker Landers:
Frank Marshall
Per Hallberg:
Pat Crowley
Karen Baker Landers:
Pat Crowley
Per Hallberg:
Chris Rouse
Karen Baker Landers:
Chris Rouse. Paul Greengrass.
Per Hallberg:
You said that already.
Karen Baker Landers:
Mixers. Scott Millan, David Parker. We planned this and we blew it.
Per Hallberg:
And, anyway, most of all, we want to thank the crew that works with us every day.
Karen Baker Landers:
Yes, gosh, Chris Assells, Dan Hegeman, I know, I know, music. Thank you so much.
Per Hallberg:
Thank you, thank you.
- Karen Baker Landers and Per Hallberg on receiving the Oscar for "The Bourne Ultimatum"
PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
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Thank you for really proving my work. I want to share this with the cast, with the great Tommy Lee Jones, with the great Josh Brolin, with the great Kelly MacDonald. And I want to dedicate this to my mother, and I have to say this in Spanish, and I'm sorry...
[Speaking in Spanish]
Thank you very much!
- Javier Bardem on receiving the Oscar for "No Country for Old Men"
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
Thank you, thank you very much. I don't really speak English. I'm very bad student. I can say I'm very happy and I want to thank my producer Fabrice Goldstein and Antoine Rein and my wife Gaby and my son Sebastien. And merci beaucoups& [speaking French] &Merci au revoir.
- Phillippe Pollet-Villard on receiving the Oscar for "The Mozart of Pickpockets"
CATEGORY: ACHIEVEMENT IN ART DIRECTION
Dante Ferretti:
Thank you to the Academy. And thank you to Tim Burton, fantastic director. Thank you to Richard Zanuck. Thank you to everybody, thank you to my team, all the department, everyone. Thank you, Johnny. And I'm sorry, i forgot something, but I'm very -- thank you anyway.
Francesca Lo Schiavo:
Just i would like to say, this time, thank you, thank you to the Academy. I'm so happy, so grateful. And thank you to Tim Burton. Great director. Johnny Depp and all the actors, Everybody, for this fantastic movie.
- Dante Ferretti and Francesca Lo Schiavo on receiving the Oscar for "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street"
BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Suzie Templeton:
This is for everyone. This for our fantastic crew and this for everybody who worked so passionately on our film to make our dream come true.
Hugh Welchman:
Yeah, no this really is a fairy tale ending for us, but hopefully it's only the beginning for Peter and this amazing award, and it will help keep Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf" in the hearts and minds of children all over the world. So, the Academy, thank you so much. it's been amazing.
- Suzie Templeton and Hugh Welchman on receiving the Oscar for "Peter and the Wolf"
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM OF THE YEAR
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"What if movies didn't exist?"
"I'd have to invent them." And it went on like this until we were sick of each other and i only realized just recently that he gave me the perfect training for the movie business.
So, I want to thank my wife Liz, who I love, my sons, all the dreamers at Pixar and Disney, John Lasseter, Steve Jobs, Ed Catmull. Wrap it up. I hate that thing. Producer Brad Lewis, Jan Pinkava, and Dick Cook, and all the dreamers who are supporting a rat who dreams. Thanks.
- Brad Bird on receiving the Oscar for Ratatouille
ACHIEVEMENT IN MAKEUP
Didier Lavergne:
Thank you very much. Thank you to the Academy and what can I say? I'm really happy and proud to be here with you. Bye.
Jan Archibald:
Thank you to the academy for this huge honor. I'm overwhelmed. It's just amazing. I have a lot of people to thank. My assistants, particularly, my Czech crew that worked with us in Prague and in Paris, they were amazing. They worked very hard and I owe a lot to them. And just, it's so exciting to be here. I don't know what to say. Thank you.
- Didier Lavergne and Jan Archibald on receiving the Oscar for La Vie en Rose
ACHIEVEMENT IN VISUAL EFFECTS
Michael Fink:
We just want to say "Thank you!" We just brought a small quote from Walt Disney, who said "It's kind of fun to do the impossible."
And along with that, I want to extend some thanks to Phil Pullman, Chris Weitz, Susan MacLeod, our producers, our incredible crew from all over the world. And to especially to our families and to my wife, Melissa, my handsome son Alex.
Bill Westenhofer:
And to my family, Rhythm & Hues, Sue Rose out there watching this, Thank you.
Ben Morris:
Thank you to my family and my wonderful crew at Framestore CFC. Trevor Wood:
A great crew and a great family. Thank you very much indeed.
Ben Morris:
Thank you!
- Michael Fink, Bill Westenhofer, Ben Morris and Trevor Wood on receiving the Oscar for The Golden Compass
ACHIEVEMENT IN COSTUME DESIGN
"Wow. Thank you to the Academy. Thank you to Working Title and Universal. To Shekhar and Cate. And a huge thank you to my brilliant team and to my family."
- Alexandra Bryne, on receiving the Oscar for Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Red carpet awe ..
"I never even thought I'd say an Italian name, let alone wear a dress by an Italian designer"
- 13 year old Saoirse Ronan
Blogging the good times
"Holy crap?!? Is that Gary Busey giving Jennifer Garner a hickey?!? Garner's reaction to Seacrest is priceless. "You're not going to ask me about getting kissed on the neck on the red carpet by this man?" Please please PLEASE show us the video footage when Busey gets tasered."
- Peter Hartlaub's Red Carpet Blog, who "Like most straight males, I love love love the red carpet shows that precede the Academy Awards."
Gushing praise ...
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- Jason Bateman from the red carpet, talking about George Clooney's hair
The Spirited Awards
"Greetings indie weirdos. Here come the first motherf-----s to present the first motherf-----g award."
- Rainn Wilson, opening the 2008 Indie Spirit Awards [winners are listed here]
Just click your heels three times ...
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"They're using me to publicize their stupid shoes and NOBODY ASKED ME. I would never consent to a lame publicity stunt at a time when I already want to hide."
- Diablo Cody, on the difference between taking free shoes before they were worth a million dollars but not when they are very expensive free shoes
February 23, 2008
Oscar's Fifth Man
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- Juno's Jason Reitman on his Oscar nom for best director
Not feeling the Juno love at home in Canada ...
"It's a Canadian director, Canadian stars, Canadian cast, Canadian crew, shot in Canada - how are we not eligible for a Genie when David Cronenberg's film about Russians living in London shot in England with a British crew and British cast is eligible?"
- Jason Reitman on being ineligible for a Canadian Genie Award
"I worry about Meryl ..."
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- Tim Gunn on his fashion hopes for Meryl Streep
They're fun, but they don't really matter ...
"The commercial fate of serious movies is now, to a disturbing extent, dependent on the Academy Awards. In the old days it was more often the opposite: the academy would belatedly gild the lily of commercial success with a shiny finish of ersatz class. This vulgarity was the saving grace of the Oscars. It was not necessary for film lovers to take them seriously or for media outlets to cover them like presidential campaigns, with horse-race reporting, sober analysis and war room spin doctoring. A bit of perspective is needed. The wonderful thing about the Academy Awards is that they are fundamentally trivial. To pretend otherwise is to trivialize movies."