God bless Brangelina, they showed up to last night’s awards with the biggest smiles they could muster to try and show the world that they were honored “just to be nominated” because, judging by their collective track records during this year’s awards show season, they knew they were going home empty-handed … which is exactly what ended up happening by night’s end. Sarah Jessica Parker looked like a DREAM in that beautiful dress … it was a little Carrie Bradshaw but she pulled it off wonderfully. Generally, I was quite pleased with what I saw on the red carpet … Sophia Loren didn’t scare the hell out of me until she showed up on the Oscar stage to present her award. In HD, she was not treated too kindly.

For me, tho, the big star of the night was Hugh Jackman. He really turned in an amazing performance and totally made the show. His opening number (and subsequent numbers, I must add) really showed that there is life yet in the old Academy Awards and they are worth watching:

I was also very impressed with the way the Academy chose to honor the acting nominees by having former winners in their categories come on stage to say nice things about them. I know I was touched by some of the nice things said about the actors who were nominated this year … I can only imagine what an honor it was for the nominees to hear those same things being said about them, to them. I hope they will continue to honor the nominees in this way in future shows … it was my second favorite thing about the show after Hugh’s job hosting.

And how about those winners! I think everyone was pretty surprised by that “shocker” of a winner. After the jump, check out some photos of some of the winners posing with their shiny new Oscars and read about what went down last night — oh, and watch Hugh Jackman’s amazing Oscar opening one more time — it’s deffo worth it …

Slumdog Millionaire ended up finishing its fairy tale run by taking home the award for Best Picture … but I think it was Sean Penn’s upset over Mickey Rourke for Best Actor that really surprised a lot of people (me included):

“Slumdog Millionaire” and its director, Danny Boyle, with their modern-day fairy tale about hope and hard times in the slums of Mumbai, pushed aside big-studio contenders to sweep top honors at the 81st annual Academy Awards on Sunday. “You dwarf even the sky,” Mr. Boyle said in a tribute to the people of Mumbai, who figured by the thousands in his film. He spoke while accepting the best director award, only minutes before “Slumdog Millionaire” was named best picture, helping give the evening a distinctly international tilt. Mr. Boyle, 52, has been known for putting an inspirational twist on often dark and sophisticated movies that have included “Trainspotting,” about heroin addiction, and “Sunshine,” about sacrifice on a mission to reignite the sun. The many prizes for “Slumdog Millionaire” — whose writer, Simon Beaufoy, was honored for best adapted screenplay, among others prizes for the film — completed the film’s steady march past competitors like “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” from Paramount Pictures and “Frost/Nixon” from Universal Pictures. The best picture award was a first for Fox Searchlight, which distributed “Slumdog Millionaire” in the United States. In the past, the studio appeared to narrowly miss the big prize with a series of comic best picture nominees that included “Little Miss Sunshine,” “Sideways” and “The Full Monty.” In what was widely perceived to be one of the year’s few tight races, Sean Penn was named best actor for his performance in the title role in “Milk.” “You Commie, homo-loving sons of guns,” said Mr. Penn, who edged aside Brad Pitt and Mickey Rourke, among others, for the best actor Oscar, his second. Best actress honors went to Kate Winslet for her performance in “The Reader” as a German woman who becomes romantically involved with a teenager and later conceals her role in the Holocaust. Hollywood has been taking on more and more of a global tilt with each passing year, but on this evening it was especially evident in the show and in the awards themselves. After Penélope Cruz won for best supporting actress for her role in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona,” she gave part of her speech in Spanish — she said backstage it was a dedication to the actors and people of Spain — and then suggested backstage that the movies had to grow beyond the bounds of strictly American stories. “We are all mixed together, and it has to be reflected in the cinema,” she said. The supporting actress award, the night’s first, was presented by no less than five past winners of the prize, Whoopi Goldberg, Tilda Swinton, Eva Marie Saint, Goldie Hawn and Anjelica Huston. The heavy show of star power was meant to make good on a promise that the broadcast would deliver entertainment value that reached far beyond that offered by the nominees. Heath Ledger, in a widely anticipated development, posthumously won the best supporting actor prize for his performance as the Joker in “The Dark Knight.” Mr. Ledger’s parents afterward said his Oscar statuette would be held in trust by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Many other awards also went to those favored in the preshow betting. Dustin Lance Black won the best original screenplay Oscar for “Milk,” about the gay-rights advocate Harvey Milk. Mr. Black, who is openly gay, said Mr. Milk’s story had given him hope that one day he might “fall in love and even get married.” Mr. Beaufoy, whose “Slumdog” screenplay was based on a novel by Vikas Swarup, rattled off a list of places he never expected to be — “the moon, the South Pole, the Miss World podium and here” — as he accepted that award for his work on a film that captured many of the movie industry’s pre-Oscar honors and was widely viewed as a preordained winner of the evening’s final award, for best picture. Also in the first wave of awards, “Wall-E” was named best animated film, though it had been denied the best picture nomination that its backers at the Walt Disney Company and its Pixar Animation unit had sought. Overall, Sunday evening’s Oscar show became a struggle between the ambitions of a producing team — headed by the veteran film producer Laurence Mark and the filmmaker Bill Condon — that aimed for an evening full of surprises and the apparent determination of 5,810 voters in the academy to bestow honors largely where they were expected to go. A much-discussed new format for the show opened with a loosey-goosey showbiz number and proceeded along very self-referential lines, with lots of inside jokes that drew substantial laughs from the crowd inside the Kodak Theater here. Hugh Jackman, the evening’s host, started with a very short comic monologue that poked fun at his own failure to get nominated for his performance in “Australia.” He then plunged into a comic song-and-dance number that poked fun at serious movies that were nominated for best picture, including “Milk” and “Frost/Nixon,” and less serious movies that were not, including “The Dark Knight.” An early appearance by the screenwriting winners helped give the evening a story line of its own: the awards categories were arranged in blocks intended to reflect the process of building a film, beginning, in the first segment, with a blinking cursor tapping out the beginning of a script on a blank screen. In another departure, the celebrity presenters were not identified in advance, partly in the hope that a larger-than-usual audience would tune in to see who actually showed up. Last year’s broadcast, with the smallest domestic audience in the ceremony’s history, had only about 32 million viewers in the United States.

It remains to be seen what the ratings for last night’s awards show are at the time of this posting but I really hope the show did well … I was very pleased with the overall production. While there will, undoubtedly, be naysayers complaining about this or that … I think it should be noted that the producers worked really hard to put on an entertaining show. I, for one (and the folks at our Oscar party, for that matter) really appreciated and enjoyed the show.

I was really touched by the Ledger family’s acceptance of Heath Ledger’s posthumous award for Best Supporting Actor … I was just really happy that they were able to get some happy closure (in some way, I think) after Heath’s untimely death. But, I think I liked Sean Penn’s acceptance speech best. His call for marriage equality resonated with me … he is a worthy man to portray the life’s work of Harvey Milk. While I was really anticipating Mickey Rourke to win, my heart sang that a film like Milk was honored by the Academy Awards this year.

Again, I really enjoyed this year’s show … I can’t believe it’s already over … but I think one more look at Hugh’s opening musical performance is deffo in order:

Poor Brangelina … they both looked so lost on the red carpet … wandering around like that … methinks the couple may have indulged a bit too much of the bubbly in the limo ride to the awards before they hit the red carpet. Tsk Tsk. I don’t even know what to say about Goldie Hawn … she looked frightfully bad. I mean, yeesh! Penélope Cruz looked beautiful as did Freida Pinto … for the most part, the folks on the red carpet looked stunning … well, except for Goldie. Again, I say, yeesh! After the jump, check out a bunch of photos from the BAFTA press room and find out who won what at last night’s award show …

“Slumdog Millionaire,” about a Mumbai quiz contestant accused of cheating, won seven British Academy Film Awards, or Baftas, including for best film and best director, boosting its frontrunner status at the Academy Awards this month. The movie was a multiple winner at last month’s Golden Globes, where it bagged the award for best drama, and its maker Danny Boyle won for best director. “Slumdog Millionaire” is now vying for 10 Academy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 22. Another 2009 Oscar nominee to take a Bafta home last night was Mickey Rourke. For his role as the comeback fighter in “The Wrestler,” he garnered the best-actor prize, extending a winning streak that began at the Venice Film Festival in September and continued at the Golden Globes last month. “It’s such a pleasure to be back here, out of the darkness,” said Rourke, wearing shades and a velvety black jacket, as strands of streaked hair fell across his face. True to form, he used a four-letter word to describe the damage he had done to his career for 15 years. In a backstage confession after winning, Rourke said he had taken a tranquillizer to lessen the stress. “I get really nervous in front of strangers,” he said. “By nature, I’m kind of shy.” At this month’s Oscars, Rourke faces competition from actors Sean Penn, Richard Jenkins, Frank Langella and Brad Pitt. Rourke said Penn was a close friend who had given him much career advice in recent months, and if Penn wins, “it’s okay with me.” Kate Winslet was the evening’s other big winner. Nominated twice in the best-actress category, she won for her role in “The Reader” as a woman who beds a young German boy and has him read out loud. Winslet, who wore a long black mermaid dress with straps around her neck, thanked her British parents, seated next to her, as she stepped up to take the award. The evening’s big losers were Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, beaten in the best-actor and best-actress categories. Yet outside the Royal Opera House, where the ceremony was held, their popularity on the red carpet was unmatched. As Jolie, in an asymmetrical black-and-yellow dress, walked up arm-in-arm with her moustachioed partner, pandemonium broke out. Autograph seekers shrieked for their attention, forcing the couple to part and sign the notebooks separately. Heath Ledger posthumously won the best supporting actor award for “The Dark Knight.” Penelope Cruz’s performance as the hysterically jealous ex- wife in Woody Allen’s “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” won her the best supporting-actress award. She told reporters backstage, after winning, that it was a “very fast experience” as Allen did three or four scenes each day. “He doesn’t like to rehearse,” said Cruz. “I think it’s a strategy to keep his actors very much in the present.”

Yeah, last night’s BAFTAs sounds pretty standard … I am thrilled that Heath Ledger won his Best Supporting Actor award again. Next up, the Oscars. Penélope Cruz’s win is PROOF that I have to see Vicki Christina Barcelona very soon … I’ve been meaning to for a few weeks now … I’ve just gotta see it. It is very lovely to see Kylie Minogue lookin’ so hawt at the BAFTAs … the whole affair sounds like it was a great time for everyone — except for Brangelina. OY! I am starting to feel bad for them … having to show up at the Academy Awards in a couple of weeks to feign happiness for the cameras when they know they are going to lose again — does not sound fun to me. Ah well, they’ve got a lot of kids to keep them occupied. Congrats to all the winners — click HERE for a full list of this year’s BAFTA winners.

[Photo credit: Wireimage; Source]

There were quite a few fashion disasters on the red carpet last night and I’m convinced that many of the folks who made their way down the red carpet were totally loaded. I watched NBC’s red carpet coverage and was aghast at how horrible the whole thing was. Not only did Nancy O’Dell look like she had a mop afixed to her head but she and her interviewer cohorts were simply HORRENDOUS as they interviewed the celebs:

If you watched the show, you know exactly what I’m talking about. But, once the show got underway and the awards started to get handed out, things leveled off and got sorta interesting. In the end, the Hollywood Foreign Press saw fit to bestow HEAPS of awards on Slumdog Millionaire (in the Film categories) and John Adams (in the Television categories). Here are a few pics from the press room and a rundown of what went down last night:

The movie “Slumdog Millionaire” emerged as the big winner at the 66th Golden Globes late Sunday, scooping four awards to underline its credentials ahead of next month’s Oscars. Late Australian actor Heath Ledger earned a posthumous Golden Globe for his performance in Batman blockbuster “The Dark Knight” while Kate Winslet won two awards for best drama actress and supporting actress. But, ironically, on a star-studded night in Beverly Hills, it was “Slumdog Millionaire” the rags-to-riches love story about an orphan who fights his way out of Mumbai slums on an Indian television game show. The film — featuring a cast of virtual unknowns — won best drama and also picked up honors for director Danny Boyle, as well as honors for best screenplay and best music. Sally Hawkins also won the best musical/comedy actress award for her performance in the light-hearted Mike Leigh film “Happy-Go-Lucky.” The 32-year-old actress beat favorite Meryl Streep (”Mamma Mia!”), Frances McDormand (”Burn After Reading) and fellow Britons Rebecca Hall (”Vicky Cristina Barcelona”) and Emma Thompson (”Last Chance Harvey”). After a disastrous event last year that was reduced to a celebrity-free zone by the entertainment industry’s writers strike, this year’s Globes red carpet read like a who’s who of the movie industry’s A-list. Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Angelina Jolie, Leonardo DiCaprio were just a handful of the A-listers in attendance at the Beverly Hilton. Unlike the Oscars, the Golden Globes — which are chosen by around 80 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association — have separate best picture awards for dramas and musicals. In the past four years the Globes have failed to accurately predict the best picture winner at the Academy Awards but overall, some 67 percent of Oscars best picture winners had first received a Golden Globe. As such the Globes are seen as an important staging post ahead of the Academy Awards, offering clues to which films will be successful at the Oscars, which take place at Hollywood’s Kodak Theater on February 22. The acting awards on Sunday saw Australian heart-throb Ledger honored as expected for his portrayal of arch-villain the Joker in “The Dark Knight.” Director Christopher Nolan accepted Ledger’s award, saying the actor’s death at the age of 28 had “ripped a hole” in the future of cinema. “All of us who worked with Heath on ‘The Dark Knight’ accept this with an awful mixture of sadness but incredible pride,” Nolan said. “For any of us lucky enough to work with him, I think for any of us lucky enough to enjoy his performances, he will be eternally missed, but he will never be forgotten,” he added. The victory cements Ledger’s status as the odds-on favorite to win a best supporting actor Oscar at next month’s Oscars. The other big winner in the acting categories was Winslet, who scooped best actress in a drama for her performance in “Revolutionary Road” and best supporting actress for “The Reader.” Winslet, 33, who had been overlooked after five previous nominations, was overcome following her double win, apologizing to her rival nominees and thanking “Revolutionary Road” co-star DiCaprio. “I’m so sorry, Meryl (Streep), Anne (Hathaway), Kristin (Scott-Thomas), the other one… Angelina (Jolie)!,” Winslet gasped. “Thank you so much… thank you soooo much!,” before adding to longtime friend and fellow “Titanic” star DiCaprio: “I love you with all my heart, I really do!” It was only the third time in Golden Globes history that an actor or actress had been honored with two awards on the same night. In the men’s acting categories there was an emotional victory for Mickey Rourke, who won best actor in a drama for his heart-wrenching portrayal of a washed-up prizefighter in “The Wrestler.” “This has been a very long road back for me,” said Rourke, whose career nose-dived through much of the 1990s after an ill-advised spell as a professional boxer. Rourke — who famously has a pet chihuahua — also paid tribute to canine friends who had comforted him over the years. “I’d like to thank all of my dogs, the ones that are here and the ones that aren’t here anymore because sometimes when a man is alone, that’s all you’ve got is your dog, and they meant the world to me,” Rourke said. Rock star Bruce Springsteen won for best original song for his theme song for “The Wrestler.” But it was a disappointing evening though for Brad Pitt and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” which had started the night with five nods alongside “Frost/Nixon” and “Doubt”. All three films came away empty-handed.

Poor Brangelina … they walked away from the Golden Globes with nothing but a free meal and prolly a very nice giftbag — that’s it! And, to add insult to injury, Angelina got called “the other one” by Kate Winslet (which sounded an awful lot like when John McCain referred to Barack Obama as “that one” during one of the Presidential Debates). Tsk tsk. Neither The Curious Case of Benjamin Button nor Changeling have done very well at winning awards thus far, have they? HMMM. I am SO thrilled that Slumdog Millionaire cleaned up last night … truly an underdog film that is worthy of the praise and accolades it continues to win. If you’ve not see the movie yet, I urge you to do so before the Academy Awards are held next month … you don’t want to miss out. I was happy, too, that Heath Ledger won the award for Best Supporting Actor for his work in The Dark Knight. I really hope he is on track for an Oscar, he really deserves the win. Props to Kate Winslet for being the first person to ever win both Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress awards in the same year (I understand that has never happened before). I’ve only heard amazing things about The Reader and Vicki Christina Barcelona … so I am now on a mission to see those films (as well as The Wrestler, which I’ve been dying to see anyways) as soon as I can. I really enjoyed this year’s Golden Globe Awards mostly because so many small, relatively unknown films did so well. It gets kinda boring when the usual suspects (ie. big, blockbuster A-list celeb movies) win all the awards … it’s nice to see the talented little guys get their time in the sun. Next up, Oscar noms which come out next week. How many of last night’s winners do you think will get tapped for Academy Award nominations? Also, what did you think of last night’s show … good, bad, you’re over it already?

[Photo credit: Wireimage; Source]