I didn't realize that the pre-show was an E!-length marathon, so I was pissed when the two Best Song nominees that I had true interest in (Diane "Susan Lucci" Warren's song and the song from "Eurovision," which would've been a pick-me-up for the main Oscarcast) didn't air in the 7 p.m. hour. I'm even guessing they aired in the half-hour in Chicago where WLS interrupted the pre-show for a newscast.
Mark Jeffries [email protected] On Mon, Apr 26, 2021 at 11:05 AM Melissa P <[email protected]> wrote: > I agree with just about everything Dave said. > > I tuned in at 8 pm ET, the start of the show, only to discover that the > recordings of the 5 nominated songs were broadcast before 8 pm. If I want > to see that footage, I guess I'll have to search for it online. > > That was what I found most annoying. > > The endless, bad, humorless speeches are a close second. Why were > the winners and others allowed to talk so long? > > Everyone on camera was just plain dull. > > Questlove was not the right person for the job. > > Not only did the In Memoriam move too fast, the speed changed throughout > the piece (Why? Are some more worthy than others of being remembered?), > and the background song, whatever it was, was a poor choice. > > My only compliment goes to the setting. Having spent time at Union > Station (train trips to Santa Barbara and to the East Coast), it made an > impressive backdrop. > > > > On Mon, Apr 26, 2021 at 6:50 AM 'Dave Sikula' via TVorNotTV < > [email protected]> wrote: > >> In an opinion that I'm sure will shock no one, I thought it was one of >> the most inept and pointless spectacles I've ever witnessed, and will, >> hopefully, kill the Oscarcast for the future. >> >> There was almost nothing to recommend it. The format was dull, the >> speeches too long, and -- even moreso than usual -- had no reason to exist. >> While I certainly don't want the return of the Billy Crystal years, with >> lousy renditions of mediocre songs, forced banter, and skits, I also don't >> want a spectacle that has all the panache and verve of a presidential >> funeral. >> >> Probably the most baffling part of the whole farrago was the music quiz, >> which would have been bad enough in any telecast, but really entered sore >> thumb territory because of its timing (2:40 into an interminable >> broadcast), and the decision to suddenly decide to do written material (And >> then it was -that-?). >> >> Obviously, fate -- and the voters -- didn't play along with the intended >> finale, but there should have been a contingency plan. If Hopkins's >> presence was verboten because -- like any sensible octogenarian, he didn't >> want to sit in a London theatre in the middle of the night on the off >> chance he might win -- then there should have been a Plan B that went >> beyond Phoenix's more-baffled-by-life-than-usual signoff. (One of the many, >> many things that prove the ineptitude of the Oscars -- other than, yet >> again, choosing a mediocre-at-best film as the "best" -- is that Phoenix >> has one.) >> >> While I did like the set design and attempt to keep things intimate, the >> processed video (described by Harry Shearer as looking like VHS) was >> pointless and ruined most of the effects. >> >> I'm trying to somehow end this on a positive note, but I'll be damned if >> I can think of anything in the whole twelve hours of the telecast that >> worked. >> >> --Dave Sikula >> >> On Sunday, April 25, 2021 at 9:10:30 PM UTC-7 PGage wrote: >> >>> I thought they did a great job on this show. Union Station is a great >>> space (nice to have Harrison Ford reference Blade Runner there), and would >>> be great to retain some sense of the grouped tables even when they return >>> to the big auditorium, which is a call back to the Oscar origins. >>> >>> Mostly though, I loved that they did not place such a hard limit on the >>> speeches. They saved time with shorter walk ups to the podiums, and moving >>> the songs to the pre-show, and not having any opening monologue or >>> production number (besides that long walking shot), bit still went over >>> about 17 min, but for me very worth it. A number of the speeches were >>> heartfelt and interesting, and the very first one would have no doubt been >>> interrupted by playoff music just as the guy started talking about his dead >>> daughter. >>> >>> Even the cheesy “game show” had a pretty good pay off with Glen Close (I >>> saw on the after show that they did set that up with her in advance, but >>> did not expect her to actually do the dance). >>> >>> Nice to see our friend Jon Batiste get his Oscar moment, and he briefly >>> shared the stage with QuestLove. >>> >>> I saw on Twitter a lot of complaining about a seemingly rushed In >>> Memoriam, and especially the decision to move Best Picture ahead of Best >>> Actress and Actor. It did kind of seem like they were anticipating closing >>> on an emotional note of Chadwick Bozeman winning posthumously, instead >>> ending with a bit of an anticlimax. >>> >>> Still, overall I thought it was a good show, with mostly great nominated >>> films and performances, even if it will inevitably be the lowest rated >>> Oscars in history. >>> -- >>> Sent from Gmail Mobile >>> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "TVorNotTV" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion on the web visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/23c91d78-37c8-460a-b179-e962b654148fn%40googlegroups.com >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/23c91d78-37c8-460a-b179-e962b654148fn%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> . >> > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "TVorNotTV" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/CA%2B_fQPzsPYym7kriSG0gzbZxY%3D2boCGzihrDFOQD98%3DU4RYMYA%40mail.gmail.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/CA%2B_fQPzsPYym7kriSG0gzbZxY%3D2boCGzihrDFOQD98%3DU4RYMYA%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TVorNotTV" group. 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