Another Historical Moment in Time

On February 9, 2020, the Dolby Theater in Los Angles, CA, hosted the 92nd Oscars Academy Awards. Lasting almost 3 1/2 hours, there were tons of memorable moments whether it was passionate speeches or fashion statements. The Oscars were not hosted, which was a first since 1989. Additionally, there was development for women and minorities in film, yet stars still advocated for more. Many political statements were made which drew attention to major issues around the world. While it is beneficial that society is being made aware of these important injustices, the evening should be focused more on commemorating the stars and their work rather than a platform for politics.  

"Parasite", a Korean drama, won all four of its nominations including Best Picture, Directing, International Feature Film, and Original Screenplay. It became the first non-English language film in Oscar history to win the award for Best Picture. Furthermore, it was also the first film from South Korea to be nominated for International Feature Film. The new name change from Foreign Language Film brings a new direction to films from all over the world. Bong Hoon Ho, the writer, director, and producer, won all three of the categories he was nominated for. He and Kwak Sin-ae, another producer, delivered inspirational acceptance speeches that closed the momentous evening.

Another prolific event of the night was the best actor speech. Joaquin Phoenix, who played the notorious Batman villain in "Joker," accepted his first-ever Oscar with an important message. He states there is so much inequality and division in the world and calls for action and for unity. "I've been thinking a lot about some of the distressing issues that we are facing collectively, and I think at times we feel or we're made to feel that we champion different causes. But for me, I see the commonality. I think whether we're talking about gender inequality or racism or queer rights or indigenous rights or animal rights, we're talking about the right against injustice." He continues by advocating for veganism and acknowledges his supporters for giving him second chances when he messes up. He concludes his speech honoring his brother, who drug overdosed in 1993, by saying a lyric his brother wrote when he was 17. Through tears, he closes with "Run to the rescue with love, and peace will follow." 

There were some "historical strides" taken for diversity in color. "Cynthia Erivo was one of the few black nominees for an Oscar in 2020 which is a step from zero in 1929..." joked Rock and Martin in their monologue. However, many of the performances had people of color such as Utkarsh Ambudkar or Janelle Monae. There were several other wins for people of color during the ceremony such as Matthew Cherry for his animated short, "Hair Love", or Taika Waititi for "Jojo Rabbit". Cherry became the second former professional athlete to win an Oscar (Kobe Bryant was first for his short, "Dear Basketball," in 2018). Waititi won for best-adapted screenplay and became the first person of Maori descent to win an Oscar.

While there were many other memorable moments of the evening, fashion and red carpet looks were a major focus of the night. For instance, Natalie Portman wore a Dior cape embroidered with names of the women directors who were not nominated for an Oscar. Many of the presenters gave recognition to women in film and brought to attention the failures of the diversity of nominations the Academy decided. This year was another step towards diversity, especially for international films; however, there is still a leap that needs to be taken for the award ceremony to be all-inclusive.  

There are so many more historical happenings of the 92nd Oscars that can be highlighted in the Washington Post's "Oscars 2020: 15 Things to Know...". I strongly suggest you read it and understand how the world is and isn't changing. 

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