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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 26, 2004)
ENTERTAINMENT The Battalion Page 3A • Thursday, February 26, 2004 Oscar night! Hobbits, pirates and monsters dominate 2004 BIGGEST OSCAR UPSETS M4 ■ *1 TIMEUINE Ma r isa TortTeTs^eha rac- ter in *My (Zoysin Vinny 'stole the prize for Be^t Supportirg Actress, a dedisionj that still confusjes som^. Then 3-yeapold Anna PaquirV^tole the.Hearts of film viewers and critics for her role as Flora McGraith in 1993's "The Piano," blit still caused an upset wh< she was named Best Supporting By Robert Saucedo THE BATTALION While film buffs tune in to the Oscar awards every year out of love for films, Anna Cobb has one more reason to tune in. She is connected to the award ceremony in a way most people dream of. “(My family) actually have an Oscar at home” said Cobb, a sophomore biology major. “My great-uncle won an Academy Award for best score for ‘Stagecoach’ (1939). He won with two other people; they all scored it together.” With such a direct tie to the ceremony, it’s little coincidence that Cobb watches the awards ceremony every year. “Ever since I was old enough to understand what movies are and what the Oscars are, I’ve watched them,” Cobb said. “The Oscars used to have a lot of shows in between that were really interesting, but now I like watching them because I like seeing all my favorite people together.” Come Sunday, the demi-gods and goddesses of modem culture will descend the hills of Hollywood to gather, dressed in garish costumes, to make offer ings of praise and thanks in what has become a ritualistic ceremo ny of epic proportions. In other words, Feb. 29 will mark the 76th year of the Academy Awards and with it the presentation of this year's Oscars to the films and people the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences deem to be the best in their field Whether they agree or disagree with the choices, a billion people across the world will tune in to witness the glitz and glamour of the Academy Awards. This year, the award ceremony will be hosted by comedian Billy Crystal, who has hosted the Oscars seven times. Cobb counts Crystal as her favorite Academy Awards host. “I’m really glad he’s doing it again this year,” Cobb said. Award presenters will include Will Ferrell, Sandra Bullock and Jack Black. There will be musical performances by Annie Lennox, Sting, Eugene Levy and Elvis Costello. Spencer Littlejohn, a freshman anthropology major, considers himself a casual fan of movies and plans to watch the award ceremony this year. Although he hasn’t seen all of the movies nominated this year for best picture, he still has his ideas of which should or shouldn’t win. “I saw ‘Lord of the Rings’ and I (liked it),” Littlejohn said. “I think it will probably win, but I kind of want something else to win because (‘Lord of the Rings’) wins different awards all the time.” Although he believes the awards are prestigious, Littlejohn said he isn’t sure if they are the definitive word on what makes a great movie. “It gives (the movie) more credit, but I wouldn’t definitely say I would like it if I watched it,” he said. Cobb agrees with Littlejohn’s assertion. “I’d like to think certain films win best picture, but I know there’s a lot of films less deserving that win,” Cobb said. “I definitely think there is a lot of under-the-table politicking. I certainly don’t think certain actors and actresses have won their awards rightly in the past few years.” Julia Roberts win for “Erin Brockovich is among the actresses Cobb considers wrongfully awarded for their roles. She also said in the past, many awards went to the wrong people. “I didn’t really like (that) Ron Howard won for ‘A Beautiful Mind,”’ Cobb said. “I’d rather he won for ‘Apollo 13.’ I was not happy ‘A Beautiful Mind’ won best picture that year because I definitely feel ‘Moulin Rouge’ was more of an innovative film.” Regardless of past disagreements, Cobb still has hopes the Academy will choose the rightful winners in its respective awards. “I would like to see ‘Lost in Translation’ win for best picture, but I don’t know if it’s big enough,” Cobb said. “‘Lord of the Rings’ will prob ably win.” Even though Sofia Coppola’s nomination for directing “Lost in Translation” marks the first time an American woman has been nomi- Ruben DeLuna • THE BATTALION nated for best director, Cobb feels the award belongs to someone else. “I would rather see Peter Jackson win for best director because the ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy is a bigger accomplishment for the award of best director. I would like to see ‘Lost in Translation’ win for best screen play,” Cobb said. From Adrian Brody’s kissing attack on Halle Barry to Michael Moore’s anti-Bush rant to Jack Balance's one-handed push-ups, the Oscars have become as famous for outlandish behavior as they are for their prestige. Cobb considers Roberto Benigni’s surprise at the announcement of his win one of her favorite oscar moments. “When Roberto Benigni won for ‘Life is Beautiful' and he climbed over all the chairs, because he thought that was easier than just walking down the aisles was hilarious,” Cobb said. “Another was Cuba Gooding Jr.’s accept ance speech (for ‘Jerry Maguire’) when he was thanking everybody on earth for winning the award. I wouldn’t have been surprised if my name showed up on his list.” Both Cobb and Littlejohn have watched the Oscars alone in the past, but this year they plan to drop by the Memorial Student Center Film Society produced Oscar Gala. Michael Venner, MSC film chair, explained the Film Society’s hosting of an Oscar Gala was only natural. “This is the first year we’ve tried to do an Oscar Gala,” Venner said. “In years past, we’ve been more of a committee. We asked ourselves what was the biggest thing that happened all year for the industry. We decided to put on a party for the event and see how it goes. If it goes really well, we’re going to have it continue.” Megan Schmidt, MSC Film Society director of student development, said she hopes to make the gala an annual event. “Every year people watch the Oscars and have their own party,” Schmidt said. “We’re going to watch the Oscars and have trivia throughout the night. People watch the Oscars at home, and they should definitely come for the free food and fellowship. It’s a good opportunity to leam about the Oscars, hang out with other Aggies, make new friends and basically hang out with people with your same interests.” The Oscar Gala will take place in MSC 201. The doors will open at 6:30 p.m. and admission is free. The Academy Awards will be broadcast Feb. 29 at 7 p.m. on ABC. Andrew Burleson • THE BATTALION Infocraphic by Ruben Deluna* THE BATTALION Best Director Best Actor Best Actress Best Supporting Actor Best Supporting Actress ° the R| ngs: Return Kln 9 was a fantastic an amazing trilogy. y tha f but the fact »e to live up to Paul Cozhy Out of all the films nominated for best director, Peter Jackson's job on The Return of the King” is by far the most impressive. This is not an easy job to do, and for that reason Jackson is the most deserving of the award. Robert Saucedo Hands down. Johnny Depp will win. Combining Mick Jagger and Marlon Brando, he becomes the hilariously cunning pirate Captain Jack Sparrow. Creative, deserves the actor that he is. Daniel Chapman Though the immediate attraction to ' Monster" is Charlize Theron’s cast-off beauty, her efforts go far beyond physical transformation. She unearths the humanity through her powerful acting. Da ^ Shackelford I suspect that Tim Robbins will win Best Supporting Actor for his role in “Mystic River.” Robbins can add this role to his list of many diverse and talented ■ 'larai i Christina Teichman