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10 Totally Awesome, Outrageous, and Tearjerking Moments of Oscar 2015
Yesterday, the Academy Awards - America's grandest celebration of cinematic glory - captivated us all (or rather a sharp decline in 'us all,' if ratings are to be believed, but still). The most beautiful, most acclaimed, most Meryl Streep-est of actors came from all over the world to be at the 87th annual ceremony, and for the next 3+ hours we all settled in to either our nice red seats at the Kodak Center or the couches in our friend's apartments to watch the winners celebrate, the losers try to look happy, and the awkward moments we wished we could forget entirely. And now, before we completely turn out attention to next year's awards (*cough* Freeheld *cough*), let's take a moment to focus on the good, the awesome, and the downright confusing.
Reese Witherspoon and #AskHerMore champion the red carpet: This year, thanks to a push from the radiant Reese Witherspoon, the red carpet pre-show was making a successful effort to keep the conversations on the achievements of the women attending and not just on where their dresses came from. It was a huge breath of fresh air to get to watch hosts like Robin Roberts have much more in-depth conversations with the actresses then we often get to see, and we consider Reese's hashtag a big success! After all, if they were only talking about fashion we wouldn't get to showcase this next gem...
Dakota Johnson really doesn't care if Melanie Griffith sees 50 Shades of Grey: This flat-out awkward red carpet moment might even win most awkward moment of the evening! In short, Melanie Griffith doesn't want to see her daughter in 50 Shades. A very exasperated Dakota, who has clearly had this conversation before, seems less than thrilled at this entire exchange. You'll just have to watch and experience it for yourself.
Anna Kendrick vs. Jack Black: The opening number, led by a vibrant host Neil Patrick Harris, was a high point of the show (those visuals, am I right?), but it got so much better when Anna Kendrick arrived with an ode to Into the Woods. Somehow that got even better when Jack Black joined in Witch-style to crash the entire affair.
Tegan & Sara prove everything truly is awesome: The Lego Movie was one of the best movies of 2014. Tegan & Sara are two of our favorite musicians of all time. Put it all together and what do you get? Dancing possums, Lego Oscars, and a whole lot of awesome.
Meryl & J. Lo's reaction to Patricia Arquette's Speech: There's presently a lot of controversy about comments made post-Patricia Arquette's Best Supporting Actress speech advocating for equal pay for women, but no matter what, Meryl Streep and J. Lo's reactions to it were one of the best, most energized things we've seen at the Oscars ever. Additionally, the fact that Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lopez were sitting together at the Oscars was also one of the best things we've seen ever.
"Glory" brings us all to tears: Common, John Legend, and that extraordinary choir provided one of if not the most powerful moments of the entire ceremony with their performance of "Glory" from the Best Picture nominated Selma. Oprah, David Oyelowo, and Chris Pine were most likely just a small handful of people actually crying in the theater. Glory won the Best Song Oscar, and we totally agree.
John Travolta touching Idina Menzel's Face: John Travolta and Idina Menzel teamed up this year to redeem last year's iconic Adele Dazeem castrophy, and what was actually a really cute bit took a very strange turn when for some reason John Travolta (or Glom Gazingo, as he is now known) felt the need to touch Idina Menzel's face. A lot. Idina laughed pleasantly the whole way through, and we commend her for that composure.
Graham Moore's Speech: It was a night of intense speeches at this year's Oscar ceremony, and Graham Moore (who won Best Adapted Screenplay for The Imitation Game) made a beautiful mark on the evening with his admission of attempting suicide when he was 16, his direct addressing of anyone who may be feeling the same, and most of all, the importance of 'staying weird.'
Lady Gaga's tribute to Sound of Music: Did anyone expect Lady Gaga to perform an ode to Sound of Music at the Oscars this year? Did anyone expect it to happen so masterfully? Did anyone expect to be that deeply emotionally effected by Julie Andrews and Lady GaGa hugging? This whole moment was a perfect surprise, and we loved every second of it.
Julianne Moore wins Best Actress: Julianne Moore took the top prize for her heartbreaking portrayal of a woman with dementia in Still Alice, and also proved yet again she takes one of the top prizes in our heart. After three previous nominations (one for playing a struggling closeted housewife in The Hours), it was about damn time she won. And now with Freeheld on the horizon, we're pretty sure this won't be anywhere near her last time getting recognized. Watching Julianne take the stage capped the evening off in one of the best ways possible, and now it's totally time to start getting ready for next year!
