Sound Off: What Was Oscar’s Most Memorable Moment?

Posted by Neil Miller (neil@filmschoolrejects.com) on February 25, 2008

IMDB is running a pretty cool poll this morning and we thought it would be a great topic for discussion. Last night’s Oscar ceremony was certainly one for the books; Jon Stewart was nothing short of awesome in his second go-round as host, the surprises were welcomed ones (i.e. the stunning Marion Cotillard winning Best Actress) and there were plenty of well-deserved wins. One of those extremely deserved Oscar victories went to Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, whose song “Falling Slowly” from Once took home the Best Song nod.

Upon receiving his award, Hansard gave the following speech, which was (at that point) the best of the night:

“Thanks! This is amazing. What are we doing here? This is mad. We made this film two years ago. We shot on two Handycams. It took us three weeks to make. We made it for a hundred grand. We never thought we would come into a room like this and be in front of you people. It’s been an amazing thing. Thanks for taking this film seriously, all of you. It means a lot to us. Thanks to the Academy, thanks to all the people who’ve helped us, they know who they are, we don’t need to say them. This is amazing. Make art. Make art. Thanks.”

Then as Irglova stepped up to the mic, the music came swooping in, taking us to commercial break. After the break host Jon Stewart showed an unprecedented amount of class, bringing Marketa back on stage so that she could make her own acceptance speech:

“Hi everyone. I just want to thank you so much. This is such a big deal, not only for us, but for all other independent musicians and artists that spend most of their time struggling, and this, the fact that we’re standing here tonight, the fact that we’re able to hold this, it’s just to prove no matter how far out your dreams are, it’s possible. And, you know, fair play to those who dare to dream and don’t give up. And this song was written from a perspective of hope, and hope at the end of the day connects us all, no matter how different we are. And so thank you so much, who helped us along way. Thank you.”

It was certainly one of the most memorable moments in recent years. As well, there were plenty of other great moments. Javier Bardem’s sweet tribute to his mother, Tilda Swinton calling out George Clooney’s bat suit and even Diablo Cody’s emotional acceptance speech were among my favorites. And how about the “Binoculars and Periscopes” montage? As my favorite Guinness commercials would say, “Brilliant!”

But those are only a few. The show was something like 12 hours long, so I’m sure you will be able to share more. That brings us to our discussion of the day:

Sound Off: What was your most memorable moment from last night’s Oscar ceremony?

Sound Off: What Was Oscar’s Most Memorable Moment?

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