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[Odler]

At an award show hosted by Whoopi Goldberg, the best performer awards went to Halle Berry and Denzel Washington. Sidney Poitier was honored, and Murder on Sunday Morning, the story of Black boy, won the Best Documentary prize. Contrary to popular belief, that was not a NAACP award ceremony. It was the 2002 Oscars. It was history, Black History, in the making.

The longest Oscarcast ever (4h 16min) has also been the most memorable, and for some, the most authentically emotional, maybe because it pleaded for its relevancy in post-September 11, maybe because many cried when Halle Berry cried.

And long after we are all gone, Oscarfest 2002 will be talked about. There is so much to talk about: Whoopi Goldberg?s performance as a cleaner-mouthed host, Tom Cruise?s introductory speech, the new Kodak Theater, the exceptional security measures, the first-ever second performance award to a Black (Denzel), the first-ever Best Actress Award to a Black, the first time ever three Afro-Americans were honored at the same ceremony, etc. (The last time, three African Americans were nominated for an Oscar (1973), they all lost.)

At the number of statuettes, two movies finished in parity, with four Oscars each: Beautiful Mind and Lord of The Ring. But Mind was the winner of the race; its director, Ron Award, walked out with the prizes for both the Best Director and the Best Movie of the Year.

Oscarfest 2002 felt much better organized than the last year?s. However, only 42 millions watched it in the U.S (one billion worldwide), a low number in comparison to the record 55 millions who watched Titanic walked away with 11 statuettes in 1998. (ABC Television pays 200 million dollars for the broadcast rights.)

After this is all said and told, one is to wonder what is to be done to make the Oscar ceremony decently shorter? When it peaked at 4h 9min in 2000, it was thought it could not go any longer; this year it did. Directors and producers keep cutting parts and scenes (like the class pictures, the singing performances, the dance numbers), but to no avail.

History will also record that Halle Berry in the best night of her life (this just can?t be replicated for her) was the most deliciously dressed artist we have not seen in a long time; she was able to match sexy-racy with elegance-and-class. She was the Princess of One Thousand and One Nights. Reese Witherspoon came second, while Helen Hunt had a lot to show in the show-it-all category.

Finally, Oscarfest 2002 will leave us with unanswered questions: What was the matter with Gwyneth Paltrow?s sadly sagging boobs? Anyone knows why Jennifer Lopez hair was in armed revolution? Why did Cameroon Diaz wear a bathrobe?

(OdlerRobert Jeanlouie, March 26, 2002)

RobertJ_MD@hotmail.com