I am an Oscars obsessive. There are few days I await more eagerly than that special Sunday in March when those golden statues are finally handed out. For me, the Oscars represent a celebration of the power of story, of the ways it can change lives and enable people to dream bigger. There is often a kind of joy that swells in me when I’m watching them, an understanding that an entire film community is recognizing this power, the indelible impact that a good story can have.
This isn’t to say that the Oscars don’t have many problems. They are often overrun with white nominees and can veer into an out-of-touch space as they focus on the glitz and glam of Hollywood over other, more pressing social issues. Yet, the Oscars also offer a platform to discuss important topics through the films nominated and the speeches prepared. The Oscars are a hodge-podge of sorts — a celebration of filmmaking and its power, and also a space for Hollywood’s elite to mingle. It is an ever shifting space of both elitism and genuine love.
At this year’s Oscars, this felt especially true, as veiled political references were made to the conflict in Iran, the genocide in Palestine, ICE’s actions in the U.S., Trump’s presidency, challenges to free speech in America and more. In many cases, the mentions of these causes were made through metaphors and mentions of current challenges or pain in the world. The decision to make these acknowledgements at all is deeply important, but it would have felt much more potent and powerful if more people had more openly and directly spoken out.
This is even more pressing given the state of the world we live in, as the effects of this society are deeply felt in the stories we tell and the people who can even attend awards like the Oscars. For example, Motaz Malhees, a Palestinian actor in “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” was prevented from attending the ceremony after being denied entrance to the United States due to his Palestinian citizenship. There was very little reference to this during the ceremony itself, although his cast mates did discuss it on the red carpet. A few others made explicit reference to current events. Actor Javier Bardem, while presenting the award for Best International Feature, began his introduction with a proud statement of “Say no to war and free Palestine.” The win for Best Documentary Short Film by “All the Empty Rooms” provided a space for gun violence in the United States to be explicitly discussed on stage. Gloria Cazares — the mother of Jackie Cazares, a child killed in the Ulvade shooting — spoke, saying, “Jackie is more than just a headline. She is our light and our life. Gun violence is now the number one cause of death in kids and teens. We believe that if the world could see their empty bedrooms, we’d be a different America.”
Other political references were not made explicitly in the speeches, but in the nominated films themselves — namely “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another.” The two big winners of the night, both films engage with politics of race and racism, as well as resistance. In one of my favorite moments of the night, the most iconic scene from “Sinners” was recreated as Miles Caton took the stage to sing “I Lied to You” while dancers swirled around him. In the film, this moment demonstrates the power of music to serve as a bridge across time and culture, bringing together dancers of different races, ethnicities and walks of life. This moment was recreated spectacularly, and seeing it performed on a night all about the power of story brought me to tears.
Representation was a key theme not just in this moment, but throughout the night. Early in the show, “K-Pop Demon Hunters” took home the award for Best Animated Feature Film. Creator and director Maggie Kang said in her speech, “And for those of you who look like me, I’m sorry it took us so long to see us in a movie. But it is here, and that means the next generations don’t have to go longing.” This speech served as a beautiful reminder of what representation can do and how it can inspire. This excitement, however, was later undercut in a particularly sour moment as creators Yuhan and Mark Sonnenblick had their speeches unfairly cut short while accepting “K-Pop Demon Hunters” win for Best Original Song.
However, there were still many other spectacular highlights of the show, including the introduction of a new award for Best Casting. Cassandra Kulukundis took home the award for “One Battle After Another,” and as many people remarked, Oscars should be given for discovering breakout star Chase Infiniti. In a big surprise of the night, given that “One Battle After Another” cinematographer Michael Bauman had taken home many of the precursor awards, “Sinners” cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapow took home the award for Best Cinematography and became the first woman to ever do so.
“One Battle After Another” and “Sinners” continued their push and pull throughout the night in the major categories, with “Sinners” taking home awards for Best Original Screenplay (Ryan Coogler) and Best Actor (Michael B. Jordan), while “One Battle After Another” took home Best Director (Paul Thomas Anderson), Best Adapted Screenplay (Paul Thomas Anderson), Best Supporting Actor (Sean Penn) and Best Picture. The wins for Ryan Coogler, Michael B. Jordan and Paul Thomas Anderson were some of the most electric of the night. Ryan Coogler became only the second Black man to ever win Best Original Screenplay. Michael B. Jordan was the easy favorite of the night, with the crowd — and my living room — erupting into cheers and standing ovations when his name was called. Jordan also became only the sixth Black man to ever win Best Actor in the history of the Oscars. And Paul Thomas Anderson finally got his flowers — after 14 nominations but zero wins, he took home three of the biggest awards of the night.
Ultimately, while these Oscars were a bit of a mixed bag, I still left the night feeling buoyed by hope and an everlasting love for story and the strength of the human spirit. And maybe it’s me growing up and aligning my taste more closely with the Academy, or maybe it’s an actual testament to the quality of the films, but there were some truly incredible and unforgettable films and performances at these Oscars. I, for one, can’t wait to see what we get to watch next year.
Lauren is a senior studying English literature, communications and film. You can connect with her at [email protected].