Oscars royality arrive

Helen Mirren became a member of Oscars royalty on Sunday, winning the best actress statuette for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in “The Queen.”

In her first Academy Award-winning turn, Mirren, 61, depicts Queen Elizabeth II as a resolute sovereign, bound by tradition and protocol, who wrestles with public pressure to grieve alongside her nation after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.
Long considered the favourite to take home the coveted Oscars statuette, Mirren fought off stiff competition from Penelope Cruz (“Volver”), Meryl Streep (“The Devil Wears Prada”) and fellow Britons Judi Dench (“Notes on a Scandal”) and Kate Winslet (“Little Children”).
The win completed a clean sweep for Mirren this awards season, after the role garnered hera Screen Actors Guild Award, a Golden Globe and a BAFTA.
Oscar voters also proved to be a fickle bunch giving awards both to winners expected, such as supporting actress Jennifer Hudson, and unexpected, like supporting actor Alan Arkin.
Hudson won for movie musical “Dreamgirls” with the portrayal of spurned singer Effie White whose song, “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Leaving,” had Oscar voters standing and applauding at early screenings in Los Angeles.
“Oh my God, I just have to take this moment in, I can’t believe this. Look what God can do,” Hudson said fighting back tears while holding her Oscar onstage.
“An Inconvenient Truth,” the big-screen adaptation of former U.S. Vice President Al Gore’s slide-show lecture about the perils of global warming, won the Academy Award for documentary feature.
The award went to director Davis Guggenheim and producers Lawrence Bender (“Pulp Fiction”) and Laurie David, the environmentalist wife of “Seinfeld” co-creator Larry David.
William Monahan, the writer of crime thriller “The Departed,” won best adapted screenplay.
Arkin, 72, claimed victory for playing an irascible, heroin snorting grandfather in “Little Miss Sunshine.” His Oscar proved to be a surprise choice over Eddie Murphy, who had won several other major Hollywood awards this year for his role as a soul singer with a drug habit in musical “Dreamgirls.”
But Arkin’s work in the low-budget “Sunshine,” about a family of losers who learn what it means to be winners, has been a favourite of fans and delighted Oscar voters.
The Oscars are given out annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and are the world’s top film honours.
Among other surprises, computer animated “Happy Feet,” about a bunch of dancing penguins with a love of their chilly Antarctic environment, took the Oscar for best animated movie over favourite “Cars.”
Mexican film “Pan’s Labyrinth,” a fantasy about a young girl who discovers a violent world in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, earned three Oscars for art direction, makeup and cinematography.
Yet, in another surprise it lost the foreign language trophy to Germany’s “The Lives of Others,” which tells of a conflicted Stasi police officer in the old East Germany.
Meanwhile, first time host Ellen DeGeneres cranked out the comedy and took swipes at the likes of Dame Judi Dench, Peter O’Toole and Leonardo DiCaprio. In one bit, she appeared backstage chatting with a crew member and talking about how Dench, who was nominated for best actress in “Notes On a Scandal,” failed to make it to the Oscars due to knee surgery.
“She’s having knee surgery,” she said, then paused for impact, “on her eyes.” Only minutes later, she reappeared onstage and said she had made a mistake. “It was her boobs,” DeGeneres joked.
The Oscar show also touched on being environmentally conscious with a pitch for being the first “green” Academy Awards, whereas gold – the colour of the statuette that is given away – is usually associated with the awards.
Keeping with that theme, Oscar voters voted “An Inconvenient Truth,” about former vice president Al Gore’s efforts to warn the world of global warming, best documentary.
Director Guggenheim accepted the Oscar and took Gore onstage with him. “All of us were inspired by his fight of 30 years,” Guggenheim said.
Gore then urged the worldwide television audience to act. “It’s not a political issue, it’s a moral issue,” Gore said of global warming, “We have everything we need to get started with the possible exception of the will to act,” he said.
“That’s a renewable resource. Let’s renew it.”
In other early awards, “Dreamgirls” also took home the trophy for sound mixing, and “Letters From Iwo Jima” won for sound editing.

SILVER, gold and blue gowns dazzled the red carpet at the world’s leading film awards, while those featuring intricate bodices, beading and master detail proved that exquisite workmanship always merits a second glance.

Helen Mirren, of “The Queen,” chose a pale gold Christian LaCroix gown with a lace bodice for the evening, while Cate
Blanchett chose a stunning silver beaded one-shoulder Armani Prive that captured the right amount of shimmer and elegance.
Kirsten Dunst’s pale silvery blue gown featured delicate sequins and feathers at the hem, while Jennifer Lopez’s Grecian-inspired Marchesa gown in a pale silvery shade of lilac was adorned with five tiers of sparkling beads at the neck.
“That’s more fun than anything,” said Lopez, of dressing up for the Oscars. “That’s the part I like.
The quality of craftsmanship on the red carpet was stellar. Elaborate bodices, whether beaded or featuring intricate haute couture workmanship, made a big showing this year, proving that haute couture handiwork is always glamorous.
Rachel Weisz’s Vera Wang in champagne satin featured a crystal-encrusted bodice. Of getting dolled up on Oscar night, last year’s best supporting actress said, the final product is “a fantasy version of ourselves!”
Best Actress nominee Penelope Cruz wore a dusty rose Versace with an intricate ruched bodice, while Beyonce Knowles’ mint-coloured Armani featured a strap on one shoulder adorned with matching beads. Sheer pleats at the bodice of a terracotta Zac Posen worn by Gwyneth Paltrow captured interest and elegance.
“There’s a real appreciation of artistry,” said Hal Rubenstein, In Style magazine’s fashion director. “It’s all about the detail work of a dress. It used to be it was enough to get away with sequins. Nowadays, even the sequining needs to be intricate.”
Male nominees and presenters displayed a black-tie flair not usually seen on the red carpet.
“Letters From Iwo Jima” actor Ken Watanabe wore a tuxedo with Asian-inspired ornamental button-and-loop fasteners. Director Spike Lee sported a jaunty black beret and cream-coloured jacket, while best supporting actor nominee Eddie Murphy chose an indigo tuxedo with bling coming from a large diamond in his ear.
Some of the most eye-catching looks on this year’s red carpet came from India and Japan. Deepa Mehta, director of best foreign language film nominee “Water” donned a vintage gold and rose sari once owned by her grandmother, while Watanabe’s date was regal in a robins-egg blue kimono.
But the excitement from Oscar’s red carpet comes from variety.
French icon Catherine Deneuve wore a black Jean Paul Gaultier embellished by an embroidered heart with dagger, while Keisha Whitaker, wife of Best Actor nominee Forest Whitaker, was a stunner in a Georges Chakra pale chartreuse satin gown whose back featured a creeping sequinned floral vine.