Despite its long boring speeches, unnecessarily long red carpet coverage and general repetitiveness year after year, the Oscars still manage to create some amazing moments. This year’s Oscars started strong with famed actor, Broadway star and magician Neil Patrick Harris opening with a Broadway-style musical number.
Harris was joined by actress Anna Kendrick, and the number even featured a surprise appearance by Jack Black. The ingenious screen behind Harris was put to full effect with lots of clever special effects such as Harris being placed in classic movies. The song managed to joke about the Oscar’s declining viewership and the pitfalls of the movie industry, as well as poke fun at the many celebrities in the audience.
Unfortunately, the opening number was the highpoint of Harris’ night as host, as he went on to bomb several jokes (including a poorly timed quip about Dana Perry’s outfit moments after she finished a speech about her son’s suicide) leading to what is widely being considered a very disappointing performance. Add to this a tasteless and awkward Birdman joke and a general lack of energy and the Oscars turned into quite the snooze-fest. Never the less, we still have the opening number to look fondly upon.
