And the Oscar goes to...

Finally, my favorite nominee won. "Crash". Despite all the buzz about "Brokeback Mountain", the fact is the most prestigious title the highly acclaimed and controversial flick could grab is for best direction -- kudos to Ang Lee. And how I like it when the winning movie isn't the one favored by most Hollywood residents, hehehe...

I'm a bit disappointed, though, that the Oscar for best leading actress went to Reese Witherspoon. Don't get me wrong, I love Reese: her talent, southern warmth, one-of-a-kind beauty, and her capability to keep the balance between her fame and family (seemingly). But both June Cash and Elle Wood (and perhaps her other roles, I don't know, I haven't seen most of them) have Reese's personal elements -- either in the way they talk, laugh, or even shake their heads. To me, Reese seems to transmit her soul to her work's subjects rather than ingesting them, being them. Felicity Huffman, on the other hand, was completely absorbed by her role. The inner emotion of the personality she plays in "Transamerica" is all over there in her gesture, her silent expression, her low voice.

All in all, again Oscar this year shows that no matter progressive the American society is, and how different Hollywood values are to the those of the rest of the mortals, some issues still can't be dealt comfortably -- and they include homosexuality and transsexuality. Now, now, could we say that we are a bit, er, more advanced that "Arisan" was claimed the best picture in FFI last year? (Or was it two years ago?)