I sat through Black Sabbath’s classic “Iron Man” tune, watching the film’s techno-credits dazzle until the familiar scroll kicked in. The friends who’d accompanied me and sat through the two-hour rocket of a film stood up from their seats, but then glanced back at me; I shook my head, pointed to the screen, and remained. With a sigh, they sat back down. The payoff was well worth it, whether you were astonished by the teaser scene that followed the movie’s credits or whether you just listened for the sound of comic fan-boys going into seizures throughout the auditorium.

The guy with the Fantastic Four T-shirt behind me stared blankly at the screen and mumbled to his compatriot, “I think I just soiled myself.” An odd but awestruck offering on the altar of Stan Lee. Thankfully, I’m pretty sure he was joking. However, this thrill ride of a flick, propelled by tight, slick direction by Jon Favreau and fueled almost entirely on Robert Downey Jr.’s charisma, has an amazing test flight that sets a high bar for the summer movies to follow.

Although he’s been around the comics world since 1963, most people don’t know Iron Man like they do Spidey or the Hulk. Although some locations and situations are updated, the story basically remains the same. Billionaire Tony Stark (Downey Jr.) has everything; not only is he CEO of Stark Industries, which produces advance weapon systems for the U.S. military, he is a hedonist who seems to live in the moment. A fast talking, hard drinking ladies man, he is also a genius who has invented many of the high-tech items for the company. Demonstrating a new weapon for the United States Air Force in Afghanistan, his convoy is attacked by terrorists, and Stark is grievously wounded. His heart is irreparably damaged. Held hostage in a cave, terrorists force Tony to reproduce the new missile he was demonstrating. With life on the line, and a life-changing attack of conscience, Stark builds a powerful suit of armor and vows to amend his ways, using his genius and fortune to protect others. With the help of his personal assistant Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), Air Force Lieut. Colonel Jim Rhodes (Terrence Howard), and his computer assistant program Jarvis, Tony vows to protect the world as Iron Man. He must also contend with his shocked business partner, Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges).

Although the superhero billionaire with lots of tech toys sounds suspiciously like Batman, the film is tonally closer to Spider-man, humor and slapstick mixed with the mechanized bombast of Michael Bay’s Transformers and an undeniable 80s sensibility as the movie starts with ACDC’s “Back in Black” and Downey Jr.’s fast-talking (which never stops, whether he’s trying to get the military to loosen up, get a reporter into bed, or get his computer to stop advising him against being impulsive). The movie barely lets you take a breath, sandwiching some serious commentary on war profiteering between repulsor blasts, amazing sets and special effects, fantastic dialogue, and sight gags. Iron Man is not the foundationally tragic, tormented hero like Bruce Wayne, but rather a spoiled, middle-aged hedonist who has realized much later in life than Peter Parker did that “with great power comes great responsibility”. This allows a more natural use of humor and fun to accompany his narrative journey. Using his fortune and abilities to right his wrongs, however, he DOES become obsessed by his mission, with a fervor to atone for wasted time and actions that have hurt others. In one scene with Pepper Potts, Stark’s passion and conviction stop the humor short; the film demands from Downey Jr. the ability to shift Stark from silly or sarcastic to sober and serious, and he surprisingly succeeds with the nimbleness one expects is required to maneuver in that Iron Man suit.

Iron Man employs some classic imagery and narrative devices that make the audience soar with him, some of them bordering on the biblical. These include the classic themes of conviction and repentance, a transformed heart, and a nearly godlike armor that helps our protagonist achieve his goals. In the film, Tony is a promiscuous jerk and an arms dealer, with no regard for how his actions affect others, or the trail of emotional or practical turbulence he leaves in his wake. After his crisis, he begins to see Pepper Potts as the beautiful helpmate she truly is to him and his affection for her grows. His confession and repentance to the press about his company’s lack of conscience, as he sits on the stage and absentmindedly pulls out a cheeseburger, is played for laughs but bears a beautiful honesty without being preachy. It’s a subtle message woven into a vibrant physical story of metal and conflict that is actually transmitting a quiet, spiritual message of redemption. This even plays its way into the visual of Tony’s repaired heart, which literally glows with new light:

“I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. But as for those whose heart goes after their detestable things and their abominations, I will bring their deeds upon their own heads, declares the Lord God.” - Ezekiel 11

Tony Stark’s heart is cold and hard, and it takes this life-changing event to rip it out and give him a new heart that can walk in the light. His “heart change” is marked by the comic-book sized visual that remains central throughout the rest of the film. He’s like the Grinch whose heart grew three sizes that day… with copper wire and an ARC reactor. Moreover, as the reborn Tony Stark heads into combat against his enemies, he dons a suit of armor (which runs on the seemingly boundless energy he has been given by his new heart), a 21st century Spartan headed out to hold the line against the hordes of evil.

“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.” - Ephesians 6

There is a “bootstrap mentality” in the film which fails to capture the grand narrative of our lives. Stark’s reclamation, from the practical creation of his new heart to the armor he sports, is based almost entirely on his own intellect and resources. He is convicted of his sins and sets out to save himself… as if that were possible. There is a moment early in the film where a character sacrifices monumentally for Tony. There is another moment where a caring character in Tony’s life disobeys his instruction and does something that conflicts with his “disposable lifestyle”. This simple act of affection later ends up saving his life quite literally, and there is a sense throughout the film that he needs his friends, but the film still generally embraces the idea that we can fix our own brokenness and achieve atonement by our own devices. Like physicians, we heal ourselves, and perhaps “get by with a little help from our friends”. That might work on Oprah, or in a Beatles song, but I don’t believe that this fails to encapsulate the full story of our lives. In fact, the visual in this film - that there is one armored avenger swooping down from the sky to save us - almost paints a picture that we need a savior, but the imagery is muddled and admittedly intended to “wow”, not to proselytize.

Still, while the story is flawed here in relation to mankind’s overarching metanarrative, it IS speaking to a lesser theme with great truth. From Scrooge to modern America, there is truth to the fact that we have been blessed with abundance and use if selfishly, unwisely, and even hurt others to maintain and advance. Tony Stark was born into Daddy’s wealth and gifted with a seeming natural aptitude for science and invention. These were not things he earned; they were gifts from his earthly father and his Creator. What have we done with the common grace that has been showered on us? We are too often hoarders or hedonists in Americana. I may not have Tony Stark’s wealth, but compared to the larger population of the world my middle class lifestyle is the spoils of a king. From my neighborhood to my country, am I seeking to make a difference with what I’ve been given? Am I missional in my mindset? Am I guarding my heart, putting on the proper armor, and engaging in a righteous crusade that expresses my love for God and my love for my neighbor?

This is not the movie I expected from Jon Favreau, writer of Swingers. Christopher Nolan set the bar HIGH with Batman Begins, demonstrating that just because the source material is a comic book doesn’t mean you have to make a good comic book film; you can just make a good FILM. It’s true that Downey Jr. is the heart of the piece (no pun intended) and the the film, rises, falls, heats up or chills based on his performance (pun intended) but Paltrow, Howard and Bridges all orbit and add gravity to the piece; it’s obvious several of them will have larger roles in future installments and there are several nice nods to fans who know some of the coming story arc. Still, the film is NOT so insider in its language, nuance or style that a newcomer will feel as if he’s missing something. I suspect many will cough up the money to see this film in-theater more than once. Favreau has given us the kind of high flying summer blockbuster that is now going to make Prince Caspian, Hellboy, The Hulk, Indiana Jones, and even The Dark Knight work hard for their money.

Hopefully a few of the upcoming comic book movies stink, otherwise - if these fanboys keep soiling themselves - the theaters will reek of geek awe.

So the time has come to expand Cinemagogue and let it be more than my singular platform for exploring film, narrative themes, the gospel, and all these meaningless movies under the sun. I’m meeting Sunday with a small team of potential contributors who will hopefully allow us to explore classic films, indie films, DVD releases, and more. One of the main reasons I’ve done this for so long is a desire to see others think and discern when they engage. Seeing others growing to the point where they desire to contribute and teach is like icing on a cinematic cake.

Also, I’m prepping to show and teach on our big award winner for 2008 this next week with a live showing of the film and subsequent exposition. For those living in a cave (a cavern far from the Coen Brothers) that would be No Country for Old Men, showing Friday May 9 at the Wedgwood Campus of Mars Hill Church. This one will be tough. And fun. Hopefully it won’t get mixed in with the others and become just a movie. Which it is.

Enchanted intrigued me as it hit squarely on one of my favorite narrative dichotomies in Hollywood storytelling… what I affectionately call “Life Under the Sun” and “Life Beyond the Sun” films. These worlds collide in Enchanted in what I think is one of Disney’s strongest achievements to date – cinematically combining elements of their best animated and live productions into a self-effacing pageant that comments on both their wonder, their humor, they’re syrup, and also our own earthly disenchantment without them.

Whether it’s the seemingly naive Giselle or the Carrie Underwood song that closes the film, it’s apparent that we want to believe in fairy tale endings but many of us, like Robert in the film, believe that “The lovey-dovey version that you talk about – it’s fantasy. And one day you have to wake up and you’re in the REAL world.” What if neither of them are wrong? What if BOTH worlds are true?

Listen right here by clicking the play button above.

You can also listen to the audio in another browser by clicking on the link below, or right click and “save as” to download the mp3. For those options, click here.

While not dismissing the toils and legitimate brokenness of this life, the Christian knows that the Universe is a Love Story, the fabric of our very existence is the pages on which it is written, and the hero is Jesus Christ. Christians can rest in the calm assurance that Giselle has… that everlasting love is real, that happily ever after IS possible. The Christian existence is one of restored WONDER, true love that provides endurance in this life and the promise of eternity. Although sometimes poorly caging God’s wonder in systematics and bullet points, scripture is replete with the true fantastical nature of both our Storyteller AND Savior. As the fairy tale believes in “destiny”, Romans 8 proclaims the beautiful story of God’s love as destined. It goes on to tell us:

“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Philosopher G.K. Chesterton describes sanity as the result of a tension between two extremes (in fact, two poles). Christ is the pinion around which these poles spin. This holds the reality of Giselle’s world and Robert’s world in tension. Giselle’s humble assurance transforms Robert, Morgan, Nancy, and saves the Banks’ marriage. If our affection for our Creator, Lord and Savior were more evident – if we were indeed enchanted with our Lord in a deep and genuine way – perhaps more people would hunger after the music in OUR hearts.

For more on the movie, the language of heaven, and (sorry guys) why men have to repent and start loving musicals, I encourage you to listen to the audio review.

Mike Judge capitalized on our frustration as we hit the end of a century. Ricky Gervais has provided some inspired comedy that needles many of us right where we live, as the 21st century seemingly offers yet another “case of the Mondays”. The chief question with these comedies remains… are we laughing AT these archetypes, or WITH them?

“Hey Peter… what’s happening…”
Audio Review of Office Space (contains spoilers, assumes you’ve seen the film)

Pushed to the breaking point by monotony and corporate doublespeak, Peter Gibbons and his comrades revolt against the unfair system at Initech… with mixed results. The real question is… if you click on the link below, will it give you an error that says “PC Load Letter”?

Listen right here by clicking the play button above.

You can also listen to the audio in another browser by clicking on the link below, or right click and “save as” to download the mp3. For those options, click here.

The Office began with two seasons of a dry British comedy, totaling a whopping 12 episodes and a Christmas special. The Mike Judge influenced comedy even referenced Peter Gibbons with a wink and nod. When the comedy crossed the pond, changed the names, and went through Hollywood’s copy machine, lovers of the BBC show feared it would come out half as crisp. To be fair, Steve Carrel and crew have made a darn good comedy in their own right… so long as they know when to quit and go out on a high note. Time will tell.

Four episodes were watched with a live audience with discusion between each (if you’re an avid fan of both shows, you can listen to the audio without the episodes at hand, but if you’ve seen these episodes it will be even better).

(American) SEASON 2, EPISODE - Performance Reviews
(British) SEASON 1, EPISODE 4 – “Free Love on the Freelove Freeway”
(American) SEASON 2, EPISODE - Conflict Resolution
(British) SEASON 1, EPISODE 6 – “Selling Out”

Audio Review of The Office (British & American)

Listen right here by clicking the play button above.

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I know what you’re thinking… every dude reading is rolling his eyes, wishing his wife would stop calling Patrick Dempsey “McDreamy”, and hoping his spouse doesn’t spot the syrupy cinematic offering. Trust me, I ONLY went out of a strained sense of obligation when my wife Kat batted her eyes and said please. Still, just as “The Incredibles” was a kids’ film that adults could enjoy without wishing for a hole drilled in their head, this mockish play on Disney conventions and exploration of feminism and femininity is actually… bearable! Even enjoyable. That’s right guys, go ahead and act all sacrificial and treat this like a date night. The truth is, you’ll actually have a good time. If you can’t make the event, we’ll post the audio review in a few weeks.

“… let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us…” - Hebrews 12:1b

Marathon becomes metaphor in this story of the everyman’s desperate flight from role and responsibility. Although the story is as old as the sin of Adam, this story - written by Simon Pegg and Michael Ian Black, directed by David Schwimmer - is acted beautifully by the comedic and oddly charming Simon Pegg. While this romantic comedy is more standard than Pegg’s previous, zombified offering (Shaun of the Dead) many of the themes are similar. With shades of both American and British comedy, a touch of Disney but a hint of dark humor, Pegg brings the blend together to make a thoroughly engaging film. Neither a fan of “Friends” or Schwimmer in general, I was impressed by his direction of the film, which is shot entirely on location in London.

Pegg portrays Dennis, a man who literally runs like a schoolgirl from the altar, leaving bride-to-be Libby (played by Thandie Newton) in tears… not to mention pregnant. Five years later, when Dennis realizes his almost-wife and mother of his child is getting serious about an American businessman named Whit (Hank Azaria), he desperately wants to prove himself and win her back. As a clumsy gesture, he enters himself in the charity marathon the fit Whit has entered, hoping to demonstrate he can actually finish something for once in his unremarkable life.

Not unlike his character in Shaun of the Dead, Dennis has gone nowhere and achieved virtually nothing. He avoids challenges, working at the mall as a security guard (chasing transvestite lingerie thieves) and living in a basement studio. He spends fun time with his son, but has otherwise abdicated his role. He can’t afford the rent, let alone pay for a son or provide for his mother, who understandably wants nothing to do with him. While it is initially jealousy that drives him to compete, circumstances begin to illustrate just how much he has ceased being a MAN in every sense of the word. His heavy (and heavy-handed) landlord, Mr. Ghoshtashtidar, confronts him on his cowardice. At Libby’s birthday party, Dennis tries to explain his embarrassing escape from their nearly-nuptials:

“I did a stupid, stupid thing. But it was only because I thought spoiling your day was better than ruining your life. Does that make any sense?”

Dennis comes to realize the perverse, “reverse-pride” of this original decision, and decides to reach for respectably instead of continuously fleeing from decisions that seem beyond his level of respectability. He gets serious about the race, tired of being a self-described “nearly-man”. He even tells Libby he knows the marathon won’t get them back together. He knows he can’t have HER, but would be content to know he has her RESPECT.

This is a key theme in narrative that threads all the way back to the Bible, and the model for marriage mapped out in Ephesians 5. Implicit is the fact that women desire to be loved; a man is commanded to love his wife and give himself UP for her. However, more than anything, it isn’t love men desire so much as respect. They desire to be marked by lives that are respectable. Instead of hiding from everything because he ISN’T, Dennis decides that he will start BEING.

Of course, Dennis’ friends are both helpful and detrimental, betting on his success and then employing various methods to “train” him for the race. If he fails, he will also lose his flat, and his buddy Gordon might lose his teeth - and an appendage. When Whit proposes to Libby and she accepts, Dennis goes on an ill-timed bender. The day of the race finds him ill-prepared, yet still determined, to finish something for once in his life. However, like every milestone on a man’s path, there is going to be a moment in the race when he “hits the wall”… when the stitch in his side gets severe, when the urge to stop will burn like a fire. This time around, what will his ultimate decision be?

“For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” - Hebrews 12:11

Run, Fatboy, Run emphasizes the value of discipline, perseverance, and commitment… and the prototypical male response that stems all the way back to the silence of Adam, who originally and tragically broke the mold when he abdicated his role and watched his wife get tempted. From Adam to Dennis, we likewise try to blame-shift, instead of taking the responsibility that Mr. Ghoshtashtidar points out Dennis needs to own.

Our life is, as Eugene Peterson coined very wisely, should be “a long obedience in the same direction”. Even the movie’s ending illustrates this poignantly.

When a movie comes out called Doomsday, it invariably draws ones mind to many other end-of-world films that have graced (or smeared) the silver screen over the last several decades. There are so many creative ways the apocalypse might be ushered in, after all. It could be zombies, infections, decay of social order, climate change, a cataclysmic event throwing us back to the stone age (or the thunderdome) with a broken statue of liberty tipped like the leaning Tower of Pisa and Will Smith saving the world. However, with so many days of doom lurking in the cinematic shadows of the past, what’s a tough girl like Eden Sinclair (actress Rhona Mitra) to do? Apparently, imitation is the highest form of flattery… as Eden literally runs and drives through at least four or five classic films in the “new” film by director Neil Marshall (The Descent).

I remember a story as a child about “The Borrowers“, cute little people who lived in the walls and borrowed small items from the homeowners (this explains your lost keys, toys, buttons, etc.) so they could live. Marshall’s film lives off of borrowing, from Danny Boyle and Mel Gibson to Peter Jackson and John Carpenter. Gibson, your keys are in Eden Sinclair’s Bentley. Mr. Carpenter, “Doomsday” is in your floorboards. Admittedly, like the titular characters of that childhood book, the film is actually pretty cute… in a devastating, end-of-world kind of way.

Watch the trailer

The film begins in nice stew of Resident Evil: Apocalypse and 28 Days Later, as people are walled up in an infected area of the British Isles. Decades later when the virus breaks out in London, Eden “Snake Plissken” Sinclair (complete with fake eye instead of eyepatch) is charged with going over the wall in a race against time to find the cure amidst the discovered survivors. She finds herself in a British adaptation of Escape from New York, rescuing a girl and escaping from the angry punk-rock villains who assemble in a Thunderdome that would make Tina Turner proud.

As they transition to appropriating another familiar property, they literally go through a tunnel in a mountain like Alice’s rabbit hole, then find themself at an old Scottish castle and meet requisite surly villain actor Malcom McDowell, who has taken the Society for Creative Anachronism thing a bit too far (there is a great moment where a menacing medieval figure stands next to a castle door; the sign next to him says “Gift Shop”). Eden must fight a warrior who looks as menacing as the Nazgul King, then escape - on horseback, of course - from the Medieval Times set. They then take to the desert roads in a sweet Bentley where the heroes must contend with Road Warrior style cars, buggies, and buses.

Meanwhile, things back in London have gone all 28 Weeks later, as infected viral nutjobs attack the Prime Minister with an axe. Seriously, all we were missing were some evolved Apes and a cameo by Heston. Okay, and a Terminator (though Eden DOES have that robotic eye). I feel cheated. Still, if you’re an avid film buff paying attention, you’ll note moments reminiscent of Aliens and Equilibrium, among others.

In a world where everyone cries that Hollywood is out of ideas, at least this unabashed homage feels oddly honest. It seems as if director Neil Marshall knows he’s making a cheesy action movie and - like a movie-raised kid - is recreating his favorite movie moments from doomsday films. It’s like watching “Lara Croft and the Temple of Universal Studios” (actress Rhona Mitra used to be a Lara model, BTW) as she runs from famous movie scene to famous movie scene with a snarl and girl power. Even the Indiana Jones inspired serial formula is present - you could carve this movie into about four or five episodes and expect to hear “stay tuned next week as Eden goes from the congo to… outer spaaace!” Ah, well… maybe in the sequel.

Spiritual and philosophical themes? Crap, this movie is all over the map with plague, man’s hostility against each other in variant forms, the anti-hero, a desperate hopelessness, and the need for someone to stand up and save the world. Still, the “buffet matinee” that is Doomsday doesn’t leave you enough time to truly grapple with any. Other than reminding you of the resonance of the films it stands on, there is naught here but nostalgia. If you like going on movie-themed rides at Six Flags, you might like Doomsday. It is not great cinema, but it is an amusing ride.

“The time of heroes is dead: the Christ god has killed it, leaving nothing but weeping martyrs and fear and shame.” - Beowulf, from the 2007 film

The tale of Beowulf in 2007 differs greatly from the epic, ancient Anglo-Saxon poem. What of Beowulf’s claim in the film? What of Director Robert Zemekis’ boast that his version of the tale has ”nothing to do with the Beowulf you were forced to read in junior high — it’s all about eating, drinking, killing, and fornicating.” If this is true, what does the tale inform us about where that leads?

The original story of Beowulf is about a hero, Heroic myth, the foundation for Arthurian legends, Lord of the Rings and even Star Wars according to co-writer Robert Avary. Originally written between the 7th and 12th century by monks, modern writers Neil Gaiman and Avary assumed the Monks imposed some of their own spin on it. Thus, they felt the liberty to “liberate” Beowulf from his “purer” version. In this revision, even Beowulf asks the queen to remember him “not as a hero, but as a man, fallible and flawed”.

Their “subtle” alteration doesn’t just add or tweak the tale, it BECOMES the tale. They have changed it in the most significant way POSSIBLE… and I’m fine it.

King Hrothgar boasts that “the gods will do nothing for us that we will not do for ourselves – what we need is a HERO!” Along comes the alleged hero, boasting “Mine is strength, and lust, and power! I am Beowulf!!!” Boasting, temptation, and tragedy feature largely in the audio exploration of Beowulf I was able to offer at our Seattle-based “Film and Theology” event.

James 3 says “So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.” Considering Beowulf’s dealings with the demon in this adaptation o the story, this verse rings with fresh truth in 3D imaging. The following examination of the film runs just under 30 minutes.

Listen right here by clicking the play button above.

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For those who don’t sample the audio, I’ll share a few thoughts… (more…)

I posted a written review on the Bourne movies a while back, but since the third film won two awards for aspects of audio, I thought it prudent to post the audio review I did of The Bourne Ultimatum for a live audience in December ‘07.

NOTE: this 30 minute review assumes you have seen the Bourne trilogy and contains spoilers.

Listen right here by clicking the play button above.

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For those options, click here.

If you don’t remember, last year’s Oscars were hosted by Ellen, following Hollywood’s lack of appreciation for Jon Stewart’s deprecating performance in 2006. One of her “gags” was juggling host duties with janitorial duties. Fortunately, if Ellen had anything to do with Oscars this year, it was strictly janitorial. Jon was back in full sarcastic force in 2008 for the 80th Academy Awards, helping keep the self-congratulatory, celebrity back-patting in perspective so that nobody took themselves too seriously. His opening monologue (below) hit everything from the writer’s strike to politics. Of course, some people in the audience were visibly not laughing. Oh well, it’s not Stewart’s fault they think of themselves more highly than they ought, or that their comedic comprehension doesn’t extend beyond a pratfall, or Country-Fried Home Videos. yeah, there’s your sign.

You can watch the opening monologue below:

Who really won? No Country for Old Men walked away with four Oscars including Best Picture. One of my top 10, The Bourne Ultimatum, walked away with three. For the full list, click here. Optimus Prime totally got snubbed, however, when best Visual Effects went to The Golden Crapness (er, Compass) instead of Transformers. Maybe the effects were better; after all, how would I know? Looking at box office revenue, Academy voters were the only ones who SAW The Golden Compass. Come ON, Academy. It’s true Michael Bay made us sit through Pearl Harbor, but he produced the best looking battlin’ robot movie he was BORN to make. Still, the “push your buttons, Academy” film I thought would win several Oscars wound up with nada. They apparently missed the importance of the Atonement… or maybe, in the movie’s case, it really didn’t have any.

Best speech moment? I think the Coen Brothers win for the best speech, in that they hardly said a word. Joel mused for less than 30 seconds, and Ethan didn’t even try, stepping to the microphone and saying “We, uh… (smirks) thank you very much.” No, thank YOU, Ethan, for saying all we really want to hear and not giving shout-outs to all the people somebody decided you were contractually obligated to name-drop. Marion Cotillard was also so honestly thankful it was refreshing, thanking “life” and “love” in a moment of true joy winning the Best Actress award for La Vie En Rose. Other great moments went to the presenters… like when a jaded Jack Nicholson couldn’t help but snicker over his own teleprompter-ed lines, when commenting that movies are the common link that “touches the (heh-heh-heh) ‘humanity’ in all of us.”

Still, I think Tilda Swinton stole the show when accepting her Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Michael Clayton. She took the glorious moment to remind the world that co-star George Clooney - despite all he may do demonstrate incredible acting ability - once sported a bat-suit with bat-nipples.

Finally, a word of praise for the Oscars for putting honor where honor is due. Even big stars were chased off by the “wrap it up!” music throughout the night, but when 98 year old Production Designer Robert Boyle received his honorary Oscar for more than 65 years of work on films from North by Northwest to The Thomas Crown Affair, the elder statesman was given 6 whole minutes to speak, and was done when HE was done. The show subsequently ran a little late into the obligatory Barbara Walters special, but at least a town who usually loves the young and the photogenic gave the most time to an enduring talent behind the screen.

A hint of humanity, perhaps? If they invite John Stewart back to mock them again and honor the longsuffering, perhaps I’ll tell Jack he’s a bit overly cynical.