"Some birds are not meant to be caged."
"You don't even want to call me Godfather!"
"While you're young, write down and publicize your memorable experiences."
"Never be homesick, never go home."
"One day we will look back and feel that saving private ryan was a masterpiece we completed in these war-torn times."
"I would do anything for you, except betray my own people."
"When God closes a door, He opens a window somewhere else."
"Freedom!"
"With you, the world is more interesting."
At the Kodak Theatre, special effects diamonds fell onto the big screen, each diamond representing a movie.
On the massive surface of each diamond, vivid movie characters told their stories.
the shawshank redemption, Papillon, Cinema Paradiso, saving private ryan, ben-hur, The Sound of Music, Braveheart, the silence of the lambs.
Eventually, the diamonds fell one by one, piling up into a small mountain, and in the center of the mountain was the little golden man symbolizing the Oscar.
Then the host walked onto the stage. This year, the position was filled by actor, screenwriter, and director Steve Martin.
He had been in the film industry for over twenty years, was a well-known comedian, and an old friend to many in the audience. Seeing him appear, many people stood up and applauded, giving him due respect.
The camera panned across the audience, and one by one, celebrities stood up. Eric's seat was arranged in the first row, close to the aisle.
He didn't know Steve Martin, so he just clapped symbolically. Suddenly, the camera slid to him.
There was nothing he could do but grin apologetically, stand up from his seat, and clap enthusiastically.
Perhaps the organizing committee considered his status—he didn't have a film crew and it was his first time attending—so they arranged a prominent seat in the first row. But Eric actually didn't want to sit there.
Because his handsome face would frequently attract the camera, which made him very uncomfortable.
"Shit! Who arranged my seat? These Academy guys!"
After applauding, everyone sat back down.
Steve Martin smiled and said, "Thank you, thank you, thank you all. As you all know, I didn't host last year because no one wanted me."
Light laughter rippled through the audience.
"But this year I'm back on this stage, and I know it's because of your support—except for France and Germany!"
As soon as he said this, the audience burst into laughter, as it was a blatant jest about the war.
Although the United States claimed to have gathered 49 countries to launch a military strike against Iraq, so far, only the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Poland were actually participating.
Meanwhile, Germany and France, both EU members and usually close allies of the US, expressed opposition and publicly condemned the action, which was quite a slap in the face.
"Look at you all, producers, directors, screenwriters, and actors. If we were trapped here, I'd eat you in order!"
Laughter erupted again in the audience. This was also a jest, poking fun at the power dynamics within a film crew; generally, the producer is the boss, and actors are at the bottom.
At the same time, the camera also focused on producers and directors like Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Harvey Weinstein, and Eric.
"Damn it, why am I in the same shot as that Weinstein guy!" Eric grumbled while clapping.
"Shit! Why do I have to be in the same frame as that MGM brat? He doesn't deserve to sit in that position!" Harvey Weinstein thought to himself, laughing heartily.
Ever since The Coopers took over MGM, they seemed to be at odds with Miramax, either clashing over release dates or cutting into box office numbers.
Once was a coincidence, twice was a coincidence, but after several consecutive occurrences, the Weinstein Brothers naturally felt they were being deliberately targeted.
But the truth was, The Coopers hadn't specifically targeted him.
Although Eric was aware of the guy's character, if the other party didn't provoke him, he wouldn't idly make an enemy of himself, especially since Disney was behind Miramax.
So, one could only say the Weinstein Brothers were unlucky. The release schedule was so crowded, and I couldn't afford to wait, so everyone just had to compete.
What! You're telling me to avoid you and go head-to-head with the lord of the rings? Why the hell don't you do it?
Especially after the release date of transformers was announced, the tension between The Coopers and the Weinstein Brothers had gradually ignited.
On stage, Steve Martin continued with his witty remarks.
"This is the 75th Oscar. Looking back, the first Oscar ceremony was held just down the street, at the Roosevelt Hotel."
"You can go out and see it. Just walk down Hollywood Boulevard, then bypass the prostitutes—I mean, Pretty Woman—and you'll see it. In 1929, all the big stars gathered there, except for John Wadeses."
This time, the audience laughed even harder, and the camera even focused on several Black celebrities, who were clapping with wide smiles.
The reason was that, in those days, Black people were prohibited from attending the Oscars, so this joke was naturally a jab at racism.
After a few political and social jokes, Steve Martin reined it in a bit. After all, it was wartime, and he started to poke fun at celebrities.
Ben Affleck, Will Smith, Tobey Maguire, and others were all made fun of.
"Nicole Kidman, she's here today. I suddenly remembered a rumor about her: she always wore a fake nose for acting, except for the hours."
The camera immediately cut to the hours cast. Nicole Kidman, to embody the character as closely as possible during filming, had made adjustments to her nose.
Many viewers said they couldn't recognize her in the movie, which sparked a heated discussion at the time.
Teased, Nicole Kidman covered her mouth with one hand and lowered her head, waving the other hand to signal, "Stop joking about me."
Her co-stars, Meryl Streep and Julianne Moore, clapped and laughed heartily.
At this year's Oscars, the hours was probably the most talked-about film, with all three female leads nominated, leading to an internal competition.
Nicole Kidman was vying with Julianne Moore for Best Actress, while Julianne Moore was competing with Meryl Streep for Best Supporting Actress.
Ironically, the films for which they were nominated were all different: Nicole Kidman for the hours, Julianne Moore for Far from Heaven, and Meryl Streep for Adaptation.
"Nicole, don't lower your head, because your look is excellent."
"And then there's our new leader, Eric Cooper, the director of the much-anticipated transformers, and there's a mystery surrounding him: does he actually know how to direct?"
The camera focused on Eric for the second time, and light laughter rippled through the audience. He could hear Peter Jackson laughing the loudest.
In such a situation, one naturally had to do something, either cooperate with some funny gestures or politely decline like Nicole Kidman.
But Eric certainly wouldn't back down. He pointed to his eyes at the camera, then gave two thumbs up.
The meaning was clear: just you wait, I'll show you.
OH!
Seeing Eric make that gesture, the initially light laughter in the venue immediately erupted into excitement.
No one dislikes a spectacle, and the bigger the celebrity spectacle, the more people enjoy it. To the stars present, Eric Cooper's statement was incredibly interesting.
If the movie turned out well, even if it was just passable, it would be enough to silence the media.
But if it didn't turn out well, then sorry, today's events, including all your past boasts, would be dug up and ridiculed. The media wouldn't care about your status; they would mock you if they saw fit.
At this moment, many people secretly scoffed, such as Harvey Weinstein and Jack Nicholson. Rich second-generation heirs truly take things for granted, treating filmmaking like a game.
But there were also those who felt that young people should be like this, full of vitality and challenge, such as Nicole Kidman, Adrien Brody, Edward Norton, and Natalie Portman.
Besides, Eric was so handsome, what's wrong with being a little arrogant?
If I had his wealth and looks, I'd be even more arrogant than him.
On stage, Steve Martin laughed heartily. He was just teasing, but he didn't expect the other party to take the bait.
"Eric Cooper, he has accepted the challenge from those media. 'I'll show you, remember this day!'"
"The happiest thing in the world is to strive for an ideal!"
Following that, Steve Martin teased a series of people, events, organizations, and hot topics, including homosexuals, the mafia, and Roman Polanski.
Compared to twenty years later, public opinion was indeed relatively more lenient now.
"Alright, I know my jokes are terrible, so let's end it here. Please welcome Cameron Diaz to present the award for Best Animated Feature Film."
To the melodious background music, the beautiful and stunning Cameron Diaz walked to the center of the stage.
"As times progress, animation technology gets better and better. In the past, parents took their children to watch; now, children take their parents to watch, and everyone, young and old, enjoys it."
"Now I will present the Best Animated Feature Film award. The nominated films are Ice Age by Chris Wedge, Lilo & Stitch by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron by Kelly Asbury and Lorna Cook, Treasure Planet by Ron Clements, and Spirited Away by Hayao Miyazaki."
Cameron Diaz opened the white envelope and announced, "The winner is Spirited Away, Hayao Miyazaki."
Applause immediately erupted in the theater. However, Hayao Miyazaki refused to attend due to his opposition to the US invasion of Iraq, so the award was accepted on his behalf.
Next, Keanu Reeves presented the Best Visual Effects award, which was won by Gollum from the lord of the rings.
Best Supporting Actor was won by Chris Cooper for Adaptation.
Best Editing, Best Sound, Best Costume Design, and Best Art Direction were all won by chicago.
The chicago crew also became the busiest crew so far, with their public relations efforts clearly paying off. Harvey Weinstein kept laughing heartily.
The ceremony also included song and dance performances and other entertainment, but honestly, Eric found it a bit boring.
Just like his dad said, if you don't have a film, why go there? Sitting for three or four hours makes your butt sore.
Moreover, some uninteresting technical awards didn't attract attention. Everyone was waiting for the major awards later.
Seeing Eric yawn, Nicolas Cage, sitting next to him, leaned his head over.
"A bit boring, right?"
Eric looked at him in surprise.
"More boring than windtalkers, right?"
"Pfft."
The sudden banter made Eric lose his composure and burst out laughing, immediately drawing everyone's attention.
The two quickly adjusted their posture, but the photographer was incredibly sharp and promptly captured the moment.
Just then, it was time to present the Best Supporting Actress award, and Matthew McConaughey walked onto the stage. This somewhat significant award drew everyone's attention back.
The Best Supporting Actress award was once again won by Catherine Zeta-Jones for chicago. She went on stage to accept the award with a big belly.
By this point, chicago had already won 5 Oscars, making it the biggest winner on the field.
Then Eminem made his mark, with the theme song "Lose Yourself" from 8 Mile winning the Oscar for Best Original Song, becoming the first rap song to win an Oscar.
At this point, the awards ceremony reached the Best Foreign Language Film segment.
This year's nominees included The Crime of Father Amaro from Mexico, Hero from China, The Man Without a Past from Finland, Zus & Zo from the Netherlands, and Nowhere in Africa from Germany.
As the camera panned, Eric also looked over. Zhang Yimou was sitting with two people he didn't recognize.
As for actors like Jet Li, Tony Leung, and Maggie Cheung, not a single one was seen. Although each film crew had limited slots, not bringing a single actor was truly baffling.
Eric already knew the outcome: Hero lost at the Oscars, and the Best Foreign Language Film was awarded to the German film Nowhere in Africa.
Frankly, Eric greatly admired the film Hero. It was indeed well-made, especially the color palette and grand scenes, maintaining Zhang Yimou's consistent standard.
However, in this era, it was heavily criticized for its thin plot and fragmented editing, which Eric felt was a bit unfair.
In the camera, as the results were announced, Zhang Yimou also applauded. As for what he was thinking inside, no one could know.
Following that, several more technical awards were given out, and the ceremony reached its climax.
Best Actor was won by Adrien Brody, who beat Jack Nicholson, Daniel Day-Lewis, Michael Caine, and Nicolas Cage, becoming the youngest Oscar Best Actor at 29 years old.
Adrien Brody was incredibly excited, likely not expecting to win. After going on stage, he enthusiastically kissed presenter Halle Berry, leaving her stunned.
He then gave an acceptance speech and, as he had said in a pre-event interview, called for an end to war and world peace.
The theater erupted in cheers, offering congratulations to the youngest Best Actor.
Adrien Brody's win was definitely an upset. Anyone with an eye could see that it was influenced by the war, a benefit of being in the right place at the right time.
After Best Actor, it was time for the Best Actress award.
Denzel Washington strode onto the stage. As he spoke, the big screen began to play clips of past Best Actress winners, many of whom were even sitting in the audience.
Katharine Hepburn, Vivien Leigh, Ingrid Bergman, Audrey Hepburn, Meryl Streep, Jodie Foster, Susan Sarandon, Halle Berry, Gwyneth Paltrow.
Well, the last one can be omitted.
Nominated for the Oscar for Best Actress were: "Salma Hayek for Frida, Diane Lane for Unfaithful, Julianne Moore for Far from Heaven, Renée Zellweger for chicago, and Nicole Kidman for the hours."
On the big screen, five glamorous women each occupied a corner.
Denzel Washington gently opened the envelope: "The winner, by a nose, is Nicole Kidman."
Instantly, the theater erupted in thunderous applause, and those around Nicole Kidman offered hugs and congratulations.
Her smile was uncontrollable, and a few tears sparkled in the corners of her eyes. She stood up, embraced her crew members, and then walked through the crowd towards the stage.
But just then, an accident happened.
As Kirsten Dunst once said, tripping is every actress's greatest enemy.
Perhaps she was too excited, Nicole Kidman walked very fast, and her heel inadvertently stepped on the black skirt hem. She instantly lost her balance and fell to the ground.