The Oscars 2012

I realize that Oscar season 2012 is over and done with, but I hope it's not too late to share some photos from a tiny Oscar party we hosted and mention some Oscar-nominated films that we've seen since the award show.

Apparently I'm looking for any excuse for a party these days, but I will admit to getting excited for the Oscars every year. The red carpet is the best part, of course, but the host usually entertains me (either for better or for worse), and I think we're all guilty of waiting for a disastrous acceptance speech. In any case, I'm lucky to have a couple girlfriends on hand that seem to be just as giddy as me about the Academy Awards.

Don't think we're posing on a tile floor. Oh no.
That's a red "carpet"/towel, which just so happens
to have the name of a CPA firm embroidered on it.
Because where would the awards show be without the auditors?

Notice the little gold Oscar statue held (and so carefully crafted by) MO above? Make a mental note of that guy. He becomes important later on.

MO also took care of each of us in the form of Oscar swag-filled goodie bags that rivaled those of the Hollywood stars.

In my personalized bag, I even got some custom jewelry, crafted by MO herself!

For many more jewelry creations, visit www.mayaogorzalek.com.

One concern we had with a party theme as frivolous as the Oscars was how to keep our male counterparts entertained. It actually ended up being pretty simple. During the red carpet event, we sent them out to the grill to prepare dinner. That way, we weren't stuck in the kitchen, and they weren't stuck on the couch watching Ryan Seacrest interview all the gowns.

Dinner was delicious, by the way. Thanks guys.

 The second way everyone stayed engaged throughout the entire event was through two interactive games: Oscar Bingo...

We kept a sharp lookout for noteworthy events like Tom Cruise presenting an award, 
green evening gown sightings, and use of note cards during the acceptance speeches.

...and Oscar Ballots.

The winner of the second game got to keep the Oscar statue, pictured above.

As you can see below, everyone kept their guesses close by during the event, and even awards like Best Sound Editing became interesting when you had a vote on the line.

Since the party, we've made a list of Oscar-nominated films that we're interested in seeing, and a group of us have viewed a couple of the films. Our list of Oscar films (in no particular order) include:

1. The Help  (The book was phenomenal, so the movie better deliver)
2. War Horse  (Saw it: a beautifully-filmed movie, but is affection for a horse that realistic?)
3. The Descendants  (George Clooney is in it - no further justification needed)
4. The Artist  (Will it be weird to watch a silent film with a group?)
5. Moneyball  (Saw it: sports + Brad Pitt = covers everyone)
6. The Iron Lady  (I can just picture Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher; of course, she won the Oscar)
7. A whole bunch I don't know much about:
    a. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
    b. Hugo
    c. Midnight in Paris  (If that's not a magical title, I don't know what is)
    d. The Tree of Life  [Another Brad Pitt film (but he wasn't nominated)]
    e. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo  (Not sure I'll be able to stomach this one)
    f. My Week with Marilyn
    g. Jane Eyre

I even developed a short movie review sheet that each viewer fills out after watching one of the feature films above. Check out the free download here.

So, to the readers out there: Are there any 2011 Oscar-nominated films that you would add to or subtract from the list above? What did you think of the movies we've watched (War Horse and Moneyball)? Did anyone have an Oscar party, or are we the only nutty ones? Share in the comments below!





Disclaimer: The content above does not constitute a list of movie recommendations, and readers, particularly young ones, should consider each movie critically before viewing.