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 The Fox Searchlight movie's Mexican filmmaker, Guillermo del
Toro, won best director, dashing the hopes of a rare win by a
woman or a black filmmaker.
The movie about a mute cleaning woman who falls in love with a
strange river creature - a fable about the mistreatment of the
powerless - had gone into the ceremony with a leading 13
nominations, and won a total of four Academy Awards.
It won despite a plagiarism lawsuit filed in Los Angeles last
month claiming its unusual plot was lifted from a 1969 American
play. Del Toro has denied ever seeing or hearing about the play.
Greta Gerwig's independent mother-daughter tale "Lady Bird" came
away empty-handed while Universal Pictures' racial satire "Get
Out" got just one award - for original screenplay - despite
speculation that its bold take on modern race relations might
take the top prize.
"I stopped writing this movie about 20 times because I thought
it was impossible. I thought it wasn't going to work," "Get Out"
director and screenwriter Jordan Peele said.
As expected, Britain's Gary Oldman won his first Oscar for
playing World War Two leader Winston Churchill in Warner Bros.'
"Darkest Hour," while Frances McDormand's woman in a vengeful
fury was a popular best actress winner for Fox Searchlight's
dark comedy "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri."
McDormand, 60, whose character seemed to channel the anger of
the #MeToo movement that has dominated Hollywood and beyond,
asked all the female nominees - across directing,
cinematography, costumes and some 20 other categories - to stand
up in the audience and be recognized.
"Look around ladies and gentlemen," she urged the glittering
crowd in the Dolby Theater. "Because we all have stories to tell
and projects we need financed.".
Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel tackled Hollywood's sexual misconduct
scandal with pointed jokes on a night that became a platform for
activists on issues ranging from gun violence and the Black
Lives Matter movement to sexism and immigration. Activists also
called for underrepresented filmmakers to seize on the momentum
of the past year.
Kimmel quipped that the tall golden Oscar statue itself was "the
most beloved and respected man in Hollywood."
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"He keeps his hands where you can see them, he never says a rude
word and most importantly he has no penis at all. He is literally a
statue of limitations. That's the kind of man we need more of," he
said.
SMASHING BARRIERS
Last year's embarrassing envelope mix-up over the best picture
winner was turned into a running joke, with Warren Beatty and Faye
Dunaway returning for a second year to announce the top prize.
The two veterans got a standing ovation, as Beatty deadpanned, "It's
so nice seeing you again."
Elsewhere, awards were spread around, recognizing first-timers, LGBT
issues and films inspired by other cultures.
Gay romance "Call Me by Your Name" won best adapted screenplay, "A
Fantastic Woman," Chile's groundbreaking story about a transgender
woman won best foreign language film; and Mexican-inspired "Coco"
was named best animated feature.
Sam Rockwell and Allison Janney took home their first Oscars for
their supporting roles in "Three Billboards" and independent
ice-skating movie "I, Tonya," respectively.
Rap artist Common and singer Andra Day brought the leaders of
several activist movements, including #MeToo and Black Lives Matter,
onstage for a performance of their Oscar-nominated song "Stand Up
for Something."
And director Ava DuVernay, Salma Hayek, Kumail Nanjiani and others
spoke in a video segment about progress in smashing barriers in the
industry around racism and sexism.
Kenyan-Mexican actress Lupita Nyong'o and Pakistani-American
Nanjiani also spoke out on behalf of America's so-called Dreamers -
hundreds of thousands of young people whose parents brought them to
the United States illegally, and whose fate is now uncertain.
"Dreams are the foundation of Hollywood and dreams are the
foundations of America," Nyong'o said.
(Additional reporting by Nichola Groom, Lisa Richwine and Alex
Dobuzinskis; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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