Highlights From the Oscars: Peter Farrelly ’79 Wins Big

by The Cowl Editor on February 28, 2019


Film and Television


by Joshua Carone ’22 A&E Staff

People already missing football finally had something to watch last Sunday night, as a controversial awards season finally came to a close with the 91st Academy Awards. The buildup to this year’s Oscars could have been a movie itself, a host excommunicating himself from the show, several contentious Best Picture nominees, and more importantly, people wondering if Bradley Cooper would in fact channel Jackson Maine for his duet with Lady Gaga.

With all this in mind, here is a recap of some of the most memorable moments of Sunday’s festivities:

Spike Lee Finally Wins an Oscar: Although it was not for a major category, the Academy finally gave the celebrated director his first win in the Adapted Screenplay category for BlacKkKlansman. With the Knicks having an abysmal season, at least Lee will have something to cheer about for the rest of the winter.

A King and Queen Claim Royal Victories: Regina King delivered a heartfelt speech following her win for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her depiction of a grieving mother in Barry Jenkins’ If Beale Street Could Talk, dedicating the win to her own mother.

Olivia Colman picked up her first Oscar with her first nomination for Best Actress as the hilarious Queen Anne in The Favourite.

Smiling with His Own Teeth: Mr. Robot star and possible actual robot Rami Malek won Best Actor as Freddie Mercury in the highly disputed biopic Bohemian Rhapsody. Although the film itself has split critics and audiences, Malek’s imitation of the musical legend was undeniably amazing, fake teeth and all.

He also managed to steal audience’s hearts with a romantic speech gushing over his on-screen and real-life girlfriend, Lucy Boynton.

Roma Cleans Up: Representing the hated-by-Hollywood streaming service industry, Netflix’s Roma took home three Academy Awards, including Best Foreign Film and Best Director win for Alfonso Cuarón.

A film that received potential Best Picture buzz, the beautifully shot black and white picture seems to lead the frontier of streaming service movies, leaving many to wonder if theaters and cinemas are becoming a thing of the past.

Green Book Drives Away with Best Picture: In a highly-debated category with no clear winner, Providence College alum Peter Farrelly’s ’79 Green Book ended the contention with the Best Picture win. Leading up to Sunday night, the role-reversed version of Driving Miss Daisy had faced backlash due to the troubling pasts of both Farrelly and writer Nick Vallelonga, the pair issuing apologies prior to Sunday night.

PHOTO COURTESY OF PROVIDENCE COLLEGE ON INSTAGRAM

However, it seems the chemistry between the film’s stars, Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali, was enough to walk away with the gold figurine.