The 2020 Oscars were on Sunday, February 9, and the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, California was filled with movie stars and recording artists, including Brad Pitt, Joaquin Phoenix, Janelle Monae, and Billie Eilish. Many were surprised about some of the academy’s choices this year. This year’s show included lots of powerful performances, snubs, and shocking surprises.

Joaquin Phoenix won best actor in a leading role from his remarkable work in the movie Joker. Brad Pitt won best actor in a supporting role for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Renée Zellweger won best actress in a leading role for Judy. Laura Dern won best actress in a supporting role for A Marriage Story.

One of the most interesting wins in Oscar history was South Korean film, Parasite, which won Best Picture and best international feature film. Parasite‘s director Bong Joon-Ho took home Best Director. Parasite has a 99% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and has made over $202.3 million according to IMDB.

After the show, AIC students voiced their opinions about the show and who they thought should have won. Xavier Ramos said, “I haven’t even heard of the movie Parasite, and I can’t believe it won over Joker for best picture. I never agree with these types of award shows, and this is exactly why.”

Joker‘s star, Joaquin Phoenix took home the Oscar for best actor in a leading role ahead of Leonardo DiCaprio in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and Adam Driver in Marriage Story. Phoenix took the movie Joker to another level. According to IMDB’s Boxofficemojo website, Joker has made over $738 million dollars so far and has a 8.6/10 rating.

DiCaprio might have lost out, but his co-star Brad Pitt was recognized for the great support he gave him in the movie. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood has made over $389.3 million and has a 7.7/10 rating.

Some feel the only nominee of color in an acting role, Cynthia Ervio, was overlooked. Ariyon Mickle said, “I loved the movie Harriet. It shows what my people have been through and it shows African American history. The film was amazing and I still think that Cynthia Ervio should have won best actress in a leading role.”

Before the 2020 Oscars kicked off, the big talk was about there being no host for the ceremony. This is the second year in a row that this exciting and prestigious event had no host. Last year, Kevin Hart was supposed to host, but he stepped aside after some controversial anti-gay tweets resurfaced. He later made a statement apologizing to everyone in the LGBTQ community. After last year’s show ran smoothly without a host, the Academy decided to have a hostless show again this year.

Janelle Monae opened up the Oscars with a performance of Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood theme song, then transitioned to her song “Come Alive.” Monae’s performance was filled with laughs, memories, and flowers. The performance had dancers wearing outfits to represent different movies from the past year. There were dancers who wore masks that represented the Joker and many other influential films. 

Monae was accompanied by Billy Porter during this iconic Oscars moment. The best word to describe Janelle Monae’s performance is energetic. Monae was able to control the crowd with her energy and had the audience singing and clapping their hands. She even had Leonardo DiCaprio singing during her performance.

Past hosts of the Oscars Chris Rock and Steve Martin got the crowd going. The two traded jokes, many of which were at the expense of people sitting in the audience.

One of the most powerful performances of the night was brought to us by Billie Eilish. During the “In Memoriam” portion of the ceremony, Billie Eilish sang “Yesterday” by the Beatles. The Memoriam honored and recognized actors, actresses, writers, producers, directors, clothing designers, hairdressers, and many other people associated with the film industry who passed away this year.

Some notable people in the Memoriam were John Singleton, Doris Day, Diahann Carroll, and John Witherspoon. Eilish’s angelic voice went perfectly with the Memoriam and brought the audience to tears. Many actors and actresses in the audience shared in a solemn reflection about the deceased, many of whom were trailblazers for the industry. 

Student Pelumi Johnson said, “Billie’s performance was so beautiful and it almost brought tears to my eyes. I think they picked the right person to sing for the Memoriam and I’m glad it was her.”

Overall, the Memoriam was the most powerful segment of the show, and the 2020 Oscars were a success.

For the full list of winners, go to https://oscar.go.com/winners/. Some AIC students did not necessarily agree with the winners that the academy selected, and they voiced their opinions. What do you think?