The 2014 Oscar recap

And another year of Hollywood types patting themselves on the back is finished.

Here are my opinions about the show. I won't get into who will win and who should win, because I didn't see any of the best picture nominees. (I hope to remedy this over the next couple of weeks). As you saw on my Facebook page, the only major winner I saw was "Frozen." (update: As of now, I have seen "Gravity" and "Nebraska," both great movies!) Ah, the joys of parenthood. I am here to give my opinions on the show itself.

The hostess with the mostest: Hosting the Oscars is one of the most thankless jobs on Earth. The only stuff you usually hear about the host the next day is what went wrong. Sometimes this criticism is justified, like the year Franco and Hathaway hosted. On the other hand, I agree with most other critics that Ellen DeGeneres did a very good job. She managed to walk the fine line of making fun of celebrities and the ceremony, but didn't come off as mean-spirited (except to Liza Minelli). I read that most of her bits such as the famous selfie and the pizza were not planned and off-the-cuff. It turns out that celebs like Ellen as much as the critics. The show's producer said that more celebrities agreed to be presenters because Ellen was hosting. It is a certainty that she will be back sooner or later on Oscar night.

The year of the song: Usually, the original song performances are when people get up to get a snack or use the bathroom. Not this year. There was some major star power performing these songs. Pharrell Williams performed "Happy," which was my personal favorite of the four songs. U2 did a decent job with a stripped down version of "Ordinary Love," and Karen O had a haunting quality to her voice during her performance of "The Moon Song" from "Her." That brings us to "Let It Go." What can I say about this performance? First, Travolta introduces Idina Menzel as "Adele Dazeem." After that, there was some sort of disconnect between the band and Menzel. The tempo was all over the place and so was the pitch. I am not sure who to blame here. Maybe Menzel was pissed because Travolta couldn't pronounce her name. It may have had something to do with the fact that the band was off site (bad idea). Also, this is technically a very difficult song to sing. At least they got through it (barely).

Who are you wearing?: I usually don't pay too much attention to the fashion unless someone is wearing something completely outrageous like Bjork's famous swan outfit. I didn't see anything egregious this year, but I can't say I liked Pharrell Williams' tux with shorts.

People who are no longer alive: This year's stiffs montage was very tasteful, and the great Phillip Seymour Hoffman received the coveted "anchor" spot. (I would have been happy with him or Ramis there). This was all ruined when Bette Midler walks out and sings one of the cheesiest songs ever written, adding a needless 4 minutes to the ceremony. Whose idea was this?

Best acceptance speech: First of all, I never thought I would live to see Matthew McConaughey win an Oscar for acting. I am told he deserved this, so kudos (Update: He deserved it!). I appreciated how poignant and "real" his speech was, although he seemed like he knew he was going to win and had this entire speech ready to go. Also, sadly, no one got played off the stage this year. I thought the use of the "Jaws" theme to play verbose winners off the stage last year was hilarious.

Best Picture analysis: Coming into the ceremony, it was supposedly a three-picture race between "Gravity," "American Hustle" and "12 Years a Slave." Not having seen any of the movies, I assumed "12 Years" would be a shoo-in. I am not criticizing or being sarcastic when I say that "12 Years" is culturally relevant and shows the triumph of the human spirit. Oscar voters eat this stuff up. Also, I am told this was a very good movie that doesn't pull any punches. However, there were few major upsets, and the awards were spread out among a few movies, which probably means a lot of quality films were released last year. (Update: "Gravity" and "Dallas Buyers Club" were both excellent.)

Wild and Crazy Guy: Steve Martin gets a lifetime achievement award? Isn't he a little young for this?

Best unscripted moment: Bill Murray gives a shout-out to the late Harold Ramis while presenting the award for cinematography.

Finally: God hates Leonardo DiCaprio.