Last night’s Baftas delivered a big shock, didn’t they? No, not Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker triumphing over James Cameron’s Avatar. I mean Vanessa Redgrave curtseying to Prince William!
Who would have thought that lefty firebrand Vanessa would be so deferential? Vanessa, not just a lifelong Trotskyist but a card-carrying member of hardcore nutters the Workers’ Revolutionary Party; the woman who denounced “Zionist hoodlums” when she won her Oscar for Julia: what was she doing bobbing before a member of the royal family?
Was she being ironic? That curtsey was certainly theatrical.
Was there a glint of mischief in her eyes when she praised Prince Charles’s “intelligence, humility and kindness” when William, the new Bafta president, presented her with the evening’s final award, the Bafta fellowship?
I’m probably projecting. Everything about her moving acceptance speech, made less than a year after the tragic death of her daughter, Natasha Richardson, radiated sincere and deep emotion.
Redgrave’s award and speech capped an impressive evening. And, yes, Hurt Locker’s trouncing of Avatar – six awards to Avatar’s two – was a surprise. And very heartening, too. As much as I enjoyed Avatar as a spectacle, it was great to see the Bafta voters not roll over in the face of the Hollywood juggernaut but instead reward an intelligent, grown-up movie.
Elsewhere, last night’s major awards were fairly predictable – wins for home players Colin Firth (A Single Man) and Carey Mulligan (An Education) for Best Actor and Actress; and wins for the much-fancied Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds) and Mo’Nique (Precious) in the supporting categories.
I expect those latter two awards to go the same way at the Oscars. As for the other big gongs, I think this could be the year when the Baftas and the Oscars diverge.
Read the full list of winners at the 2010 Orange British Film Academy Awards.
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Gee, I certainly hope that curtsey was ironic, it would be a shame to see Vanessa going back on her firebrand ways at this late date. And can I just say, what the heck are they doing getting Prince William to replace Richard Attenborough as the BAFTA chairman? I mean, did I hear that right? Cos the poor guy looked bored to tears throughout the whole event, and couldn’t they at least find someone who knows something about British film or has some tangible involvement with it?
On the subject of the awards, I’d like to give Guy Pearce a big pat on the back for his work as a presenter. Nice to see at least one actor who’d bothered to learn his lines instead of reading off the autocue!
And even though I’m a huge fan of Jeff Bridges, I think there’s a lot to be said for giving the Oscar to the person most likely to give the best acceptance speech, regardless of their performance. And in that regard, I’m rooting for Colin Firth to win Best Actor at the Oscars now… because he’s bound to put all those boring inarticulate gushers to shame. And actually his performance in A Single Man wasn’t bad either.
And you know what I thought about what Mark Kermode has rightly dubbed ‘Dances with Smurfs’ Jason, so I don’t think I need to tell you how happy I was to see Katherine Bigelow being the first woman to win the Best Director’s gong. Let’s hope she trounces her ex at the Oscars too.
So good to see Colin Firth not only get the opportunity but also the recognition – and great acceptance speech – here’s rooting for him
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