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There are spoilers galore in Nikki Finke's report on what will be in the Oscars show on Sunday, so tread carefully if that matters to you. She's unimpressed, of course: "Looks to be yet another snorefest from the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences..." From Deadline:
Here will be the highlights or lowlights depending on your point of view when it comes to the overly long and usually boring Oscars telecast: Steven Spielberg will award Best Picture ... Hilary Swank and Kathryn Bigelow will hand out Best Director ... Hosts James Franco and Anne Hathaway pop up almost every minute and make at least 5 wardrobe changes and open the show with one of those Billy Crystal-originated films putting themselves into scenes from all the 10 nominated movies ...UPDATE: A "Guest Host" will perform a monologue about 2/3s of the way into the show and the person isn't identified and every insider isn't talking -- but I bet it's Billy Crystal (which could make these Oscars worth watching)* ... Florence (of Florence And The Machine) will perform with A.R. Rahman the 127 Hours song "If I Rise" ... Celine Dion will sing "Smile" during the In Memoriam segment ... A tribute to Lena Horne will be presented by Halle Berry ...
So-called 'Scenic Transitions' to Hollywood's past will consist of virtual reality lookbacks (at the very first Oscars, the films Gone With The Wind and Lord Of The Rings, movie music from The Silent Era and Broadway Melody and THX, the first televised Academy Awards in black & white, and Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood) .
Mo'Nique and Christoph Waltz, winners last year, are definitely not coming, she confirms.
And on the beach: Joel McHale talks to Elvis Mitchell of KCRW about hosting the Spirit Awards Saturday on the sand in Santa Monica.
Previously on LA Observed:
Your Oscar presenters for this weekend