Live Blogging the Oscars

The Carpetbagger is at the 82nd annual Academy Awards in Hollywood Sunday evening and will be filing updates all evening. Check back here regularly for dispatches from the red carpet, announcements of the winners and commentary from special guest stars, including A.O. Scott, the co-chief film critic of The New York Times.

• Article: ‘The Hurt Locker’ Wins Big at Oscars

Melena Ryzik: Forget mass appeal. This was the indie Oscars, when low-budget films about extreme situations swept the awards.There was history made in the wins for “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” and “The Hurt Locker,” as well as “Crazy Heart,” a film that was almost relegated to the DVD dustbin of history. The Academy’s attempt to broadcast its populism was largely torpedoed, at least when it came to statuettes; whether the move to 10 best pictures – and the inclusion of box office hits like “Avatar,” “The Blind Side” and “District 9” – will make a blip in the TV ratings, another big reason the expansion happened, we’ll know soon enough.

In the mean time, an industry whose independent side has shrunk considerably in recent years chose to celebrate exactly the movies that it’s become increasingly difficult to make. Why? Was it, as some people suggested, a form of wishful thinking, that the prestige of an award would propel financiers to take on subjects that don’t make money? Was it a trick of paperwork – the complicated new voting system – or good old Hollywood politics? Was it simply a question of art vs. commerce? The Bagger hopes to find out tonight, in the only way she knows how: by going to parties.

A.O. Scott: No great surprises in the end, but a reminder that 2009 was a pretty good year for movies, and also that sometimes the persistence of critics — who would not shut up about “The Hurt Locker” from the fall of 2008 until now — can have some effect. I don’t say this to pat myself or my colleagues on the back, but only to point out that sometimes even in Hollywood money and hype and spin are not entirely decisive. “The Hurt Locker” is an honest, tough, well-made movie. The Academy got it right: not something I’m used to saying.

“The Hurt Locker” wins for best picture, its sixth Oscar of the night.

Kathryn Bigelow, the director of “The Hurt Locker,” becomes the first woman to win an Oscar for best director. Only three women were nominated previously: Lina Wertmüller, “Seven Beauties,” 1976; Jane Campion, “The Piano,” 1993; Sofia Coppola, “Lost In Translation,” 2003.

Melena Ryzik: On the press line before the show, Ms. Bullock joked that she and Meryl Streep would next star in a romantic comedy together. “I’m going to talk to Quentin about that,” she said, referring to Mr. Tarantino.

Sandra Bullock wins her first Oscar, for best actress in “The Blind Side,” beating out the other co-favorite, Meryl Streep. Ms. Bullock now has achieved a Hollywood first: she become the first actor to win an Oscar and a Razzie in the same year.

Melena Ryzik: How did Scott Cooper, the young actor-turned-director who made “Crazy Heart,” without having directed so much as a high school play, have the guts to ask Jeff Bridges to do it?

“I wrote it for him,” Mr. Cooper said. “And I felt like, if I couldn’t get him, I probably shouldn’t make the movie. So I waited a year, I continued to be persistent, because I knew that he would be the only actor who could do it.”

On the press line, everyone wanted to know if Mr. Bridges would make a Dude reference onstage. He wouldn’t say (and didn’t when he accepted his Oscar for best actor). The Bagger recently asked him if, despite the lack of catchphrases, Bad Blake would be as lasting a character for him. “I hope so,” he said.

Melena Ryzik: Lee Daniels has cried throughout awards season — he cried when “Precious” had its premiere at Sundance last year, and he cried when the film swept the Spirit Awards on Friday. Would he be tearing up in his seat at the Oscars?

“No, because my daughter is here,” and he can’t wuss out in front of her, he said. “That’s a no-no. That’s rule No. 11.”

How did he prepare, mentally?

“I prayed, three times. Twice with my mother, and once with me.”

Mr. Daniels said he didn’t know how the extra-long route “Precious” took to get to the screen affected its path to the Oscars.

“One more one more one more,” he said of its multiple wins. “More. The more awards I get, the more visibility Precious has, and the more people will know who she is and what this film is about. But I’m ok not getting one.”

Mr. Daniels and the Bagger have grown fairly friendly over the course of the season — on the red carpet, he kissed us hello on the lips — and so we can say fairly confidently that as, he told us a few days before, he actually really really really wants to win.

A.O. Scott: Interesting see-sawing going on in the technical categories between “Avatar” and “The Hurt Locker.” “Avatar” has dominated the purely visual awards, including cinematography, which was something of a surprise. “Hurt Locker” took both sound prizes and also editing, which is frequently the harbinger of a Best Picture win.

As expected, Jeff Bridges wins for his performance in “Crazy Heart.”

A surprise winner for best foreign language film, as “The Secret in Their Eyes,” from Argentina, beats out “The White Ribbon” and “A Prophet.”

Melena Ryzik: “We are the brussels sprouts of media,” Louie Psihoyos, the director of “The Cove,” told the Bagger in describing how documentaries are treated. “The Cove” was the favorite to win, and Mr. Psihoyos and his producer, Fisher Stevens, long planned to use their 45-second acceptance speech to make a statement about the Japanese dolphin-killing zone the film exposes. He had practiced it so it was down to about 44 seconds – to allow for nerves. And then Mr. Stevens took the mic, and Mr. Psihoyos didn’t get to say anything.

Tyler Perry, joking that this evening will be the only time he’ll hear his name at the Oscars, hands the Oscar for best film editing to Bob Murawski and Chris Innis for “The Hurt Locker.”

“The Cove” wins the Oscar for best documentary feature.

Brooks Barnes: “Hey, Sugar!”

Mo’Nique, winner of the Oscar for best supporting actress, woke up a half-asleep press room by walking on stage and shouting that greeting, followed by “Hey, baby!” and a few air kisses. The Reporters Who Cover Movies, a bunch fairly annoyed with Mo’Nique for her refusal to campaign (and thus give lots of interviews), became putty in her hand.

So the questions were, shall we say, soft. Was there something meaningful about that bluish purple dress she chose? Yes: Hattie McDaniel wore a similar color when she became the first African-American actress to win an Oscar (for 1939’s “Gone With the Wind”). And the gardenia in her hair? Yes: Ms. McDaniel wore one in hers.

What would happen in cinema if more actresses appeared on screen without shaving their legs (as she did as the monstrous Mary in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”)? “They would win Oscars!” she said with a squeal.

Shocking absolutely no one, “Avatar” takes the Oscar for visual effects. Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones accept the award.

After a very long dance performance, the Oscar for best original score goes to Michael Giacchino for “Up.” It’s his first Academy Award.

Melena Ryzik: Sandra Bullock, in a lacy Marchesa gown that looked like it was suctioned on to her body, was her fun-loving self before the ceremony. She insisted she hadn’t prepared a speech in case she wins a best actress Oscar for her role in “The Blind Side.”

“I can’t prepare those things,” she said. “I’d rather just fly off the seat of my pants and see what happens. We’re supposed to entertain. I can’t entertain if something’s too rote. I don’t expect anything to happen. I expect to have a good time, I expect not to fall, and expect something to eat at the end of the night.”

When the Bagger told Ms. Bullock what the real-life inspiration for her character, Leigh Anne Tuohy, had said about the Oscar experience — “It’s a long run for a short slide” — Ms. Bullock laughed and said, “Well, I like slides.”

“Avatar” picks up some ground against the “The Hurt Locker” by winning the Oscar for best cinematography. It’s Mauro Fiore’s first Academy Award.

Paul N.J. Ottoson (his second Academy Award Sunday night) and Ray Beckett take the Oscar for best sound mixing for “The Hurt Locker.”

After an explanation of the categories sound editing and mixing by Morgan Freeman, the Oscar for sound editing goes to Paul N.J. Ottoson for “The Hurt Locker.”

Brooks Barnes: Fresh off his win for best original screenplay for “The Hurt Locker,” Mark Boal arrived in the press room with a glass of champagne, which he chugged and hid behind a speaker before taking the stage.

Questions ranged from whether he was “terrified” about his movie’s chances in the upcoming best picture contest – “I’m feeling a lot better about it now than I was 15 minutes ago,” he quipped – to the defamation lawsuit filed against him last week. (Master Sgt. Jeffrey S. Sarver, whose Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit Mr. Boal embedded with in Baghdad in 2004, claims the lead character is based on him.)

“As I’ve said before, Jeff is a brave soldier,” Mr. Boal responded carefully. “It’s not based on any one person’s story and that’s really all I have on it.”

Melena Ryzik: On the red carpet, Vera Farmiga said her role in “Up in the Air” has drawn a lot of surprising positive comments. “Women have remarked how refreshing it is for them to see a reverse tale of midlife crisis and frustration, and see a woman so in touch with her sensuality and her sexuality still possess some dignity and self-respect, and not come across as slutty,” she said.

But she said it didn’t make her much less anonymous. “I had a driver a week ago, he was asking me why I was at the Santa Barbara film festival – I was being honored. And he said how are you part of it, are you a producer? I said, no. I’m actually nominated for an Oscar, and he said, ‘oh for what? For costumes?’ No. ‘For makeup?’ No. That’s still happening to me.”

Tom Ford and Sarah Jessica Parker, well-known fashionistas, hand the Oscar for best costume design to Sandy Powell for “The Young Victoria.” It’s her third Oscar.

“Avatar” picks up its first Oscar of the evening, for art direction. The winners are Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg (art direction) and Kim Sinclair (set direction).

Melena Ryzik: A s expected as her win was, Mo’Nique was not about to let an Oscar change her. “When this is over,” she said on the red carpet, “I get back on a plane, and I go to Atlanta, and I tape ‘The Mo’Nique Show’ that goes on BET, Monday to Friday at 11 pm. It’s not a plug, it’s just what it is.”

In an expected development, Mo’Nique wins the Oscar for best supporting actress, for her role in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push” by Sapphire.”

Melena Ryzik: “It’s surprising how calm I am,” Maggie Gyllenhaal, a first-time nominee, said on the red carpet. “I don’t feel overwhelmed at all. I am enjoying it. I am – I’m hoping to have fun tonight.”

The movie she co-starred in, “Crazy Heart,” made by a first-time director, Scott Cooper, may turn out to get the biggest boost from the awards, and from the extra-long awards season.

“We came out so late, and there was really no awareness about the film” at first, Mr. Cooper said. With the longer season,” we had time to mobilize. So those extra couple of weeks really helped bring the movie to a wider audience.”

Ms. Gyllenhaal, too, thought that the move to 10 nominees made a difference for independent film. “I read almost no independent films these days,” she said, referring to scripts.

“I know they did it so the bigger movies would have a chance to get honored too,” she continued. But “so many of the movies are nominated either for best picture or for other things, are independent. ‘District 9’ and ‘Crazy Heart’ and ‘An Education’ were made for nothing. I hope that that will encourage people with money to make more independent movies.

A very emotional Geoffrey Fletcher, the screenwriter of “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire,” wins his first Oscar, for best adapted screenplay.

A.O. Scott: My first thought on the “Logorama” win was that it was a bit of surprise (even though I’d predicted it) that such a brazen, trademark-defying (and defiling) satire on corporate power would be given the prize. But then again: what is “Logorama?” A fast-moving, violent and profane action-disaster movie saturated with brand names. What could be more mainstream Hollywood than that? (Even if the movie is French).

Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow win the Oscar for best makeup for their work on “Star Trek.”

Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson win the Oscar for best live action short for “The New Tenants,” which stars Vincent D’Onofrio.

“Music by Prudence” wins the Oscar for best documentary, short subject.

Wallace and Gromit lose out to Nicolas Schmerkin for “Logorama.”

Melena Ryzik: The writers of ‘The Messenger,” Oren Moverman and Alessandro Camon, were so sure they would not win they didn’t bother to write a speech. “We told so many people to bet against us,” Mr. Camon said on the red carpet. But their film did help put its distributor, Oscilloscope, on the map. The company was started by Adam Yauch, better known as a Beastie Boy. Mr. Yauch said his fellow Beasties would be watching. To the five boroughs…

As Matthew Broderick and Molly Ringwald pay tribute to John Hughes, check out A.O. Scott’s appraisal of his career. Mr. Scott just posted to Twitter: “Gen-Xers feeling our age right now. A little choked up by the Hughes tribute.”

“The Hurt Locker” gets its first Oscar of the evening, with Mark Boal, journalist turned screenwriter, winning for best original screenplay.

Melena Ryzik: “This is all your fault,” Leigh Anne Tuohy said to the Bagger on the red carpet. “It all started with you all.” Then she aimed a finger gun at our head and pulled the trigger.

Somehow, Ms. Tuohy, the real-life inspiration for Sandra Bullock’s character in “The Blind Side,” made this seem totally fun and natural. She was referring to the fact that Michael Lewis, the author of the book that became the movie, originally wrote it as an article for The New York Times Magazine.

“This little movie has had a life of its own,” Ms. Tuohy said. I don’t think anyone ever realized anything about ‘The Blind Side’ from the beginning.”

Ms. Tuohy said she and Ms. Bullock have remained close. “We talk three or four times a week,” she said.

They had yet to see each other on the red carpet at the Oscars though. Was it intimidating to be there?
Ms. Tuohy shook her head. “It’s a long run for a short slide,” she said in her Memphis twang. “It’s a lot of stuff that’s not necessary. Interesting, is all I got to say.”

Her husband, Sean, chimed in. “But we’re having fun,” he said.

Ms. Tuohy: “They keep saying, smile and act like you’re having fun. Am I doing it yet?’

Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett win for the theme from “Crazy Heart,” “The Weary Kind.”

Melena Ryzik: Stephen Lang, who plays the mean-as-nails military man in “Avatar,” and who is just as buff (and gruff) in real life, revealed a more literary side on the red carpet, when he talked about all the many groups that have taken a stand against the movie.

“I think it’s terrific,” he said. “Oscar Wilde said it really well: he said when the critics disagree, it usually means the artist is in accord with himself.”

Pixar continues its dominance of the Oscar’s animated feature category with the victory by “Up” in a very strong year.

Given that a deal is expected to be finalized, the Walt Disney Company will restore WABC to Cablevision subscribers.

As expected, Christoph Waltz, the silkily villainous Nazi in Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds,” won the Oscar for best supporting actor.

First the Tonys. Then the Emmys. So it’s not too much of a surprise that Neil Patrick Harris has shown up for the opening.

For the best (and worst) of what the celebrities are wearing Sunday, click here.

A.O. Scott: Usually I avoid the prediction racket, but this year is an exception.

I’ve laid down my markers in every category as part of the “Out-Pick the Critics” contest for “At the Movies,” the weekly syndicated review program I co-host with Michael Phillips of The Chicago Tribune. I’m torn between the desire to be right and the sincere desire that some viewer will be smarter and win a 46-inch hi-definition television set.

So here are my calls for tonight — some favorites, some long(ish) shots, some stabs in the dark. Based on hunches, rumors and close readings of chicken entrails. I submit them for your mockery and derision, and possibly also, at the end of the night, your amazement.

Art Direction: Avatar
Visual Effects: Avatar
Cinematography: The Hurt Locker
Costume Design: The Young Victoria
Documentary Feature: The Cove
Documentary Short: The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant
Film Editing: The Hurt Locker
Foreign Language Film: The White Ribbon
Makeup: Star Trek
Original Score: Avatar
Original Song: Almost There
Short Film (animated): Logorama
Short Film (live action): Kavi
Sound Editing: Avatar
Sound Mixing: Avatar
Adapted Screenplay: Precious
Original Screenplay: The Hurt Locker
Supporting Actress: Monique
Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz
Actor: Jeff Bridges
Actress: Meryl Streep
Animated Feature: The Princess and the Frog
Director: Kathryn Bigelow
Picture: Avatar

Melena Ryzik: Does George Clooney think the populism the Academy is going for this year with 10 best picture nominees is good for filmmaking?

“I don’t think it’s good for filmmaking. I think it’s probably very good for the show. You can get more people on it. I think it’s sort of like making the basket bigger in the basketball court so more points get scored.”

Paula Schwartz:As the final preparations were being made for his annual Oscar watching party, Elton John, wearing heavily sequined blue shoes and matching glasses, pulled out a fistful of ostrich egg-sized diamond rings and chose a few to bedeck his hands. The rest of the baubles he handed to an assistant.

Mr. John and his partner, David Furnish, are not leaving anything to chance. They went into the empty dining room to personally check that the place settings and floral arrangements of the ornately decorated orange and yellow tableclothed tables were perfect. Then he sat down, on the steps with Mr. Furnish to watch the red carpet on ABC right before dinner starts at 5 pm West Coast time.

Melena Ryzik: Colin Firth, star of Tom Ford’s “A Single Man,” summed up how first-time nominees are feeling after the long slog of the season:

“It’s great, I know that. It’s like someone fired me out of a cannon in September, and I left the earth’s atmosphere sometime around November, and I’m just circling Pluto right now to what I’m sure is going to be quite a big thump tomorrow.”

Brooks Barnes: Traditionalists worried when the Academy hired the director Adam Shankman, a judge on “So You Think You Can Dance” on Fox, as a co-producer of this year’s Oscars. Visions of Debbie Allen’s disastrous interpretive dance number – remember that tap routine with “Schindler’s List” as the backdrop? – grew worse when Mr. Shankman started talking in interviews about the “aggressive” number he and eight assistant choreographers had cooked up. The world will soon judge how successful he was, but a glance at the official program indicates that he wasn’t kidding about the aggressive part. Listed are 36 “opening dancers” and 33 “score suite dancers,” including people who go by names like Ivan “Flipz” Velez and Daniel “Cloud” Campos.

Melena Ryzik: Quentin Tarantino, the mastermind behind “Inglourious Basterds,” had a pizza and cupcake party at his house before the red carpet spectacle. He played D.J., spinning 70s music – better to party at home than sit in a limo, he said.

“This is not a day to rest,” he said. “Tomorrow, we all rest.”

Melena Ryzik: With the sun finally peeking through after an on-and-off drizzle, the celebrities are enjoying the finale of the awards marathon in a bit of glow. Many first-time nominees still seemed surprised that they had actually made it after a longer-than-usual season.

“‘I’m not sure,” said Vera Farmiga, nominated for best supporting actress in “Up in the Air,” when asked whether the extra attention of this year was worth it. But, she added, she hoped that it would make it easier to get the kind of films she’s interested in made. “There are five to six projects I’m attached to that are wrestling with getting financing. I hope it will shake things up.”

Brian Stelter and Brooks Barnes: Cablevision and The Walt Disney Company traded barbs Sunday after WABC was removed from the company’s cable television line-ups, a consequence of a failed contract negotiation. Many of the cable provider’s three million customers are wondering whether they will be able to watch the Academy Awards telecast on Sunday night, and some have sought alternative ways to do so.

In an e-mail message to customers around 5:50 p.m., Cablevision suggested that in lieu of ABC’s broadcast, people could follow the red carpet arrivals via E!, the Associated Press and the the Los Angeles Times. Read more on Media Decoder…

Melena Ryzik: Mo’Nique has been getting a lot of awards this season, so does she feel pressure to say something different if she wins a best supporting actress for her role in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire.” “I feel no pressure at all. When you talk about love, how can there be pressure? I think more people should try it.”

Anna Kendrick, nominated for her supporting role in “Up in the Air,” brought her mother as her date. “She definitely pulled the, ‘I carried you for 9 months, I’m going to the Oscars ‘card.”

“Up in the Air” had been on the circuit for a long time – too long? “I’m definitely looking forward to having a biggest plate of mac & cheese i can find tonight.” On Tuesday, Ms. Kendrick will head to Vancouver to resume shooting an upcoming “Twlight” movie. “This part of the job is the scariest thing I’ve ever done. I’m excited to have some perspective.”