2014 Oscar Afterthoughts

Well, James Franco and Anne Hathaway can breathe a huge sigh of relief. Their thought to be insurmountable Oscar worst stint as co-hosts has been topped this year by Ellen Degeneres, a returning emcee following a seven year hiatus who set a new standard for bland, easy, and unfunny humor in her hosting duties. Cap that off with an entirely predictable award show bestowed by a humorless, MTV geared smattering of presenters, it all and all wound up being the perfect way to top off a horrendous year in movies. Almost every deserving nominee went home empty-handed while each contender expected to win did. This is the first year in memory where no surprises were to be had in major categories and, to make matters worst, none of the winners had anything intelligent or memorable to say. Exactly who's idea was it to forgo any attempt at humor whatsoever during the telecast and who's bright idea was it to bring back performances of all four Best Song nominees (although it was a blessing that they weren't mic'd up properly)? In wracking my brain to find agreeable qualities to attribute to tonight's show, it's sad that all I can come up with is that its producers did their damnedest to keep things brief.