That was an excellent one.

People are voting emotionally.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

This documentary is an historic look at the Oscars, from their inception till today. It is well worthy watching for fans of cinema.Originally, the Oscars did not have much prestige. But they immediately began to reflect changes in society. By the second year, they were chronicling the advent of sound in films.But this documentary does more than present historic milestones. If you are really a lover of film, you may--like me--feel tears welling up a few times, with the many clips of past stars who are no longer with us. And clips of films that have meant something to you during your lifetime.Cinema is an art form and we cherish the films that remind us of past events in our lives. Ands films that became memories we love to recall. It may be "Casablanca", "Gone with the Wind" or "Schindler's List", but there are probably films that can elicit an emotional response from each of us. Knowing that so many of my favorites are gone is enough to get me started. William Holden. Audrey Hepburn. Fred Astaire.This film does more than document the ways in which films reflected the issues of their times (issue of race, gender, HIV/Aids, blacklisting). It captures the magic, the aura and the traditions of cinema. And it celebrates those who gave us so many wonderful memories.

At a breezy 95 minutes, the entertaining TCM documentary "And the Oscar goes to..." skims across nearly 90 years of Hollywood and Academy Award history with breathless nostalgia and a few fascinating factoids. Despite a personal viewing of the televised Oscar ceremony that stretches back to the late 1950's, much had slipped from memory. Certainly Sacheen Littlefeather's refusal of Marlon Brando's Oscar, Hattie McDaniel's teary acceptance speech, and Jane Fonda receiving the Oscar for her father were familiar from countless replays. However, Dustin Hoffman's gracious speech honoring his co-nominees, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon in giddy exuberance after their screen-writing win, and Tom Hanks thanking his gay-American teachers had faded. Vanessa Redgrave's Palestinian comments, however, perhaps remain too controversial for inclusion. Also missing are any mention of how the nominations are made, who can vote, and how the winners are determined, despite several shots of an early Price Waterhouse representative.A movie buff's popcorn flick, "And the Oscar goes to..." includes the ceremony's many hosts, beginning with black-and-white footage of Bob Hope; the quintessential Oscar Night host, Hope had the style, wit, and humor to which later hosts could only aspire. With unflappable good taste, Hope seemed effortless, while others often tried too hard with mixed results. Whoopi Goldberg, however, did provide some priceless moments as host, especially her "African Queen" comment while garbed as Queen Elizabeth I. Johnny Carson and Steve Martin brought back some smiles, but other hosts are remembered with a grimace, and the sight of James Franco and Anne Hathaway was allowed to pass without comment.Director-writers Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman have inter-cut brief historical segments amongst the clips and interviews. Evidently, the Academy's original purpose was to combat unionization; but once the Academy renounced political and labor involvement, the board of governors turned to the celebration of movies as an art form, and the Oscars were born. The film also touches briefly on the 1950's black list and includes Lilian Hellman's pointed on-air comments. The spotty history of honoring African-American artists is an all-too-brief flash of clips, and a discussion of gay performances and openly LGBT actors seems to end before it begins. Epstein and Friedman are intent on avoiding controversy and focusing on nostalgia and light interviews with former nominees and winners.Oscar winners such as Cher, Ellen Burstyn, Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, and Helen Mirren among others discuss the experience of being nominated, waiting tensely in the audience, losing gracefully, and winning graciously. Helen Mirren offers some of the best insights about the inner conflict when artists compete for awards. However, despite the occasional revelations, the film is little more than a nostalgic introduction to a subject that could have filled several hours. Perhaps, if successful, "And the Oscar goes to..." could be the introductory episode in a series that explores Oscar politics and campaigning, studio power and influence, and the Oscar's increasing value to star salaries and movie grosses. A passing glance at overlooked artists (Cary Grant, Greta Garbo, Alfred Hitchcock, Deborah Kerr, Peter O'Toole) and bypassed films (Singin' in the Rain, The Searchers) could have filled an entire documentary. The extended discussion of Martin Scorsese's directorial technique on "Raging Bull" only emphasized Oscar's sometimes bizarre choices; the winners that year over Scorsese and "Raging Bull," Robert Redford and "Ordinary People," were barely mentioned. As one interviewee said, the Oscars is one big night of glittering celebration among countless days of hard non-glamorous work in grungy surroundings. However, that one-night ceremony is an event to enjoy and discuss over the next morning's coffee. The award's ephemeral fame fades quickly, and few can name last year's winners, although the vastly entertaining "And the Oscar goes to..." will help viewers remember many more of them.

There were some things I learned from this documentary which aired last light on TCM. For the first 15 years or so, the winners were announced prior to the event, which would make the ceremony anticlimactic. I suppose the attendance overall must have been lower; I mean, if I knew I wasn't chosen, then why go? It was nice to see an older Hollywood that had more class: i.e. when Clark Gable accepted his award for "It Happened One Night" he was gracious to his co-star and his director (calling him "Mr. Capra").The low point to me was the over-exposure of Jane Fonda and Cher, the latter sounded impaired when she couldn't pronounce Marvin Hamlisch's name. Fonda is--to be kind--one of the most polarizing figures and unapologetic for her radical past. It was extremely difficult to watch her.Of course, there was the predictable rant about "blacklisting" of Communist-leaning celebrities. They showed Lillian Hellman's speech during which she excoriated Senator McCarthy for the Hollywood blacklist. Miss Hellman doth protest too much. For those of you who have not been completely indoctrinated, Senator McCarthy had nothing to do with the Hollywood blacklist--this was done by the House Un-American Activities Committee. Both Senator McCarthy and Richard Nixon were used as the focal point by the left for years, probably because they were onto something about the infiltration in our government by Communists (see Alger Hiss). Do you want to know about true blacklisting? I read an article about the late Ron Silver who, after he spoke at the 2004 Republican National Convention in defense of George Bush and the War on Terrorism, stated that his phone stopped ringing about potential film roles. Blacklist indeed.

If I'm correct about this documentary debuting last night (2/1/2014) on the Turner Classic Movie Channel, then a couple of film lovers already beat me to the punch with a review here. That's a quick turnaround I must say. Anyone tuning in to the program will be rewarded with a neat if only surface skimming history of the Academy Awards, but with that in mind it was a credible effort. I particularly enjoyed some of the older clips dating back to the origins of the Academy, and to my mind it would have been a disservice not to mention the winner of the first 'Best Picture', but they did and even showed a brief clip from "Wings", a film about World War I. I was reminded of my own recollection of the first time I ever watched the Awards with Bob Hope presenting during an era when he was a perennial host. Actors appearing who voiced personal comments about the awards included Helen Mirren, George Clooney, Benicio del Toro and Cher, but it was Dustin Hoffman in an acceptance speech clip who voiced possibly the best perspective on the Oscars when he stated that even though only one film or actor can win a given category, no one should feel like a loser in such esteemed company. I guess that's a healthy way to look at it, but at the same time I wondered what would have gone through his mind if he hadn't been able to give that speech. Anyway, I'm pretty sure this will get a rerun or two on TCM, so if you have the chance, give it a look. Long time film fans will doubtless have fun trying to identify some of the former celebrities who appear in whiz time fashion from clip to clip.