Sunday Reading: Helium by Rudy Francisco

I’ve picked up a few poetry books recently, but this is the first one I really sunk into. Rudy Francisco is a great spoken word poet winning multiple poetry slams, as well as an author of four books of poetry. I actually bought his newest book Helium after listening to a performance of one of the poems from this book. It was so powerful, so moving, I immediately had to get my hands on this book and read more of his work.

The 2014 Oscars have few surprises (+ Full Winner List)

Tonight’s Oscars might not have had many surprises but it was enjoyable. Ellen Degeneres brought some humour in her opening monologue but nothing over the top. The best moment of her opening was when she hinted flat out brought up Academy racism by saying that if 12 Years a Slave didn’t win Best Picture, then they were all racists. Some may be none too pleased with that comment but I absolutely loved it. Good news? It won.

Ellen’s running gag of the night was when she talked about ordering pizza. The surprise was about half an hour later when a couple pizzas actually showed up. It was great to see Brad Pitt and Kevin Spacey walking around helping to hand out pizzas and paper plates. Also interesting seeing them all eating off paper plates in those fancy outfits. Later on, Ellen went around with Pharrell’s hat getting cash from Harvey Weinstein, Brad Pitt, Kevin Spacey and others to cover the pizza costs. I wonder what she did with that money? Also wonder what she did with Lupita Nyong’o’s lip gloss…

In the end, I’d say it was a successful evening. Most of my picks won, with the only disappointment being for best actor. Will Ellen host again? We don’t know yet but I wouldn’t be upset about it. She seemed to infuse a youthfulness into the show which had been missing in the past few years. Then again, I also wouldn’t say no to a Jim Carry hosting gig.

Best picture — “12 Years a Slave”
Best director — Alfonso Cuaron — “Gravity”
Best actor — Matthew McConaughey — “Dallas Buyers Club”
Best actress — Cate Blanchett — “Blue Jasmine”
Best supporting actor — Jared Leto — “Dallas Buyers Club”
Best supporting actress — Lupita Nyong’o — “12 Years a Slave”
Best original screenplay — “Her” — Spike Jonze
Best adapted screenplay — “12 Years a Slave” — John Ridley
Best animated feature — “Frozen”
Best foreign feature — “The Great Beauty” (Italy)
Best music (original song) — “Frozen”: “Let it Go” — Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez
Best music (original score) — “Gravity” — Steven Price
Best cinematography — “Gravity” — Emmanuel Lubezki
Best costume design — “The Great Gatsby” — Catherine Martin
Best documentary feature — “20 Feet From Stardom”
Best film editing — “Gravity” — Alfonso Cuaron, Mark Sanger
Best makeup and hairstyling — “Dallas Buyers Club” — Adruitha Lee and Robin Mathews
Best production design — “The Great Gatsby” — Catherine Martin and Beverley Dunn
Best visual effects — “Gravity”
Best sound mixing — “Gravity”
Best sound editing — “Gravity”
Best short film, live action — “Helium”
Best short film, animated — “Mr. Hublot”
Best documentary short — “The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life”

Oscars 2014 — Best Live Action Short

These shorts run from light-hearted comedy to deadly serious dramas to an engaging thriller. The standout of the five nominees was Just Before Losing Everything, a thrilling, captivating story of a woman trying to escape the husband she fears before it’s too late. Click links for trailers.

1. Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just Before Losing Everything) – A woman escapes from her terrifying husband along with her two children. This thrilling short captivates for the 29 minute runtime, giving the audiences an immediate adrenaline rush mixed with just enough dread.
2. The Voorman Problem – Martin Freeman stars in this comedic short where he must determine the sanity of Mr Voorman, a prisoner who believes he’s a god.
3. Helium – A dying boy is told tales of a magical land by the hospital janitor.
4. Pitaako Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?) – Having children can be chaotic, as is shown in this comedy about one morning where a mother tries to take care of everything herself.
5. Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn’t Me) – Courage and forgiveness feature heavily in this story about soldiers told from the perspective of the killers.