Every year, the Academy hopes to inject a bit of drama and surprise into the Oscars. And most years, the drama is what ends up backfiring. Look at last year’s Best Picture win for “Green Book,” for example. But this year, the drama and the suspense not only made for an interesting evening that kept you guessing, but also rewarded film fans with a Best Picture winner for the ages— “Parasite.”
But the road wasn’t easy for “Parasite,” which is evident by the three acceptance speeches that led up to the big win. Director Bong Joon-ho, who time and time again proved to be one of the most humble and, frankly, adorable figures of awards season, began his night with the historic win for Best Original Screenplay. From there, it was the obvious award for Best International Film. And in that speech, the filmmaker conceded that he was ready to get drunk and enjoy the rest of the night from his seat.
And yet, his night was far from over.
As you see in the third speech from Bong, for Best Director, the filmmaker is flummoxed and clearly not sure of what to say. This leads to perhaps his best speech of the night, where he recognizes his category mates, specifically Martin Scorsese, and basically talked about how the legendary filmmaker influenced him as a youth. It was touching and heartfelt. The type of thing that ABC and the Academy try to manufacture each year, mostly failing.
And then, of course, there’s the win for Best Picture. After the night of surprises, it still felt as if “1917” was going to win and the Oscars wouldn’t have that big moment that was teased throughout the telecast. But yet, Jane Fonda said the word “Parasite” and the place erupted. Though Bong didn’t give the speech himself, you can see how shocked he was and overcome with joy. Through the course of four speeches, it was clear that the Oscars probably got it right and no one truly expected it to happen.
You can follow our full coverage of the 2020 Oscars here.
