:00:21. > :00:31.Hello and welcome to our Oscars special, where the year's biggest
:00:31. > :00:33.
:00:33. > :00:36.film is a silent one. The Oscar goes to Jean Dujardin. Best Actor
:00:36. > :00:46.is one of five awards that The Artist picks up, including best
:00:46. > :00:47.
:00:47. > :00:50.film. If George Valentine could speak, he would say... Speaks in
:00:50. > :00:55.French. Meryl Streep proved unbeatable for
:00:55. > :01:03.her remarkable portrayal of Margaret Thatcher. When they called
:01:03. > :01:09.my name, I had a feeling I could hear half of America are going oh
:01:09. > :01:11.no. Martin Scorcese's 3D film Hugo picks up five awards, including
:01:11. > :01:20.best cinematography, and Christopher Plummer finally gets an
:01:20. > :01:30.award for best supporting actor. You are only two years older than
:01:30. > :01:30.
:01:30. > :01:35.me, darling, where have you been all my life? Mark Kermode is with
:01:35. > :01:40.me. How things can turn in the space of a month because perhaps
:01:40. > :01:48.people will be saying they knew what The Artist would win, but not
:01:48. > :01:58.a month ago. It is nearly a silent film, French, although shot in
:01:58. > :02:05.Hollywood, has won, and as we went in, everyone was saying it is just
:02:05. > :02:12.like Titanic, we know it will win, boring. Everyone thought the
:02:12. > :02:18.critics going mad about it at first, it was showing off how satiric they
:02:18. > :02:22.were. Then it was being seen by audiences around the world, and
:02:23. > :02:32.people realised how wonderful it was, how charming and invented, and
:02:32. > :02:42.it got this head of steam behind it, to the point that it was winning at
:02:42. > :02:42.
:02:42. > :02:49.the BAFTAs as well. I think it is something to be really pleased
:02:49. > :02:54.about. There are some people who are great supporters of the silent
:02:54. > :02:58.film, and when I watched this I was sitting with a silent film expert.
:02:58. > :03:07.Everyone was laughing, and afterwards I asked her what she
:03:07. > :03:14.thought, she said they got it right. At that point I realised it had won
:03:14. > :03:19.over both crowds. That detail is the remarkable performances, and I
:03:19. > :03:29.am wondering if it is even harder to act in a silent film, perhaps
:03:29. > :03:31.
:03:31. > :03:41.that is what swung it for Jean Dujardin. Thank you. I love your
:03:41. > :03:42.
:03:42. > :03:49.country. Thank you, Michel Hazanavicius, thanks for this
:03:49. > :03:59.incredible gift, thank you to my wonderful partner, and if George
:03:59. > :04:01.
:04:01. > :04:05.Valentine could speak, he would say... Speaks in French.
:04:05. > :04:15.Jean Dujardin, one imagines he will be picking up some parts in
:04:15. > :04:21.
:04:21. > :04:25.Hollywood now. His speech at the BAFTAs was better! When I saw this,
:04:25. > :04:30.everyone in the cinema clapped, how often do you get that? If people
:04:30. > :04:35.have seen the film, please don't give away the end. When the
:04:35. > :04:41.nominations were read out, there was a plot spoiler for The Artist
:04:41. > :04:47.in the nominations. If you have seen the film, just don't ask what
:04:47. > :04:57.happens, you don't need to know. Heres a clip, in case you haven't
:04:57. > :05:08.
:05:08. > :05:15.Jean Dujardin alongside his co-star, who of course is married to the
:05:15. > :05:20.director. What a night for him as well. It is fantastic, Michel
:05:20. > :05:24.Hazanavicius had at least three pronunciations of his name.
:05:24. > :05:30.Everyone sort of expected this to happen, but you look back, just
:05:30. > :05:35.recently he was directing movies that nobody took that seriously.
:05:35. > :05:45.That he has triumphed, it is so easy to take it for granted but it
:05:45. > :05:46.
:05:46. > :05:56.is an extraordinary achievement. He said that, when the director came
:05:56. > :06:02.to him, don't do it, you are mad! The best screenplay was Woody Allen,
:06:02. > :06:06.he was a no-show at the Oscars, I imagine he was playing jazz in a
:06:06. > :06:13.club somewhere. The very fact they have reminded us the techniques of
:06:13. > :06:17.the early films still have relevance now - it doesn't mean you
:06:17. > :06:21.can't use 3D animation, but it demonstrates those classic
:06:21. > :06:26.techniques are still relevant in the 21st century. Good storytelling
:06:26. > :06:31.is good storytelling. We heard Kenneth Branagh attempting to
:06:31. > :06:40.explain why it The Artist is great, the reason is that is a great film.
:06:40. > :06:45.Here he is, collecting his award. Again, just a few months ago,
:06:45. > :06:51.everybody saying in a patronising way, will they really be giving it
:06:51. > :06:59.to the French? But they have. was one of the only best film
:06:59. > :07:08.contenders in which the whole production was shot in LA. We had
:07:08. > :07:16.Harvey Weinstein referred to by the French with his name pronounced
:07:16. > :07:20.differently. We have another category where it
:07:20. > :07:25.was really hard to see how anybody would beat Meryl Streep. That's
:07:26. > :07:31.right, but actually people were saying it was not a dead cert for
:07:31. > :07:37.Meryl Streep. She was on the kind of winning streak that Helen Mirren
:07:37. > :07:42.was on for the Queen, going from award ceremony to award ceremony
:07:42. > :07:47.becoming more regal each time. This was her 17th nomination, with Billy
:07:47. > :07:52.Crystal saying as that of her introduction she has had 14 attempt
:07:52. > :07:59.at looking pleased when somebody else won. She was very good at
:07:59. > :08:09.that! When they called my name, I had a feeling I could hear half of
:08:09. > :08:13.
:08:13. > :08:20.America going oh no. Her, again! Whatever. I really want to thank
:08:20. > :08:26.all my colleagues, my friends. I look out here and I see my life
:08:26. > :08:33.before my eyes, my old friends, my new friends. Thank you to my
:08:33. > :08:37.friends, departed and here for this inexplicably wonderful career.
:08:37. > :08:46.outstanding performance for anyone who has seen the film, but the film
:08:46. > :08:53.itself a little bit week? We feel this more here. Firstly the make-up
:08:53. > :08:59.as well, and as Meryl Streep said half of that film is the make-up.
:08:59. > :09:05.Dick Smith got an award for make-up, that was nice to see, but the thing
:09:05. > :09:09.about The Iron Lady is it is not a film about politics, it is not a
:09:09. > :09:16.film which, if you are interested in the history of British politics,
:09:16. > :09:22.has much weight, but Meryl Streep carries that film shoulder-high. I
:09:22. > :09:28.think her performance was terrific, I wish the film was more terrific.
:09:28. > :09:33.Less see a little. Teachers can't teach when there is no heating, no
:09:33. > :09:42.lighting in their classrooms, and if I ask the right honourable
:09:42. > :09:51.gentleman whose fault is that? thinks the right honourable lady
:09:51. > :09:57.does screech too much! If she wants us to take her seriously, she must
:09:58. > :10:03.learn to calm down. If the right honourable gentleman could perhaps
:10:03. > :10:09.attend more closely to what I am saying, rather than how I am saying
:10:09. > :10:14.it, he will receive a valuable education in spite of himself.
:10:14. > :10:23.is the performance that has four Meryl Streep an Oscar. Let's cross
:10:23. > :10:28.to Los Angeles because our correspondent is there for the man
:10:28. > :10:36.-- with the man responsible for catapulting The Artist. Harvey
:10:36. > :10:43.Weinstein, the man behind it all, let me see if I can jump in. How
:10:43. > :10:48.was this evening for you, how do you feel? I feel fantastic because
:10:48. > :10:54.I think The Artist represents a love poem to cinema. It is an
:10:54. > :10:59.amazing movie, it makes people feel good, and it is an inspiration that
:10:59. > :11:04.a black-and-white silent movie in 2012 can win the Oscar 83 years
:11:04. > :11:09.later after the last one. Whatever you are thinking, however radical
:11:09. > :11:15.it is, go with your passion. you ever doubt it would be a
:11:15. > :11:22.success? When I saw the rough cut in April, I met with these guys and
:11:22. > :11:28.I told them a lot of this would happen. I thought we would get
:11:28. > :11:38.nominated at least. Coming back to Hollywood where the film was set,
:11:38. > :11:40.
:11:40. > :11:50.where it was filmed in its entirety, that must be pretty special. It is
:11:50. > :11:51.
:11:51. > :12:00.one great its four all three for best picture, it is amazing. -- it
:12:00. > :12:08.won all three. There you are at the Vanity Fair party. I think everyone
:12:08. > :12:13.was there, barring Woody Allen. Indeed, yes. This is one of the
:12:13. > :12:20.main places people come to afterwards. We have seen Tom Cruise,
:12:20. > :12:25.Martin Scorsese, so many of the guests. Unusually this year, a lot
:12:25. > :12:29.of the winners, Meryl Streep for example, has not been seen here yet.
:12:29. > :12:34.Jean Dujardin walked straight past five minutes ago, didn't stop to
:12:34. > :12:39.talk to anyone, but the best supporting actress winner Octavia
:12:39. > :12:45.Spencer did stop for a quick chat and this is what she had to say.
:12:45. > :12:50.You know what, I have no words. I am exhausted, overwhelmed and
:12:50. > :12:57.overjoyed. What was it about this film, The Help, because it could
:12:57. > :13:05.have been a bad movie but it was feel good. I think people can see
:13:05. > :13:10.themselves in every one of those characters. Thank you very much.
:13:10. > :13:16.Octavia Spencer picking up the award for best supporting actress.
:13:16. > :13:20.Mark, I will get your views on The Help in a moment, but let's hear a
:13:20. > :13:30.little of her acceptance speech tonight. I have to thank my family
:13:30. > :13:36.
:13:36. > :13:41.in Alabama... It is a film about life in the south, southern USA, at
:13:41. > :13:46.the beginning of the civil rights movement. It is a bleak picture of
:13:46. > :13:54.racism but some people think it is very saccharin. I think it was
:13:54. > :14:02.saved by some strong performances. We were discussing this before the
:14:02. > :14:07.BAFTAs. The film does have a certain saccharin edge to it, and
:14:07. > :14:14.there was a discussion about how the problem of racism was solved by
:14:14. > :14:21.a white woman writing about a black woman's experiences. It has some
:14:21. > :14:26.great performances but they are the thing that carries it. At times,
:14:26. > :14:34.the whole thing looks to saccharin, but in her acceptance speech she
:14:34. > :14:38.was completely overwhelmed. In an acceptance speech, you always want
:14:38. > :14:46.proper tears. She and Meryl Streep did that. It looked like a standing
:14:46. > :14:56.ovation when she got on stage. A win for the performances and that
:14:56. > :15:01.
:15:01. > :15:11.Let Sten -- turn to another film I really like, beginners. Christopher
:15:11. > :15:15.
:15:15. > :15:19.Plummer became the oldest actor to win an Oscar.
:15:19. > :15:29.You are only two years older than me, darling, where have you been
:15:29. > :15:39.all my life? At tough one for the British, because cannot Branagh was
:15:39. > :15:44.in that category. The it was a strong category. Max von Sydow out,
:15:44. > :15:49.one of the greatest actors ever, it was interesting to see two
:15:49. > :15:58.octogenarians both nominated. Christopher Plummer's performances
:15:58. > :16:03.are terrific. I am not entirely sold on the film. He gave a very
:16:03. > :16:13.creations -- a very gracious acceptance speech, that he said he
:16:13. > :16:15.
:16:15. > :16:25.has been practising for 82 years! Billy Crystal was making jokes
:16:25. > :16:25.
:16:25. > :16:30.about how they had the over 70 demographics are one up. There has
:16:30. > :16:39.been the sole thing in the press recently that the average age of an
:16:39. > :16:45.Oscar voter is 107! The average cost curve Botha is white, male and
:16:45. > :16:52.retired. The whole argument is that how representative of are the
:16:52. > :16:59.Oscars when the main voting group is like that. I am sure that the
:16:59. > :17:04.next thing will be that The Artist one because the people who voted
:17:04. > :17:10.for it can remember silent movies. That is not why it one. I have seen
:17:10. > :17:19.it with ten-year-olds and it has a universal language. She go also to
:17:19. > :17:29.come five awards. That is no mean feat. An achievement for Martin
:17:29. > :17:29.
:17:29. > :17:38.Scorsese? Technical categories give us important people getting awards.
:17:38. > :17:43.Hugo is a love song does cinema. It is about the birth of cinema. It is
:17:43. > :17:49.a 3 D film that reminds us that three D is as old as the projected
:17:49. > :17:58.moving image. It was around when cinema started. It is the first 3 D
:17:58. > :18:04.film that makes sense of 3 D. For me it is an alienating thing. This
:18:04. > :18:09.film is about the cogs of film- making, so somehow Martin Scorsese
:18:09. > :18:17.does something interesting with 3 D. I interviewed Martin Scorsese when
:18:17. > :18:23.there were making the film and they talked about three D Reid imagining
:18:23. > :18:29.movies. I am not a fan of 3 D, but here the technical and artistry
:18:29. > :18:35.came together and worked. How interesting that both films that
:18:35. > :18:42.have got that many nominations are both about the birth of cinema.
:18:42. > :18:46.Best foreign film went to separation. This is the first time
:18:46. > :18:52.Iran has one. It is a wonderful film. It has won several critics
:18:52. > :18:57.prizes. It is a very moving story. It manages to tell a personal story
:18:57. > :19:01.which is subtly political, about people trapped within structures
:19:01. > :19:05.that are inflexible and looking at a certain situation from a number
:19:05. > :19:09.of different perspectives and everyone only having a fragment of
:19:09. > :19:18.the truth. There was a beautiful acceptance speech which talked
:19:18. > :19:22.about loving people who embraced freedom, freedom of thought. It is
:19:22. > :19:26.extraordinarily significant. When you see the film, you don't think
:19:26. > :19:36.that I'm watching an important, significant film that feels like
:19:36. > :19:36.
:19:36. > :19:41.hard work. It feels like a human drama. It is one of those films the
:19:41. > :19:48.works on a human and political level. At let's hear a little from
:19:48. > :19:53.the director. The name of the country Iran is spoken here through
:19:53. > :19:59.its glorious culture. Many Asian culture that has been hidden under
:19:59. > :20:05.the heavy dust of politics. I proudly offered this film to my
:20:05. > :20:12.country, at people who respect all cultures and civilisations and
:20:12. > :20:20.despise hostility and resentment. Thank you so much. Best foreign
:20:20. > :20:30.language film. We haven't mentioned the descendants or George Clooney.
:20:30. > :20:34.
:20:34. > :20:41.It got the award for best adapted screenplay. I was disappointed that
:20:41. > :20:45.it won Best adapted screenplay, not because I didn't like it. It is one
:20:45. > :20:50.of those films that has a slow- burning appeal. You don't quite get
:20:50. > :20:57.the weight of the film until the end of it when you think it really
:20:57. > :21:05.is something. In any year, were it not the fact that it be best --
:21:05. > :21:14.where it beats best adapted screenplay for her Tinker Tailor
:21:14. > :21:19.Soldier Spy. I do like the descendants very much, but it is
:21:19. > :21:25.one of those categories were just like something else more. You and I
:21:25. > :21:29.are of a piece about Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and carry all cannot
:21:29. > :21:37.even get in the bath death. I have my house on him winning at the
:21:37. > :21:43.BAFTA is so. I thought George Clooney would win in the Oscars.
:21:43. > :21:49.Original screenplay, Woody Allen. Midnight in Paris, a departure for
:21:49. > :21:56.him. It wasn't actually one of my favourite Woody Allen films. Acute
:21:56. > :22:04.film. I thought it was a throwback to some of his early plays. It felt
:22:04. > :22:11.like old fashioned woody Allen in his best possible ways. It assumes
:22:11. > :22:16.that the audience knows a certain amounts and is genuinely funny. The
:22:16. > :22:20.significant thing here was the no- show from Woody Allen. We had this
:22:20. > :22:24.will for ages to win the Oscar was on he would play at jazz gig in New
:22:24. > :22:30.York, so she would never be available. There was one year when
:22:30. > :22:37.he did turn up to present a special awards, but he doesn't do the
:22:37. > :22:44.Oscars. I thought it was a good screenplay. You have seen rather
:22:45. > :22:49.more of the whole ceremony than I have. They had to bring back Billy
:22:49. > :22:55.Crystal. It was meant to be Eddie Murphy. What do we think of Billy
:22:55. > :23:02.Crystal, is it a safe choice question mark you say see if as if
:23:02. > :23:08.it's a bad thing. Billy Crystal comes back in you can hear the room
:23:08. > :23:18.breathing a sigh of relief. The ceremony itself was pretty
:23:18. > :23:19.
:23:19. > :23:23.spectacular. You had the standard being of Billy Crystal doing a Mont
:23:23. > :23:28.hajj putting himself into the best on contenders. It is the fact that
:23:28. > :23:34.if you are at a ceremony that long you want to feel that the guy
:23:34. > :23:40.introducing it is 110 % on top of the job. Billy Crystal is the man
:23:40. > :23:50.who got away with coming onto the stage at the Oscars on a horse! He
:23:50. > :23:57.is the best Oscar hope -- best Oscar host. They are concerned that
:23:57. > :24:02.it is older people who are watching. It stretches too long for a younger
:24:02. > :24:10.audience. Ensure that is still a debate. The music category was
:24:10. > :24:14.strange this year because there was only two contenders for the best
:24:14. > :24:21.song. I am sure they all sit down and crunched the numbers now about
:24:21. > :24:28.how many people are watching. Their main concern is getting a younger
:24:28. > :24:36.audience to watch. When you have something like Titanic, whose
:24:36. > :24:42.target market is 15, 16 year-olds, that is great. However, I suspect
:24:42. > :24:47.that every year when you have Billy Crystal hosting it, no one does it
:24:47. > :24:56.better than him, let's just keep him. A closing thought about The
:24:56. > :25:00.Artist, what does this do nowt for a director like Michel
:25:00. > :25:06.Hazanavicius? One would presume that they can write their own
:25:06. > :25:13.ticket into would ever they want. If you have just want the best
:25:13. > :25:19.picture Oscar, it looks like you can walk into a room and say I know
:25:19. > :25:24.what works, and what doesn't. But in Hollywood, nobody knows anything.
:25:24. > :25:34.The worst thing is I can almost guarantee you that we will see a
:25:34. > :25:35.
:25:35. > :25:41.run of bad black-and-white silent movies. It was black and white suit
:25:41. > :25:46.and square and had a dog, let's do that! It wasn't good because of