St Patrick’s Day vs. St. George’s Day

Yesterday was St. Patrick’s day and I hope that everyone celebrated with high spirits. I couldn’t celebrate, mainly because I had been stressed out about my final project and it’s slow progress. I have nothing against celebrating St. Patrick’s day, St. Andrew’s day or even St. David’s day. But it seems that most places in the world, especially the UK and the US, celebrate St. Patrick’s day, they go all out with festivities. Don’t get me wrong, I love everything Irish! I love Irish people and my 21st birthday present this year from my parents is a weekend trip to Dublin. What I really can’t fathom is in England, why St. Patrick’s day is celebrated whilst St. George (our patron saint) is hardly remembered at all. There is hardly any fuss about St George’s day. Why is this? It seems like St. Patrick’s day is more commercialised than St. George’s day, but why is this the case? We do have a fair amount of Irish people residing in England which could be a factor. In my view, it seems that to celebrate St. George’s day would be such an uncool thing to do. I don’t understand this, England football, rugby and cricket supporters don’t hold back their patriotism. Even during the Queen’s Jubilee we saw massive celebrations. So why do we neglect St. George? Maybe the patron saint day is dedicated to the people of that country, so in England we must have more fondness for our Irish neighbours than ourselves. Irish are stereotypically more charismatic than the straight laced English. Our country needs to hold itself with more esteem. We have a lot to be proud of as a country, as a nation and we really need to stop letting the dull weather get us down (and maybe Gordon Brown as well).

The British Oscars 2009

I have spent the past hour looking at clips of the Oscars on YouTube. Red carpet clips, glamour clips, presentation clips, award clips and after party clips. I have officially ran out of Oscars 2009 related YouTube videos! The night was dominated by British talent which I am thrilled by. It is great to see Britain putting their mark on Hollywood. Slumdog Millionaire won a staggering eight awards. I have not seen the film but it is on my list of films to watch, there have been raving reviews about the film both from critics and laymen. Gordon Brown also congratulated the British winners of their successes (not that his opinion would motivate me any more than before).

Slumdog Millionaire winning Best Picture:

A Heath Ledger tribute was given, as his family accepted his award for Best Supporting Actor. I am not doubting his talent, I have seen The Dark Knight. It is not my type of film but you cannot doubt Heath’s role as psychotic Joker, he plays him superbly. I think if Heath were alive today, it would have been likely that he’d win the award. But it makes me wonder, has his death made him more popular than he was before he died? Death has a strange way of reeling people in, especially with celebrities.

Heath Ledger’s tribute:

Another British gem, Kate Winslet won Best Actress for her role in The Reader. She has been nominated six times (including this years awards) and this is her first win. It has been long awaited and is much deserved. I’ve always loved Kate. For Sense And Sensibility, The Holiday, The Reader… the list goes on! I am so pleased that she won over other actresses such as Angelina Jolie. I just can’t stand her (maybe because she’s a homewrecker, I side with Jennifer Aniston)! I have seen The Reader and it is an engrossing film. It reminds me of other films such as A Beautiful Mind, Shawshank Redemption and Atonement. It is a drama, a drama retelling a realistic story. Kate’s speech was particularly endearing. She is witty, unpretentious and natural. I can always spot a strong woman. Be sure to watch The Reader as soon as you can, it is highly recommended.

Kate Winslet’s acceptance speech:

Here are the award winners of the Oscars 2009:

Best Picture – Slumdog Millionaire
Best Director – Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire
Best Actor – Sean Penn for Milk
Best Actress – Kate Winslet for The Reader
Best Supporting Actor – Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight
Best Supporting Actress – Penelope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Best Animated Feature Film – Wall-E
Best Foreign Film – Departures (Japan)
Best Original Screenplay – Danny Lance Black for Milk
Best Adapted Screenplay – Simon Beufoy for Slumdog Millionaire
Best Documentary Feature – Man On Wire
Best Original Score – Slumdog Millionaire
Best Original Song – ‘Jai Ho’ for Slumdog Millionaire
Best Film Editing – Chris Dickens for Slumdog Billionaire
Best Documentary (Short Subject) – Smile Pinki
Best Cinematography – Anthony Dod Mantle for Slumdog Millionaire
Best Costume Design – Michael O’Connor for The Duchess
Best Sound Mixing – Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke, Resul Pookutty for Slumdog Millionaire
Best Sound Editing – Richard King for The Dark Knight
Best Live Action Short Film – Spielzeugland (Toyland)
Best Animated Short Film – La Maison de Petits Cubes
Best Makeup – Greg Cannom for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Best Art Direction – Donald Graham Burt, Victor J. Zolfo for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Best Visual Effects – Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton, Craig Barron for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button