Heath Ledger - News Accounts

[Meryl]

I didn't really expect much from the Academy except Heath's appearance in the montage.  I wish they'd included just a little more of him.  As it was, though, it was enough to make me burst into tears. 

Then of course it was supremely annoying to see the long list of 79 Best Picture clips and have to studiously look away when they got to the vilest one. 

A good thing?  Ang showing up in the Best Director montage. 

[Fran]

To me, it seems like the memorial montage at the Academy Awards just ended too suddenly.  I guess I was expecting sort of a fadeout effect.  It seemed that Heath's pictures were shown for what seemed like nanoseconds, and then the whole thing just ended abruptly with black.  I think it should have been edited so it would ended more artistically, not as abruptly as it did.

Meryl, I agree.  Seeing Ang's smiling face in the "best directors" montage was a treat.

[Kelda]

Here's the best I could find on you tube.

[youtube=425,350]http://youtube.com/watch?v=kMYwCuaIMFI[/youtube]

[Penthesilea]

Here's the complete Im Memoriam section, including Hilary Swank's introducion:

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3YN-MmPTu8[/youtube]


It ain't right 

[Kelda]

there was only one person in that montage that Hilary's comment about gone too soon was about - Heath.

[Ellemeno]

Also, I think giving him the last spot was impactful.  I don't think those were in chronological order of passing.

It did gall me for a moment that NOW they choose to honor Brokeback Mountain in a position of prominence.

Also, I was sad that Marit Allen wasn't in the montage.  She died in November, 2007, so was eligible.

[HerrKaiser]

The in memoriam section was typcial AA attempt to be everything to everybody and end up being nothing to no one. While Heath's rememberance was in the last position as a weak attempt to provide some level of importance, I think that under the circumstances and the recentness of his passing, there was ample, valid reasons to break with tradition and give him a special tribute. He was snubbed only two years ago, will not have the opportunity to receive a life time acheivement award, and now the AA's are over for heath ledger. They had the chance to do the right thing, and failed to do so. Even if they nominate him next year for either of the two films being released in 08, that will be far less a tribute and far too much time will have elapsed to create the type of honor this more timely AA presentation could have been.

And why not mention him by name? Of course, Swank had her lines created for her, but the inuendos and almost riddle-like references to him without naming him was to me offensive. I felt like shouting 'just say it! give him his due.'

I'm sorry, but there are differences, measurements, greater and lesser. The several God-knows-who-are-these-people featured within the same even playing field on which he was 'recognized' was simply inappropriate given the past 6 weeks.

The lack of insight to attitudes and feelings beyond their little clique of self indulgent manipulators will continue the demise of the AA's to the level of Miss America.

[ednbarby]

The lack of insight to attitudes and feelings beyond their little clique of self indulgent manipulators will continue the demise of the AA's to the level of Miss America.

I'll drink to that.

(It's five o'clock somewhere.)

[serious crayons]

I'll drink to that.

(It's five o'clock somewhere.)

Or, as a friend of mine always says, it's 10 a.m. somewhere. 

[Brown Eyes]

I just watched the YouTube clip (silently here in my office) and I was struck by how brief all of the segments for each person were. 
 

I'd forgotten that Antonioni died this past year.