(NEW YORK) From a certain snub of a last-minute dress switch-up—Anne Hathaway and Valentino, of course—to oodles of song and dance numbers (A not too uncommon overheard from last night:“Is this the Oscars or the Tonys?) to a First Lady cameo, the Oscars went down last night leaving plenty to discuss during and certainly after the last statuette was handed out. Who wowed us, which gowns befuddled a bit, and who was missing from the step-and-repeat grind? Without further ado…
BY ALEXANDRA ILYASHOV
Charmed in Pink: What are the odds that 2013’s major female wins—Jennifer Lawrence for Best Actress and Anne Hathaway for Best Supporting Actress—both opted for pale, ballet-status pink for the big eve, in Dior Haute Couture for the former and Prada for the latter? With back-grazing joillerie (see below) to boot? Interesting…Pantone experts and/or psychics, we’d love your color-centric insights, s’il vous plait.
Pretty in the Front, Party in the Back! The Oscar set seemed to be all about a surprise view from behind, specifically via back-grazing joaillerie, whether the baubles were sewn into the frock (hello, Helen Hunt and that navy H&M couture number?) or dangling far past the shoulder blades, a la Jennifer Lawrence and Anne Hathaway. Jennifer Garner’s plum Gucci dress had a deceptively simple head-on first impression, revealing a delightfully massive bustle lining the back. Renee Zellweger went the Carolina Herrera route, to the shock of absolutely no one, in a shimmery sequined champagne-hued number tied together with
Embellished Brigade: On the most heavily wrought end of the gown spectrum, Nicole Kidman’s truly weighty-looking L’Wren Scott was, well, a piece of work; Naomi Watts knocked it out in that spangled Armani Prive dress, arguably winning the “most difficult to wear flatteringly, much less gorgeously” honors du evening, thanks to some riveting but tricky-looking one-shouldered action. Futuristic but not ugly: well done! Halle Berry in a strong-shouldered, vertically striped and totally embellished Versace frock was also pretty in the same slick, angular, sharper-edged manner as Watts’ look. Zellweger’s golden Carolina followed sequined suit, and Kerry Washington’s Miu Miu pick involved some dazzling crystal-encrusting on the bodice of a vibrant poppy-hued, otherwise simple column silhouette.
A Few Favorites…In no particular order, Best Supporting Actress nom Amy Adams in a frothy, pale grey Oscar de la Renta gown; another Best Supporting Actress nom, Jessica Chastain, in a nearly nude Armani Prive which proved safe and classic (sweetheart neckline, fishtailed hem, uniformly beaded) but pitch-perfect in fit. Also j’adore-worthy? Zoe Saldana’s Alexis Mabille Couture choice was rife with a panoply of details, most of which were fantastic (that laser-cut flora framing the clavicle; a cleanly cut but dramatically scaled trifecta of ruffles blossoming on the train) and at least one we could’ve done without (that belt!). Also of note: Reese Witherspoon’s royal blue, colorblock-y Louis Vuitton number, and Jennifer Hudson’s equally blue, somewhat sparkly Roberto Cavalli Couture dress.
Very Well Red: Circling back to that intriguing, drama-imbued switch-up of Hathaway’s planned Valentino number—which the maison had hyped up in a press release earlier in the day—for Prada, purportedly due to similarities between Hathaway and Amanda Seyfried’s cool-toned, halter-necked Alexander McQueen number. All is not lost! Valentino did dress Sally Field and Jennifer Aniston, rendering both actresses visions in bright red couture perfection.
Chic Performers: After donning a somber but consistently noir Jenny Packham dress, beaded and long-sleeved, on the carpet, Adele slipped into an exceptionally bling-y Burberry to sing “Skyfall,” pairing the calf-skimming, dazzlingly crystal-splashed dress with some equally sparkly Louboutins. Oh, and those crowd-wowing pipes. During the in-memorandum part of (very long) evening’s proceedings, Barbara Streisand went with gold-flecked, billowy black Donna Karan.
Winning, By The Numbers: Two mentions for Alexander McQueen (Salma Hayek and Amanda Seyfried), two for Armani Prive (Jessica Chastain and Naomi Watts)—plus another nod for dressing pint-sized nine-year-old Quvenzhané Wallis (though the puppy purse was not, in fact, a Giorgio creation); 1.5 for Naeem Khan (Stacy Kiebler and Michelle Obama, though the First Lady’s gorgeous grey beaded confection was shown via video…)
The ‘Where Art Thou?’ Designers: Lanvin, which dressed statue-scorers Meryl Streep and Jean Dujardin last year (perhaps Alber needed a break after the coup of dressing the Best Actor and Best Actress winners, non?). Also MIA from the tapis rouge for the second year in a row: Chanel and Narciso Rodriguez. Tom Ford and Givenchy, were also were absent from the gown grind.
Best Dressed Blokes: Prada and Gucci swept the dapper dude scene this year. In addition to sharply cut tuxes, many of the dashing hommes sported extensive facial hair situations. (We’re looking at you, Ben Affleck and George Clooney…)
Feeling Thorough? Full Rundown Ahead!
Jennifer Lawrence in Christian Dior Couture
Anne Hathaway in Prada
Salma Hayek in Alexander McQueen
Sally Field in Valentino
Amy Adams in Oscar de la Renta
Jessica Chastain in Armani Prive
Zoe Saldana in Alexis Mabille Couture
Halle Berry in Versace
Jennifer Aniston in Valentino
Helen Hunt in H&M
Reese Witherspoon in Louis Vuitton
Renee Zellweger in Carolina Herrera
Nicole Kidman in L’Wren Scott
Charlize Theron in Christian Dior Couture
Amanda Seyfried in Alexander McQueen
Sandra Bullock in Elie Saab
Olivia Munn in Marchesa
Jennifer Garner in Gucci
Adele in Jenny Packham
Queen Latifah in Badgley Mischka
Barbra Streisand in Donna Karan
Kristin Chenoweth in Tony Ward
Jennifer Hudson in Roberto Cavalli Couture
Kerry Washington in Miu Miu
Naomi Watts in Armani Prive
Octavia Spencer in Tadashi Shoji
Michelle Obama in Naeem Khan
Stacy Kiebler in Naeem Khan
Jenna Dewan-Tatum in Rachel Roy
Quvenzhané Wallis in Armani
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