Academy Awards Fashion Crushes

I am a religious Oscars-viewer. Since I was a tiny little girl, I have watched the ceremony with my mother every year, aside from a couple years due to my being away at school (meaning I watched alone). My mother watched them with her mother growing up. I never really think about it, but I was raised in a truly, movie-loving family. We know all the actors (whether or not my mom and grandma can accurately say their names, they know who they are) and we have our favorites. We love the glamour, we love the really good films, the really funny films, and so on. We love watching the Oscars and saying who looks beautiful and who is too pretty to be wearing something so gaudy and unflattering. We love the spontaneous funny moments, the emotional speeches. As movie fanatics and lovers of fantasy, watching the Oscars is like peeking your head in on Hollywood's big party. Maybe the ceremony is a bit silly. The idea that you can measure anything at all, even something like how fast you can run, is a bit silly. So saying you can measure someone's art as "best" is pretty ridiculous, everybody knows. And yet, how can you not be drawn in?

ANYWAY, I confess I don't have much to say about this year's ceremony in terms of fashion. I was a little uninspired. A lot of people looked gorgeous (celebrities tend to do that) but nobody really Stood Out to me. I didn't see a dress on that red carpet that made my mouth water. I didn't see an actress in anything that I would've wanted to rip off her back and make my own. My darling Kate was lovely. Anne Hathaway was lovely. Penelope Cruz was lovely. Natalie Portman was (though a little too pink for my taste) lovely. Angelina was lovely. Yeah yeah...but nobody Sang to my soul. What can I say? I'm weird. I'm picky.

SO,  I plan to show my favorite gowns from recent-ish Oscar ceremonies. And we're off!

Cate Blanchett. The woman is simply incapable of making a bad choice.  Enough said.

Jennifer Lopez. Jennifer looks very nicely put together every time. That being said, I particularly enjoyed this Jackie O. inspired look. It wasn't something everybody else was doing. She wasn't following a trend. She was having fun being a little unique. Je l'adore.

Uma Thurman.  I'm sorry I don't know who designed this beauty but it is just so perfect for Uma.  She looked like a goddess this year.

Charlize Theron.  I remember this dress very clearly because at the time Charlize Theron was not the famous Oscar-winner she is today.  She stole the show in this dress.  I worshipped it. Classic glamour in a beautiful hue with the perfect hair.  Sexy, glamorous, vintage inspired and Flawless.

Maggie Gyllenhaal.  I'm fond of Maggie's style as she seems to always look unique, but never to the point of lacking common sense in concerns to what is flattering.  This dress is modern and classic simultaneously and it suits her wonderfully.

Julie Delpy.  I confess that the first time I saw a picture of this lovely dress was on the internet.  I know of Julie Delpy because I like "Before Sunrise" and "Before Sunset", but she doesn't have Julia Roberts status in Hollywood, so I probably didn't see her on television this year.  Anyway, the dress is so well-suited to her.  She doesn't look like she's trying too hard. Simple, elegant and beautiful.

Marion Cotillard.  The "fashion people" on television kept whining about how Marion's dress reminded them of fish, but I disagreed wholeheartedly.  I thought the dress was gorgeously designed, fit her nicely and existed in the mermaid category, pas poisson!   Again, I liked that she didn't look the same as anyone else that night.  Bravo.

Keri Russell.  Good Lord, the dress is stunning.  The woman in it has hopefully begun eating since this photo was taken, but even so, she looks gorgeous. 

Michelle Williams. By far my biggest Oscars fashion infatuation in recent years. I loved Michelle walking down the red carpet in this. She looked perfect and I wished I was her.  Zut afreakinglors.