The opening: kitsch and wink

 

Stars went for the empathy chic instead of the ostentatious bling on the red carpet, and producers of the 81st Annual Academy Awards put the opening number together with cardboard, crayons and duct tape, all in deference to the Economic Armageddon this country finds itself in.

It worked. It really worked, from the paper Oscar statues to the intentionally goofy dancers.

Don't recall an opening bit that got a standing ovation (big whoops from the local crowd here, too).

It deserved it, and so did host Hugh Jackman, who sang that he hasn't gotten around to seeing "The Reader" yet, like most of those people watching at home, and admits he's still stinging that "The Dark Knight" was snubbed, again, like most of the folks out there in TV-land.

Good on producers Larry Mark and Bill Condon for the kitsch and wink of that opening, and on Jackman for delivering it.