We’re not going to join the chorus of amateur psychopharmacologists who’ve decided James Franco hosted the Oscars high last night — mostly because we know he’s always got something much weirder than recreational drugs up his sleeve. But whatever possessed him to be so absent at the ceremony was contagious: the award winners, performances, and speeches were all fairly boring, too. (Those of you still longing for an enjoyable film awards show should try and catch a rerun of Saturday’s Independent Spirits on IFC. Host Joel McHale blew Franco out of the water.)
In fact, there is so little about last night’s show that’s worth commenting on this morning that we’ve put together a post on what we found most interesting: not any individual presenter or upset or joke, but Anne Hathaway’s dresses, all eight of them. Some were wonderful, a few were awful, and (thankfully) none were yawn-worthy. We rank them from best to worst after the jump.
A showstopping red dress for the red carpet. Hathaway’s Valentino couture gown wasn’t only her best look of the night — it was one of the best, full stop.
On a night that brought a ton of nude or champagne dresses, we loved this shiny, cobalt dress by Armani Prive.
Hathaway channeled ’60s Tina Turner in this glittery Oscar de la Renta get-up. You can never go wrong when you go retro at the Academy Awards, and look how much fun she was having with it. [Image via]
Franco may have stolen the show with his, er, homage to Marilyn Monroe, but we admired Hathaway in this subtly cut, perfectly fitted Lanvin suit. And those sky-high, jeweled pumps were the perfect complement.
At our Oscar party, we referred to this Vivienne Westwood gown, with its feathery pattern and pretty, layered skirts as the Black Swan dress. We still liked it okay, though. [Image via]
This Givenchy gown came straight from the Renaissance Faire bridal salon. We much preferred Cate Blanchett’s odd but gorgeous number by the same designer.
We’re fans of Tom Ford and metallics, too — but Anne, you’re too young to cover yourself from head to toe! Also, that boob seam isn’t doing you any favors.
By far her silliest look of the night, this Atelier Versace piece wouldn’t be out of place at prom night on the Starship Enterprise.