Last year's best supporting male winner made fun of his own long list of thanks by adding, "That frog that I accidentally squeezed to death in second grade, thank you for teaching me how short life truly can be. Richard Simmons for my flexibility, endurance and uncanny fashion sense…and last but not least, my grandmother for beating me senseless with a flyswatter, teaching me that you can't get away with everything you think you can. Respect your elders unless you want a can of whoop-ass."
A few odd moments that made a quite enjoyable 2015 Independent Spirit Awards breezily fly by:
Independent. … Perhaps a bit too independent
When the Spirit Awards started, there was no sound. Or, correction, there was sound, but it sounded like a film projector unspooling mixed with a helicopter landing. And then the screen went black for a few seconds. Was this some kind of inside joke about independent cinema, or did IFC simply botch the opening? Either way, it was kind of a perfect start for an awards show that honors films made on shoestring budgets.
And speaking of low budget …
Ethan Hawke looks lonely
When poor Hawke sauntered onstage to present the first award of the afternoon (to his Boyhood co-star Patricia Arquette for best supporting actress), he looked like a man standing in the middle of a desert. Too much space. “I feel like there should be a podium. I feel extremely vulnerable and I wish I didn’t come.”
By the time the show returned from commercial, a podium was in place. Hawke would return to pick up Richard Linklater’s best director trophy, and seemed a little more comfortable with a prop.
Paul Thomas Anderson, the new spokesman for Delta
Anderson was picking up the Robert Altman Award, when he unleashed anger on American Airlines for losing his luggage (the best part is the look on casting director Cassandra Kulukundis’s face). Turns out American Airlines is a major sponsor of the show, which means that Anderson was indeed biting the hand that fed. And this makes the fact that he was picking up the Altman Award absolutely lovely. Few bit as many hands as the maverick Altman. Somewhere, he is applauding.
Jared Leto’s outfit
Yes, Leto’s speech was damn funny, but let’s not forget that outfit. It was a little bit Broadway, a little bit Bee Gees and yes, very, very independent. Bring it back tomorrow night when you present best supporting actress, Jared.
