The long take of "Birdman" has stretched all the way to Sunday's (22 FEB. 2015) Academy Awards, where the jazzy, surreal comedy about an actor fleeing his superhero past, took Hollywood's top honor in a ceremony punctuated by passionate pleas for equality. On a stormy night in Hollywood, the 87th annual Academy Awards - which came in humbled by backlash to its all-white acting nominees - bristled with politics and heartfelt speeches about women's rights, immigration, suicide prevention and race.
"The Theory of Everything" star Eddie Redmayne was considered the Oscar front-runner for best actor. But his oversized reaction when he won gave no hint of entitlement. Redmayne, 33, who portrayed scientist Stephen Hawking in the film that tracked both his physical decline as well as his first love, rushed on to the stage like a kid. He mugged a big grin for presenter Cate Blanchett and, at one point in his speech, hugged the Oscar statuette with delight.
Julianne Moore won her first Oscar as best actress for "Still Alice," and shined a light on Alzheimer's disease in her acceptance speech Sunday night. The 54-year-old actress added an Academy Award to the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild trophies she won earlier for her role as a college linguistics professor and mother of three who is diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's.
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu didn't shy away from discussing fashion after winning the Academy Award for best director on Sunday night _ he told the audience he was wearing Michael Keaton's underwear.
Inarritu called Keaton's "tighty whities" a good luck charm that brought him his second Oscar win on Sunday night. They also brought him laughs, as Inarritu made them a prominent place in his speech.
"They are tight, smell like spores," the "Birdman" director said. "They worked. I am here."
Keaton laughed boisterously at Inarritu's speech.
The director has made deliberate fashion choices during Hollywood's award season, choosing to don Billy Wilder's tie and Raymond Carver's shirt earlier this month when he won the top honor at the Directors Guild Awards.
Inarritu, who won the original screenplay Oscar earlier in the evening, was the second Mexican-born director to win the best directing Oscar, following last year's winner Alfonso Cuaron. "Birdman" later won the Oscar for best picture.
The director has been hailed for his craftsmanship in "Birdman," which gives the sensation of having been filmed in one continuous shot. The film stars Michael Keaton as an aging blockbuster movie star seeking to restore his reputation _ and bolster his ego _ by mounting a serious Broadway play.
"This is like a slow motion kind of moment in my life, Inarritu said.
Inarritu beat out fellow nominees Wes Anderson, "The Grand Budapest Hotel"; Richard Linklater, "Boyhood;" Bennett Miller, "Foxcatcher;" and Morten Tyldum, "The Imitation Game."
