She Likes to Watch

"The Hurt Locker" won Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay.

“The Hurt Locker” is hot, the Dude abides and Sandra Bullock sees “The Blind Side”

Hollywood felt the hurt Sunday night as “The Hurt Locker” dominated the 82nd Academy Awards.

The white-knuckle drama, which follows an elite bomb squad in war-torn Baghdad, beat out “Avatar” and eight other contenders to win Best Picture. Kathryn Bigelow, meanwhile, made history as the first woman to be named Best Director.

The rest of the Academy Awards ceremony offered few surprises.

“Crazy Heart” hunk Jeff Bridges and “The Blind Side” beauty Sandra Bullock walked off with the top acting awards. Both were beaming.

Mo’Nique, who played a monstrous mom in the controversial “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire,” paid tribute to Tyler Perry, Oprah Winfrey and “Gone with the Wind” winner Hattie McDaniel as she accepted the statuette to Best Supporting Actress.  And Christoph Waltz proclaimed, “That’s an uber-bingo,” while collecting his Best Supporting Actor Award for “Inglourious Basterds.”

Family favorite “Up” took Best Animated Feature and Best Original Score.

Biggest Winner: “The Hurt Locker.” It was an astounding night for Kathryn Bigelow and company. In addition to Best Picture and Best Director, the film netted honors for Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound, Best Sound Editing and Best Film Editing.

Biggest Loser: “Avatar.” Nominated for nine Oscars, James Cameron’s science fiction epic only collected three: Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography and Best Visual Effects.

Best Dressed: Sandra Bullock looked the part of an Oscar winner in a shimmery metallic dress, bright red lips and flat-ironed hair. Her look was elegant, feminine and oh-so-flattering.

Queen Latifah was pretty in pink, and Penelope Cruz’s crimson gown was so graceful it made her peers blush with envy. Meanwhile, goddess-gowned Meryl Streep and Helen Mirren, in a dreamy lavender frock, proved that true beauties get better with age.

Honorable mention goes to “The Young Victoria” costume designer Sandy Powell, whose chic, Art Deco-inspired gown and beret showed guts.

Worst Dressed: So many candidates, so little time. For my money, it’s a tie between Zoe Saldana, whose ruffled purple dress resembled a collection of ornamental cabbages, and a weary-looking Sarah Jessica Parker wearing a canary-yellow vacuum bag adorned with awkwardly-placed metallic junk. What was the point of those useless straps?

On a side note, somebody needs to tell Anna Kendrick and Demi Moore that dresses that match your skin tone are a no-no.

Cutest Couple: Although Jeff Bridges and wife Susan looked simply stunning, Tina Fey and Robert Downey Jr. (wearing shades, sneakers and a powder-blue bowtie, bless him) had terrific on-stage chemistry as they presented the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

Best Group: The “Precious” crew showed up in well-coordinated royal blue. Unfortunately, Mariah Carey’s too-revealing outfit and Gabourey Sidibe’s over-embellished, ill-fitting gown lacked Mo’Nique’s Golden Era glamour.

Worst Group: A well-intentioned tribute to filmmaker John Hughes, the man behind “Pretty In Pink,” “Sixteen Candles” and “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” fell flat. Although Brat Pack members Molly Ringwald, Matthew Broderick, Jon Cryer and Anthony Michael Hall looked fine, time has not been kind to Ally Sheedy, Judd Nelson and Macaulay Culkin.

Best Segment: Few things in life are more satisfying than the sight of Neil Patrick Harris, resplendent in sequined tux and tails, singing an ode to on-screen duos.

Worst Segment: What the heck? The Oscars’ desperate attempt at hipness — hiphop dancers performed pop-and-lock routines to the score from “The Hurt Locker — was a major fail.

For a complete list of Oscar winners, click here.

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Image courtesy of MovieWeb.com.

A man examines a scrap of film in the documentary "Kabul Transit."

Documentary “Kabul Transit” introduces viewers to modern Afghanistan

Local moviegoers are invited to spend “An Evening in Afghanistan” tonight at Cal Poly.

First up is a screening of the documentary “Kabul Transit.”

Directed by David B. Edwards, Gregory Whitmore and Maliha Zulfacar, the film focuses on everyday life in a beautiful, broken city recovering from decades of war and turmoil. We encounter politicians, soldiers, university students, children and ordinary citizens, listening to their stories about the past and learning about their hopes for the future.

Harvard University’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies called “Kabul Transit” “one of the most important films on the Middle East in recent years.”

Zulfacar,  a social science professor at Cal Poly, will lead a question-and-answer session following the film.

An Afghan native, Zulfacar recently spent three years as Afghanistan’s ambassador to Germany. She has been working to help rebuild that troubled nation for more than a decade.

“An Evening in Afghanistan” begins  at 7 p.m. tonight at Cal Poly’s Chumash Auditorium. Admission is free.

The Cal Poly Social Sciences Club, which is sponsoring the event, will be on hand to collect donations for Haitian earthquake relief.

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Folks who attend Thursday’s midnight showing of “Alice in Wonderland” will see a familiar face.

The Mad Hatter — aka Atascadero resident Earl Cisco — plans to greet fans as they enter Park Cinemas, 1100 Pine St. in Paso Robles.

Cisco owns Studio Replicas, a collection of props, costumes and memorabilia from “Star Wars,” “Pirates of the Carribean,” “Batman” and other franchises. He attended the May 2009 premiere of “Star Trek” in full Klingon regalia, and he’s been known to make public appearances dressed as Jack Sparrow.

To purchase tickets for “Alice in Wonderland,” call 227-0902 or visit Park Cinemas online.

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Film buffs are in for a rare treat this weekend in San Luis Obispo.

On Sunday, “Take Two” radio hosts Jim Dee and Bob Whiteford will present a special screening of Akira Kurosawa’s “Rashomon.”

Set in ancient Japan, “Rashomon” depicts a heinous crime through the wildly differing accounts of four witnesses: a samurai, his wife, a bandit and a woodcutter. It’s considered one of Kurosawa’s most influential and approachable films.

Following the film, Dee and Whiteford will lead a discussion with the audience. It’s “Take Two” — live!

The fun starts at 1 p.m. at The Palm Theatre, 817 Palm St. in San Luis Obispo. Admission is $8.

For more information, call 547-1106 or visit KCBX’s Web site.

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Above “Kabul Transit” image courtesy of the filmmakers.

“Praying in Her Own Voice” documents the battle for equality in the religious world

Here’s a spiritual addition to this week’s film calendar.

On Sunday, Congregation Ohr Tzafon will screen “Praying in Her Own Voice.”

Directed and co-written by Yael Katzir, the 2007 documentary chronicles Women of the Wall, an Israel-based group that has spearheaded the battle for female equality in the religious world.

The group’s main focus is Jerusalem’s Wailing Wall, considered by many to be the holiest site in Judaism.  It’s also one  of several spots where women are not allowed to gather and pray.

Women of the Wall want to change that.

Starting in December 1988, when group members first read from a Torah scroll at the Western Wall, the group has been working toward improving the religious status of women in Israeli public life — staging protests and challenging Israel’s government in court.

“Praying in Her Own Voice” features interviews with some of the most influential women in the United States and the Holy Land, including Rabbi Debbie Israel of Morgan Hill.

Israel will lead  a discussion following the free screening.

Watch “Praying in Her Own Voice” at 3 p.m. Sunday at Congregation Ohr Tzafon, 2605 Traffic Way in Atascadero.

The screening is co-sponsored by the Reform Jewish congregation and the Jewish Community Center of San Luis Obispo. Community members of all faiths are welcome.

This week: Quentin Tarantino’s “Jackie Brown” and art doc “The Rape of Europa”

The Palm Wednesday screening series returns tomorrow night with Quentin Tarantino’s “Jackie Brown.”

When flight attendant Jackie Brown gets caught smuggling cash and cocaine, she finds herself in seriously hot water — trapped between a gun runner (Samuel L. Jackson), a federal agent (Michael Keaton) and a bail bondman (Robert Forster).

Blaxploitation queen Pam Grier (“Coffy,” “Foxy Brown”) is magnificent as the title character, a tough-talking mama who manages to keep everyone guessing. She’s backed by an A-list supporting cast that includes Robert De Niro, Bridget Fonda and Chris Tucker.

Don’t miss “Jackie Brown,” a smart, sassy crime thriller from the director of “Pulp Fiction,” “Kill Bill” and “Inglourious Basterds.”

“Jackie Brown” screens at 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Wednesday at The Palm Theatre, 817 Palm St. in San Luis Obispo. Tickets are $7.50.

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Also on Wednesday, learn about the troubled past of Europe’s greatest artworks in “The Rape of Europa.”

Written and directed by Richard Berge, Bonni Cohen and Nicole Newnham,  the 2006 documentary chronicles the theft, destruction and miraculous survival of Europe’s art treasures during the Third Reich and the Second World War.

For 12 years, the Nazis looted and destroyed art on a scale unprecedented in history.

At the same time, art professionals, truck drivers, department store clerks and others fought back to safeguard, rescue and return the millions of lost, hidden and stolen treasures.

The legacy of this tragic history continues to play out today as families of looted collectors recover major works of art and conservators repair battle damage.

Meanwhile, nations fight over the fate of ill-gotten spoils of war — such as Gustav Klimt’s “Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I,” stolen from Viennese Jews in 1938 and reportedly sold for $135 million in 2006.

Joan Allen (“Death Race,” “The Bourne Ultimatum”) narrates the film.

Appropriately, “The Rape of Europa” takes its title from Titian’s famous painting, which depicts the mythical beauty being abducted by the Greek god Zeus.

Watch “The Rape of Europa” at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at the San Luis Obispo Art Center, 1010 Broad St. in San Luis Obispo.

Admission is $7, or $5 for Art Center and Central Coast Hadassah members, and includes beverages and snacks.

Jimmy Kimmel presents “The Late Night War,” a stirring account of betrayal and bloodshed

As we draw close to the last episode of “The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien,” take heart.

The trauma we’ve experienced as television viewers has not been in vain.

In fact, these few fateful days will live on in the form of “The Late Night War.”

Modeled after Ken Burns’ brilliant “The Civil War,” this short-subject documentary recently premiered on ABC’s rival late-night show, “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” It’s a clever take on the trials and travails of Lenogate, as the squalid squabble between NBC, Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien has been dubbed.

We see NBC executive Jeffrey “Jeff” Zucker as a general, Leno as his second-in-command and O’Brien as the hapless rival who is trampled under their boot heels. Good stuff.

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Watch Conan’s last stand tonight at 11:35 p.m. PST on NBC. (That’s KSBY, Channel 6, for you Central Coast residents.)