Host delivers tribute to nominees, film in general

Feb 23, 2015 07:04 GMT  ·  By
Neil Patrick Harris and Anna Kendrick do the “Moving Pictures” musical opener at the Oscars 2015
   Neil Patrick Harris and Anna Kendrick do the “Moving Pictures” musical opener at the Oscars 2015

The Oscars 2015 were last night, with the ever-adorable Neil Patrick Harris taking over from Ellen DeGeneres as host of the awards gala. As we all know from the year Anne Hathaway and James Franco did the honors, this isn’t as easy a task as it might seem, mostly because the Oscars are generally more “serious” in tone, which means the host has to compensate somehow to keep viewers at home entertained.

NPH delivered, starting with his opening segment. Though this is usually a half-funny half-serious monolog, he stuck to a recipe he perfected while hosting the Tonys and other industry awards, and turned the moment into a musical one.

Guest stars including Anna Kendrick, who’s promoting two movies in which she’ll be displaying her pipes, “The Last Five Years” and “Pitch Perfect 2,” Jack Black, Benedict Cumberbatch, Clint Eastwood and a dancing troupe that included anything from Roman soldiers to Stormtroopers.

The segment was both a tribute to this year’s nominees and to film in general, as NPH argued in song that “moving pictures shape our lives,” making us better, wiser and more in touch with everything around us.

However, as the Vine embedded above the video shows, he wasn’t all nice: the 2015 edition of the Oscars was the whitest in history, and the host made sure to remind that to everyone before bursting into song.