Banksy, Franco's singing among Oscar mysteries - To the movie industry, the Oscars are an awards ceremony. For the rest of us, they're a show.

Banksy, Franco's singing among Oscar mysteries - So while we couldn't recall last year's best picture on a bet (Cameron's blue-aliens movie? No, wait, it was "Hurt Locker" from his ex!), we savor the memory of Billy Crystal's great opening bits and Jack Palance's one-armed push-ups and brave Christopher Reeve onstage, alone, in a wheelchair.

So, Academy Awards, what are you going to do for us in the three-hour-and-then-some ABC broadcast starting at 8 p.m. EST Sunday?

Nobody's complaining about seeing the likes of nominees Natalie Portman, Amy Adams or Colin Firth in their designer duds and with a potential winner's aura (and, in Portman's case, the unbeatable glow of pregnancy).

Banksy, Franco's singing among Oscar mysteries -
But in a year with so many apparent dead-certs — including Portman as best actress for "Black Swan," Firth as best actor for "The King's Speech" and Melissa Leo and Christian Bale of "The Fighter" for the supporting-actor prizes — we need more bells and whistles.

First, there's the all-important theme for the Kodak Theatre event. This year: "You're invited."

OK. We accept.
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Moving on, it's going to be cold, at least by L.A. standards, with temperatures dipping into the 40s at showtime. So during the red-carpet parade, look for loyal publicists earnestly guiding starlets out of the chill because why cover a designer gown with a coat?

The show's hosts are a key element and, this year, relatively daring: Anne Hathaway and James Franco, two fine, handsome actors but lacking the standard credentials of their predecessors, whether a seasoned emcee (Johnny Carson), comedian (Chris Rock) or song-and-dance man (Hugh Jackman).

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ABC's promotional spots, including one in which Franco puts Hathaway's bathroom-break quickness to the stopwatch test, are a good sign that clever comedy is afoot. So is the approval of Alec Baldwin, who was a hit last year with co-host Steve Martin.

"She's a very smart and talented and gorgeous and funny woman, and he's a very charming and polished leading man," Baldwin said Friday. "They are great symbols of young Hollywood. The show is very well served by having them."

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Any hosting advice for Hathaway, who was a best-actress nominee for 2008's "Rachel Getting Married," and Franco, who's up for best-actor honors for "127 Hours"?

"Just go with your instincts, because your instincts are what got you there in the first place," Baldwin counseled.

Hathaway, at 28 the youngest host ever, and Franco, 32, are expected to make a little music together. Hathaway sparkled in a 2008 Oscar duet with Jackman, while Franco practically demanded the chance to sing Sunday, said producers Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer.

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More tunes are on tap with the return of the best-song showcases. The four nominated numbers will be performed by Gwyneth Paltrow ("Coming Home" from the film "Country Strong"); Randy Newman (his "Toy Story 3" song, "We Belong Together"); Mandy Moore, Zachary Levi and composer Alan Menken ("I See the Light" from "Tangled") and Florence Welch and composer A.R. Rahman ("If I Rise" from "127 Hours").

The producers have secrets in store, including something they've termed "scenic transitions," with music and images that will take viewers to different points in film history for presentation of the more technical awards.

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The best surprises, of course, are the unplanned emotional peaks. One could come courtesy of Annette Bening, 52, nominated three times before without winning, finally earning her trophy for "The Kids Are All Right." Or it could be provided by 14-year-old Hailee Steinfeld emerging as the underdog winner for her film debut in "True Grit."

Then there's presenter Sandra Bullock, returning to the stage where she triumphantly claimed her best-actress trophy last year for "The Blind Side" and then, within days, saw cheating allegations surface against her now-ex-husband, Jesse James.


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Suspense over winners and losers is obviously a staple of the night. But there's a twist this year thanks to Banksy, the elusive British bad-boy street artist and nominee for best documentary feature for his directing debut, "Exit Through the Gift Shop."

Will the artist who prefers to hide his face from public view suddenly turn ham and appear in front of a half-billion viewers? As the movie academy would put it, you're invited to find out.

Year after 'Cove' Oscar, activists shift tactics - In the fervor of the Academy Awards in Hollywood on Sunday, last year's winners will be a distant memory. Half a world away in the Japanese fishing village of Taiji, few will ever forget the film that won in 2010 for Best Documentary Feature.

Year after 'Cove' Oscar, activists shift tactics - A year after "The Cove" received an Oscar for its scathing portrayal of Taiji's dolphin hunting tradition, the tiny town is still under siege by foreign activists. That's created a deep deadlock with Taiji's fishermen, leading some activists to seek a different tact.

Year after 'Cove' Oscar, activists shift tactics - "I'm trying to get a grass-roots movement going in Japan. I've come to realize, you can't show up with a big stick and tell them what to do," said Ric O'Barry, the veteran dolphin activist who stars in "The Cove."

Year after 'Cove' Oscar, activists shift tactics - A smattering of foreign protesters has come for years to Taiji, but since the success of the movie the sleepy town of 3,500 has been inundated. The environmental group Sea Shepherd has started a "Cove Guardian" program that brings visitors, new groups such as "Taiji Action Group" and "Eyes on Taiji" have sprung up, and many people have come on their own.

Year after 'Cove' Oscar, activists shift tactics - The influx has had little effect. The town's two dozen dolphin hunters, most of whom are gruff ex-whalers, ignore the protesters as unwanted foreign pressure on their traditions, and have responded with elaborate tarp structures to hide the gorier aspects of their work. A rare public meeting between the two sides in November ended in confusion and discord, and town officials say the attention is largely a nuisance.

"We're a small town, we really can't get anything else done while this is going on," said Masahiro Mukai, who normally runs the town's volunteer fire department but now goes on regular patrols to monitor the activists.
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So activists like O'Barry are trying to recruit more Japanese to their cause, publishing materials in the Japanese language and holding meetings with those who show an interest. Longtime Japanese activists like Masato Sakano have organized crowded forums in Tokyo to discuss the implications of "The Cove" and the Taiji hunts.

While many in the country feel the town should be allowed its traditional ways, others are coming to Taiji to protest or simply see for themselves.

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"A lot of foreigners are helping us, but if we don't do something on our own, this problem won't be resolved," said Yoshiko Wada, 33, a hairdresser who has visited the town six times.

The government permits about 20,000 dolphins to be hunted along Japan's coasts each year. Only about 2,000 of those are taken in Taiji, but it is singled out mainly because it uses drivefishing, in which the animals are herded near to shore and slaughtered in shallow water, as opposed to being harpooned at sea.

This method also lends itself to capturing live animals, because they are relatively unscathed and can be examined up close by aquarium buyers or dolphin dealers. Those that aren't picked are killed for meat or occasionally released.

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In years past several towns captured live dolphins in Japan, but now only Taiji remains. So a complete end to the hunts would be difficult, because they have become crucial for the popular and lucrative dolphin shows throughout the country, and captive breeding is rare.

While killing dolphins for food remains a cultural touchstone, the hunts generate far more money from selling live animals. Bottlenose dolphins sold for meat typically go for several hundred dollars, while prime live animals sell for about $10,000 domestically and much more abroad. In the year ending in March 2010, 79 dolphins were exported from Japan for 277 million yen ($3.38 million), the government says.

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With Taiji's fishermen unlikely to bend to foreign pressure and the strong ties to Japan's aquarium industry, a quick end to the hunts looks unlikely. Some foreign activists have called for protests directly at aquariums, but others question that approach.

"If we can't shut down aquariums in our own countries, how do you go to the Japanese and ask them to do that here?" said Michael Dalton, an Australian activist living near Taiji.