The Oscars Sunday night March 2 were masterfully handled by Brookline’s own Conan O’Brien whose intelligence, sense of the absurd, and self-deprecating charm carried us through the wild and wacky tonal shifts of a long evening. He sang and danced and cracked us up, managed a heartfelt tribute to L.A. firefighters, and a straight up, soulful tribute to “the magic, the madness, the grandeur” of the movies which in the best and worst of times can unite us. To those who say it was not a political evening, I say it was. Not overtly– inherently.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande at 97th Oscars

The opening featured two vocal powerhouses. Ariana Grande and Cyntha Erivo defied gravity with hearts as big as their voices, sharing the stage in harmony, but letting each other shine individually, witches across a color barrier who know they are even more powerful together than apart– that was the first political “statement” of the evening. The audience felt the moment and leapt to its feet. I felt goosebumps.

The 97th Oscars put the emphasis not on political drama, but on the work to be celebrated, the work of all film artists, seen and unseen, who aim to illuminate the range of human experience–by definition diverse and inclusive. Equity remains elusive inside and outside the industry. I’m thinking especially of the provocative NO OTHER LAND which won for Best Documentary Feature made by a Palestinian activist and an Israeli journalist and has not yet found a U.S. distributor. Nevertheless it was a night that stretched some boundaries– there were many “firsts”:

–Zoe Saldana’s win (despite her co-star’s racist tweets tanking the film’s chances) for Best Supporting Actress in EMILIA PEREZ as the first American of Dominican descent to win an Oscar,

–I’M STILL HERE Best International Feature and a first for Brazil.

–Paul Tazewell, the first Black man to win an Oscar for Costume Design.

–FLOW winning Best Animated Feature and the first Oscar win for Latvia.

–Writer/director/editor/Best Picture winner Sean Baker the first to win 4 Oscars for one film, ANORA, and starring Mikey Madison whose upset win over Demi Moore for Best Actress led to ANORA’s 5 Oscar sweep.

Near the end of the telecast, Conan looked into the camera and noted that if we were still enjoying the show we were most likely victims of Stockholm Syndrome. If so, these long awards shows are my favorite form of torture, despite some tough moments. If only Timothee Chalamet had won instead of Adrien Brody for Best Actor in THE BRUTALIST — he might have spared us that irksome, interminable speech.

Click here for the complete list of winners for the 97th Academy Awards!