One of our very best comedians, Rock was clearly in tough spot.
(You could say he was caught between Chris Rock and a hard place.)
But as whip to the shows redemptive ideological and P.R.
Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
mission, Rock was provocative and effective, even if the jokes themselves were all over the place.
Beginning the night in an ivory tuxedo jacket, Rock welcomed us to the white Peoples Choice Awards.
He then jokesplained why he didnt quit the gig after the nominations were announced.
(Its a job and he couldnt stand to lose another one to Kevin Hart.)
The stand-up that followed tried to have it both ways by legitimizing and critiquing the outrage.
When your grandmother is swinging from a tree, its really hard to care about best documentary foreign short.
The audience laughed and squirmed.
Rock smiled at their discomfort and kept rolling.
Rock blasted Hollywoods institutional biases and those that would protest it.
Not every crack was funny, and his logic wasnt always sound.
This from an actor whose most recent screen credit was a guest spot onEmpire.
(Perhaps Rock didnt seeMagic Mike XXL, which featured Pinkett Smith in a sizable supporting role.)
(Why pick on Pinkett Smith?
(The audience or at least Matt Damon really had no idea how to respond to that one.)
I wanted blunter and funnier.
It won on volume, not quality.
Another bit, Black History Month Minute, saluted the achievements of…Jack Black.
The critique of inclusiveness was wrongly exclusive.
When the show did acknowledge other races, it fumbled with stereotypes.
Using Asian kids to portray the accountants who tabulate the Oscar votes?
Because theyre good at math?
Im not a fan of the movie myself, but he did well by himself with that speech.
(Bedazzled, super-casual costume designer Jenny Beavan should win all the awards.)
There was also a conspicuous amount of ribald irreverence.
For a brief moment, I worried that the spirit of the Golden Globes had possessed the Oscars.
Sarah Silverman joked about her heavy Jewish boobs and boning James not a grower or a shower Bond.
Jared Leto joshed about merkins (and encouraged us toGoogle itif we didnt know what a merkin was.)
He raised over $60,000.
Way to make them pay, Rock.B-
