A couple of friends individually told me this weekend that they thought the Oscars were lacking a certain excitement this year (they also told me collectively that it was too warm for the outfit I was wearing so what do they know). I wondered whether it was because there wasn’t a lot to be mad at. No matter what won, there were merits to almost all of it. As it turned out, the awards were so spread around between all the available properties, there was even less to find fault with – oh, except that Selma was nominated for Best Picture despite not having a Best Director, Actor, or Script to get it there. 

Everyone on the planet who cares about the Oscars knew this was going to be Julianne Moore’s, including her. And everyone knew it was a cumulative win, not precisely for Still Alice, which is a great performance in a mediocre movie.

Given this, it would be so so so easy to dislike Julianne Moore and she doesn’t give you even a sliver of a reason to. She is fun and down to earth and likeable on the carpet and in her speech. She is warm about other actors – and not just other costars, but everyone. Everyone loves her.

And so you kind of forget that while the performance was great, the movie wasn’t. That the dress was seriously forgettable for a woman who was a virtual lock for the best actress. That the whole thing will be a bit of an ‘oh yeah, that’ footnote in a very short time.

That is the power of being as charming as Julianne Moore. Long may she reign.