It was reported last week that Lady Gaga would not be performing “Hold My Hand”, her Oscar nominated song from Top Gun: Maverick, at the Oscars. No word at the time on whether or not she would attend. Then, curiously, on Saturday, a day before the Oscars, there was word that Oscar broadcast producers closed rehearsal for 15 minutes, leading to speculation that there would be a surprise presenter.
A few hours later, the surprise turned out to be the Gaga – she would indeed perform the following evening. And then on Sunday, late morning, just hours before the first arrivals on the carpet, a confirmation that Tom Cruise would not attend. He was among the most highly anticipated stars.
Turns out Tom went back to work, the message being that the work of making movies will always come first. Because TOM CRUISE WILL ENTERTAIN YOU, nothing can stop him from entertaining you – not even the Oscars. He would rather jump off a cliff than go to the Oscars. It all kinda made sense for him in the end because Top Gun: Maverick was not a factor at all last night so if he was there he would have been sitting around waiting for three and a half hours for nothing. He knew before everyone really did.
No Cruise but there was Gaga, is that a fair trade? It is for me – and here is where the Gaga superfans come after me, as they do now and again, because of what I wrote back in 2014 when I criticised her for showing up late to the Oscars and blowing by fans and reporters. So I questioned why she was even there and basically said that nobody cared, and I’ve had to eat that sh-t in the years that have passed because of course Gaga went on to win an Oscar and she definitely belongs at the Oscars now, and last night she was my best dressed.
Am I pandering?
If that’s what you want to call it sure, but I just really LOVE this fit. It’s Versace, right off the runway where it was worn last week by Gigi Hadid. And while few can wear a dress better that Gigi, I prefer this on Gaga over Gigi… because I think it’s actually a better fit, even though Gaga is shorter. But that might be why it’s a better fit for her proportions.
The dress, to my eye, is less provocative on Gigi’s length. On Gaga, the sheer parts along the ribcage make more of an impact, and the sheer over the top half of her ass definitely make more of an impact. It’s such a good fit on her, and the drop waist from the sheer and the exposed corseting, is such an interesting design feature. What I especially like about this design is that it’s both familiar and reimagined, because we all know this silhouette: Victorian style corset dressing, that shape is recognisable anywhere, but of course we never imagine it to be sheer through the midsection. This is exactly how you modernise something traditional and the perfect choice for a star who can go back and forth between both.
