© Getty ImagesNever mind the fact that the Irish Green Wave turned out to be a ripple.
2023 was the year when Asia and Germany dominated the Oscars.
As expected, Daniels Kwan and Scheinert's nihilistic multiverse adventure 'Everything, Everywhere, All At Once' romped home with seven Oscars, winning big in the major categories including Best Supporting Actor for Vietnam-born Ke Huy Quan and Best Actress for Malaysia's Michelle Yeoh.
India had cause to celebrate too with Kala Bairava, MM Keeravani and Rahul Sipligunj picking up Best Original song for the song 'Naatu Naatu' in 'RRR' and Guneet Monga and Kartiki Gonsalves winning Best Documentary Short for Netflix's 'The Elephant Whisperers'.
Germany's 'All Quiet On The Western Front' also had a great night, capturing four Academy Awards for Best International Feature, Best Original Musical Score, Best Production Design and Best Cinematography.
© Getty ImagesHowever the night unquestionably belonged to the Daniels whose film won big, taking five of the seven major categories including three of the four acting gongs.
The early sign of an 'Everything, Everywhere, All At Once' landslide came with Jamie Lee Curtis' triumph in the Best Supporting Actress category where she upset the early favourite, Angela Bassett for 'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever' and dark horse, Kerry Condon for 'The Banshees of Inisherin'.
While thanking the team behind the quirky multiverse film, the daughter of screen legends Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis acknowledged her collaborators over a four decade long career, thanking "all of the people who have supported the genre movies I have made all these years.. the hundreds and thousands of people: we just won an Oscar together!"
Further evidence of an Everything, Everywhere, All At Once' sweep came with Ke Huy Quan's expected victory in the Best Supporting Actor category where he saw off the double challenge of Barry Keoghan and Brendan Gleeson from 'The Banshees of Inisherin'.
Noting his 88 year old mum was watching at home, the Saigon born Vietnamese American actor told the ceremony: "My journey started on a boat.
© Getty Images"I spent a year in a refugee camp and somehow, I ended up here on Hollywood's biggest stage!
"They say stories like this only happen in the movies. I cannot believe this is happening to me! This - this is the American Dream!"
Confirmation that 'Everything, Everywhere, All At Once' was going to gallop home came when the Daniels beat Martin McDonagh for the Best Original Screenplay award which had always seemed like the best shot at Oscar glory for 'The Banshees of Inisherin'.
Oscars followed for Best Film Editing, Best Director for the Daniels, Best Actress for Yeoh and Best Picture.
Receiving Best Director, the quirky duo behind the film began their acceptance speech with Scheinert dedicating their win to "all the mommies in the world" and praising his parents for not stifling his creativity even when he was "dressing in drag as a kid - which is a threat to nobody."
Kwan saluted his parents too but also used his speech to tell his son: "You should never have to live up to this standard.
© Getty Images"This is not normal. This is kind of crazy. I will love you no matter what."
Michelle Yeoh's groundbreaking Best Actress win - the first by an Asian leading lady - prompted her to declare her win was a "beacon of hope and possibilities" for those who shared her ethnicity.
"Dreams do come true," the 60 year old actress declared, before adding to cheers and thunderous applause: "And ladies, don't let anybody tell you you are past your prime!"
Her victory came at the expense of Australian Cate Blanchett's dream of capturing a third Oscar for her powerful performance in 'Tar'.
And in many ways that was typical of a night when Academy voters bought big time into the narrative around winners in the acting categories over the strength of the various performances.
Nowhere was this sharply illustrated than in the Best Actor category where Paul Mescal, Colin Farrell, Bill Nighy and Austin Butler were left twiddling their thumbs as Brendan Fraser captured the statuette for playing a morbidly obese college professor in 'The Whale'.
© Getty ImagesIt was undoubtedly a popular win for an actor whose career many had written off and with a wobbly voice, an emotional Fraser noted he "started in this business 30 years ago.
"Things didn't come easily to me but there was a facility I didn't appreciate at the time until it stopped."
Fraser's performance was undoubtedly the most Oscar baity of the five nominees and it helped land the film the award for Best Make Up and Hairstyling too.
However his win marked a grim night for Martin McDonagh, the cast and crew of 'The Banshees of Inisherin' whose nine nominees went away empty handed.
If Oscars night is about winners, that means there are losers.
But the shutting out of McDonagh's film from the winners podium felt unfair to many observers - especially as it was such a good film technically, narratively and performatively and was superior to many of the films that were rewarded.
Todd Field's 'Tar' and Steven Spielberg's 'The Fablemans' also went away with nothing to show for their efforts, as the Academy mostly honoured films that had huge box office success.
© Getty ImagesNot only did 'Everything, Everywhere, All At Once' benefit from putting bums on seats but 'Avatar: The Way of Water,' 'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever' and 'Top Gun: Maverick' picked up statuettes for Best Visual Effects, Best Costume Design and Best Sound.
Only Baz Luhrman's 'Elvis' bucked the trend of box office winners getting acknowledged.
Sarah Polley deservedly scooped the Best Adapted Screenplay award for 'Women Talking' and thanked Academy voters for honouring a film based on that radical concept, while 'Nalvany' won Best Documentary Feature and 'Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio' notched up an Oscar triumph for Netflix in the Animated Feature category.
Ireland's hopes of a shock Best International Feature win were dashed early on when Colm Baireaid's charming Irish language feature 'The Quiet Girl/An Cailin Ciuin' lost out to Netflix's 'All Quiet On The Western Front'.
There were words of Irish, though, during the ceremony from Dubliner Richard Baneham when 'Avatar: The Way of Water' won Best Visual Effects, with the Tallaght man beginning his speech with "Go Raibh Mile Maith Agat (thank you very much)".
The only other bright spot for the Irish contingent came in the Best Live Action Short category where the Anglo Irish double act of Ross White and Tom Berkeley won for their light hearted, Northern Irish bucket list tale 'An Irish Goodbye'.
Leading a chorus of 'Happy Birthday' for one of the film's stars James Martin, Ross White thanked those back in Northern Ireland who had helped bring their short to the screen
"We wish we had the time to list you all here but you know who you are," he said.
© Getty ImagesThis wasn't the only singing to take place during an acceptance speech.
Declaring himself to be a Carpenters fan, Indian songwriter MM Keervani sang lyrics he adapted to his favourite song of theirs 'Top of the World' to mark his win.
The really standout musical performance of the show, though, was Lady GaGa who sang a stripped down version of her 'Top Gun: Maverick' nominated collaboration with Bloodpop, 'Hold My Hand'.
As for the show itself, Jimmy Kimmel turned out again to be a reasonably safe pair of hands as an Oscars host.
Arriving onstage by parachute, he quipped pretending to feel some discomfort: "Give me a second, I'll adjust my danger zone here."
His opening monologue inevitably had fun at the expense of last year's controversy - the Will Smith slapping and haranguing of comedian Chris Rock.
He began by making a quip about the five Irish acting nominees.
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© Getty Images"Five Irish actors are nominated tonight.. which means the chances of another fight on stage went way up."
There was further laughter when he joked: "We want you to have fun. We want you to be safe and, most importantly, we want me to be safe.
"If anyone commits an act of violence during this show, you will be presented the Oscar for Best Actor and be permitted to give an 18 minute long speech."
He had some good gags in the monologue about Brendan Fraser and Ke Huy Quan having made 'Encino Man' 31 years ago, Steven Spielberg's claim never to have done drugs, the absence of 'Avatar: The Way of Water' director James Cameron and the disappointing box office for 'Babylon'.
There were inevitable jokes from him at the expense of Matt Damon and some interaction with Malala, executive producer of the Best Documentary Short nominee 'Stranger At The Gate,' Colin Farrell and Jessica Chastain.
There was an appearance onstage by a donkey and in arguably the biggest misfiring gag of the night, 'Cocaine Bear' director Elizabeth Banks appeared alongside someone dressed in a bear costume as she presented the Best Visual Effects prize.
Luckily, she survived almost tripping on her dress as she arrived onstage.
© Getty ImagesJohn Travolta visibly choked up referencing 'Grease' while introducing an In Memoriam section that led with his co-star from that film, Olivia Newton John.
Kimmel's best gag came after Daniels Kwan and Scheinert won Best Director.
The talk show host cheekily quipped that the last win by a directing team "was Congressman George Santos".
However not even Santos' fevered imagination could have dreamt up the amazing success 'Everything, Everywhere, All At Once' has had since its release in US cinemas 12 months ago.
Kwan and Schubert's multiverse adventure went from quirky indie, cult film to international box office sensation to seven time Oscar winner.
And while some may quibble if it really deserves that adulation, there's no doubt its success feels like a real sea change at the Oscars.
Future awards seasons and the films championed may never be the same again.
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