Box-Office Blues Make for an Oscar Washout

"Juno" is the only movie in this year's batch of Best Picture nominees to even cross the $65 million threshold; as of today, "There Will Be Blood" had grossed only $35 million. But "Juno" took home just one trophy Sunday night, for Best Original Screenplay.

In fairness, that "Juno" win was responsible for the best Oscar moment in ages: stripper-turned-screenwriter Brook "call me Diablo Cody" Busey-Hunt using her Oscar-win certificate to cover her crotch as she walked offstage after picking up her trophy -- yes, her diaphanous floor-length animal print muumuu was slit up to there.

"No Country for Old Men," which snagged Best Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay and Supporting Actor, is hovering at around $64 million, according to the Web site Box Office Mojo. With an average ticket price nationally of just under 7 bucks a pop, that means fewer than 10 million people have seen the movie. You can see ABC's problem.

But that's still a lot better than the mere $35 million box office for "There Will Be Blood," which produced the night's Best Actor winner, Daniel Day-Lewis.

Some argue the trophy show might have done better ratings had it included, as in seasons past, extended clips of the Best Picture nominees, to help the millions of viewers who had not seen these flicks.

But, what with that homage to binoculars in film and another homage to thespians feigning having a nightmare by sitting bolt upright in bed, there simply wasn't enough time.

Any time that might have been eked out for longer clips of the best-pic nominees was gobbled up by the performance of the five Best Original Song nominees. Starting with a little Alan Menken-Stephen Schwartz tune, "Happy Working Song," which, no doubt with the best of intentions, included the lyrics:

We'll keep singing without fail/Otherwise we'd spoil it/Hosing down the garbage pail/And scrubbing up the toilet.

It was one of three nominated songs from the Disney flick "Enchanted" (box office $126.5 million). Surprisingly -- or maybe not, once we actually heard them -- all three lost out to "Falling Slowly," from "Once" (domestic box office $9.4 million).

Also affecting the ratings: For the first time since 1964, the four glam acting categories went to European thespians who are far from household names in this country.

Best known of the bunch is Brit Day-Lewis. France's Marion Cotillard was named Best Actress for her role as Edith Piaf in the biopic "La Vie en Rose." Spain's Javier Bardem won the Best Supporting Actor for "Old Men." And Brit Tilda Swinton was a surprise win for Best Supporting Actress, for "Michael Clayton."