Oscars 2021: the best and worst looks

The 2021 Oscars ceremony was held yesterday. It was an important ceremony because it represented the return to the physical red carpet after the lockdown and although it was not exactly perfect with the change of schedule in the announcement of the winners created a decidedly unsatisfactory ending. The victories were remarkable, however: Chloe Zhao and Frances McDormand won Best Director, Best Film and Best Actress in a Leading Role respectively with the wonderful Nomadland; Anthony Hopkins became the oldest actor ever to win The Father along with Daniel Kaluuya, who won Best Supporting Actor; 73-year-old Youn Yuh-jung took home the award for Best Supporting Actress for Minari while the thriller Promising Young Woman and the drama The Father won best screenplay.

It certainly represented a reconquest of normality for the entertainment world. Of course, the red carpet look parade was an essential part of the evening and, almost surprisingly, male guests had outfits as interesting and daring as women's. However, there were missteps (some very remarkable) and for this reason we decided to list the best and worst looks of the evening, divided between men and women.

Best Dressed Men

Lakeith Stanfield in Saint Laurent

Daniel Kaluuya in Bottega Veneta

Riz Ahmed in Prada

Sasha Baron Cohen in Ralph Lauren

Steven Yeun in Gucci

Alan S. Kim in Thom Browne

The best men's looks of the evening were many: the only real king on all was Lakeith Stanfield in a custom Saint Laurent simply devastating; followed by Daniel Kaluuya in Bottega Veneta and Riz Ahmed in Prada. More classic Sasha Baron Cohen and Steve Yeun, respectively in Ralph Lauren and Gucci while special mention goes to the very young Alan S. Kim, one of the protagonists of Minari, who at 7 years old shows up in Thom Browne and defeats everyone.

Worst Dressed Men

Martin Desmond Roe & Travon Free

Leslie Odom Jr. in Brioni

Colman Domingo in Versace

The so-so men's outfits sof the evening were varied. Martin Desmond Roe and Travon Free, winners for the spectacular short film Two Distant Strangers, were a disaster with those yellow and black suits of damask fabric that came straight out Scarface while while Leslie Odom Jr. in Brioni wore a gold suit and a golden suit is always in bad taste. Colman Domingo's Versace suit would not be ugly in itself, if it were not for some small but crucial mistake: nominally the overly tight cut of the jacket that makes it look a little wrung and the black paint shoes that definitely squeak with the shocking pink of the rest.

Best Dressed Women

Zendaya in Valentino

Carey Mulligan in Valentino

Laura Pausini in Valentino

Amanda Seyfried in Armani

Regina King in Louis Vuitton

Viola Davis in Alexander McQueen

H.E.R. in Dundas

Emerald Fennell in Gucci

Halle Berry in Dolce & Gabbana

Celeste Waite in Gucci

Nicolette Robinson in Zuhair Murad

Valerie Chung in Simone Rocha

Ariana DeBose in Versace Couture

Youn Yuh-jung in Marmar Halim

Angela Bassett in Alberta Ferretti

Marlee Matlin in Vivienne Westwood

Maria Bakalova in Louis Vuitton

Tiara Thomas in Jovana Louis

Mariqueen Maandig Reznor & Trent Reznor in Saint Laurent

Today's most charged category: Carey Mulligan, Zendaya and Laura Pausini were simply perfect in Valentino; less conventional but interesting Celeste Waite and Emerald Fennel in Gucci. Louis Vuitton also scored points with Regina King and Maria Bakalova while viola davis, angela bassett and halle berry were more classic. Gorgeous Ariana DeBose in Versace and Marlee Matlin in Vivienne Westwood as well as Tiara Thomas in Jovana Louis. Valerie Chung and Youn Yuh-jung followed a classy but safe inspiration but made a magnificent impression as the heart prize tied with both Mariqueen Maandig Reznor who showed up in a glam-vampire Saint Laurent dress with her husband, Nine Inch Nails legend Trent Reznor and H.E.R. gorgeous in a blue Dundas.

Worst Dressed Women

Margot Robbie in Chanel

Andra Day in Vera Wang

Laura Dern in Oscar de la Renta

Glenn Close in Armani Privè

Chloe Zhao in Hermes

Olivia Colman in Dior

Diane Warren in Valentino

Reese Witherspoon in Dior

Not always a look works. In the case of women's looks, the mistake is always not to nail down the red carpet mood and seem out of place: this is the case of Margot Robbie, dressed for the umpteenth time by a Chanel who does not do her justice and evokes with the flowery mood a country festival; this is the case of Andra Day in Vera Wang, magnificent in herself but a little too nightclub-ready for the Oscars. The titanic director Chloe Zhao instead chooses Hermès but between braids, the bland beige of the dressed and the low sneakers the outlook is decidedly sloppy. Diane Warren instead fails completely with a white Valentino suit paired with a silver top that evokes certain middle-aged ladies in the first communions in Southern Italy accompanied by another "aunt outfit" by Olivia Colman that seems to have come out of the 60s and not in a good way. Ending  the list is Reese Witherspoon who also dresses up with Dior but manages to make the world yawn.