Last Sunday we saw how Adrien Brody took out the gum he was carrying in his mouth and threw it in the air for his wife to catch. Hollywood elegance is infinite. The actor realized, just as he was already climbing the stairs to the stage, that having to chew and make a speech to thank him for the Oscar was not a good idea. Poor man, helpless and lacking alternatives, the only solution he found was to take it out from between his teeth and, like someone who tosses a lucky coin, throw it to his beloved. Devoted to the cause, she reacted quickly trying to catch the sticky little ball in flight. All things considered, Georgina Chapman, Harvey Weinstein's ex-wife, happily divorced from the producer, has had to endure much worse things than having chewed gum in her hands.
There is no sign of love more sincere than, in a moment full of family joy, dressed in a twenty-one button-down and stilettos, acting like the best receiver in the American football league. The devoted wife demonstrated her good reflexes and, in the front row, gave everything to take the projectile that her partner had just spat out. Couples are there to help each other in difficult moments. Whatever must be done if foresight is not your husband's strong point. Brody could have taken the gum out of his mouth when he saw that the moment of the nomination for best actor arrived. Spit it out discreetly, wrap it in a piece of paper and put it in his jacket pocket. Or stick it under the chair. Or swallow it as he went up on stage. But no. He saw clearly that the one who had to take care of that emergency was his wife, with incorporated aerial filigree. Well, it must help something to be accompanied to the galas. But sometimes, love and all the illusion in the world are not enough to make magic happen. It would have been the ultimate spectacle, a poetic moment, if Chapman, with her graceful elegance, like a wood nymph, had intercepted the little drooling doughnut as the parabola was completed. It would have been the viral moment of a rather sleepy ceremony. But perfection is impossible. The trajectory was erratic because the throw of the brand new winner was rushed. The gum fell to the floor and Chapman had to bend down to pick up the gum from the carpet. There is no information on what she did next. It doesn't matter. It was Adrien Brody's big moment and nothing could spoil it.
Brody thanked his family values and the good education he received from his parents, and said that he was in the midst of a quest for greatness: "I know people don't usually talk like that, but I want to be one of the greatest. I'm inspired by the greatest," he said. We noticed it with that gum. And in the way he demanded that the music stop to make the speech longer. "I want to finish, please! Stop the music! I've done it before, that's it! It's not the first time!" he exclaimed, authoritative. His forcefulness has earned another record: that of the longest speech in the history of the Oscars.
Adrien Brody's gum could be displayed in the Hollywood Museum, right next to Jennifer Lopez's gum, the one that the singer spat into her assistant's hand just before starting to film a scene. A different tribute to the other greatness of Hollywood.
