Did they win the battle for Oscar hearts and minds?

Elderly actors looking like they were on day release from Madame Tussaud's were applauded for merely breathing. The best director prize went to a man on the run for sex charges. And one winner made a political speech.

Yes, it was business as usual at the Oscars despite the pre-ceremony should we? shouldn't we? go ahead because of the war. But the show did go on with the usual four hours of film clips, dull acceptance speeches and audience reaction shots.

I looked forward to the BBC inserts with Jonathan Ross - used to plug the gap while US TV networks show commercials - more than the awards themselves.

The big difference in the "wartime Oscars" was the absence of the red carpet where arrivals wave at the crowd and chat to the media. I suspect that Saddam won't be crowing over this particular victory in his propaganda. Still as Oscar host Steve Martin said: "No red carpet - that will send 'em a message."

Instead of glamorous gowns, this year's must-have fashion accessory, according to Ross, was duck tape. This was sported, in various arrangements, by performers following the US government's advice to stock up on such tape to seal their homes against gas attacks.

Back at the ceremony, Martin stuck to the script apart from an ad lib ("It's sweet backstage, the teamsters are helping Michael Moore into the trunk of his limo") after the evening's most controversial acceptance speech.

As Ross's guest Amanda Donohoe noted, it would have been odd if nobody had mentioned the war. If anyone was going to do it, film-maker Moore was most likely to be the man who did it.

He was joined on stage, after winning the best documentary Oscar, by his fellow nominees in a show of solidarity. "We are against the war, Mr Bush," he said. "Mr Bush, shame on you." His remarks were met with a mixture of cheers and boos, a rare sign of life in the audience.

If the anti-war rhetoric feared by the organisers failed to materialise, the war wasn't ignored by winners. Remarks ranged from best supporting actor Chris Cooper's wish for peace to best actress Nicole Kidman explaining why she hadn't stayed away (apart from the fact she was favourite to win). "Why come when the world is in such turmoil?," she wondered aloud. "Because art is important and because you believe in what you do and want to honour that."

Best actor Adrien Brody was surprised by his win. "There comes a time in life when everything makes sense - and this is not one of those times," he burbled, before using the experience of making the Holocaust drama The Pianist to reflect that it had made him aware of the sadness and dehumanisation of people at time or war, and the repercussions of war.

No one would advocate having a war around Oscar-time every year, but the effect and suspense of whether emotion would get the better of participants made the long, long ceremony more exciting than usual.

But the oddest moment wasn't war-related. It came after presenter Harrison Ford named the best director as Roman Polanski, who fled to France rather than face trial two dozen years ago. As the audience applauded, they looked around for any sign of him. I almost expected the sniffer dogs to search the place in case he'd sneaked in.