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"  Even with a few unexpected wins, last night&amp;#039;s Oscars were, shall we say, boring. And most of the men in attendance dressed the part, squirming in their tuxes like their moms picked them out. But the cold and rainy L.A. night also offered a few standouts: experiments in greatness (who knew P. Diddy cleaned up so nice?), cautionary tales (paging Mr. Busey!), and pleasant surprises (Julian Schnabel left his pajamas at home). And, best of all, some lessons on how to make sure you don&amp;#039;t pull a Busey at your next formal event.  Best Dressed: Steve Carell Super-duper smooth, and believe it or not, he manages to top Clooney as our best dressed for the night. As with last year, Carell is wearing Domenico Vacca. Pay attention at home: This is how it&amp;#039;s done.  Worst Dressed: Gary Busey This is not a tuxedo; also, this is not (really) an actor and he probably wasn&amp;#039;t invited anyway, so who cares?  Best Dressed, Honorable Mention: George Clooney Superlative. George&amp;#039;s last outing was in a tux with a notch lapel. He made a better choice this season. He certainly doesn&amp;#039;t feel the need to take chances or insert his personality into his outfit. Classic, simple. Take this picture and show your tailor.  Biggest Surprise: Julian Schnabel A huge surprise. People thought he would show up in pajamas, but instead he turned up in an impeccable tuxedo. The pocket square in the black trench was inspired.  Biggest Surprise, Honorable Mention: Dwayne &amp;quot;The Rock&amp;quot; Johnson Another big surprise of the night. His bow tie hangs a little low, but other than that, very sharp and clean. Just don&amp;#039;t stand too near the door, Dwayne, or you&amp;#039;ll be parking coats all night.  The Cleanup Artist: Sean &amp;quot;P. Diddy&amp;quot; Combs Fantastic, all of it, especially the black pocket square. The only one we saw all night who pulls off the three-piece tux so easily, and the bow tie is just the right size.  The Years of Experience Award: Dennis Hopper Wearing a tux is easy -- if it fits and you follow the rules, it doesn&amp;#039;t take a dandy to look great in one. Hopper is a great example of someone who looks amazing, and by dint of the late &amp;#039;60s and some adventures in psychopharmacology, probably has no idea where he is.   The Waiters&amp;#039; Club: Casey Affleck, James McAvoy, and Keith Urban  This is the Academy Awards&amp;#039; lowest common denominator. Esquire wants this lazy &amp;quot;Do I have to?&amp;quot; way of dressing stamped out right now. Just because the invite says &amp;quot;black tie&amp;quot; doesn&amp;#039;t mean you have to wear one. Remember, dressed like that there&amp;#039;s always a chance someone will ask you for more iced water.  The &amp;quot;I Can Do Whatever I Want&amp;quot; Award: Javier Bardem Four- and five-button tuxedo jackets are kind of like Javier Bardem&amp;#039;s hair in No Country for Old Men -- most people can&amp;#039;t pull them off without looking like a pervert or serial killer. But because Javier Bardem is Javier Bardem, and he&amp;#039;s wearing Prada, he&amp;#039;s able to wear the suit with confidence and make it his own. Lesson: You wear the suit, and if you don&amp;#039;t feel like a million bucks, you&amp;#039;re not going to look it.   The &amp;quot;I Can Do Whatever I Want&amp;quot; Award, Runner-Up: Johnny Depp He has a lifetime free pass from the fashion police for the sheer beingness of Depp, but a procedural criticism -- his single-button blazer closes below the top of his cummerbund. Looks odd.  The &amp;quot;Dude, Where&amp;#039;s My Iron?&amp;quot; Award: Tommy Lee Jones Was it just us, or did Tommy Lee Jones look completely miserable the entire ceremony? And is it also just us, or does his suit totally not fit? Probably about a size too big, and the lapels could use a good steaming. Number one rule of being a good party guest: If you don&amp;#039;t want to go, don&amp;#039;t go. Number two: Even if you don&amp;#039;t want to go, at least dress like you want to be there.  Needs Slight Alterations: Sean Penn Probably the same notch lapel (minus 8 points, Sean) tux he wore for Mystic River; nothing wrong with that, per se, but it doesn&amp;#039;t really fit, although it might have if he had removed the popcorn from the last time he wore it. Lesson: If it&amp;#039;s been a few years since you last wore your tux, try it on a few weeks before the big event and see if it needs any minor alterations. A tailor can make all the difference.  The Wild Card Award: Daniel Day-Lewis Anyone who&amp;#039;s followed Daniel Day-Lewis&amp;#039;s red carpet career knows this could&amp;#039;ve been a lot worse. The shoes, obviously, are a problem -- with a tux, patent leather loafers or formal oxford shoes are the only options -- but otherwise, kudos to Day-Lewis for keeping his freak in check.  How to Wear a Boutonniere: Viggo Mortensen The evening coat as tuxedo blazer \u2026 very Victorian. Like a lot of things Viggo does, you shouldn&amp;#039;t try this at home, but he pulls it off by virtue of being Viggo. We&amp;#039;re also big fans of the boutonniere -- not for everyone, sure, but it adds a touch of \u00E9lan to the outfit.  As Boring as the Ceremony Itself: Josh Brolin Nice, boring, a poor fit, and totally unremarkable. An example of where a bow tie, maybe even a vest, could&amp;#039;ve brought it to a whole other level of million-bucks awesome.  An Eye for Accessories: Hal Holbrook The scarf is great. Adds some texture and color. It says &amp;quot;Fuck you if you think I&amp;#039;m getting a chill for this shindig.&amp;quot; Very individual, very Tom Ford.  The &amp;quot;Mazel Tov, Try Again&amp;quot; Award: Seth Rogen Mazel tov, Rogen, and congratulations on becoming a man! Now take off your bar mitzvah suit and put on a tux, preferably one that&amp;#039;s not two sizes too big.  Black Velvet: Ioan Gruffudd Black velvet tuxes can be amazing, but they&amp;#039;re tough to wear for an entire evening. This guy fills it out nicely, though.  The &amp;quot;One of These Things Is Not Like the Other&amp;quot; Award: David Furnish and Elton John Left, yes. Right, nooooooooo!  Black Is the New Dull Award: Bret Ratner The best tuxedos follow some slight variation on black and white, preferably more black than white. All black (or worse, all white) gets totally washed out.  The &amp;quot;Don&amp;#039;t Try This at Home&amp;quot; Award: Roberto Cavalli He is Roberto Cavalli, so he can do whatever he wants. Do not follow his lead. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.esquire.com/style/a4299/best-dressed-oscars-2008/>