SLOW BURN AT OSCARS HOST STEWART RECOVERS AFTER LUKEWARM START.

Byline: David Kronke Television Critic

Host Jon Stewart got off to a bumpy start hosting the Oscars at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood on Sunday, but was able to rally and turn in a reasonably entertaining performance.

Similarly, the evening's big winner, ``Crash,'' started slow - ``Crash'' didn't land an Oscar until more than two and a half hours into the broadcast, but emerged with best picture honors, besting presumptive favorite ``Brokeback Mountain'' in what was the only awards-related surprise of the night.

The ceremony opened with a filmed sequence commenting on Stewart's relatively low profile compared to past hosts: His acclaimed series, ``The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,'' is seen by fewer than two million viewers nightly. There was the requisite ``Brokeback Mountain'' gag, with Billy Crystal sharing a tent with Chris Rock - both were too busy with one another to bother to host.

That routine was only mildly amusing at best, as was Stewart's opening line, ``Tonight is the night we celebrate excellence in film, with me, fourth male lead from 'Death to Smoochy.' '' Or his description of the Oscar ceremony as the only opportunity to ``see all your favorite stars without having to donate any money to the Democratic Party.''

No sides split yet, but he was just getting warmed up. He got closer to the comedic bull's-eye in a mock plea to those who engage in film piracy: ``There are women here who could barely afford enough gown to cover their breasts.'' He noted how both ``Capote'' and ``Good Night, and Good Luck.'' both concerned impassioned reporters defying the odds to uncover unpleasant truths: ``Needless to say,'' he added, ``both are period pieces.''

And he finally delivered a line uniting the entire assemblage in laughter: Referring to the eccentric pop singer who performed in a swan outfit a few years back, Stewart declared, ``Bjork could not be here tonight - she was trying on her Oscar dress, and Dick Cheney shot her.'' On ``The Daily Show,'' Stewart thanked the gods of comedy repeatedly the week after the vice president's recent hunting mishap, and he no doubt did again privately last night.

The rest of the evening went pretty well for Stewart. Filmed comedy segments of Oscar campaign commercials done in the style of political smear ads were amusing, and many of Stewart's ad-libs were far sharper than his prepared material.

Stewart seemed as irritated as I was with those ubiquitous montages that turn up during the ceremony. Following a montage of issue-oriented movies, he gravely intoned, ``And none of those issues were ever a problem again.'' After yet another one, he declared, ``I can't wait till later, when we get Hollywood's salute to montages.''

Actually, Stewart prepared a montage himself, one cluttered with clips from Westerns featuring a not-so-subtle gay subtext, suggesting ``Brokeback Mountain'' wasn't as groundbreaking as some said it was. Funny idea, but Stewart's colleague, Stephen Colbert, did the same sort of gag this past week on his own program, ``The Colbert Report.''

Other comedy bits were hit-and-miss. Ben Stiller's presenting the best visual effects Oscar clad in a green body suit and purportedly not realizing his ``special effect'' was being botched was a little cringe-worthy; in fact, the biggest laugh in the bit came from Steven Spielberg's grimace from the seats. For lifetime achievement winner Robert Altman, Lily Tomlin and Meryl Streep introduced him by improvising - or seeming to improvise - a rambling, incoherent dialogue that played off the filmmaker's improvisational style, but as an introduction, it was more ``Ready to Wear'' than ``Nashville.''

Will Ferrell and Steve Carell were deadpan delights, however, introducing best makeup while sporting what had to be the worst makeup ever.

In a more persistent effort to ensure that the acceptance speeches - if not the montages - were shorter, the orchestra this year played an underscore as the speeches were given. Colleen Atwood, best costume winner for ``Memoirs of a Geisha,'' seemed thrown by it, but it was a subtle if insistent reminder that the orchestra has the ability to drown you out, and they're not afraid to use it.

When Hughes Winborne, who won the best editing trophy for ``Crash,'' told the orchestra to cut it out, it did. But the musicians got their payback later, crashing producer Cathy Schulman's speech. Yes, the only speech that got interrupted was the one for the biggest award of the night.

David Kronke, [phone]

david.kronke(at)dailynews.com

Top 5 show moments

--The faux mudslinging political-attack-style campaign commercials for the best actress nominees. Keira Knightley's ad smeared Charlize Theron for not looking glamorous enough in her performances, while another accused Dame Judi Dench of putting someone's eye out in a bar fight.

--The performance of ``It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp,'' followed by the winners' exuberantly incoherent acceptance speech and Jon Stewart's amused response: ``Apparently, it's getting easier out here for a pimp,'' and ``Martin Scorsese: zero Oscars; Three 6 Mafia: one.''

--Will Ferrell and Steve Carell presenting the best makeup Oscar, sporting makeup that made Ferrell look like a burn victim and Carell like a half-hearted drag queen.

--For kitsch value, we'll include the staging of the performance of the best song nominee from ``Crash,'' ``In the Deep,'' which featured dancers writhing in a torturously ``arty'' fashion around a burning car. Afterward, Stewart warned, ``If you are trying to exit a burning vehicle, my advice is not to do it in slow motion.''

--Despite a slow start, Stewart's overall performance was fairly good. His ad-libs tended to be funnier than his prepared monologue. After a self-important montage of scenes from issues-oriented films, Stewart mock-gravely declared, ``And none of those issues were ever a problem again.''

- D.K.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo:

(1) Ben Stiller was a vision in green as he presented the award for visual effects Sunday night.

(2) Oscar host Jon Stewart broke up the audience with his Bjork/Dick Cheney remark.

John McCoy/Staff Photographer

Box:

Top 5 show moments (see text)