Los Angeles – At this year's 82nd Annual Academy Awards, there were very few surprises. Ben Stiller painted up as a blue Na'vi from James Cameron's best picture nominated "Avatar" to present the best makeup Oscar was one, a dance interpretation of "The Hurt Locker" another, and presenter Charlize Theron's fashion faux pas, wearing large roses on her chest, was a third. But overall, this year's winners were no shock to the Hollywood community that gathered at the Kodak Theatre for the glittery event on Sunday, March 7.

Best actor winner Jeff Bridges for "Crazy Heart," best supporting actor winner Christoph Waltz for "Inglourious Basterds," best supporting actress winner Mo'Nique for "Precious" have all been triumphing at every single award show leading up to the Oscars, and they predictably finished off awards season with the ultimate Hollywood prize.

It was a similar story with Sandra Bullock, who took home the Oscar for best actress for "The Blind Side." Her only contender was Meryl Streep, and since Streep already owns two Oscars, Bullock had the upper hand as the voting closed. The stunning 45-year-old wore a knockout silver Marchesa gown, and after kissing her husband Jesse James, raced to the stage and joked, "Did I really earn this or did I just wear you down?" Bullock made her first movie over 20 years ago, so the win, coming the first time she was ever nominated, was an emotional one. She teared up as she remembered her late mother, opera singer Helga Bullock, and the fact that she "reminded her daughter that there is no race, no religion, no class system, no color, nothing, no sexual orientation, that makes us better than anyone else."

"The Hurt Locker" director Kathryn Bigelow also had tears in her eyes as she accepted the best director Academy Award from Barbra Streisand, who announced her name by saying "it's about time." Bigelow becomes the first woman to ever win an Oscar for directing a film; in fact, she is one of only four women to have ever been nominated for that award.

"It's the moment of a lifetime," Bigelow said.

Her film also took the top prize of best picture, a win that most Hollywood insiders also predicted, over her ex-husband James Cameron's "Avatar" and eight other nominees.

Other winners included "Up" for best animated feature film, "Precious" for best adapted screenplay, Argentina's "The Secret in Their Eyes" for best foreign language film and "The Cove" for best documentary feature. "Avatar," the highest-grossing film of all time, won three awards, including best art direction, best cinematography, and best visual effects.