Although Nielsen Media Research says preliminary ratings for the 80th annual Academy Awards telecast are 14 percent lower than the least-watched ceremony ever in 2003, Sunday night’s Oscars weren’t a failure by any means. The ceremony was impressive, considering it was thrown together in the span of 11 days, thanks to the recent ending of the WGA writers’ strike.

The only low points of the show included the lengthy and frequent montages put together in case of a lack of written material and the lackluster musical performances (aside from Amy Adams’ performance of “Happy Working Song,” and Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova’s performance of their song, “Falling Slowly,” which won Best Original Song).

As far as awards go, “No Country for Old Men” came out on top with four wins – Best Picture, Best Director (Joel and Ethan Coen), Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor (Javier Bardem). Unlike many Oscar ceremonies where one picture dominates, the wealth was spread around this year. Each Best Picture nominee (“No Country for Old Men,” “There Will Be Blood,” “Juno,” “Atonement” and “Michael Clayton”) scored at least one statuette, and the evening’s second-highest total, three Oscars, was surprisingly given to the summer action flick “The Bourne Ultimatum” (Film Editing, Sound Editing and Sound Mixing).

Host Jon Stewart was the real winner of the night. He kept his political schtick mostly at bay, concentrating on making the ceremony a light and entertaining affair. He joked about the nominees and other stars in attendance without being cruel.

Overall, the ceremony didn’t overstay its nearly four-hour welcome and instead provided a night of entertainment.