Jennifer Lawrence at the 85th annual Oscar Nominees Luncheon. Her red carpet outfits this awards season have been consistently good, so expectations for Sunday night are high. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Every year, the Academy Awards brings us a red carpet full of glamour and beauty the likes of which we’ve never seen, along with a few fashion disasters to be remembered forever. We can see wonderful designs that take our breath away one moment and then next we may have monumental fashion horrors that are in annals of the fashion for the public ridicule of those who wore them and the designers who created them.

Oscar failures and triumphs

We have very clear examples of both fashion failures and triumphs through the history of the Oscars red carpet. We could never forget about Meryl Streep wearing a gray dress with spangles that made her shine like a true queen. Or that wonderful coupling by Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman in 1997, she in a yellow dress with embroidery that made her one of the best dressed that year. In 2001, Julia Roberts wore a sophisticated Valentino that did tribute to her leading role in “Pretty Woman” and won an Oscar. But the red carpet has seen its share of failures, even from stars who frequent the best dressed lists.

Years ago, Gwyneth Paltrow used an edgy Alexander McQueen that consisted of a quite ample black skirt and a carved blouse with transparencies that let us glimpse her thin curved figure, and that earned her a place in the hall of fame for the worst Oscars dresses of all time.

Meanwhile, Angelina Jolie has journeyed the red carpet as one of the worst and best dressed through the years. She has never left anyone indifferent. Jolie has improved her style and level of sophistication over the years and now we see her more elegant than ever. One of her better fashion moments was a black dress by Elie Saab with green accessories from Lorraine Schwartz that made her the envy of many. However, not so long ago, in 2000, her style was rather similar to that of “Morticia” in the series The Adams Family.

The color of excellence

The beautiful model Heidi Klum claimed her spot in red carpet history in 2009 with an overwhelming red dress designed by the famous designer John Galliano that supposedly was auctioned months later to give aid to a hospital. Red is the color of excellence and Sandra Bullock knows it well. For that reason, in 2011, she used an exquisite design with which she demonstrated a woman in red can be considered one of the most sensual women in show business.

Red carpet horrors

Speaking of horrors, how could we forget the green dress Kate Winslet wore when critics compared her to “Fiona” from the film Shrek? But without a doubt, the most remembered horror of the red carpet will always be the singer Bjork, who was awarded the prize of the worst dressed on the red carpet — ever — in 2001. There is even a Wikipedia page about this dress by Marjan Pejoski that simulated a goose strangling her neck. Nobody calls attention to herself quite like Bjork did that year! Helena Bonham Carter has always had a somewhat strange and gothic taste by which she is typically one of the most criticized. In 2004, she left her public astonished with the strangest outfit, like Uma Thurman, who wore this amorphous horrible dress, but Bonham Carter did not finish with the horrors that year, she doubled the bet and in the 2011 awards she appeared with this frightful black dress and to top it all off, she drew a huge flag of England on her leg, which she did not hesitate to show off.

The ‘in’ and ‘out’ fashion of the Oscars, 2012

A famous outfit and incident that could not go unnoticed was obviously Angelina Jolie. Last year she became the queen of the red carpet when the actress captivated the worldwide audience with a sexy design by Atelier Versace that had a sensual opening in the leg; the flaming jewels were of Neil Lane. On the “bad” side, the worst statement in 2012 was actor Sacha Baron Cohen, who went characterized as “the Dictator,” the personage who he had interpreted in his more recent film.  Sources indicate that the organizers of the event requested him not to do it! And of course, then he spilled “Kim Jong Il’s ashes” all over Ryan Seacrest.

Latinas on the 2012 Oscar red carpet

Jennifer Lopez arrives before the 84th Academy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012, in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Jennifer Lopez monopolized the glances in an elegant, sexy dress but the actress left her back open a little more than necessary.  The chosen designer for this occasion was Zuhair Murad. In addition, we saw Penelope Cruz shining in a sophisticated blue dress that astonished with its elegance and glamour, making her the Spanish Princess of the night. Cameron Diaz chose an ivory Gucci dress that received praise as well. The beautiful Salma Hayek partook in celebration after the awards with a very romantic look in red with a long side braid, which was one of the more “in” hairdos of 2012. The actress and singer Selena Gomez used a quite elegant dress for her age and the amazing Sofía Vergara chose an angelic gown that emphasized her curves. Michelle Rodriguez looked spectacular and so did her compatriot, the beautiful Zoe Saldana in black with red lips featuring designer Marios Schwab. We are all waiting for this 2013 red carpet coming up in a few days. We will once again see magnificent ensembles and those who make as shout and laugh at their fashion faux pas. The fact is, real fashion rules are not the same for everyone and that’s the fun part of watching the red carpet.  Who are you looking forward to seeing?