LOS ANGELES, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- "Bohemian Rhapsody," a music biopic, turned out a big winner at the 91st Academy Awards (Oscars) ceremony on Sunday, taking home four statuettes.
The Best Picture award, however, went to comedy drama "Green Book," which was honored three times over the course of the three-hour, hostless show at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.
Disney and Marvel Studios' superhero film "Black Panther" and monochromatic drama film "Roma" also earned three trophies respectively.
The 91st Academy Awards were presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to honor the best films of 2018 in 24 categories.
Directed by Bryan Singer, "Bohemian Rhapsody" is a foot-stomping celebration of British rock band Queen, their music and their extraordinary lead singer Freddie Mercury, tracing the meteoric rise of the band through their iconic songs and revolutionary sound.
For his portrayal of Mercury, Rami Malek managed to secure himself the top acting prize. He is also the first Egyptian American to pick up an Oscar for Best Actor, adding to the ethnic diversity of this year's Oscar winners.
"This is a monumental moment. I'm so appreciative to all of you, to everyone who had a hand in getting me here," Malek said in his acceptance speech.
The film also clinched Oscars for Best Film Editing, Best Sound Mixing and Best Sound Editing.
In a neck-and-neck and suspenseful competition, "Green Book" beat out "Black Panther," "BlacKkKlansman," "Bohemian Rhapsody," "The Favorite," "Roma," "A Star Is Born" and "Vice" to score the top prize.
Directed by Peter Farrelly and set in the 1960s, the dramedy follows African-American classical and jazz pianist Don Shirley and Tony Vallelonga, an Italian-American bouncer who serves as Shirley's driver and bodyguard, on a tour through the racially divided South.
"The whole story is about love. It's about loving each other despite our differences. And finding the truth about who we are, we're the same people," Farrelly said.
Mahershala Ali, who plays Shirley, was awarded a statuette for Best Supporting Actor. This is Ali's second Oscar, making him the second black actor, after Denzel Washington, to take home two acting Oscars.
"Green Book" also nabbed the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
In another hotly contested race, Olivia Colman claimed Best Actress for "The Favourite," outshining strong competitors including seven-time nominee Glenn Close of "The Wife."
"Any little girl who is practicing their speech on the telly, you never know. And when I used to work as a cleaner, and I loved that job, I did spend quite a lot of my time imagining this," Colman said in her onstage speech.
As widely anticipated, Mexican filmmaker Alfonso Cuaron's "Roma" won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, and Cuaron earned himself a statuette for Best Director.
The award was Cuaron's second Best Director Oscar and his fourth Oscar award overall. He won the Best Director Oscar for the science-fiction thriller film "Gravity" in 2013.
At the glittering event, which brought this awards season to a close, China-originated filmmakers made a splash by taking home two honors.
Three China-originated American directors were nominated for Best Documentary Feature. The award went to husband-and-wife filmmaking duo Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi for "Free Solo."
The Oscar for Best Animated Short went to Pixar short "Bao," which was written and directed by Chinese-born Canadian director Domee Shi.
