Early bird fashion watchers at the Oscars were getting a little nervous seeing a parade of black dresses and messy tresses.

Was this going to be a safe, unremarkable Oscar red carpet at the Dolby Theatre?

But then Jessica Chastain arrived. Her tea-rose figure-hugger by Armani Prive made her look as if she stepped out of a 1940s time capsule. Her coiffed hair, scarlet lips and understated Harry Winston diamonds screamed old Hollywood glamour. “I love cinema so much,” the Zero Dark Thirty star told Ryan Seacrest. “It’s a very ‘Happy birthday Mr. President’ dress.”

Others also rose to the occasion:

Kerry Washington ( Django Unchained) was ravishing in a red Miu Miu with a stunningly embroidered top.

Octavia Spencer told People at a pre-Oscar party that though she’s plus sized, she refused to “wear a muumuu.” That cream Tadashi Shoji was a far cry.

Catherine Zeta Jones refused to be ignored in a gold, glittery Zuhair Murad. Movie star all the way.

Jennifer Hudson (Roberto Cavalli Couture) keeps getting better with age.

GMA’s Robin Roberts, back from her health issues, triumphed in a cobalt Marc Bouwer.

Amy Adams’ feather-trimmed, pale grey Oscar de la Renta did her justice (love the Cinderella train).

Jennifer Lawrence, in Dior Haute Couture, was a little too bridal catalogue, but what a knockout. The backward necklace may just be the next trend.

Quvenzhané Wallis’ puffy Giorgio Armani dress may have been a tad too mature, but her signature puppy purse reminded America of her tender age — 9. Also in Armani was a sequinned-up Naomi Watts.

More blue: Reese Witherspoon’s Louis Vuitton was upstaged by her perfect Breck Girl tresses. “I just had a baby, and your hair gets so thick,” Witherspoon explained.

Also riding the red brigade: Silver Lining Playbook’s Jacki Weaver (Rani Zakhem) and Sally Field (Valentino).

The Oscars always see some major misfires: Amanda Seyfried’s edgy Alexander McQueen with laser cut outs seemed to be searching for an after party.

Anne Hathaway isn’t going to live this one down. Prediction: Her nipples are going to have a hashtag of their own. That was Prada?

Did Helena Bonham Carter’s ghoulish husband Tim Burton design that debacle? Nope, Vivienne Westwood Couture.

And finally, the most down-to-earth celebrity award goes to . . . Helen Hunt: Her navy dress, she told Seacrest, is from none other than H&M.