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Monday, March 6th, 2006
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12:28p - the 78th Annual Oscars
The 78th Annual Academy Awards took place last night and were hosted by Jon Stewart. Stewart is, of course, my hero... so I actually watched the show in its entirety. That's gotta be a first. I understand that the overall ratings dropped nearly ten percent. That's probably mostly Republicans who were afraid that Stewart might say something mean about Dubbayoo. Or they thought Brokeback Mountain would win and they have a problem with two fictional gay characters.
He started by teasing the left, and he of course had to make fun of Dick Cheney... the man is a self parody. It's all in good fun, but the small-minded missed out on a pretty fun show. Anyway, my impression of the Oscars has always been that celebrities get together and vote for the biggest moneymakers. Or vote against people they don't like, etc.
Last night I got a whole different look of Hollywood, but I think it's still an outlier. The award for best picture went to Crash, which was largely considered an upset over Brokeback Mountain. What was extremely interesting to note was that the movies that were nominated tended to be provocative and controversial. Obviously, Crash was controversial in many ways: discussing race and other socioeconomic demographics. Lots of plot twists made it really entertaining, but the movie should be considered a learning tool above all.
Brokeback Mountain confronted the audience as a love story between two men. Chick flick. I've heard mostly good things about this film; it's edgy, the dialogue is good, the acting is good, etc. Haven't seen it yet, and that's not because I somehow dislike homosexuals. I just haven't had the inclination to watch it yet. It was, afterall, the odds on favorite to win best picture so it can't be too shabby.
The other nominees were the George Clooney film Goodnight, and Good Luck... Steven Spielberg's Munich, and Capote. The first is about the red scare, and how one senator accused tons of people in the State Department and elsewhere of being communist. The second follows the Israeli Olympic tragedy and the revenge seeked because of it. The third follows the life of homosexual author Truman Capote.
It was a year for statements in Hollywood, which was really reassuring to see. Crash made a huge statement and a lot of people could connect with it. Brokeback Mountain probably made an even bigger statement, and did manage to win several other best picture awards and also several other Oscars.
All in all, of the six major awards dished out last night there were six different movies represented. Hollywood was said to have had a down year at the box office, and that's largely true. But the quality of art we're getting seems to be improving. Remember, it's not always about how much money the movie makes. Sometimes it really is just about the movie itself.
Every so often a movie comes around that makes you address who you are, and who we are as a society. It makes you look at something you never have before, or it makes you look at something in a different way than you ever have before. These movies can help shape our lives in some small way. They bring together their audiences and really capture something inside each one of us. Whether it be about racism, poverty, war, homosexuality, or whatever... some great movies really can help change our society. This year, we had several of these movies.
A quick sidenote, here: George Clooney was nominated for a best supporting actor award for his work on Syriana, which he ultimately won. Also, he was nominated for best director for Goodnight, and Good Luck. This makes him the first person to be nominated for acting in one movie and directing another. He was also nominated for writing on Goodnight, and Good Luck.
Congratulations to all of the Oscar nominees. Can't wait to catch up on the movies I haven't seen.
Talk to ya later.
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