Today, the 82nd Academy Awards will recognize certain individuals for acting, writing, directing and producing motion pictures. The awards ceremony also recognizes the make up artists, production designers, editors, sound technicians and so forth. I refuse to claim someone as a victor, not because you cannot judge art or some lame crap like that but because the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences might be the worst at award acknowledgment in the history of cinema.
Since 1929, the Academy Awards have been very successful at kissing Hollywood ass. It is a giant party and promotional gala for the movie industry. As a child I bought into the notion that great movies are the movies that had won awards. Today, many people, not just children subscribe to the notion that success should be awarded, not simply by commercial or critical gains but by little golden statues that mean absolutely nothing.
Tell me... why should I recognize an award show in which a film noir, science fiction film, or an animated film have never won Best Picture? Tell me... why only 13 people of African American descent have ever won an Academy award for acting? There are have only been 4 people of Asian descent to win an acting award and 8 people of Latin or Hispanic descent to win. Way to go Anthony Quinn on winning twice. In case you don't want to do the math. The best actor/actress category has had 164 winners since 1927, while the supporting actor/actress awards have been given 146 times since 1936. So with 310 acting awards being awarded, only 8 percent of those awards have been given to minorities. That is not the only injustice because there is no explanation as to why only four woman ever been nominated for directing? Wait, there is more. Alfred Hitchcock never won an Academy Award. Peter O'Toole never won an Academy Award. Robert Altman never won, neither has Albert Finney, Deborah Kerr or Greta Garbo. Charlie Chaplin only one won Academy Award and that was for his score of the film Limelight (1952). Here are some more numbers for you; Only 8 foreign films have ever been nominated for Best Picture and none of them were victorious.
If you feel that those statistics are simply coincidence or just bad luck then try this argument. In another attempt to promote itself the American Film Institute (AFI) ranked the 100 greatest movies of all time in 1996. In any case, it was the 100 greatest American or English language films because there was not one foreign or foreign language film listed. Almost 70 years after the Academy awards were created the AFI list only honored 32 best picture winners. Many of the films on the list never won any Oscars. Those films included Taxi Driver, Psycho, Vertigo, Dr. Strangelove, and The Manchurian Candidate. If those films are a little too old for you then how about this; a revised list was done in 2007 in which The Shawshank Redemption was on the top 100 films of all time and that films also failed to win any Academy Awards.
Since 1929, the Academy Awards have been very successful at kissing Hollywood ass. It is a giant party and promotional gala for the movie industry. As a child I bought into the notion that great movies are the movies that had won awards. Today, many people, not just children subscribe to the notion that success should be awarded, not simply by commercial or critical gains but by little golden statues that mean absolutely nothing.
Tell me... why should I recognize an award show in which a film noir, science fiction film, or an animated film have never won Best Picture? Tell me... why only 13 people of African American descent have ever won an Academy award for acting? There are have only been 4 people of Asian descent to win an acting award and 8 people of Latin or Hispanic descent to win. Way to go Anthony Quinn on winning twice. In case you don't want to do the math. The best actor/actress category has had 164 winners since 1927, while the supporting actor/actress awards have been given 146 times since 1936. So with 310 acting awards being awarded, only 8 percent of those awards have been given to minorities. That is not the only injustice because there is no explanation as to why only four woman ever been nominated for directing? Wait, there is more. Alfred Hitchcock never won an Academy Award. Peter O'Toole never won an Academy Award. Robert Altman never won, neither has Albert Finney, Deborah Kerr or Greta Garbo. Charlie Chaplin only one won Academy Award and that was for his score of the film Limelight (1952). Here are some more numbers for you; Only 8 foreign films have ever been nominated for Best Picture and none of them were victorious.
If you feel that those statistics are simply coincidence or just bad luck then try this argument. In another attempt to promote itself the American Film Institute (AFI) ranked the 100 greatest movies of all time in 1996. In any case, it was the 100 greatest American or English language films because there was not one foreign or foreign language film listed. Almost 70 years after the Academy awards were created the AFI list only honored 32 best picture winners. Many of the films on the list never won any Oscars. Those films included Taxi Driver, Psycho, Vertigo, Dr. Strangelove, and The Manchurian Candidate. If those films are a little too old for you then how about this; a revised list was done in 2007 in which The Shawshank Redemption was on the top 100 films of all time and that films also failed to win any Academy Awards.
The greatest problem with the Academy Awards is that they have convinced people that the films that have won awards aren't just good films but movies worth watching. How many times have you heard this, "Well I thought I should see it because it had won so many awards." Or this, "it has to be good, it won like 10 Oscars." The notion of what is and isn't Oscar worthy is absurd. The Oscars are not the only barometer for good or bad movies. Films that win Oscars are not necessarily good or even memorable. Sometimes the movies that win are the films that don't offend while others times the films that win just make a lot of money. Some of the most praised, studied and adored films of all time never won an Oscar. Some were denied because of politics, while others were denied because of popularity. No one knows exactly why certain films or actors, writers, and directors have been neglected by the voting committee. It is unsure why Charlie Chaplin had not won an Oscar until he was removed from the United States. Some thought he was a communist or that he hated Jews while others disapproved of his personal life. It is unclear why Hitchcock never won an Oscar. Many feel that Martin Scorsese had not won an Oscar for so long because his films were too violent. There were reports that Raging Bull was denied the Best Picture Award of 1980 because his film Taxi Driver had influenced the assassination attempt on President Reagan the day prior to the 1981 ceremony. Some reports suggest that the Academy did not want to appear as if they were promoting the violence in Scorsese's films.
So who makes up the voting committee? I guess, if anyone is to blame it should be those who vote? You might be happy to know that the voters are a bunch of movie people. The voters are actors, writers, directors, camera persons, technicians, stylists and musicians? Musicians? Really? I know there are a couple of categories for music but as much as I love Bruce Springsteen I am not sure if he is a solid voter for Best Picture. Bruce Springsteen is a voter, in case you wanted to know. Other voters include those in the public relations business. Oh yeah, public relations. The people who sell you stuff help decide which films deserve awards or not. The president of marketing for Universal Pictures is Eddie Egan and don't worry he has a vote. I wonder if he will be compelled to vote for Inglorious Bastards, which was produced by Universal or will he vote for what he thinks was the best picture.
Who wins and who is nominated does matter in other terms besides awards and recognition. In 2009, Hollywood.com reported that films see a bump in ticket sales when nominated for best picture. If that is true then what kind of bump do they get at the ticket office, rental box or sales counter when the film wins best picture? How can anyone trust these voters when so much money is at risk?
I don't want to get rid of the Oscars but I feel it is necessary to acknowledge that the Oscars do not determine greatness. It's a big party. People enjoy watching the glam of the red carpet. It's a spectacle. It's a method to promote the notion that Hollywood is still the place where dreams come true and if you are talented or popular enough you can win an award that is about 8 pounds symbolizing everything and nothing all at once.
So who makes up the voting committee? I guess, if anyone is to blame it should be those who vote? You might be happy to know that the voters are a bunch of movie people. The voters are actors, writers, directors, camera persons, technicians, stylists and musicians? Musicians? Really? I know there are a couple of categories for music but as much as I love Bruce Springsteen I am not sure if he is a solid voter for Best Picture. Bruce Springsteen is a voter, in case you wanted to know. Other voters include those in the public relations business. Oh yeah, public relations. The people who sell you stuff help decide which films deserve awards or not. The president of marketing for Universal Pictures is Eddie Egan and don't worry he has a vote. I wonder if he will be compelled to vote for Inglorious Bastards, which was produced by Universal or will he vote for what he thinks was the best picture.
Who wins and who is nominated does matter in other terms besides awards and recognition. In 2009, Hollywood.com reported that films see a bump in ticket sales when nominated for best picture. If that is true then what kind of bump do they get at the ticket office, rental box or sales counter when the film wins best picture? How can anyone trust these voters when so much money is at risk?
I don't want to get rid of the Oscars but I feel it is necessary to acknowledge that the Oscars do not determine greatness. It's a big party. People enjoy watching the glam of the red carpet. It's a spectacle. It's a method to promote the notion that Hollywood is still the place where dreams come true and if you are talented or popular enough you can win an award that is about 8 pounds symbolizing everything and nothing all at once.
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