One more Oscar note before I put the 80th Academy Awards to bed when it comes to blogging. Yesterday everyone was ripping on the Oscars, calling the show boring, flat and complaining that it isn’t a show for real movie lovers. Well duh! It’s a 3+ hour awards show that’s recognizing the best in Hollywood. So of course you get a show that’s long, not too controversial and the movies that win are the best of the best of the mainstream. I’m always surprised when people get angry about this. Of course the films nominated aren’t really the best films of the year (although I thought the Academy did pretty good this year, There Will Be Blood, Michael Clayton and No Country For Old Men, are actually really really good). Of course the host, in this case Jon Stewart, is kind of lame (although I thought he did a really good subtle job myself). What do you expect for a show being broadcast on a major network to tons and tons of people?

So why do I watch and why should you watch the show? Why am I always excited about it? My answers are below:

1. Back in the day really good films were nominated and did win - check out past nominees and winners from the 70’s or the 60’s or the 5o’s etc.. They were amazing films, and I guess each year I watch in hopes that things will again start to shift in American cinema, back to a time where blockbusters and the weekend box office didn’t rule the day. This year saw The Coen brothers winning a lot of awards and you know what Joel and Ethan Coen are really good filmmakers. I would argue that No Country is definitely not their best, but who knows, my guess is that more Americans will be inclined to give Barton Fink and Miller’s Crossing a look now.
2. I write about movies and I make them, so it’s probably not a bad idea to know the state of things in the big sometimes ugly industry I strive to become more involved in. Of course the entire thing is propagated on business and studios wanting to squeeze another dollar or two out us all as we try to see all the nominees and winners this time of the year. But it’s also important to note the folks who are doing awesome things in the big old industry and promote them! How many people know who Paul Thomas Anderson is now? My guess is more than before. Also, Michael Clayton, a film that didn’t do that well when it was first released got a second wind with it’s nominations with another wide release. Now more and more folks have seen a film that not is only is extremely well made, but one that looks at the realities of our corporate and legal systems in a way that inspires us to change and get involved. I say we should not focus on the undeserved but pump up those who are really awesome among the nominees and winners.
3. I love movies, I love cinema, and simply put it’s nice to participate in an evening that devoted entirely to them. Often I go to the movies by myself, which often I prefer, but I do love knowing that for one night, all the folks who have come and gone from my life, all the folks who I love dearly that live far away from me and even those who are nearby, are gathered around televisions celebrating cinema, celebrating our history as storytellers and thinking, truly thinking about what makes movies so powerful.

Also, on the note of the unexpected, one moment where this year’s awards show stood out was when after her partner spoke and the TV folks cut her off before she got her chance to speak, best song winner Marketa Irglova was let back on stage after the commercials to get a chance to talk. Watch the video below and after doing so, I’m sure you’ll be inspired to and help kids “make art, make art!”