Following the talk about the Oscars is almost as interesting to me as the movies and the awards themselves. Perhaps it's the sociology of it all that grabs me the most. Why didn't Garbo get an Oscar for Grand Hotel? Some weird kind of social myopia most likely. She was a foreigner? Could that have been it? This year, as it happens, I'm in the enviable postion of having seen none of the Nominees, with the exception of The Passion (three Nominations) which I have seen several times and own the DVD. A plot point in this pictures seems to have stuck in the craw of voters: who killed Jesus? The Catholic Church years ago, in the 1960's as I remember, declared that the Roman soldiers killed Jesus. At the time that was announced I was playing chess in the 42nd Street coffee house in Manhattan where many of the players, some Grandmasters, were Jewish from all over the world. It was a subject of much merriment and ribaldry that the Pope should make his theatrical pronouncement.
Here, by the way, is Journals Editor John M Scalzi's predictions, given I imagine, so we can have some fun with his selections, and talk it up to create some anticipation for Sunday's formal announcements.
>Best Picture: Million Dollar Baby
Best Director: Martin Scorsese (The Aviator)
Best Actress: Hilary Swank (Million Dollar Baby)
Best Actor: Jamie Foxx (Ray)
Best Supporting Actress: Virginia Madsen (Sideways)
Best Supporting Actor: Morgan Freeman (Million Dollar Baby)
>We'll see what happens this Sunday.
>Your thoughts? (Picks by John M Scalzi)
Plot points make little difference to which pictures I'd vote for. For example, there is a plot point in Million Dollar Baby something along the lines of a character choosing death, or inflicting a death, rather than life as a cripple. Since the picture isn't advocating that as a universally recommended position I fail to see what on earth it has to do with the merit of the drama, the theatrical presentation? In America, so help me, we are still 'country' about theater and the arts. We insist, for example, on mingling religion with the arts. Bad art as good religion should be more offensive than good art as bad religion. The Greek play Medea has the heroine murder five or more people in revenge and escape in a magic chariot to a place where she will find shelter. Bad religion! Great art! Great play deserving of performance anywhere, any time. The New York Post published an editorial review of Million Dollar Baby by Maggie Gallagher titled, "At The Movies Killing is Love." For the grownup, even if this charge is true, this plot point should be held irrelevant when voting for Best Picture. We'll see. I have a hunch it will win anyway. So, on that I agree with John M.
Scorcese is a loser Director. Gangs Of New York was embarrassing. It infuriated New Yorkers. (I live in LA, used to live in NYC.) Gossip has it that he's always over budget. His Las Vegas pix was was comic book. When he tries to be comic book, as in Raging Bull he gets lucky and makes a good one. But neither Scorcese nor DiCapprio will win. Both are cardboard men. Eastwood is an odd duck but I'd give an arm to work for him. Don't you get that he's a good man? Good men often make good pix. Good man, a man of the theater who declared "I'm a chauvinist Jew" said, also, "The Catholic Church is good theater." Lee Strasberg surrendered his life to the theater. Perhaps it was from him that I got the courage to judge art on its artistic merit, not on its conformity to any one religion. How else could Lee Strasberg receive an Oscar Nomination for playing a Jewish, murderous, disloyal, Mafia thug so convincingly if he didn't completely divorce theater from narrow notions of religion? (The Godfather movies, as Mario Puzo explained, were about how the Mafia began and flourished by correcting wrongs the establishement inflicted upon immigrants.)
The Academy tends to vote, these days, for down and dirty characterizations so I anticipate Swank will best Warren Beatty's wife, again. Annette Benning is a professional actress, but an amateur movie star. Might be the cost she's had to pay for being Warren Beatty's wife. Also, she signals that it'll be alright with her if the other actress wins. Good sportsmanship doesn't win in that pit of devious endeavors, H'wood. Also, playing the character of an actress seems an odd choice for any actor. I can't think of any such characterization that won an Oscar. Mind you, I'm nuts about Annette Benning. People vote for what's 'real,' and an actor character is never seen as 'real.'
Again, I agree with John M. Scalzi. Jamie Foxx will win Best Actor. I've seen clips. All I have to see is clips. The Black male in America has been enormously helped by the scores of admirable men in Basketball: the NBA, College, and HS. I can't explain this, but clips of Jamie Foxx as 'Ray' teach me to appreciate Ray Charles more.
That's all folks!
Barry
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