15 Responses to “For The Umpteenth Straight Year…”

1. BradC Says:
   February 23rd, 2009 at 8:54 am

   I believe I last watched when Jodie Foster won best actress for The Accused. That was, what, 1990??

2. Joey Says:
   February 23rd, 2009 at 9:14 am

   It’s the first time I’ve ever watched them (if you can call having the show on in the background while on the computer “watching”), and is likely the last. If it’s like this ever year, then it’s a pitiful display of conceit and liberal soapboxing.

3. Kermit Says:
   February 23rd, 2009 at 10:28 am

   Haven’t watched that self-congratulatory circle jerk in years.

4. nerdbert Says:
   February 23rd, 2009 at 10:31 am

   I’ve got a rule: if the movie won an Oscar it’s a strike against seeing it. When a bunch of pretentious insiders say something is a breakthrough it usually means it’s time to spend the money on popcorn at home.

   Not all movies with Oscars are bad, but they bend to be strongly bimodal: they’re either very good or horrible. In the last few years, they’ve strongly tended towards the later.

5. tolowen Says:
   February 23rd, 2009 at 2:02 pm

   I watched Baba Wawa and the red carpet, but then found a MASH marathon on another channel. Heard some of Sean Penn’s speech on Bob’s show and it made me remember why I didn’t watch and also a little nauseous.

6. Badda Says:
   February 23rd, 2009 at 2:37 pm

   I might have enjoyed Hugh Jackman… he’s a good performer and seems like one of the few Hollywood folks that are genuinely grateful to movie-goers and that don’t take themselves too seriously. (As opposed to, say, Whoopie.)

   I enjoyed a number of Billy Crystal appearances in years past, too.

   But this whole self-congratulating nonsense is nonsense.

   Over the past 15 or 20 years we’ve seen the Acadamy move to give awards for political/social reasons, to movies that no one watches, or simply to movies merely because hordes of 14 year old girls and their friends saw it. (I’m looking at you, “Shakespear in Love” and, the film whose name must not be spoken… That Damn Boat Movie.)

   I want to see “The Wrestler”. I want to see “Slumdog Millionnaire”. That’s about it. I’m glad I saw “Wall-E”, but I’m not sure I would have missed much if I had not seen it.

   Hollywood so rarely makes a magical and entertaining film any more. Heartwarming is not in their vocabulary… unless it involves a political message.

   Pixar usually stands in contrast to Hollywood, although they certainly took an easy and oft-told Hollywood message and hammered it home like John Henry with “Wall-E”. They get a pass since they also told a great story and managed to cover an issue Hollywood doesn’t often tell in “The Incredibles”. They still have magical stories and can manage to find the kid in me.

   “The Dark Knight” is a kind of rarity in Hollywood… good, in fact it was brilliant, and yet still optimistic. Dark and treacherous, and it doesn’t trash the hero.

   Who gives a rat’s ass what the Acadamy generally holds up as masterful film, expert direction, and quality acting? This is the same group of people who think they speak for the world… they also thought “Ordinary People” was better than both “Raging Bull” and “The Elephant Man”. They also thought “Chariots of Fire” was better than “Raiders of the Lost Ark”. What do folks remember? I still say “Shawshank Redemption” was robbed by “Forrest effing Gump”. I still say That Damn Boat Movie robbed “LA Confidential”. I still say “Life is Beautiful” was robbed by “Shakespeare in Love”… “American Beauty” robbed both “Green Mile” and “The Sixth Sense”. “Beautiful Mind” stole what rightfully belonged to “Fellowship of the Ring”.

   It might be subjective, but how many of those Best Picture films do you really want to go back and watch? How many are you really interested in ten, five, or even one year later?

   I’ll watch “The Godfather”, “Mary Poppins”, “A Fish Called Wanda”, “Monsters, Inc.”, “Raiders of the Lost Ark”, “The Maltese Falcon”, “Singin’ in the Rain”, “Shawshank Redemption”, “Some Like it Hot”, “North By Northwest”, and “The In-Laws”… and let the Acadamy and smug little Sean Penn go eff themselves.

7. thorleywinston Says:
   February 23rd, 2009 at 2:55 pm

   I was home recovering from bronchitis this weekend and finally got around last night to watching the DVD set of Series Two of Doctor Who that I got for my graduation last year. Excellent acting, brilliant writing, magnificent special effects and engaging story-telling – why would I want to watch the Oscars instead?

8. thorleywinston Says:
   February 23rd, 2009 at 3:13 pm

   Over the past 15 or 20 years we’ve seen the Acadamy move to give awards for political/social reasons, to movies that no one watches, or simply to movies merely because hordes of 14 year old girls and their friends saw it. (I’m looking at you, “Shakespear in Love” and, the film whose name must not be spoken… That Damn Boat Movie.)

   The last time I ever watched the Oscars was the year when TDBM seemed to be winning everything except best actor which went to Jack Nicholson for “As Good As It Gets” (which I actually saw in the theater). I still haven’t yet seen TDBM and the only reason I could see myself watching it is because Bill Paxton’s and he’s been in quite a few of my favorite films (plus Big Love).

9. Badda Says:
   February 23rd, 2009 at 5:02 pm

   Nothing wrong with season two of Doctor Who, Thorley… but season four is probably better overall.

   Nicholson was good in “As Good As It Gets”. Very entertaining and very Jack. Helen Hunt, who I enjoyed when I saw her in “Mad About You” simply did not deserve to be nominated for her extremely uneven performance… good in parts, standard in others, and below the curve in a couple of scenes.

10. justplainangry Says:
    February 23rd, 2009 at 6:48 pm

    TDBM – ahhh… My SO still cannot forgive me. She dragged me to see it in a theater and was really upset when I kept laughing (outloud) at all the inappropriate moments. I thought it was a comedy! Still Do!

11. Mitch Berg Says:
    February 23rd, 2009 at 6:54 pm

    I still say That Damn Boat Movie robbed “LA Confidential”.

    Ab So Lute Lee.

12. Troy Says:
    February 24th, 2009 at 8:13 am

    thorleywinston said:

    “Doctor Who … magnificent special effects”

    Wait a sec. Are you sure it was “Doctor Who” you were watching? 😉

13. Badda Says:
    February 24th, 2009 at 11:39 am

    Troy, you’re thinking of 1983 Doctor Who… check out the stuff that the BBC (with help from The Mill) has been making since 2004.

    If you NetFlix stuff (or simply download from elsewhere), look into a little something called “Blink”.

14. Troy Says:
    February 24th, 2009 at 3:21 pm

    Yes, Badda, I know. I record them from time to time, and they are pretty darn good, but I liked the ones with the crappy special effects too. I guess you have to come up with some pretty good stories to compensate when you throw something like K9 or a Dalek in front of the camera. 😉

15. K-Rod Says:
    February 24th, 2009 at 5:01 pm

    If they had “wardrobe malfunctions” I might consider watching.

    Here is a little B movie gem: Microwave Massacre

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