Reflections on the Oscar

Unlike most, I didn’t watch the Oscar, any of the pre- and post award shows or find out about who looked the most Fab. I did find out about who won, congrats to “Slumdog Millionaire” btw. How can you not when it is pasted all over the news. I didn’t watch it because I don’t go to a lot of movies, probably around 4 or 5 a year. I will eventually catch up on some of the films through rentals, but some I will never get to. Not just that, these award shows don’t, in my mind, truly honor the films that are outstanding. It is all about buzz, politics and what is “in” or “hot”. Most people can probably name a few films that have been great, but will never get the honor it deserves. For example, why didn’t films like Batman and “Gran Torino” get nominated or recognized for excellence? What makes “the Reader” somehow better than “Gran Torino”? Oh..and what’s with if you don’t understand or don’t appreciate some “deep underlying theme about humanity” behind the film, that you are somehow less sophisticated or less intelligent? I watch movies to be entertained, not to learn something about the human condition or be taught history that may be misrepresented or revisionist. I can learn that without paying 10-20 dollars to watch a 2 hour film. But that’s not the real reason why I didn’t sit glued to the TV watching “celebrities” walk down the red carpet or give their acceptance speech. I didn’t watch it because I don’t get it.

These awards shows are basically rich people patting each others on the backs, congratulating themselves on a job well done. I don’t get it. They didn’t do anything extraordinary. They are actors. It is not their job to play their roles and entertain us? If they accomplished that, then they have simply done their jobs. Yet, people watch them and idolize them for not doing anything spectacular. Their struts down the red carpets, their fancy tuxes and dresses and their lavish lifestyles are only setting unrealistic expectations and a false sense of what success is for our society. Instead of honoring values that are more important like civics and compassion, we teach our new generations to value false glamor, fake senses of beauty, materialism and individualism based on what you have, not who you are.

The people who have been truly extraordinary in their lives are the ones we need to celebrate and put on TV. Soldiers that sacrificeed themselves to protect their brothers in arms, the teacher that helped a student get off the streets, the social worker that allowed a family get back on their feet, the research teams who came up with a new treatment for AIDS or Cancer, and blue collar workers that worked tirelessly to provide for his family without even a whimper. These are the heroes that we should celebrate and promote.