Oscars 2023

Yesterday, the Academy held the 95th annual Academy Awards presentation at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, California.  While the events went off without a hitch, after the shock of last year's ceremony, this year's ceremony seemed downright boring.

And boring, in that respect, was welcome.

Even better though, it had several heart-warming moments.

The event was just what I would have scripted, with minor changes.   Back to a singular host.  Every category included back in.  Winners generally allowed to make their speech.  Not really caring about the length, just letting it be what it should be.

Sure, the memoriam section still needs to be turned over to TCM or someone else to produce.  There were odd choices made in the song performances.  And some of my choices didn't work out.

Generally, though, it was a successful show.

Everything Everywhere All At Once continued its successful march that led up to the ceremony and largely swept the categories with seven awards including Best Picture, Best Director(s), Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Original Screenplay.  This included great celebratory wins for Ke Huy Quan, the first award for Jamie Lee Curtis, and a historic win for Michelle Yeoh as the first Asian American to win a best lead actor/actress award.

A24 as a studio is really the one to watch out for, becoming the first studio to win in all the major categories in the same ceremony.  Its fare has become more varied and is drawing more attention, so it will be a major player to watch.

It made for a late night, as on the east coast, we didn't wrap until 11:30 pm, but it was fun to make it through.  Will have to see what next year brings.

Hopefully another boring, but heart-warming show.

Oscar 2019

The 2019 Oscars are finally done.  After all the missteps and controversies along the way, the ceremony last night went off without a hitch.  Thankfully, after a few years of not having access at home to watch the ceremony since cutting the cord, we were able to put together a way to stream the show and watch the full presentation of the awards.

I have a few thoughts.

First, addressing the controversies that popped up throughout the year.  I am grateful they did not award a most popular picture category, as I've written before.  That is not what this ceremony is for, and thankfully cooler heads prevail.  That did not prevent well-seen popular films from being nominated or even winning awards.  Black Panther took home three Academy awards for Best Achievement in Costume Design, Best Achievement in Production Design, and for Best Score.   A first for a Marvel Studios Production.

I'm also glad they put the Best Film Editing, Best Film Cinematography, Beast Makeup and Hairstyling, and Best Live-Action Short back into the broadcast.  The broadcast ran at a brisk three hours and eighteen minutes, longer than they hoped for, but still very efficient.  If they really wanted to fix the broadcast in an impactful way, they might decide against airing only one announcement between commercial breaks as the night goes on.  I don't need a break between Best Director and Best Picture and they are not really changing the set, so there's no need to shoehorn in the commercial there.

Plus, getting the televised ceremony under three hours is not going to attract new viewers to the broadcast.  Many of the people who are not watching the Oscars are not going to watch the Oscars no matter what the Academy changes.  From the people engaging in a so called "boycott" for political reasons to those who have no interest in the awards at all, perhaps it's time to stop trying to cater to a crowd that doesn't want to watch?  The "boycotts" fascinate me for two reasons.  First, generally the people claiming to boycott would not have watched the ceremony for any reason.  Second, the same people who want to boycott because of the political content of the show (i.e. the political jokes by the hosts and presenters and the potential political speeches of the recipients) are generally the first people to share on social media when a celebrity endorses their particular ideology.  Just an observation.

The lack of a host changed things in an unexpected way for me.

The show was boring without a host.

A host brings their personality into the show and generally gives the show its personality.  Without a host to provide color commentary or to smooth transitions, the show was a rapid fire movement between presenters of the awards with only a disembodied voice announcing the presenters.  There's no soul to the show, it just kind of happens.  Hopefully, there will not be a repeat next year, and perhaps they can bring along some classically entertaining hosts to provide a great spirit to the show.

It also did not help that there were no real surprises (beyond the bombshell at the end of the night).  The awards were largely expected.  A few minor brights spots, but those still generally fell into expected votes.  Even the award to Green Book for Best Picture, while problematic, falls into a predictable pattern for the Academy.  Once you figure the Academy did not want to reward Netflix, Roma is out.  Then you assume Bohemian Rhapsody had enough controversy around it early enough to put off voters.  That leaves Green Book, a "safe" picture that supposedly deals with a tough topic and was seen by a decent enough population.  While personally, BlacKkKlansman should have won, I would have anticipated A Star is Born to be the surer bet.

While I would not go as far as to say it is the worst best picture since Crash, as the LA Times has done, Green Book is problematic.  A film about race that downplays the contributions of the African American subject of the story.  A film which did not consult his family for contribution to the story, and whose family has protested its release.  Knowing the controversy around the film and the way it is presented, really taint enjoyment of the film and the award.  Again, hopefully next year, the ref's make a better call, to paraphrase Spike Lee.

A few rapid fire thoughts to wrap up:

• The Queen opening kind of just happened and did not work as well as they hoped it would.  Adam Lambert is no Freddie Mercury.
• Politics were way down, despite what the Twitter of a leader might say
• Very happy for Into the Spider-Verse to win Best Animated Feature.  
• So glad Spike Lee finally got his Oscar.  He should have won at least one more.
• Olivia Colman delivered the best speech of the night.
• Really appreciative of the thought that went into each of the celebrities introducing the nominees for Best Picture.
• Love that John Williams Superman score was used for the In Memoriam section, but TCM still makes a better one.
• Props to Trevor Noah for one great hidden joke. 
• Also to Tyler Perry.

Did you watch the ceremony?  What were your thoughts?

2019 Oscar Nominations

The Academy Award nominations for 2019 were released yesterday and contain some surprising inclusions and snubs.

Nerd culture continues to show its strength with the inclusion of Black Panther in the Best Picture nomination, and with the two favored animated features being Incredibles 2 and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

Won't You Be My Neighbor being snubbed for Best Documentary Feature is surprising, as was Bradley Cooper's lack of a directoral nod for A Star is Born.

The impact of streaming services can also be seen with the nominations for Roma and The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, both of which were Netflix releases.  Netflix had 15 nominations this year, with Roma accounting for 10 of them.  With Netflix joining the MPAA, this is only likely to increase.

Jamie and I have only seen one of the Best Picture nominations this year (but two of the Best Animated Features).  We hope to remedy that soon. We have a date weekend coming and hope to catch up on at least three thanks to streaming, Redbox, and a trip to the theater.  We used to try to see them all and come to our recommendations, but that has been much more difficult after children.

It will be interesting to see how this ceremony progresses, as the plan as of now is to still proceed without a host.  While the Muppets do not seem to be imminent, there may be an Avengers reunion in the works.  Synergy at its best.

What have you seen of this year's nominees?  Let me know your thoughts.

A complete list of the nominees can be found here.

It's Time To Get Things Started - An Appeal to the Academy

The Academy still needs a host.

For those who have not been keeping up with the Academy's search, Vanity Fair ran an article yesterday on how the search for an Oscar host has so far yielded no results.  After Kevin Hart stepped down as the announced host on December 6, 2017, following the re-surfacing of his previous anti-gay/homophobic tweets and comments made during his standup-routines nearly 10 years ago, the Academy has scrambled to find other options.  Hart has recently appeared on Ellen Degeneres' talk show to apologize for the old material and discuss the fallout.  Ellen, for her part, offered a lengthy defense and said she called someone at the Academy to request that he be reinstated.  Despite Hart's appearance on the talk show, he has told others that he would not reaccept the position.  Ellen's support for Hart has sparked its own controversy.

According to the Vanity Fair article, this has left the Academy with no clear sense of who they want, but a definite sense of who they do not want.  The host should not be anyone "socially divisive," with a high enough profile whose appeal does not primarily attract older audiences, who is not strongly identified with another network (not ABC), and who is not already hosting another awards show this season.  That rules out a lot of previous hosts.

And while I always love to see Billy Crystal host (though at this point, he is probably in the "primarily attracts older audiences" camp, unfortunately), I want to throw out a more ... unique suggestion.

It's time to start the music.

It's time to light the lights.

It's time to get things started...

And let the Muppets host tonight.

It's time for the Muppets to host the Oscars.  They've presented.  They've been part of the show.  Let's let them host.

This is not the first time the idea has surfaced.  A Facebook group was started in 2012, which still has 33,000 followers.  Paste magazine has suggested it this year.  Even Forbes.

And it makes a bit of sense.  The Oscar ceremony is a bit of modern variety show.  Opening song montage and monologue, hosting duties, bad jokes.  These are all part of the Muppets' schtick.

The Muppets are definitely not "socially divisive."  They would be about as "safe" a choice as they could make.

They have a broader age appeal down to toddlers now with the new Muppet Babies cartoon on Disney Jr. and have a greater presence thanks to their successful live shows at the Hollywood Bowl and the O2.  In fact, it's these shows that convince me they would be able to successfully host.  One of the concerns was that the show would be largely improv by necessity.  I think the well-received live shows prove the Muppets can hold their own in that arena.  Plus, there is still great nostalgic affinity for the group.

 The Muppets are strongly tied with ABC as part of the Disney family and would represent a great deal of corporate synergy.  And they are definitely not hosting anything else right now.

There's really no reason not to do it.  It's not like the Oscar ratings of late have been stellar.  Last year's ceremony was the lowest-rated telecast ever.  Maybe injecting a little mayhem and making the ceremony fun, is just what they need.

So, come on Academy, let's make the 2019 the most sensational, inspirational, celebrational, Muppetational Academy Awards show possible!

Outstanding Achievement in Popular Film

So, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced interesting decisions yesterday regarding the annual Oscar ceremony.

First, the Academy made a "commitment to an entertaining show in three hours," "a more accessible Oscars for our viewers worldwide."  To achieve this, the Academy has elected to present certain categories live during commercial breaks to be edited and aired later in the broadcast.  Meaning categories like costume design may be filmed in the Dolby theater during a commercial break and edited down for broadcast later.  This will make certain categories very similar to the Science and Technical Awards, already pre-recorded and edited for broadcast.  The only difference is that the Science and Technical Awards are awarded and filmed at an earlier date, whereas these select categories will be presented within the continuing live event, just not aired.  I'm not sure which could be seen as a bigger sleight, not being invited to the main event in the first place, or being invited but informed that your portion isn't interesting enough to show live?

Second, the Academy has announced a new category to be awarded for outstanding achievement in popular film.  The Most-Popular Category for the Oscars?  A popcorn Oscar, if you will?  This raises so many questions.  What qualifies as an outstanding achievement in popularity?  Is it largest box-office gross?  Number of tickets sold?  Will it be a subjective determination of the "best" of the most popular films?  Is it highest critical rating (Rotten Tomatoes score, Cinescore, etc.)?  Biggest social media buzz?

Critics have already come out and panned the announcements.

I am of two minds.

I understand the desire to keep the televised broadcast to an entertaining three hours, I really do.  I understand I'm not the reason this decision has to be made.  I'm in that small club that wants the full, un-edited experience.  I'd love to see the full Technical Oscars awards.  I want every Best Song nominee performed.  I want a better, longer version of the Memoriam segment, preferably designed by TCM, to honor everyone lost the past year.  I want to see meaningful clips of every nominees work.  I want the lavish celebration of Hollywood with a Billy Crystal-hosting opening montage cherry on top.  But I know everyone is not me, and there often need to be changes to maintain the audience for the broadcast and sponsorship.

I do, however, feel that there are better ways to achieve this.  I have to agree with the Vulture article.  In this age of Youtube and social media videos, the Short Film categories could probably be done away with completely.  Short films used to be a vital part of the film experience for all theater patrons.  Theater billing was rounded out with newsreels, cartoon shorts, live action shorts, and the feature film.  Now, apart from certain animated features with an accompanying animated short, short films are relegated to student films, generally only seeing the light of day in festivals or as part of an Oscar offering at AMCs or other theaters.  Generally, the work in all other categories can be see by the overall film going population.  The three short film categories can no longer meet those criteria.  It's time for them to go away like Best Short Subject - Color, or to be relegated to an event like the Technical Awards.

I also understand the impetus to try and chase popular films.  The Oscars have long carried the stigma that they award a bunch of films no one watches or cares for.  And the Academy has already made efforts to try and change this perception.  The expansion of the Best Picture category from five to up to ten nominees.  The addition of the Best Animated Feature category.  Trying to name a "Best Popular Feature" film though seems to be only pandering.  The category would seem to be too nebulous to try and define for Academy voting.   And the other option would seem to turn the Oscars into the People's Choice Awards by opening the category to viewer voting.

I could see following the Golden Globes and splitting the Best Picture category in two, dividing Musical/Comedy and Drama.  This would expand the number of films eligible and would bring in a more diverse range of candidates particularly in the Musical/Comedy side.  Another suggestion would be to forgo the new award and simply restructure the rules regarding what qualifies for Best Picture consideration, requiring wide distribution and a minimum threshold of theaters for consideration.  This would remove the films no one has heard of or seen from consideration by removing those small indy films released only in a couple of theaters Los Angeles and New York to qualify.  You would be much more likely to have films like Rocky, Star Wars, E.T., and Raiders of the Lost Ark nominated again under such restrictions.

My solution, though, would be to simply keep the category as a Special Award for Outstanding Achievement in Popular Film.  I would grant this award to the highest grossing film each year.  This would guarantee an award for a popular film that most of the viewing audience has seen.  It would also remove subjectivity from the field and keep the "Best" categories as truly a vote by the peers of that field.  It's not the most exciting or suspenseful award, but it would fit with the image and reputation of the ceremony.  It would truly be a recognition of an outstanding achievement in film that year, though separate from any comment on quality.

In a broader sense, I worry that the Academy and ABC are chasing an audience that they should simply let go of.  An audience that no longer wants anything to do with them.  That has bought into the idea that Hollywood represents all that is wrong with America.  Yes, they still turn out and see films, but they are uninterested in celebrating Hollywood.

Maybe it's time for the Academy just to embrace its niche.  To celebrate Hollywood, its history, and its finest, and let those who are truly interested in on the full spectacle.

And maybe, just maybe, they should keep the focus on awarding those little-seen, little-known, quality films.  If for no other reason to encourage new viewers to track them down and appreciate them. Jamie and I used to try and watch most of the Oscar nominated films before the ceremony.  (This was easier pre-children).  And it was an interesting process. Yes, we saw films that we never, ever want to watch again.  If I never see another Terrence Malick film again, it will be too soon.  We still have not made it past the first few minutes of Tree of Life.

We've also appreciated a lot of films that we would likely have never come across in our own theater going choices.  Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (Max von Sydow!!).  The Descendants (a master class in emotion work).  Hacksaw Ridge.

We all need something to see things outside our normal boundaries.  To take in new information, new points of view beyond our typical box.

It's why we need good art - now more than ever.