Oscar 2011: Final Thoughts
The ceremony wasn’t that bad. Hosts Anne Hathaway and James Franco delivered a solid first hour, including an opening montage that recalled the days when Billy Crystal served as host (maybe they should’ve taken Ricky Gervais up on those jokes he offered to help with the other couple hours). Billy, himself, even made an appearance and received a standing ovation. Kirk Douglas also made a surprise (and hilarious) appearance to present the Best Supporting Actress award. The night wasn’t spectacular, but far from the complete waste that many Hollywood rags and bloggers are making it sound.
But on to the awards. Last month, I posted my picks for ten of the awards. They didn’t fare too well (only three were correct). It didn’t help that I missed what proved to be one of THE films to see, The Fighter. But it also didn’t help that The King’s Speech took home four of the major awards, three of which it stole from the more-deserving The Social Network, truly the greatest film of 2010.
I don’t think anybody was surprised by Colin Firth’s Best Actor win. What did surprise many first for various reasons was when Tom Hooper beat David Fincher for the directing prize. David Fincher, a man who created such unforgettable visions as Seven, Fight Club, and Zodiac lost out to a director whose previous work, The Damned United, barely recieved notice outside the festival circuit and critic’s circles. But let’s set aside political snobbery and look at the work.
Consider this: imagine if Fincher directed The King’s Speech and Hooper directed The Social Network. Which film do you think would be improved? There isn’t a single scene in The King’s Speech that contains better direction than those in The Social Network. The opposite is true for The Social Network.
Of course, this brings me to the main event, the Best Picture prize. The Academy may have selected a solid line-up of 2010’s best films, but they further stoked the fires of the snarky film blogosphere with their pick for the win. This year, a straightforward and conventional biopic about the triumph of the human spirit beat a complex, layered, and timeless tale of betrayal, ambition, and the changes our social interactions have undergone as a result of both the prevalence of technology and one man’s idea.
This is the kind of thing that makes many so dismissive and cynical about the Oscars.
Don’t get me wrong: The King’s Speech is a fine film – one of the best of 2010 (see my review). But certainly not THE best. It robbed The Social Network of that esteem in official terms.
The Social Network now joins the company of Brokeback Mountain, Saving Private Ryan, Fargo, Pulp Fiction, Raging Bull, Apocalypse Now, All the President’s Men, Taxi Driver, and Network – all are considered among the greatest and most important works in film history, yet lost to lesser, often more emotionally-driven, films.
A list like that might be enough to make one dismiss the Academy Awards of any credibility whatsoever – and it probably is enough for many. But there are so many other occasions when the Academy got it right, that I find it difficult to completely disregard the Oscars as what it intends to be: recognition of the best in film for each year.
The Hurt Locker. The Departed. The Lord of the Rings. Braveheart. Schindler’s List. Unforgiven. The Silence of the Lambs. Platoon. The Deer Hunter. The Godfather. The Godfather, Part II. The Sound of Music. The Apartment. On the Waterfront. The Best Years of Our Lives. The list goes on.
These are some of the reasons why – no matter how checkered its history may be by politics and dubious choices – I hold out hope each year for the best to get the recognition it truly deserves.
This year was not one of Oscar’s proudest moments.
Let’s try again next year, Academy.
The list of wins, along with my picks:
Best Picture: The Social Network (my pick)
The King’s Speech (win)
Best Actor: Jesse Eisenberg (my pick)
Colin Firth (win)
Best Actress: Natalie Portman (my pick)
Natalie Portman (win)
Best Director: David Fincher (my pick)
Tom Hooper (win)
Best Score: The Social Network, Inception (my picks)
The Social Network (win)
Best Supporting Actor: Geoffrey Rush (my pick)
Christian Bale (win)
Best Supporting Actress: Hailee Steinfeld (my pick)
Melissa Leo (win)
Best Original Screenplay: Inception (my pick)
The King’s Speech (win)
Best Adapted Screenplay: The Social Network (my pick)
The Social Network (win)
Best Animated Film: Toy Story 3 (my pick)
Toy Story 3 (win)