Oscar Time

I've been watching the Oscar telecast for the past ten years now, since "Gladiator" undeservedly took home the big win. And in that amount of time, there has been some truly great films nominated, as well as some best pictures that really didn't deserve to come away with the top prize. As you'll see in the past, the said winner will have aged incredibly (no longer significant) while other older nominees will have aged incredibly and are far more significant now than ever before.

Such is the case with say "The English Patient" winning over "Fargo" in '97, or "Shakespeare in Love" over "Saving Private Ryan" in '99.

Given, there are also some years, when the most deserving film never even saw a nomination. Example in recent memory: "Fight Club", one of the greatest films of the decade.

And so here we find ourselves in '10, and we're back in the same scenario. That's of course, assuming I am correct in my prediction, that "The Hurt Locker" will take home the Best Picture award. Now, "Avatar" could obviously still take it, or there could be a surprise upset with a dark horse film like "Up in the Air", "Precious", or "Inglorious Basterds", but that most likely won't happen.

My real question though is...why nominate 10 films? Simply to draw in viewership by nominating more "popular" or well known films such as "The Blindside"? I hear it's a decent movie, but since when did they start nominating cheesy family, inspirational sports movies? Pointless if you ask me, especially since it's clear which top five should have been nominated. In my opinion, they'll drop the gimmick next year. Hopefully..

Here's the problem. The most deserving films are typically darker, grittier movies that mass audiences typically shy away from. Although I was very glad to see "No Country For Old Men" take home the prize in 2008. This year the award truly deserves to go to Tarantino for "Inglorious Basterds", my favorite film of the year. Or secondly, the Coen's brilliant "A Serious Man". However, judging the film's by their content, they will never win.

But look: Scorsese's finally got his oscar, and the Coen's have gotten theirs, so let's not pull a Hitchcock on the situation, and let's give Tarantino the oscar. Not just because he's deserved it in the past. "Pulp Fiction" anybody? But because "Basterds" truly deserves to win.

Don't get me wrong. "The Hurt Locker" is a very good movie. I was a bit uncertain going into it with all the hype, but it surprised me as a highly engaging film. There have been a great deal of films made on the Iraq war, but "Hurt Locker" isn't just a good war film, it's just a damn good film. The characters are well drawn and the film finds it's strength in it's long, suspenseful setups. It's a very well crafted movie, and stands alone among other war films in that it has no agenda politically, one way or the other. It sticks you in the middle of the action and let's you feel for it's character's as opposed to trying to make a point.

But is it really the BEST movie of the year? Well, it's always hard to really say, but I don't believe so.

And neither is "Avatar". Perhaps the most overrated picture of the year, could also very well come away with the gold tonight. And it rightfully has it's place in history. It will change the way (special effects) films are made, much like "Star Wars" did in it's era. Maybe not quite to the same extent, but in it's own way. I myself, was blown away by the new 3-D process, and the way that it made you feel so integrated into the movie.

But come on...I know it's been discussed to death on the internet, but special effects aside, "Avatar" is nothing more than a cliche rehash of older anti-imperialistic stories, that feels like it could be the plot of a disney movie. (Oh wait...) My eyes were dazzled, but my brain was left wanting more. Had I cared about it's characters, instead of the thinly drawn, cardboard cut-outs that they were, and it's situation, this movie could have truly moved me, made me care about it's world. Instead, it was a wonderment to take in, but nothing more than a fascinating roller coaster ride. Which isn't meant to downplay it's spectacle. "Avatar" was realistically one of the best thematic experiences I've had in the theater. If only the story could have carried more weight, than I would be cheering it along to it's victory.