Hollywood versus Hollywood

I know I’m about a week late with this post but I’ve been busy finishing my projects at work before my early retirement on March 31st. Hollywood’s uproar over the Best Picture Oscar reminds me of the mad man threatening to shoot himself in the head because he doesn’t agree with himself.

Before the nomination of Brokeback Mountain for Best Picture Oscar it appeared that all of Hollywood considered Brokeback Mountain the Best Picture Oscar winner. After the Oscar Committee nominated Brokeback Mountain for Best Picture Oscar, Hollywood was absolutely sure that Brokeback Mountain had the Best Picture Oscar. Hollywood applauded its film makers and the Oscar committee for having the courage to make and recognize a film that defends and normalizes homosexuality - no little matter considering the near-revival strength of conservative Christian ranks.

But, Brokeback Mountain didn't win the Best Picture Oscar – Crash won – and Hollywood is beside itself with disappointment and anger. Is Hollywood upset because Brokeback Mountain was really the Best Picture? Or, is Hollywood upset because members of their own ranks threw away a big opportunity to make a liberal statement about homosexuality? Is Hollywood liberal enough to nominate Brokeback Mountain yet biased enough to give the Best Picture Oscar to the second best movie? Maybe, but it’s at least equally possible that the Oscar voters, a subset of Hollywood, acted apolitically. Producers, directors, screenwriters and actors have every right to express their opinion – any opinion – through the movie medium. If movie makers were strictly interested in the art and technology of movie making, would the general public be entertained? The movie makers have something to say and often it’s something they have to get off their chest. The viewing audience wants to be entertained. They want to laugh; to cry; to get mad; to fall in love. Most of us were very impressed by the technical artistry of the graphics in “Shrek” but the movie makers really, really touched us when Love proved again that beauty is only skin deep.

So, I give kudos to the movie makers for putting their money where their mouths are and I give the benefit of the doubt and kudos as well to the Oscar voters who remained, I hope, true to their charge.