Here's a selection of Sunday night's Academy Award winners.
Best Picture:Slumdog Millionaire
Best Original Screenplay: Dustin Lance Black for Milk
Best Adapted Screenplay: Simon Beaufoy for Slumdog Millionaire
Best Actress: Kate Winslet in The Reader (While many think Winslet won for the wrong role, I'm glad to see her win. She's a phenomenal actress. Stay tuned for a review of Revolutionary Road, the movie that should have earned her the Oscar.)
Best Actor: Sean Penn in Milk
Best Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona (Ms. Cruz is better than this role. The film earns our first Ripley's Rebuke; stay tuned for the review.)
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight
Best Director: Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire
Best Foreign Film:Departures
Best Documentary:Man on Wire
I enjoyed last night's show, which I do every year, on a subjective level. I liked the quirkiness, and think Hugh Jackman provided for a lot of laughs. The acting awards were presented well; I enjoyed the format of each actor's performance introduced by a previous winner--a much more personal and substantial format than the usual movie clips. However, this style of presentation really highlights the way we (unfairly) privilege acting above all else in film. An actor, no matter how great his or her performance, would have nothing without an excellent character in a well-written story. I was happy to see the writing awards so early in the production, as the "technical" awards were presented in the order in which they actually happen in film (writing first, editing last). Let's hope the producers can find a way to revamp the technical awards to puts emphasize the art of categories like writing and editing. Especially on the art of the screenplay.
Now that award season has come to an end, here's to getting back to movies--and getting to some of those winning or nominated movies I've yet to see.
Representing President Obama as a "Super-feminist" has ignited a debate over who the savior of feminism ought to be (see here for a good overview), and likely sold a lot of copies of Ms. magazine's January edition. Praise for the new president's political aspirations regarding women's rights isn't contended; it's how the feminist magazine chose to portray Obama: tearing open his Clark Kent clothes to swoop in and rescue us. It's the representation that has people peeved.
For our purposes here at BF, two articles were published last month--the weekend before the inauguration--about the impact the movies had on Obama's election. Not that the movies got him elected, but how roles black American men play in the movies have a real effect on the people who see them, and how we can see, through the movies, our own cultural values reflected back on us.
If you ever question how important representation in film really is, I think these articles make the point well. While they specifically focus on male presidential aspirations (and on the unique history of black Americans), they also remind us how pop culture permeates our society and informs opinions and values.
The New York Times published "How the Movies Made a President,"written by A.O. Scott and Manhola Dargis, in their Film section. The article provides an overview of black male roles, from the "Black Everyman" of the '60s to the "Black Messiah," currently played and re-played by Will Smith.
Make no mistake: Hollywood’s historic refusal to embrace black artists and its insistence on racist caricatures and stereotypes linger to this day. Yet in the past 50 years — or, to be precise, in the 47 years since Mr. Obama was born — black men in the movies have traveled from the ghetto to the boardroom, from supporting roles in kitchens, liveries and social-problem movies to the rarefied summit of the Hollywood A-list. In those years the movies have helped images of black popular life emerge from behind what W. E. B. Du Bois called “a vast veil,” creating public spaces in which we could glimpse who we are and what we might become.
We hear from the likes of Elizabeth Banks and Katherine Heigl that the only roles really open to them—genuinely talented, lovely young actresses—are that of sidekick, buddy, and romantic object. It’s not that there haven’t been good, meaty roles for women; there have, for sure. But what movie roles do young girls imitate? What fictional figures can women look up to?
The Root's "Hollywood's Leading Man: From Sammy Davis Jr. to Dave Chappelle's Black Bush, how pop culture tested the waters for a black president" offers a more nuanced and contrarian view of the power of pop culture (and reminds us of the egos of those who really believe their art makes a difference). The article surveys the satirical representations of a black president as representative of the racial divide in America, but cites the series 24 as a shift--although one not without its problems--and questions how television and cinema will change.
So now that we have a black president, how will we react to media portrayals? Will there be pressure among writers and producers to create black leaders who feel real and black-led administrations that feel plausible? Will we, as viewers, be able to enjoy over-the-top portrayals of black presidents, such as Terry Crews’ wig-wearing wrestler in Idiocracy, as merely fun entertainment, devoid of racial and social commentary?
Might we perhaps see a black actor playing the lead in a complex drama like The West Wing, or a romantic comedy along An American President, where the president gets to be a fully fleshed out human, and not a cardboard icon? And isn’t it about time that we saw a portrayal of an African-American president who just happens to be a woman, too?
I, too, would like to see that woman. And I think we'd all like to see her on the cover of Ms., wearing a t-shirt that reads "This is what a feminist looks like."
Check out Shakesville for a discussion of the increasing number of embarrassing romantic comedies that continue to rehash the same stereotypical anti-woman crap Hollywood's been dishing out for ... ever?
If you thought the previous two posts were repetitive, here's something different. The Film Independent's Spirit Awards air the day before the Academy Awards, February 21, on the IFC.
Film Independent is everything the Academy is not. Notice their description:
Film Independent is an open enrollment and non-profit membership organization that champions independent film and supports a community of artists who embody diversity, innovation, and uniqueness of vision. Film Independent helps fimmakers make their movies, builds the audience for their projects, and works to diversify the film industry. Anyone passionate about film can become a member, whether you are a filmmaker, film industry leader, or a film lover.
Here are some of the nominees. For the complete list, see the official Film Independent's Spirit Awards website. (Whenever possible, I've provided links to the films' official websites.)
Best Director: Ramin Bahrani (Chop Shop); Jonathan Demme (Rachel Getting Married); Lance Hammer (Ballast); Courtney Hunt (Frozen River); Tom McCarthy (The Visitor)
Best Screenplay: Woody Allen (Vicky Cristina Barcelona); Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck (Sugar); Charlie Kaufman (Synecdoche, New York); Howard A. Rodman (Savage Grace); Christopher Zalla (Sangre De Mi Sangre)
Best First Screenplay: Dustin Lance Black (Milk); Lance Hammer (Ballast); Courtney Hunt (Frozen River); Jonathan Levine (The Wackness); Jenny Lumet (Rachel Getting Married)
Best Female Lead: Summer Bishil (Towelhead); Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married); Melissa Leo (Frozen River); Tarra Riggs (Ballast); Michelle Williams (Wendy and Lucy)
Best Male Lead: Javier Bardem (Vicky Cristina Barcelona); Richard Jenkins (The Visitor); Sean Penn (Milk); Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker); Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler)
Best Supporting Male: James Franco (Milk); Anthony Mackie (The Hurt Locker); Charlie McDermott (Frozen River); JimMyron Ross (Ballast); Haaz Sleiman (The Visitor)
