The Myth of a Liberal Hollywood

In a year where there are so many good, important, interesting films, it's shocking that many of the awards went to mediocre, boring movies that many people didn't see. I mean, many people didn't see Capote, but the ones who did realized it was great. Same thing for Munich and Brokeback Mountain and Good Night and Good Luck. But Memoirs of a Geisha won awards, and you know what, even the costumes weren't that good. Oh, but it takes place in the past in another country, so we have to give it awards for costumes.

Here's what I don't understand...You have five films nominated for best picture. Every individual guild and critical organization have all agreed which one of them is the best, and everyone else knows that one of those films is really just a placeholder because they couldn't agree on a fifth film. So, who do we give the Oscar too? Let's not give it to an artful, subtle film with an important message or intriguing story. No, let's give it to the place holder.

I liked Crash when I saw it. I should also mention that I liked Trey Parker and Matt Stone's Baseketball when I saw it. Crash was the only decent movie out at a time when every movie was awful. That's the only reason people went to see it, and the only reason people even remember it. Sure, it has a message, but a heavy-handed one that in many ways contradicts itself and destroys its own point.

Oh, but it's an important film, about racism. Yeah, well so is To Kill a Mockingbird, but that was at least well written and had great performances. Plus, for a film that proclaims to be so serious and real, and tackles the tough issues faced by many groups, its hard to ignore that Crash was written, directed, and produced largely by middle-aged, middle class white people, who were clearly exercising their white liberal guilt and attempting to identify with the struggles of minorities. If people in reality acted like the characters in Crash, you'd never get a word in edgewise because everyone would be speaking in angry monologues, and half the population would be dead because the other half of the population would have killed them in some racial misunderstanding while yelling about how they are mistreated. Here's a hint for writers without subtlety...the reason that racism is such a problem in society is because people don't come right out and say they are racist and yell derogatory things at each other. In fact, they are downright nice to each other (to their faces) and when they do say something about race, its not in the form of a poorly prepared speech, but in a whispered aside.

Brokeback Mountain wasn't even my favorite film of the year. I thought both Munich and Good Night & Good Luck were better...but at least it was a good film. It was meaningful without being heavy-handed. It was interesting without being manipulative. It was well directed (as proved by Ang Lee's win) and well acted (as proved by its three acting nominations), and well written (as proved by its Oscar for adapted screenplay) and well shot. What else does it need to win best picture? Were people annoyed by the hype? Were they afraid it would make Hollywood look too liberal? Or were they afraid that if they didn't vote for Crash they would feel like a racist, instead of a homophobe?

I don't know. But hey, if Gladiator and A Beautiful Mind can be considered "best films", why not some mediocre drivel like Crash. So to all those people out there who think that "Hollywood" is too liberal, too elitist, too out of touch with middle america...they just gave the Oscar to the safe-bet, mediocre, middle-brow, popular, suburban drama starring Tony Danza, Sandra Bullock, and Ludacris. Bravo Hollywood, you've proved us wrong.
And made me sick.