Art Imitates Life at the 2017 Oscars
The Oscars seem to be on the same sort of trajectory as Saturday Night Live: both had been declared dead or irrelevant and then bounced back hotter than ever. Maybe it’s tied to the political climate but there have been years when I didn’t watch either and then other years when I faked a pressing engagement because I’d really rather be watching television.
I found this year’s extravaganza to be one of the best ever and it had nothing to do with the movies themselves or who carried off a golden statuette. I liked it – loved it really – because it featured a whole room and industry full of people who have made hope their mantra in these ugly and distressing times. I even loved the quirky bits like candy raining down from the rafters and a busload of tourists being totally gobsmacked by entrance to the biggest ticket in town.
Even the commercials took a jab at nationalistic America-first policies. Hyatt had an ad set to the song What the World Needs Now Is Love that showed people of different races and backgrounds coming together. Audible had Zachary Quinto reading a passage from George Orwell’s 1984 and the New York Times launched its first television commercial in years about the importance of truth.
Watching the Oscars in a divided world is nothing new. In 1968 the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. caused a postponement of the awards and the subsequent withdrawal for a time by stars like Sidney Poitier. When Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner got an Oscar it underscored how far America had come, but also how far it still had to go. The Vietnam War in the 1970s made films about the war a sensitive issue on both sides of the political divide. In 2003 Michael Moore famously called out George Bush as “a fictitious president waging a fictitious war.”
2017 was much stronger for diversity both in front of and behind the camera. No people of color were nominated for two years in a row, but this year every single category recognized a person of colour. It tied the record from 2007. All of the movies that were nominated were well into production even before the controversy heated up about the lack of diversity so the outrage wasn’t the main driver but it did keep an important message front and centre.
Fed up with the exclusion, last year Chris Rock eviscerated the movie industry for its so-white focus and quipped, “If they nominated hosts, I wouldn’t even get this job.” He was pretty vicious but it was deserved and it may have sparked Hollywood to do better and do better it did.
This year was very different and host Jimmy Kimmel got some heavy criticism for what was seen as a bland approach, or missed opportunity, to stick it to the current U.S. administration. What it did – in my opinion – was allow the celebrities to make their own statements in ways big and obvious or more muted but still easily perceived. He got plenty of zingers in but they weren’t strong enough for some people. “I want to say thank you to President Trump. Remember last year when it seemed like the Oscars were racist?” Kimmel quipped to great applause.
Kimmel’s funnest bit was his tribute to Meryl Streep, who Trump dubbed “overrated” after her Golden Globes speech. Kimmel had Streep rise for a standing ovation, recognizing the 20 nominations she has amassed by “just phoning it in” over the years.
The bling-free accessory of the night was a blue ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) ribbon. Donations to the organization have skyrocketed since the Trump win. Best actress nominee Ruth Negga wore one on her striking red gown and so did Broadway darling Lin-Manuel Miranda, as did his mother, Luz Towns-Miranda. It was one of those more subtle messages but it was impossible to miss.
Iranian director Asghar Farhadi said beforehand that he would not attend the Oscars in person. When his drama The Salesman won for best foreign-language film, Mr. Farhadi sent a poignant message to be read by his countrywoman, Anousheh Ansari. His strongly worded condemnation of the “inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the U.S.” was one of the least subtle messages of the evening.
When Moonlight director Barry Jenkins and Tarell McCraney, the playwright upon whose work the movie is based, accepted the Oscar for best adapted screenplay Jenkins promised those who feel invisible that both the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the American Civil Liberties Union would support people “who feel like there’s no mirror for you” for the next four years. That reference was crystal clear. McCraney added, “This goes out to all those black and brown boys and girls and nongender-conforming who don’t see themselves, we’re trying to show you.”
The animated Zootopia creators pointed to its message being a plea for tolerance over “fear of the other.”
Makeup artist Alessandro Bertolazzi, co-winner of the Oscar for Best Makeup and Hairstyling said, “I’m an immigrant. I’m from Italy, but I work around the world. This is for all the immigrants.”
When presenting the Best Supporting Actress award, British actor Mark Rylance made a segue into the ways in which supporting actors actually often play in opposition to main characters.
All of that leads to the debate about whether celebrities should speak out or keep their mouths shut. My feeling is that they have as much a right to speak as anyone does and if they are angry by the president’s policies they should use their unique platform to say so. I think it brings some needed gravitas to what is arguably a pretty fluffy event.
When Meryl Streep gave her critical Golden Globe speech there was some outrage: how dare a celebrity criticize the president or tell people what to think about current events! As to whether it helps or not, who knows? It probably comes down to the level of connectedness and respect for a particular actor as to how her/his words are received.
I feel grateful to celebrities who risk their careers by sparking serious conversation. And if you think there is no risk, remember the Dixie Chicks. I think it’s unfair to think that celebrities should only discuss the vapid things that we associate with celebrity. Did they give up a right to think because they are famous? It’s akin to saying that plumbers can only have opinions of plumbing issues or teachers on education. We are all more than the thing we do.
If you tuned out early because there was too much politics or tuned out early because there was too little political fire from the host and celebrities … you made a big, big mistake. Sure, you can view it in a thousand places forever but being there in the moment was special.
If you don’t live in a cave then you know that the craziest twist possible happened during the Best Picture presentation when the wrong movie was named the winner. In my opinion – and that of many others – the best movie of the year was Moonlight and it came from behind to win Best Picture. La La Land got plenty of awards and its producers and stars were incredibly gracious when the error came to light. Sadly, a bit of the shine was taken from the win by the mix-up but right won out.
As the Los Angeles Times reported, “What’s funny is that moments before he presented the best picture Oscar with Dunaway, Beatty said the ‘goal in politics is the same as our goal in art – to get to the truth’. And get to the truth they did — it just took a little longer.”
Following a career in the hospitality sector and the acquisition of a law and justice degree in her 50s, Dale embarked on a writing career armed with the fanciful idea that a living could be made as a freelancer. To her own great surprise she was right. The proof lies in hundreds of published works on almost any topic but favourites include travel, humour & satire, feature writing, environment, politics and entrepreneurship. Having re-invented herself half a dozen times, Dale doesn’t rule anything out. Her time is divided equally between Muskoka and Tampa Bay with Jim, her husband of 8 years and partner of 32 years. Two grown ‘kids’ and their spouses receive double doses of love and attention when she’s at home.
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