It’s Oscar season again which means movie fans around the globe already are beginning the annual ritual of bantering about who deserves to win a coveted Oscar and who didn’t merit a nomination.
Richard Dreyfuss, who won Best Actor in 1977 for his performance in “The Goodbye Girl,” is aware of this annual phenomenon and recognizes it as a national pastime.
“We’ve all participated in two rituals: One is the watching of the Academy Awards, and the other is the putting down of the Academy Awards,” Dreyfuss said in the 1999 book “70 Years of the Oscar: The Official History of The Academy Awards.” “Both are very sacred and traditional American events,”he said.
This Sunday night, millions of viewers will tune in to see who is wearing what, who will break down when their name is called, who will have the worst acceptance speech and the inevitable upsets, upsets, upsets. Welcome to the Oscars.
One question that remains unanswered every year is why The Academy Awards ceremony matters so much.
After all, isn’t the Awards ceremony just a popularity contest that celebrates the image and financial success of a film or performance?
The Oscars always seem clearly capricious, and awards seem to be given out more on the premise of the Academy playing Hollywood politics rather than recognizing genuine talent.
Members of the Hollywood community believe the award has significance. Grace Kelly, famed actress of the 1950s who won Best Actress in 1954 (“The Country Girl”) never understood the hype of the awards but knew all actors longed for the prize.
“Why all the fuss?” Kelly said in the book. “Is it really worthwhile? How important is an Oscar anyway? Besides who needs it? Well, I suppose no one really needs it, but, believe me, it’s awfully nice to have.”
According to the book, 87 million people tuned into the Oscars in 1998 from the United States alone, a record number since the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences began presenting the Oscar statuette in 1929.
Millions of people tuning in to watch the annual ceremony must bear some reflection that the ceremony possesses social relevance. The fact of the matter is, it’s just entertainment.
The red carpet, the diamonds and Joan Rivers telling people they look like crap — this is American entertainment in its finest hour, where our culture mixes tradition with extradition.
LSU student sentiment seems to be that the Oscars might be just pure diversion, but it is still one of the most watched events on television.
“I guess if you’re involved in the show it’s good for them, but for me it’s just entertainment,” said microbiology senior Lynzie Boudreux. “A week after it’s over, it’s forgotten. Right now there are more important issues to worry about.”
Biological sciences freshman Shari Lewis agrees the Oscars are pure entertainment, but she also believes people genuinely care about who wins.
“I really do think it says a lot about what is good and bad,” she said. “And I think the results are pretty fair.”
One thing that does matter every year is the pain of having to watch the acceptance speeches in which the winner rattles off some innumerable list of lawyers, publicists and parents.
It’s obnoxious, but this year the Oscars actually have made a motion to stop this drudgery by limiting all acceptance speeches to 45 seconds, at which point the music will commence.
With all the added security to this year’s event because of the war with Iraq, the media has blown the significance of the Awards ceremony way out of proportion. Most people don’t seem remember the Oscars happened every year during the much more dire World War II.
Sure, the Oscars are a big television draw every year and a huge event for major advertisers, but to think the ceremony is anything more than entertainment is poppycock.
Editor’s note: According to the Associated Press, Academy Awards organizers Wednesday canceled the splashy red carpet arrivals for celebrities because of the looming threat of war. Gil Cates, producer of Sunday’s Oscar telecast said many celebrities have asked to use a back entrance away from the barrage of photographers and interviewers.