By Stuart Adelberg
Last week I joined with millions of movie lovers to watch the 2022 Academy Awards. I have never been one to marvel at the glitz of the Oscars. To me, film is an art form, and the Oscars are the ultimate means of celebrating the excellence of artists. I appreciate the talent that goes into making a quality film by writers, editors, cinematographers, directors, actors, designers, etc. and I believe that those who rise to a level of distinction at these crafts are worthy of accolades. I enjoy the pageantry of a big celebration, but, in my humble opinion, the Oscars’ increasing focus on tabloid stories and designer clothes diminishes the dignity of the art and devalues the excellence the awards are intended to extol.
If you searched the media after the awards, you found countless articles and photos lavishing praise or criticism on the display of outrageous attire sported by many of Hollywood’s elite. The web was rife with video clips and commentary on who arrived or left together, and even which movie icons were dragged out of retirement for brief, sometimes inexplicable, tributes or random award presentations.
Online sites are still full of posts opining on the behavior of Will Smith who took it upon himself to reduce the cinema’s most anticipated annual event into a barroom brawl. Smith’s award-winning performance in King Richard is apparently much less memorable than his shocking reaction to Chris Rock’s comedy routine.
The Oscars are all about achievement in movie making, and this year’s awards were absolutely well-deserved, but you will have to dig deep on the internet to find the list of all the winners or video of meaningful acceptance speeches. And you will really have to work at it if you are interested, as the Academy assumes we’re not, in this year’s recognized costumers, make-up artists, designers, technicians, etc., even though their crafts are essential elements of any exceptional film.
Once upon a time, eons ago, I studied professionally and was quite serious about the performing arts. Though a career in front or behind the camera was ultimately not to be, I had the privilege of learning from and with some extraordinarily talented people. We were trained to be artists, to work in one of the world’s most competitive arenas, to take our work seriously, and to respect the importance of every facet of a production.
There were some who were recognized, even very early in our training, as outstanding talents. They were not necessarily the smartest, the most attractive, or personable members of the class. They did not automatically possess an innate sense of fashion, nor were they schooled in personal relationships or public speaking. And yet, if one paid attention to last week’s award show and to the reactions that followed, it is evident that we expect all the participants to be young and beautiful, well-dressed, and articulate. We listen when they speak on current events that have nothing to do with the cinema and we are eager to know about every personal relationship!
The real measure of quality cinema is its unique ability to inspire an audience, to transport us to another time or place, to move us so completely with the experience of the people on the screen that we forget that they are not the characters they portray in the meaningful stories that they tell. I will never stop watching the Oscars with the sincere hope that sometime soon, this will be the real focus of the show!
