Pics the best from the rest

I’m sure all you film buffs out there are all well aware that the Oscars are taking place this weekend so I thought it only fitting that I should voice my opinion on this years ceremony.  Now I’m not sure if you already know this but this year sees the little golden mans eighty-fifth outing with celebrities from every corner of the globe flocking to the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Centre in Los Angeles for the big night.  For many of those attending it will be a night fraught with emotion however for those of you at home it will be a night for you to find something better to watch.

I’m sure you are all wondering what such an avid cinema goer like myself has against this long running tradition within the film industry?  My answer to you would be that I do not have a problem with the ceremony itself, hell I even stayed up and watched the whole thing the last time it was broadcast on the BBC, it’s what it stands for that I don’t like.  I ran into one of my friends as I came out of my local multiplex a couple of weeks ago after watching Hitchcock (2012) with my wife.  We got onto the subject of the Oscars and how they do not truly represent the general public’s idea of what constitutes an award-winning film.  At first didn’t think much of it but on the way home it struck me that she was right on the money with what she had said.

I only had to think back to those few enjoyable hours I had spent watching Anthony Hopkins portray one of my all time favourite film directors, who coincidentally was never awarded one of those coveted golden statuettes throughout his entire career.  This was compounded by the fact that even though Hitchcock was released within the cut off period for the Oscar nominations it has only one  technical nomination despite some great performances by Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren.  This in turn also made me think of all those films that had been released during 2012 which had also been forgotten.

The first, and most obvious that springs to mind, is Avengers Assemble (2012) which during its time at the box office grossed a staggering 1,500 million dollars worldwide.  This again, like Hitchcock has only got one nomination for visual effects.  It seems quite unfair that the film that brought in the most money for the industry has only one nomination in a minor category.  I know that just because a film makes the most money outright does not automatically denote its quality however it does beg the question, how can so many of the general film going public be wrong?

One of the main reasons why the most popular films never make it into the running for the big awards is that they are not voted for by the general public but The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences or AMPAS.  This organisation is divided into various branches, each specialising in the different fields of film production of which actors number the most.  This would make it seem quite fair if it were not for the fact that the membership process is internally governed and relies heavily on patronage, not to mention the names of their members have never been revealed to the public.  Why does this organisation have the right to decide which films deserve recognition and which don’t when they only take their own opinions, regardless of their validity, into consideration?

Now I hear you ask, is there an alternative?  Well say no more as the 33rd Annual Razzie Awards are held the day before the Oscars and their numbers include the like of journalists, film industry professionals and the average cinema going public (that’s you by the way).  They vote on the films I’m sure the academy would prefer to forget, the worse that Hollywood has to offer.  Anybody can become a voting member through their website which means that even you can have a direct influence over the decisions.  It seems quite amusing to me, as I’m sure you will agree, that an awards ceremony that celebrates the worst of what the film industry has to offer has the more democratic method of reaching its decisions.

I could go on and on about how the Oscars tend to favour films specially created to fit into their predefined ideas of what makes a good film, and how the film studios cater to these parameters to gain recognition however I won’t.  For me, what makes a good film comes down to personal preference.  I would not for example, tell someone who enjoyed watching Titanic (1997) that their opinion was wrong simply because I didn’t agree with them.  In fact, I am really looking forward to seeing who comes out on top this year having seen quite a few of the films in the running including Lincoln (2012) and Les Misérables (2012).  I hope you enjoyed my little rant film fans.

If you would like to learn more about The Oscars or The Razzies feel free to follow these links.

Coming Soon: Let the razzing begin!