I'm not a big movie person. It's just too big a field for me to keep up with, not to mention too expensive! I didn't even see any of the nominated movies (yet), except for Chronicles of Narnia. (There are others on my list, though.) Mostly I just read the reviews. But I live with a movie person, and our culture is greatly influenced by movies, so I made it a point to catch a bit of the Oscars broadcast last night.
The first thing that struck me was that the Academy was really trying to sell itself (over and over again) as the major force for Truth, Justice and the American Way. Yes, my brothers and sisters, we all owe Hollywood a big debt because of its courageous and prophetic stance in leading our society forward in the promotion of human rights and the overcoming of hypocrisy. (I admit I also thought they were setting us up to be accepting and open-minded in case "Brokeback Mountain" got the Best Picture award.)
Okay.
And then the second big push was for all us cheapo members of the populace to swear off DVDs and other limited forms of media and go for the big screen experience!
Tell me, did they convince you to change your ways?
5 comments:
I was glad for thetalk on justice and peace. The movie that won has much to offer as does Brokeback. I am surprised that your tone is so critical of the arts and media. Does your order still affirm what is good in non-Church communication and the arts. Just interested.
I can still get a lot out of a DVD if the movie is about plot and/or character. When it's all scenery and epic battle I definitely like the big screen. Like you, however, my discretionary finances are slim... so it's often the DVD or nothing.
Oh, I don't mean to criticize the arts in themselves, or even the productions from 2005, most of which are still on my "to see" list. I only intended an observation on the kind of self-congratulatory mode that seemed to dominate so many of the presenters' remarks. It struck me as defensive in an aggressive way.
There really are some movies that make a strong contribution to society, bringing up topics that had hitherto remained beneath the surface. It's just that certain aspects of last night's ceremony seemed almost sanctimonious in their way of asserting the nobility of the Academy.
Re: the "big screen," there really are some movies where "you have to see it in the theaters" really does apply. But one of the presenters kind of slipped up and pretty much revealed that the agenda for these Oscars was to win a victory against DVDs.
Those three are on my list,too.
I don't know if they convinced me to change my ways (I am not a big DVD person although I love the ON DEMAND feature of our cable TV service), but they did remind me about the "magic" of the silver screen and the place that viewing movies at the cinema has.
I used to be an "all the time moviegoer" but life has become busier so I am way behind on my "to see" list plus there a few good ones on their way.
:)
Lisa
Post a Comment