Quote:
Originally Posted by James
I don't want to sound like a broken record, but the way Selma has been treated this awards season is atrocious. Really deserves acting and directing nods in my opinion.
Gone Girl should have been up for Best Adapted Screenplay, and won.
Some of the choices are just baffling. As much as The Imitation Game may have its merits - Best Director? Not in a million years.
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I like what you said about
Selma, though I'm kind of burned out on Civil Rights movies. I teared up at
Amistad, sure, but I'm kind of uncomfortable with being a white guy watching those movies. Like, I'm clearly down with black people being treated like human beings, but I can never shake the feeling that I and the black community in general are being exploited and made to feel like I
should like this movie, just like WWII movies make me feel like I'm being expected to pay tribute to the Greatest Generation rather than enjoying it as a film.
Most of these movies (the Civil Rights ones) are probably being made by majority white guys, and there's usually some emphasis on white people overcoming their prejudices or showing that all white people aren't like
those white people. It's why, god damn length aside, I liked
Malcom X. It gave a look into Civil Rights not tarnished by some white guy's desire to look like the most enlightened white guy in white guydom.
I loved those prison scenes where Malcolm was being taught all these racist things, like, white people make black the "evil color" as a way to subliminally demonize black people, and that black people were the chosen of god, meaning that white people were of the devil (I think that was the gist of it, but it's been a few years since I saw the movie). Really gave the guy depth in an uncomfortable way that made his ultimate change of heart after going to Mecca all the more poignant.
I liked your description of
Selma too. I'm lazy about checking out movies, but I really do look up to MLK, and a more true to life depiction of him would be refreshing.
And
Gone Girl didn't even get nominated for anything? Bull****. I'm generally a shallow movie fan who digs Jason Statham and comic book movies, and that film just floored me in a way that more serious movies generally don't. I don't hesitate in calling it my fav movie of the year. My friend hasn't been buying into my being the Devil's Advocate about Ben Affleck having the chops to play Bruce Wayne, but he was at least slightly moved after seeing it. Hopefully with a few more movies like that he'll pull a DiCaprio, and all of his dreck will be forgotten in the wake of his redemption. I think he's 90% there already. Now he just has to make a good comic book movie to rinse the taste of
Daredevil out of the nerds' mouths.