Mansur Ahmed

There’s been a lot of talk about a shift in mindset of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In the past couple of years, their choices have seemingly veered towards more obscure and independent films, but I don’t think there’s been any shift. The Academy is simply acknowledging the best films of the year. I can tell you that none of the films nominated in 2009 are obscure as I was able to conveniently find a cinema to watch them in. And my motivation to watch these movies arose from what I’d heard about them readily in newspapers, on television, and of course, the Internet. Smaller films have been acknowledged in the past. Driving Miss Daisy was no huge, glamorous blockbuster. Silence of the Lambs was a relatively small film also. Fargo was nominated back in 1997. Back in 1970, MASH was not given the same attention its studio was giving to Patton, and although Patton ultimately won the Oscar, MASH was recognized with a nomination. A few years later, Taxi Driver was nominated when Martin Scorsese was still somewhat obscure. Of course, if people are referring to this year’s Oscar choices as being small moneymakers, I think the issue is with the average cinemagoer and their preference of films. However, I do feel the Academy made a very big mistake with their exclusion of The Dark Knight. Although Slumdog Millionaire might be the best film, I had anticipated watching the Academy Awards doubtful of which movie would take home the trophy. That’s not going to happen now. At least they got it right with Heath Ledger’s nomination.

Now The Reader is a good film and its content is very consequential, but this is no Schindler’s List or The Pianist. In fact, I felt the movie had a way of glorifying such sensitive and horrific subject matter. Regardless, I really liked The Reader, until it was nominated for an Oscar. The performances are wonderful and I see no fault with Kate Winslet’s nomination. But despite how complex and affecting it is, I don’t think it deserved nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, and though it is a wonderful adaptation of the book, it should not have gotten one for screenplay either. This is a very good film getting too much acclaim. The three nomination spaces The Reader so unexpectedly managed to reserve belongs without question to The Dark Knight. A film like The Dark Knight comes around once in a while, and even though it is a comic book movie, it leaps beyond its origins to become an enthralling crime saga built on an explosive screenplay. It’s pure cinema and that it has been neglected is a grave injustice.

Someone else not up for a trophy is Clint Eastwood in what may be his final acting role. His space was taken by Richard Jenkins from The Visitor. I can speak nothing but superlatives for Jenkins and his brilliant performance, which is why I realize competition among artists is ridiculous, but I think Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino merits recognition. Of course he is channeling his well known tough guy archetype, but his performance is so much more. Even though Eastwood is going on 80, he is still able to carry a presence of hardened force. He isn’t just giving us a racist curmudgeon either. The character is both humorous and poignant in a way that only Eastwood can do.

The rest of the nominations are fair, but I still have one qualm, and that’s with the Best Animated Feature category. WALL-E has been nominated for Best Original Screenplay and it should have a place among the Best Pictures as well. In fact, if it couldn’t be The Dark Knight, The Reader’s spot should’ve been given to WALL-E. I’m unsure, however, if the category of Best Animated Feature is to preclude any animated films from being in the running for Best Picture. Beauty and the Beast was nominated back in 1991 before the Best Animated Feature category. However, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was nominated for both Foreign Language Film and Best Picture in 2001, so I think WALL-E still qualifies for inclusion in two major categories. I don’t know, perhaps my preference for WALL-E or The Dark Knight over The Reader puts my taste in films under question, but I don’t care. I know The Reader won’t win. Everyone knows it won’t win. And if it does, then I’m afraid I will have to recant my stance that the Academy earnestly picks the best film of the year. I have been a bit surprised in the past, like when Crash won over Brokeback Mountain, or Shakespeare in Love over Saving Private Ryan, but if The Reader wins, something is wrong. The Joker would call it “some misplaced sense of self-righteousness” on the part of the Academy. I can’t even quote any lines from The Reader and it’s nominated for writing over The Dark Knight.