Some Last Thoughts on the Oscars

Two days after the fact, here are just a few rambling thoughts about the Academy Awards.

I didn't watch the show. There were some decent movies nominated this year, but only a few were spectacular. About a week before the show, I finally had an opportunity to see The King's Speech. I have to say, I'm glad it won out over The Social Network. Personally, even The King's Speech and The Fighter, I think Toy Story 3 was the best movie. It was one of the most personal, heart-felt films of 2010. You don't have to have seen the previous two movies to understand or appreciate the movie on it's own because at the core the film isn't just about the characters, it's about family, about life, and about friendship. The movie's about growing up and moving on gracefully. It's a movie where good triumphs over evil. However, I realize it had three big things going against it: it's it's about toys, it's a sequel, and it's an animated film. I think the toy issue is really a non-issue, because the toys in the movie aren't just toys. Sequels have won Oscars before, so I don't think that's more than a minor hindrance. The big thing against Toy Story 3 is that it's an animated movie. An animated film has never won Best Picture. There have only been 3 animated films to be nominated for Best Picture and they've all come from Disney. I will make this prediction, one day a movie is going to win Best Picture and win it does I can guarantee it's going to be a film from Pixar (which Disney owns).

As for The King's Speech beating The Social Network, The King's Speech is just a better all around movie. Twenty years from now The Social Network will have no relevance. It'll be remembered as a decent movie with some good dialogue and a few technical gimmicks, but that's all. The King's Speech, meanwhile is a historical film that will hold up just as well fifty years from now as it does today; the movie is about friendship and a man overcoming a speech problem that many people can relate to. Other than fellow billionaires and other people who have Napoleon complexes, there are not many people who can relate to Jesse Eisenberg's portrayal of Mark Zuckerberg and the betrayal of his closest friend for money.

I'm glad that Melissa Leo won for Best Supporting Actress. She should have won the Best Actress award two years ago, but had to watch as Kate Winslet finally got her prize. As for Leo's acceptance speech, in the end it'll just add a footnote to her resume.

Randy Newman won another Oscar for Best Song. It took him forever to win his first one, so I'm glad to see he's won another.