Oscar Gold Reduced to Brass

The Oscars nominees normally represents the very best that the film industry has to offer over the past year. Well 2009 may be the year that represents the mark in history when the Oscars downgraded the quality of the films to a lower standard. There were several really great films and quality performances from the past year that were Oscar worthy, but these were over-looked for a more popular and political choice. Case and point is the absence of Clint Eastwood being among the nominees. The film, Gran Torino, written and directed by as well as starring Eastwood has been revered as the greatest project of his lifetime. Now that is high praise considering he has been nominated numerous times and won 5 Oscars. This is not to mention the dozens of other awards that he has received. Eastwood has been acting since the 1960s and has been in nearly 60 movies. Many of these films are part of the American Film Institutes's Greatest Films of All Time list. Eastwood also was director of last year's paranormal thriller, The Changeling. But Eastwood won't bring home Oscar gold this year because he wasn't nominated for his acting performance. Leonardo DiCaprio's critically raved performance in Revolutionary Road was also passed up as a nominee. What performances are greater than the legendary Eastwood and very talented DiCaprio that are worthy of an Oscar nomination? Well none other than the superstar performance of Robert Downey Jr. in the Oscar "worthy" film, Tropic Thunder. What the ....?!? A slapstick parody about a group of actors who believe they are making a film, but are actually caught up in a war. Oscars were usually reserved for the greatest films of the year. Who knows what the standards for selection are from now on! If Tropic Thunder is worthy of an Oscar nom, then maybe they should take a look at Delta Farce with Larry the Cable Guy, Bill Engvall and D.J. Qualls. It is in the same genre as Tropic Thunder, but the acting and plot was much more realistic and had more social value. Another question on the standards of the Oscar celebration is the blatant double standard that will be present at this year's ceremony. The performance of the late Heath Ledger as the Joker in the Dark Knight has been honored with an Oscar nomination. The critics seem to think that he has a guaranteed win although it is rare in Oscar history for an actor to win posthumously. Maybe Ledger's last performance deserves an Oscar. He was a very talented actor with a Oscar win for Brokeback Mountain. But Hollywood's standards are double for dealing with actors who die from drug overdoses. The same week that Ledger died, there was another very talented actor who passed away from the same cause. Brad Renfro who starred in The Client and Telling Lies in America died from an overdose without any recognition during the 2008 Oscar ceremony. The message that the Oscars send to the society is that if you are popular and die of an "accidental" overdose then it is ok. Instead of honoring the life that an actor had, they celebrate the way that they died. A drug overdose whether it is legal or illegal drugs should not be revered. Hollywood will do what it does best again this year and that is to ignore the elephant in the room. With the death of so many talented actors through the years, Hollywood could start a very real conversation for all of America about the hazards of drug use, depression and stress. Hollywood will once again ignore the social values for the box-office receipts and popularity. The quality of the golden statues that have been won by a wealth of extraordinary artists has now reduced to itself to nothing more than a brass statue with little significance. TJB