Fixing The Oscars

This year the Academy Awards received their lowest ratings ever. Since 2003 when THE RETURN OF THE KING won Best Picture, Oscar viewers have been in a steady decline. Some feel the films nominated by the Academy for Best Picture no longer coincide with whats popular among the masses. In the past, crowd-pleasers have been readily a part of the Academy's nominees including BRAVEHEART (1995), TITANIC (1997), GLADIATOR(2000), and THE LORD OF THE RINGS (2001-2003). Lately, the Academy has chosen to pick more critically acclaimed films including CAPOTE, GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK, SIDEWAYS, and BABEL. This year, the only film to cross the 100 million mark and be voted for films most coveted prize was JUNO, the one crowd-pleaser of the bunch, and the only comedy nominated. The remaining four nominees including NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, THERE WILL BE BLOOD, MICHAEL CLAYTON, and ATONEMENT, all downbeat dramas without happy endings or optimistic tones. It should be no surprise that JUNO made over 100 million because it is the most enjoyable film out of the five though its topic, teen pregnancy, is quite serious. However, the fact that the filmmakers took a lighter approach to a serious and relevant topic probably gave it the appeal that was needed for its major success. The other films are full of themes including corruption, brutality, greed, obsession, crime, and death, and with the current state of world, people just aren't up for throwing down 12$ to watch something void of hope or escapism. On the other hand, was there a blockbuster this year that was worthy of Best Picture? If there was one blockbuster worthy of a Best Picture nomination, it was RATATOUILLE. Not only was it one of the most critically acclaimed films of the year, and it is one of Pixar's most successful films at the box-office, grossing 620 Million Worldwide. If that doesn't signify a match between critically love and box-office dollars, I don't know what does.

Brad Brevet over at ROPE OF SILICON offers some great incite into what may return the Oscars to its former glory including a look at how marketing may have played a big part in why many people have just not seen the films.

"Perhaps the Oscars simply are a DVD selling tool, but if studios wised up and if the Academy wants to put on a show that is going to be watched by more people they better start getting audiences to see these movies in theaters and not with some all-day ruse to get folks to watch all five Best Picture nominees in one day just prior to the show.

Whoever decided they were going to waste their money on 15 hours of straight movie watching really needs to think that one over a second time. So, if you want to fix the Oscars then fix the marketing of the films dubbed "the best". Sure, people want to see things explode, robots take over the world and monsters attack New York City, but people will also go see beautifully drawn out love stories, relevant legal thrillers, violent chases and pregnant teens if you sell it to them. (I intentionally left out diseased oil tycoons because I don't think There Will be Blood could have brought in more folks had the studio tried.)

If these films truly are the best of the best people will want to go see them. Ladies will drag their men to Atonement, date night is made for Juno and the fellas can go see No Country for Old Men and maybe convince their women to join in. After all, Chigurh is quite the ladies man I understand.

So you see, it isn't the show that needs fixing, it's the movies before they get there. Up for Best Picture doesn't have to be The Incredible Hulk, Cloverfield, The Dark Knight, Iron Man and Kung Fu Panda (even though that would certainly bring in the younger crowd). The key is to simply give people something to cheer for. People would have cheered on No Country had they seen the other four films. Perhaps women would have wanted Atonement or Juno to take the top prize after enduring the violence of No Country and the somber nature of There Will be Blood. Either way, if they had been given the chance to see the films and they had been marketed outside of the art house audience, I really think you would see a ratings bump.

However, we know this will never happen. I mean, how good can a movie really be if the general audience actually likes it? Speaking of which, it wouldn't actually kill the
Academy to just once recognize one of these summer blockbusters as an actual
good film."

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