In Contention

By Josh Spiegel

December 11, 2009

Everyone who has a chance at an Oscar raise your hand. Not so fast, Lake Bell.

New at BOP:
Share & Save
Digg Button  
Print this column
Welcome to one of the rare slow weeks in the 2009 Oscar season, folks. Last week, in the inaugural In Contention for the 2009 Oscars, I discussed the National Board of Review's annual awards, and what meaning (if any) they had on the overall awards season. For next week's column, I'll have a plethora of news to talk about: the Los Angeles Film Critics, Online Film Critics, New York Film Critics, and Chicago Film Critics all announce their awards; also, the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild will announce their nominations for the year. This week, though, there's a lot less to discuss, at least among potentially important committees and critics' groups.

Instead, let's take a long, yet completely healthy and not obsessed, look at the upcoming Oscar ceremony, airing on national television on March 7, 2010. Much, of course, has been bandied about with regards to the decision of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to expand the Best Picture nominations from five to ten. However, the entire ceremony will attempt to look different, not just in the biggest category. Last year's Oscar producers, Bill Condon and Laurence Mark, are gone; in their place are Bill Mechanic, a former film executive, and Adam Shankman, a choreographer (if you've been watching the FOX reality show "So You Think You Can Dance", you'll know him as one of the show's judges) and director of such films as Bringing Down the House, Hairspray, and The Pacifier.




Advertisement



The most notable change is in the show's host. Last year's host, song-and-dance man/action star Hugh Jackman, politely refused to repeat as emcee; in his place are Steve Martin, who's hosted the Oscars twice in the past decade, and Alec Baldwin, whose popularity has been on the rise since "30 Rock", the NBC sitcom in which he co-stars with Tina Fey, became popular. You may be wondering what kind of method there is to the madness of two hosts instead of one. Now, granted, Martin's time as Oscar host is fondly remembered by some (including me); Baldwin, if not a host of major awards ceremonies, is a dryly witty actor. Still, the idea of having not just two hosts, but two men who happen to be co-starring in the upcoming It's Complicated, which has been getting Oscar buzz for the past month or so, stinks too obviously of corporate integration.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not naïve; I'm fully aware that, whatever lofty ideals and hopes you or I may have, placing the Oscars on ABC is all about wanting to make money. Alongside the Super Bowl and the finale of a show like "American Idol", the Oscar ceremony is a surefire way for the network to make lots of cash off all sorts of advertising revenue. Moreover, the more people who watch means more money is made. And, hey, if It's Complicated makes a lot of money, at least for a movie of its genre, and Martin and Baldwin host the Oscars, couldn't that guarantee more viewers? This mindset may not be of any wholesome meaning, but it annoys me far less than the idea of having ten Best Picture nominations.


Continued:       1       2       3

     


 
 

Need to contact us? E-mail a Box Office Prophet.
Monday, March 18, 2024
© 2024 Box Office Prophets, a division of One Of Us, Inc.