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So what if Toy Story 3 is animated? Does this matter? The same goes for a foreign film. Maybe you thought the Russian submission for Best Foreign Language Film is the best film of all in 2010. Vote for it for Best Picture. Should it get penalized for not being in English? Of course not. A movie is a movie is a movie. Right now, I’m stuck between a few films as the best of the year, but Toy Story 3 is right up there. What Pixar has been doing almost 100% since 1995 is make movies that put live-action films to shame. There are, unfortunately, a lot of filmmakers and Oscar writers who do not like this. Would you want to be shamed by movies about toys or rats or monsters or superheroes? For the filmmakers, it’s an embarrassment you can fix in the ballots.

For writers, though, it’s more fruitless to wage a war against animation. What is in it for someone who says that Toy Story 3 shouldn’t win just because an animated movie winning is a disgrace to Oscar? (I will not say who has intimated this, but you can feel free to find it. Just know it didn’t come from this site.) Having an opinion is fine, and having a biased opinion is also fine. Having a biased opinion just to piss people off is what loses me. Toy Story 3 is, I’m willing to wager, not winning the Best Picture Oscar for somewhat sad and somewhat understandable reasons. But the idea that an animated movie ever winning the award is bad for the Oscar is standing in the way of progress for no good reason.

One day, an animated movie — perhaps not from Pixar, either — will be as much of an unstoppable force as No Country For Old Men was three years ago. Those against this kind of change will just look more foolish than they do now. So, just remember when you read my article, or the others here, or elsewhere on Oscar sites. Look for the facts, and remember that very few Oscar writers have as much of an impact as they’d like. Look for the facts within their opinions, and if you see none, just remember that a movie is a movie is a movie. Anything should be worthy, and those writing about the season should be willing to accept that idea.

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