Master of Fine Arts in I'm Right, You're Wrong

How awesome is Kathryn Bigelow?!?

It's always great debating the Oscars with film students. As long as we avoid public places and elevators where, to paraphrase Woody Allen, we are likely to be accused and scorned for pontificating in the ears of others, it can be a magnificent thing to observe. You all know the film student stereotype, the self-important aesthete, self-proclaimed master of all things visual and god's gift to cinematic expression, and fervent believer that in the grand scheme of things their work actually matters. While the type does exist in the real world, I'm happy to say that most of us are not actually quite as pompous as all this. At least most of the one's I've met and worked with.

Most of us, however, are quite opinionated in what we believe constitutes a good film. While I believe that everybody is entitled to their own opinions and are allowed to like what suits them, I'd be lying if I didn't hold strong to my own beliefs regarding this (you should hear my rant against Transformers which actually caused my brother to cease talking to me for the rest of the afternoon after we saw it). Which is precisely why listening to film students discuss the Oscars is like observing chimps in a zoo. Strangely bizarre, weirdly fascinating, and slightly discomforting.

After two of my classmates and I saw the Oscar nominated live action shorts this past weekend, we argued all the way home about which ones were good, which ones were trash, and which one deserved to win. It was absurd how up in arms we all got in voicing our individual opinions. I'm sure there was many a passerby who would have liked to tell us all to stfu. But, there we were arguing so passionately that you'd think our conversation held the key to finally getting a health care bill passed. I'm proud to say that the movie that I argued in favor of was the one that actually won (The New Tenants), in a way vindicating my taste in films and giving me a trump card for future debates. If anybody in the Obama administration is reading this and wants my advice on how to crack the health care nut, you undoubtedly have my number.

Speaking of the Oscars, who isn't geeked about the Hurt Locker and Kathryn Bigelow?!? It only took me the better part of a year to finally get around to seeing it, but what a great film it was. This movie only made about $20.5 million in domestic and foreign box office (which means that pretty much nobody saw it). Compared to the $2.5 billion that Avatar has made in global ticket sales (which means that everybody has seen it, with the lone exception of me, not because I'm boycotting, but because EVERYBODY has seen it and nobody will go with me) we can honestly call this a David vs. Goliath story. Not to mention Ms. Bigelow! Horray for history being made!

I read in the Times today that the screenwriter Mark Boal (who also took home an Oscar), "stood on street corners with his teenage nephew handing out free tickets to passersby with the idea that if they could stack the house, perhaps the theater owners would book it for another week." A great idea if I ever get a film into a theater (unless it's snowing). Who's down to man the New York street corners with me?

Ryan the Sound Guy