The Year of the Woman. The Decade of Color. The Wave of Change. Ummmm….well…not to be a JOKER, but what gives in Hollywood? By now you have heard the outcry of ‘White Male Oscar Party!’ The New York Times has an excellent article all about it. What does it really mean? And as the debate rages about the Relevance of the Academy Awards today, (check into NPR), it leaves us all a little perplexed. If our movies reflect our society, is something wrong with the movies? Society? Perception? Probably the latter…we have been down this road many, many times before.
Think about this….in acting categories alone, there have been 1200 to 1500 nominations since the awards got their start….and, wait for it, to date, less than 80 winners have been of color.
And then the dreadful Greta Gerwig snub for ‘Little Women.’ The movie garnered 6 nominations…but no director, because evidently, it just happened on its own.
Before I press forward, let me state, I’m not a film critic, I did take film appreciation. I’m not an acting expert, I’ve been in plenty of plays. I’m not one to see every film, I do love Netflix. What I am is the very person that Hollywood wants to reach! The average movie-goer hoping to be entertained and even educated from time to time.
This time, Hollywood needs the education. We are in a precarious time in this country. Women are at a true crossroads, politically and socially. People of color are under-represented and their voices lost in others’ misleading tweets.
So who do we look to? The Movies! To celebrate the underdogs. To make more movies about those people who need to be seen, heard and understood. And then, when those films are made, we need Hollywood to buoy them, praise them and bring them accolades that prove ‘all types of us matter.’ If not Hollywood. WHO?
Which brings us to our very own Julia Reichert! Let’s hear it for the GIRL! I know we are all giddy with excitement thinking that one of our own can take home an OSCAR and she’s a woman….W O M A N! (Shout out to Steve Bognar, who we love too, but this is about her right now!) And if ever there was a lady who girls can look up to and see their potential, it’s Julia!
What does all of this mean…the outrage, the disappointment, the white male party on Sunday, February 9th….I think it means this….
Pray that Hollywood picks the BEST of what they have deemed the best. Let’s hope they see, hear and understand what the world is saying! (And secretly, root for Cynthia Erivo in HARRIET…much like the lady she portrayed, maybe she can show the world that we are all part of the party!!)
The Oscars will air LIVE SUNDAY FEBRUARY 9 8e|5p on ABC and will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide…where there are a multitude of races, genders, and sexual preferences!
