Every year we gather round the TV to watch the Oscars. And some pretty sweet stuff happens there. Some talented actors and actresses win some prizes, we hear about the best short films, we learn that apparently our favorite films are rubbish and we should develop some taste. But, insulting our favorite films aside, some pretty awful things happen every Oscars too. And just because it’s a new year doesn’t mean it’s a new story.
1: Sia did what Gaga and Miley wouldn’t do.
Did anyone else notice how totally professional Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus were dressed? They looked great, still had some uniqueness and weren’t hellbent on making a statement on what wasn’t their night. How Sia thought this was the place for her curtain wig, I don’t know.
2: Benedict Cumberbatch didn’t get anything, for reals?
So this is a tiny, totally personal complaint, but… Even if he is a heartthrob, Benedict Cumberbatch is actually a really impressive actor. He’s talented, smart, believable and definitely lined up for an Oscar eventually. But maybe he’ll be another DiCaprio?
3: Gaga perpetuated partygirl stereotypes.
Even though Gaga was dressed gaga-gorgeous, not trying to make a scene and singing a super beautiful homage to “The Sound of Music”, she nevertheless managed to do something more than a little stupid, though. Who thinks that a picture of yourself, collapsed with a drink in your hand, is a message to send to young girls? We don’t need more people thinking of young women as irresponsible and drunkenly sexual. Party-girl stereotypes are passé, Gaga.
4: Where did you get that dress? Isn’t it lovely?
Despite the loudness of the #AskHerMore campaign, many reporters chose to overlook it or briefly address it before going back to pestering women about their dresses and judging them based on appearance. It seems red carpet sexism is a beast that just won’t die and we can probably expect more interviews about women’s dresses into the distant future. After all, you just won an Oscar babe, but where did you get that clutch?
5: Some people hijacked Patricia Arquette’s beautiful speech.
Speaking of sexism, Patricia Arquette’s wonderful speech was the highlight of the night for many of us. Which is why it was so shocking when a group of MRAs and general sexist idiots decided to use her speech and the associated hashtags to promote their own ideology. Here we have a woman using her open platform to call out sexism and immediately people need to rush in and bitch about it?
6: The wage gap in Hollywood is still worse than anywhere.
The worst part about it? Even if the wage gap is smaller or absent in some industries, the wage gap in Hollywood is awful. Casting a headliner woman in a lead role costs a director so much less than casting a man, and even then the men still get the lead in all the good scripts. But, after the attack on Arquette and the flop of #AskHerMore, it seems that in Hollywood women are still there to be seen and not heard.
7: Apparently Martin Luther King is passé.
It’s unbelievable that such a moving, well-written, well-portrayed film about Martin Luther King’s life didn’t receive an award for the excellent writing, directing or acting, but for the music. Now, I’m not saying the music wasn’t fab. It was. But giving them an award just for the music is overlooking the whole point of the artists making this film. Or is it making the point again for them?
8: Why it gotta be so darn WHITE?
And, as an aside, I am amazed at how few nominees, let alone winners, were people of color. Not even the nominations for foreign films had much color in them. Hollywood’s best and whitest indeed…
9: Disabled actors still aren’t doing well in disabled roles.
I totally respect the Best Actor and Best Actress for their respectful, realistic and highly moving roles as disabled characters. The acting was superb, but it still bugs me that disabled actors aren’t getting their due. I know that some people would say a disabled actor in a disabled role isn’t really acting, but there have been many directors who intentionally scared, surprised and hurt their actors just for the rawness of it. Our only real excuse is that ablist film critics wouldn’t like it.
10: “Boyhood” was seriously overlooked.
I’m not the first or the last person to say this, but “Boyhood” was an amazing film that deserved so much more recognition. So many nominees, so few winners. It’s a shame.