Oscars 2006

COUNTDOWN TO OSCARS: WANNA BET?

HALDUN ARMAGAN

Something happened to the Oscars this year. Something nice and miraculous. After a very long tradition of boosting tear-jerkers and soap-opera glamour, Oscar seems to have decided to go liberal. Looking at the nominees for Best Picture, one may wonder if the list is copied from the Berlin or Cannes festivals. Some movies in the best actor category can easily be advised for the rainbow section of any international film festivals.

All right, time to confess: We all gave a standing ovation to mediocre movies just for the sake of Oscar spirit. From "Rocky" to "Titanic," from "Million Dollar Baby" to "Kramer vs. Kramer," the conservative/mediocre tradition always prevailed. But this year, the 78th Oscars tell us “let's all get real.” This is good, this is very encouraging for the future. I think we’ve had enough of movies with no character and more computer images. I think we’ve already passed the tolerable limit of chick-flicks and tear-jerkers. Does anyone out there still fondly remember the Oscar-hit "Million Dollar Baby"? Only a year has passed and the movie is gone without leaving any traces in our souls. It's not the movie's fault, if you ask me, the mistake belongs to the Academy for overblowing it or this kind of mediocre taste.

That's why the 78th Oscars are important and provide a good reason to stay awake all night on Sunday. Nominees for the Best Motion Picture this year are a flawless quintet: “Brokeback Mountain,” “Capote,” “Crash,” “Good Night, and Good Luck,” and “Munich.” My heart belongs to all of them, and this is the very first time, I should mention in my capacity of following the Oscars every year. All five have something in common: They are character-driven, story oriented movies. They take power from real lives and real characters. And this is a real first for the Oscars as they now embrace character-driven movies while laying the big-budget mediocrities aside.

A nice thing about Oscar is the thrill of betting: Who's gonna win? Here is my personal "Oscar Goes To" list.

Best Movie: Brokeback Mountain
Best Director: Ang Lee
Best Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman for "Capote"
Best Supporting Actor: Jake Gyllenhaal for "Brokeback Mountain"
Best Actress: Reese Witherspoon for 'Walk the Line"
Best Supporting Actress: Michelle Williams for "Brokeback Mountain"

The article appeared in the New Anatolian on March 3, 2006.