UFGN wrote:^^
I'm not sure if you're aware Angelito but studios employ people who are basically lobbyists, who lobby judges to get their film the nod. And the arguments they're putting forward are generally ones concerned with Hollywood politics, not only the merits of the film.
Now I'm not saying there's corruption going on, but you have to ask yourself why do they do that? Why is it even allowed?
Knowing that, I'm not convinced that these Oscars are awarded only on merit.
I'm aware of that, pal.
But lobbying, in America, is pretty much part of advocacy, and is considered a basic right of organizations, civil societies, or even individuals. They allow lobbyists to do their job, but expect the judges to hold firm to their objective judgment. That's the basic principle and it's of course in principle.
Based on award ceremonies elsewhere, Oscars are pretty reliable, but nothing comes clean these days. Even festivals like Cannes, it has political elements, but they're pretty honest for most parts. For Cannes, cinema as an art matters and for Oscars, they consider cinema as a medium of storytelling, whilst also accepting the business aspect of cinema.
If it were up to me, I'd give the Best Director to Inarritu again, or if not him - to Ridley Scott. Ridley deserves a Best Director trophy and this would be similar to how Scorsese got it for Departed.
ThisIsNotAnID wrote:I don't know to what extent the length of a movie factors in its chances for it to win, even if it does at all. Some of the other factors you mentioned however are much more important like the social context of the movie or the storyline. Some of the recent winners have all paid tribute to Hollywood in one way or another such as Birdman, Argo, The Artist and there are also those which focus on more topical issues (the category where I think Spotlight belongs) such as 12 Years A Slave, The Hurt Locker etc. You also have the crowd-pleasers and movies that are simply the best or most-acclaimed among the nominees. I just don't see The Revenant fitting in any of these categories unlike Spotlight.
I might have also agreed with you about Inarritu winning Best Director in any other year since his movie is so technically proficient and the Oscars have the habit of awarding such movies but let's not forget that he's also going up against Miller, whose movie is equally accomplished. Besides, Miller has the narrative in his favor of being this 70-year-old man to deliver such a kick-ass movie unlike Inarritu who just won last year.
Can't say about Mad Max because I'm not into such films. Did Mad Max have some sort of a message or social appeal? You need those to win Best Picture awards.