So, the Academy Award nominations have been announced, and you know what that means: another article about lack of diversity in Academy Award nominations.
CNN.com points out that even Javier Bardem, up for best actor, doesn’t count, because he’s “European.”
Making him white – and of course, a monster.
Anyway, CNN frets that the diversity among movie audiences isn’t reflected in the awards, something I’d like to agree with, since I hate Hollywood.
I mean, Tinseltown is a place where if you’re in the military, you’re a psycho; if you’re from a square state, you bully gays; and if you wear a suit, you’re racist. The only person who retains any nobility in a Hollywood film these days are animated and transgendered.
So it’s fun to see the film industry get a dose of their own medicine.
Except, it’s wrong.
To me, it’s racist to assume a diverse audience expects “diverse” movies. Meaning, blacks can’t enjoy The Social Network because everyone is white; and Greeks will hate Black Swan, because the ballerinas aren’t hairy.
Fact is, all people want the same thing – good movies that tell great stories – color be damned.
Here’s my solution: get a diversity expert to assign the roles. Why couldn’t Mark Zuckerberg be played by a Korean lesbian? Frankly, The Kings Speech would have been far more entertaining if said King was played by that big gal from Precious.
Even better, I would have enjoyed Black Swan more if Kevin James was the swan, not Ms. Portman. As a pudgy white guy, It would make me feel better about myself.
And that’s the point. As a nation now perceived as a collection of diverse groups who share no common ideals – making sure everyone feels good about themselves ensures no one will be happy.
Which is why Sex and the City 2 got robbed.
