'Brokeback' backlash against 'Crash'? That's progress (liberals bickering over Oscar)

Chicago Tribune syndicated columnists via Houston Chronicle ^ | March 10, 2006, 9:26PM | By CLARENCE PAGE

[weegee]

Fate is indeed fickle. Who would have guessed that in this year's Oscar voting, Brokeback Mountain, a fine, risky movie about a gay love affair, would surge ahead of Capote, a movie about a gay journalist, only to be edged out for the Best Picture Oscar by a fine, risky movie about racism?

Is this a sign of our times, or what? If conservatives needed any evidence that liberal impulses have taken over the Motion Picture Academy, this is it. Right? But, alas, in some folks' minds, every silver lining has its cloud. Instead of celebrating, many fans of Brokeback Mountain are singing the blues, charging that their favorite flick was denied its rightful Oscar by ... guess what?

"I think that's an absolute horror," Brad Bruner, a leader in the Golden State Gay Rodeo Association, told the San Francisco Chronicle. "It's an outright sign of homophobia in our country. (Crash) won no awards before this. It makes me sick." That's right. "Homophobia." There's just no pleasing some folks. Critic Kenneth Turan expressed similar sentiments in the Los Angeles Times, writing that "Crash provided the perfect safe harbor" for those who were "discomfited" by Brokeback Mountain but wanted to "feel like they were good, productive liberals."

[QwertyKPH]

Some people place too much importance on the film industry and pop culture in general. Its just the movies. Tell the Brokeback fans to get over it.

[baa39]

A friend forwarded me this email:

BLUSHING with SHAME

Oscar is red-faced at having to go home with this year's winners. The best film is "Trash," and pretty much so is every other Academy-Award winner from Sunday night's decollate-studded event. A song glorifying pimps, a veritable panoply of films praising sodomy in one way or another, and hours of tiresome, uninspired acceptance speeches.

All this glamour was interspersed with self-aggrandizing interludes about how it's heroic and brave to make movies (geez, as if these over-dressed, gushing stars were soldiers in the trenches), how the actors and crews are incredibly dedicated (yeah, like they're not getting paid a gajillion bucks), and how meaningful all these ego-driven and politicized films are to art, art, ART!

It seems the only creativity left in Hollywood is coming up with more ways to be perverse and amoral, and not even try to be subtle about it. Not only trash, but crass trash.

But there was a ray of light. As one award-winner humbly suggested, let's not forget about the wonderful world of books. Those were the best words spoken all night. If we replaced fifty percent of movie theatres with bookstores, we would all be better off, less jaded, possibly thinner, and probably happier too.

[fish hawk]

as far as my money went, all three lost out.

[Paleo Conservative]

I think I might not see any of this year's best picture nominees ever!

[neverdem]

There's the young black male played by hip-hop artist "Ludacris" complaining about white people's fear of young black males — just before he pulls out a gun and carjacks two white yuppies played by Brendan Frazer and Sandra Bullock.

Calling Jesse Jackson! How about blacks can't be racist?

I don't bother going to movies. When I saw clips of Crash and Haggis on the Charlie Rose Show, I thought it had a good chance to beat Brokeback for best movie. Brokeback had the most pretentious advertising campaign that I have ever witnessed.

[Gabz]

What's an Oscar?

What's a movie theater?

[Tzimisce]

lol

[Dallas59]

I peeked at the Oscars that night....(PIP)...and overheard "them" bashing DVDs.....

[Looking4Truth]

You know if that's all some people have to write, fuss over and obsess (notice I didn't say 'think about') about, then they must have a pretty stress-free life. Wussies!

[Jeff Chandler]

I don't know about everyone else, but I've heard just about enough concerning "Butt Crack Mountain".

[taxesareforever]

"It's an outright sign of homophobia in our country.

Can't we just hate homosexuality without always being inferred that we are scared of it? What's with the phobia bit?

[Enduring Freedom]

Not sure why people call it Brokeback Mountain.

From everything I've read, the name is:

BAREBACK MOUNTIN'

[Do not dub me shapka broham]

There's also the white racist cop, played impressively by Oscar-nominated Matt Dillon, who gets us to hate him by abusing a wealthy black couple during a traffic stop. Then Dillon pulls an emotional whiplash on us by showing us the sources of the cop's anger, particularly the heartless bureaucratic HMO that won't pay for the pain-relieving medicine his ailing father needs.

Good grief.

*prolonged eye roll*

[thedavetx]

"Crash" seemed to me like a rip-off of a far better movie: "Short Cuts" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108122/).

[Lancey Howard]

'Crash' is excellent. Not "in your face" at all.
FWIW

[depenzz]

"Some people place too much importance on the film industry and pop culture in general. Its just the movies. Tell the Brokeback fans to get over it."

I believe you are asking for too much , they (liberals) haven't gotten over the 2004 elections yet.

[rod1]

The attention and dwelling over these Hollywood pushed initiatives is ridiculous. Wasn't there a firestorm over another "WESTERN" Midnight Cowboy (which I have never seen) years ago. The message movie apparently had a stellar cast and some gay implications, plus X? rated then, but is probably watched a lot less now than other films of its era.

Who watches that movie now or dwells on whether Midnight Cowboy was just nominated for an Oscar or actually won Oscars?

People watch what they want to and after a couple of years post Oscar ceremonies, the public essentially gives its own awards for quality entertainment with duration.

Brokeback will probably slide along side "The Boys in the Band" for rentals.

[chemicalman]

...or Pokeback Mountain.

[S0122017]

Im gonna make a movie about a man and his love for a human cadaver, and the misunderstanding their love faces in this discriminative world.

Then im gonna campaing for men/woman - human cadaver marriages to be legallized and the right for men/women and their cadaver lovers to adopt children. And ofcourse, the issue of allowing cadavers in the military! Such a discriminative organization.