The 2016 Academy Award nominations set off an even bigger firestorm than last year, proving that for every step forward there seems to be two steps back (or at least that the Academy is overwhelmingly old and easily swayed by the types of movies they’ve always gravitated towards). (more…)

The Oscars are a time for revelry and merriment. The chosen few of Hollywood (our modern Babylon or maybe Sodom and Gomorrah) are given exultant praise while the rest of us sit at home, getting increasingly drunk and yelling at the TV. Grousing about the Oscars is a national pastime at this point, a sport comprised of poking holes at an overlong, self-congratulatory pageant that’s meant to celebrate artistic merit but more often than not simply rewards those who campaign hardest or appeal most to the Academy’s often middle-of-the-road tastes.  (more…)