Brokeback Backlash

There's been much talk since the Academy Awards of a backlash against Brokeback Mountain. Now, I don't know if this is totally true, and I wasn't too upset that Crash won over Brokeback. I just saw Crash this past Thursday, thanks to Netflix and I really enjoyed 80% of it, although I thought some of it was a little too pat, like Matt Dillon rescuing Tandy Newton, and then Ryan Phillipe helping out Terence Howard. Just a little too coincidental for my taste, but the Don Cheadle storyline with his mother and brother moved me, and the Persian family struggling to make ends meet, and being lumped in with Arabs just because of the way they look.

But getting back to Brokeback Mountain, apparently many Academy voters just refused to watch the movie. Tony Curtis publicly stated that he wouldn't watch the movie, and that he thought it was disgusting. If this is true, I guess the Academy Awards are like elections, they don't really reflect the will of the people or even the will of the Academy. I just don't get not watching the movie, and just judging it from the subject matter, particularly when you are an Academy Awards voter. Don't you owe it to yourself, and to the Academy to do your job and vote after watching all 5 nominated films?

I think all those older members who publicly and anonymously said they didn't watch it, did themselves, the movie, and the Academy a terrible injustice.

But that's just my humble opinion.

Oh, good news, I actually won the Oscar Pool at my night job! Apparently by a considerable margin. Even though I only got 4 out the 6 top awards, apparently I cleaned up when it came to the technical and other awards. I wish I could take credit but I actually relied the critic from the LA times while filling out my ballot. I don't know how much I won, but at least I won something!