O-scarred

I don’t know if it is because I have been in this town for 11 years now and consequently I’ve seen 11 times already that a gathering of thousands of people turn one part of Hollywood into a traffic nuisance for a couple of days. Or maybe it is because in one way or another I was assigned to cover the event, getting a bit closer to the mechanics of the show. Elusive as it really is to the outsider, I helped to propel the myth of the Oscars by covering them. And for a while I liked it, felt part of the excitement.

I picked up a little left over piece of that famous red carpet outside the Kodak Theatre (still have it to this day), took the obligatory pictures next to the larger than life Oscar figurines. Even photographed a few real statuettes in the exhibit showing the history of this prestigious honor. Was in awe at who got an Oscar for what in 1943 and 75 and 88 and 2001. Somehow that must count for something. Me and those Oscars in a room. A photo of me and the Oscar. Important by association. The illusion of closeness.

But for the last years the Oscars have lost their luster to me. They are too obvious. They might have always been a blatant marketing tool. Even though the Academy’s original idea is all about honoring the best of the craft. But how else can you sell that than through what people like to look at: the stars and their style.

It feels so much like a business now I might as well watch the yearly gathering of the plumbers of America or the National Banking Association handing out their prizes to the best of their trade. Everything feels calculated. And I don’t mean the style. That has probably always been paid for and packaged. To perfection in the 21st century. I only wait for the moment where a reporter rattles off the designer names of the gowns and jewelry forgetting the name of the actress who wears it.

But what really lost its appeal is the show. Is it really a surprise who wins? So much now goes into campaigning for the little golden guy the Oscars feel like a midterm election. No mystic there. It ruins my joy of seeing movies being honored for the craft of filmmaking. It is just a 3 hour ordeal where you cross off the categories to be sure you have the numbers right for the report that will go out on TV. (and this year the oh so youthful MCs were boring, I missed a storyteller)

What happened? Me growing up, getting jaded? The wonder disappeared? The age old trick of time that by repetition everything loses its meaning? Maybe it was never different. Maybe it is just what things look like in 2011. Me being stuck in the 20th century again. I’ll pause for a year or two so I can have my magic back… (Sap!)