Hear Me Out: The Oscars still hold cultural value
Throughout the 20th century, the Academy Awards were seen and appreciated as gospel. Movie lovers debated which films should be included on the esteemed list of nominations and made sure to watch every one, unless they’d seen them already, of course. Pulling in tens of millions of viewers on a consistent basis, the Oscars became a night where Hollywood egos were rubbed by both industry peers and enthusiastic fans.
Many generations later and the annual Academy Awards lack the attention they once garnered, with filmmakers and actors forced to do double the ego-rubbing after fans have steadily lost interest in the ceremony. As modern society entered the 21st century and the existence of social media emerged, it became increasingly clear that the Academy were no longer the authority behind the greatest movies of the year – this was decided by self-evident popular consensus.
Giving a soapbox to anybody willing to project their opinion, platforms like Twitter have given birth to generations of fans whose views seem to matter just as much, if not more than, the Academy itself. Indeed, the American institution hasn’t helped themselves in the last decade or so, nominating movies nobody has seen whilst giving the ‘Best Picture’ statuette to a totally undeserved political choice.
It can be incredibly easy to dismiss the Oscars as a vehicle of Hollywood propaganda. Whilst this is certainly the case, the awards show isn’t quite as useless as some make it out to be, providing invaluable boosts to personal profiles and movie businesses.
Designed and founded in 1926 as a way to promote a positive view of Hollywood and improve labour issues in the industry, the Oscars hold a similar purpose to this very day. Never intended to solely be a reflection of the best films of any given year, the Academy Awards give a platform for unsung industry heroes to be honoured by their peers. Whilst it’s an ego boost for actors to be voted ‘the best’ by other actors, the awards show is particularly important for sound engineers, costume designers and hair stylists who all too rarely claim the limelight.
On a wider scale, the visibility of the awards ceremony and wins for such companies as Netflix boosts their credibility in the eyes of potential producers who may have been previously hesitant to work with the streaming giant and distributor. Similarly, A24 became a major critical contender after their 2016 movie Moonlight took home ‘Best Picture’, and the same can be said for Neon, who found success with Parasite, receiving the ceremony’s highest honour in 2020.
Just like the ceremony can raise the profiles of actors and creatives, the Oscars can also legitimise an up-and-coming business, with such being essential in an industry becoming increasingly dominated by media conglomerates. Before 2016, A24 had only managed to attract such names as Sofia Coppola and Gus Van Sant to collaborate with them, yet, over half a decade later, the studio is considered one of the most stylish and critically acclaimed of modern cinema.
Fans can bemoan the lack of critical judgement in the Academy, as well as their poor efforts to reflect industry diversity, but the Oscars remain an annual celebration of cinema, shining light on the documentaries, animated movies and foreign films that might have otherwise gone totally unnoticed. With everyone owning a Twitter account being their own favourite critic, perhaps the Oscars should be viewed as a platform for creative discovery rather than an authoritative voice on the best movies of any given year.