Comments on: One Outrageous Oscar Voter Uses Anonymity To Declare ‘Selma’ Has “No Art” And More

By: Nathan Duke

Nathan Duke — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

I agree with Alexander – a very anti-art approach to viewing films. Again, this is the Oscars, so no big surprise there.

By: who_cares?

who_cares? — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

Ah, the outrage! If there was true meritocracy in the movie industry we wouldn\’t be talking about most of these films, including Selma. This stuff would never have been made in the first place. Why should you care what a know-nothing Academy member says about a cynical industry which makes worthless movies to sell popcorn and soft-drinks and then congratulates itself for this feat at the Oscars? Let them have their party and celebrate themselves. None of it matters a damn.

By: Gian

Gian — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

While I don\’t agree with most of his drivel, I must say that I finally watched \’Selma\’ last night and have to agree. I was so disappointed. As for \’Inherent Vice\’\’ and \’The Master\’…..I love PTA but Joaquin really annoys me and I just couldn\’t get past that. I get people think he\’s really talented but he\’s bugged me ever since \’\’To Die For\’.

By: Fredrick

Fredrick — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

I checked out the original article and I think it said it was a woman.

By: jawsnnn

jawsnnn — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

You are deluded if you think the rest of the academy is even keeled and thoughtful. Do you know what one of the voters who were even bothered to view for best animated film last year has to say about their choice? "Of course I chose Frozen. It was the only nominated movie I saw and my kids loved it"

By: Daryl Hannah

Daryl Hannah — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

Selma was boring and only slightly better than something like The Butler or Freedom Riders or any number of any other historical biodramas. But so was Milk and Sean Penn somehow won an Oscar for doing a Harvey Milk impression. So maybe there is some sort of a discrimination thing among voters… but doesn\’t change the fact that Selma ain\’t a great movie.

By: Donna

Donna — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

My impression is that this Oscar voter is a woman. Having said that, why does the politics behind Selma bother her but the politics behind American Sniper does not? Why the double standard? It\’s hard to ignore the inherent racism. The Academy may not be a bunch of hillbillies but if most of the voters are like this woman,then Heaven help us.

By: James

James — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

He is a She. All the commenters are talking about the mysterious Oscar voter as a man, but the original article says it\’s a woman.

By: Alexander

Alexander — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

I\’m still stewing over this.. the most cynical approach to talking or thinking about films. The tone of the whole letter is horrendous, comes off as bitter. Is this someone that even likes film? I would like to meet them in a dark alley to strangle them with a 35 mm print of \’Selma\’

By: Julian Towers

Julian Towers — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

@Zack the anonymous person is a woman. So not a guy actually.

By: j

Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

Some people like PTA, some people hate him. I would never hold it against this guy that he disliked Inherent Vice, as you either love it, or you hate it. Most great art provokes similarly polar reactions. But, y\’know, some of the other stuff he says is just f*cking ignorant.

By: MAL

MAL — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

I actually agree with this person\’s sentiments about Selma. And I don\’t say that lightly, given how obviously ignorant he or she is about the complex art of film making.

By: bob

bob — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

I didn\’t know Armond White was an Oscar Voter.

By: Zack

Zack — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:25 +0000

You\’d think this guy would love a movie about the virtue of ignorance.

By: Dave

Dave — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:24 +0000

The guy has a point with the absurdity of Selma\’s marketing. I remember seeing a video on NYT front page of Common and John Legend performing their track from Selma at a country club or otherwise elite club. If you know Common\’s history in hip hop, the video would have looked like a farce to you. The guy came up in underground hip hop, rejecting much of the coarseness and commercialism of mainstream hip hop, instead focusing on political confrontation and celebrating Black identity with all its complexities. Now, he is in a suit and tie rapping at half speed for a room full of middle aged White folks in penguin suits, most of whom probably haven\’t listened to a single hip hop album in its entirety. Even Common\’s hand gestures in the song were tame, as if he was trying to make palatable an essentially unpalatable subject for the crowd before him. Selma and its marketing campaign suffers from some of the same problems as the state of the civil rights movement in America: the tension between appealing to the establishment and agitating on the fringes for change has shifted dramatically toward establishment-appeasement, and the muddled message aim towards provoking outrage and pity without outlining some common vision for how to move forward.

By: lulu

lulu — Mon, 23 May 2016 04:10:24 +0000

Hmm, I may be wrong but don\’t the Academy also vote under a veil of anonymity?