The Oscars and my Movie Binge

The Oscars are tonight and for the first time ever I’ve seen enough of the movies to classify myself as an informed viewer.

I’m not a huge movie person. I get antsy. The thought of giving up an afternoon or evening to sit in front of a screen has not always appealed to me.  But recently, that changed. In part because of the cold, gray weather, my increased mobility and the stack of complimentary movie passes I’ve accumulated.  But I believe the real root of my recent movie binge stems from the feeling I get when entering the cinema and exiting my own day. It’s the high ceilings and the smell of popcorn. The ticket collector with waxed eyebrows, dressed in a black suit. And the smile we exchanged when he rips my ticket in half, hands me the stub and says, “enjoy the show.”

This year’s line up taught us a few more things about our distant and recent history: the Emancipation Proclamation, the Iranian Hostage Crisis, the anticipated yet sudden death of Osama Bin Laden. In the Boston Globe, Ty Burr reflects on Hollywood’s motive for stretching the truth and the less-than-pleased reactions from historians. It’s a worthwhile read and forces us to ask ourselves why we go to the movies, what we gain from them and the ways that they can make us a little bit better and a little bit worse.  

In the films based on true stories—Zero Dark Thirty, Argo and Lincoln—the key moments are allegedly not true at all. In Argo, the plane took off without much questioning. The difficult-to-swallow torture scenes that opens Zero Dark Thirty may not have actually happened. And in Lincoln, the two Connecticut senators who dramatically yell “nay" in opposition of the amendment voted in favor of it.

Like all storytelling, the point of movies is less about truth and more about the art of capturing the viewer. Historical films, when done well, allow us to see a side of the story we had not considered before by forcing us to remember what we’ve chosen to forget and giving us something to think about when the lights come back on.

Enjoy this fun and fancy evening.  They are all worthy of celebration. My final vote goes to Argo.