Complicated plots in Oscar’s 2010 story
Fans of “Saturday Night Live” naturally will recognize a long-running rivalry between comedian Steve Martin and comic actor Alec Baldwin, star of NBC’s major hit and award-magnet “30 Rock.” The two have vied for the record—most appearances by a guest host—for almost a decade, and the friendly rivalry has become a source of constant jokes and allusions for both. In pre-Oscar badinage, Steve Martin grinned a wry little grin as he told reporters, “I am happy to co-host the Oscars with my enemy Alec Baldwin.” Smiling equally mischievously, Baldwin retorted, “I don’t play the banjo”—an allusion to Martin’s favourite comedy prop—“but I’m thrilled to be hosting the Oscars—it’s the opportunity of a lifetime.”
The friendly tug-of-war between Baldwin and Martin represents just one among several plots that will unfold on Oscar night.
Considerably more exciting but far more subtle, Oscar’s big night will tell the story of the competition between Avatar director James Cameron and his ex-wife, Kathryn Bigelow, who directed The Hurt Locker. Each movie has collected nine Academy Award nominations, and they go head-to-head in the battle for Best Picture. The two pictures have nothing in common. For Hollywood wonks, pundits, and bloggers, their radical differences between the films make the battle between them far more interesting.
James Cameron’s Avatar, the biggest Hollywood money-maker of all time, presents its futuristic war story in 3D with vivid computer animation. Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker, which turned a healthy profit because it became a hit produced on a small indie-film budget, tells its Iraq-war story in vivid “cinema verite,” including skilled and strategic use of a handheld camera. Just as importantly, the battle of the exes pits Cameron, one of Hollywood’s most decorated film-makers, against only the fourth woman ever nominated for Best Director. If Bigelow wins, she will make history and put a few more major fissures in the glass ceiling, becoming the first woman ever to earn one of the Academy’s most coveted statuettes.
Adding a little piquancy to the drama, a sinister sub-plot unfolds: In a battle with New York cable providers, the Disney company has blocked some of the New York broadcast, driving hard-core movie fans to their computers, where they can watch one of several live Oscar streams. The dispute between Disney and cable rages over the media giant’s desire to charge a $1 per viewer fee for its feeds.
