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Academy Awards 2021: Boseman Loss Shows Why We Still Do (and Don’t) Need the Oscars

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It wasn’t supposed to go like that.

After unexpectedly re-arranging the schedule to push Best Picture up and let the acting categories shine, the Academy clearly wanted to send a message. With the foregone conclusion that Chadwick Boseman would posthumously take Best Actor for his work in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, it was going to definitively celebrate a young man who was taken from us far too soon after losing his battle with cancer last year. 

An African-American man. 

Black Panther.

The significance of the moment was going to be a victory to end that night that would be both emotional and satisfying. After all, at a moment when Black culture is looking for heroes, a Chadwick victory would have been a symbolic statement in honour of a young man who had become a beacon of hope for many, sending viewers home with a truly feel-good moment.

Well, we all know how that went.

After Phoenix announced Anthony Hopkins as Best Actor to close out the show, the shock was palpable. The room was fairly quiet. Phoenix had to fumble through an awkward acceptance on Hopkins behalf as he was the only nominee not available. Of course, Twitter erupted. (In some ways, you almost feel bad for Hopkins. At home in Wales, even HE didn’t think he was going to win. If I were him, I likely would have slept through the ceremony as well.)

In a moment that felt like the reverse of the La La Land/Moonlight fiasco of a few years ago, the ‘feel-good’ finale completely backfired.

Within seconds, people took to their social media and responded accordingly. Outrage! Fury! Cancel! The response was completely understandable—and expected. After all, around this time, it’s almost tradition for people to take to the inter-webs to complain about the Oscars and the choices that they proclaim are ‘Best’. People decry from the rooftops that the films the Academy selects show their irrelevancy (and, sometimes, that’s a totally fair complaint). Comments like ‘this is why I don’t care about the Oscars’ flood social media with tsunami-like force.

But the irony is that same blow-up on the Twitter-verse shows that people still do care.

While people may either be happy or furious, the fact that the reactions to these awards are so strong suggests that there’s still an interest in the results. For over 90 years, the Academy Awards have been the ‘standard’ by which success in the industry has been measured. To win an Oscar is considered one of the highest honours in the industry and, even though culture has changed a lot in recent years (and continues to do so), there remains a respect for that golden statue that continues to endure. To win an Oscar still says something. 

They matter because they matter to us.

The reason people were upset about Chadwick losing the award is not because Hopkins didn’t deserve it but rather that it meant something to them. Hopkins turned in the performance of the lifetime in the role but a Chadwick victory would have felt not only poignant but powerful. With his career still reaching his potential before his death, Chadwick still felt like someone that people could relate to, especially amongst the Black community. A win for him seemed like it would have felt like another win for them.

And it might have.

But, if the awards truly didn’t matter to anyone outside the industry, no one would have cared. There would have been no outcry or frustration. It would have simply passed on from the cultural zeitgeist and landed on the entertainment pages… not the front page… 

The problem may be that we’ve given too much credibility to the Academy. Though filled with over 1000 industry professionals, with this responsibility comes the expectation that it will represent the values of the people and the time. The truth is that they don’t always. Yes, they strive for representation and want to speak the voice of a culture. That’s why these films matter as much as Marvel films or alien invasions. They connect with a heartbeat that speaks the cries of our world.

But they don’t always speak for you and I. How could they?

With this in mind, the loss by Chadwick shows that, maybe, we don’t need the Oscars to play the same role in our culture. The truth is that, while considered the highest heights of the industry, the loss to Hopkins does not take away from his performance (or career) in any way. So many of history’s best films and performances were never recognized by the Academy. Citizen Kane, Raging Bull, Do The Right Thing, Pulp Fiction and innumerable others were robbed of ‘Oscar glory’ yet remain the most influential films of the last century. (And let’s not forget Delroy Lindo from the list of snubs this year…)

Regardless of who the Academy chooses to take home the gold, Chadwick Boseman will be remembered.

He matters. And he’s as important as he was yesterday.

I admit it. I love the Oscars. I love the pageantry, the music and the speeches. Unlike many, I love the fact that winners use the platform to speak their hearts about issues that matter to them. (I mean, they’ve been given a voice. They should use it.) I even love my Oscar pool with friends.

Ultimately though, they don’t determine which films or performances matter most. Only the ones that mattered to these people. That’s why it doesn’t really matter in the end if Boseman posthumously took home the gold. His performance in Ma Rainey’s was a thing of brilliance and it will be remembered. (In fact, it should be remembered.) This year’s Oscars may have been the most diverse in the Academy’s history. Chloe Zhao. Daniel Kaluuya. Yuh-Jung Yoon. H.E.R. Soul. Jon Batiste. All of these winners from last night show that things are changing. This was not #OscarsSoWhite, even if it did feel like #OscarsSoWrong.

The loss by Boseman doesn’t change any of this… but it’s all anyone’s talking about.

Yes, it would have made an amazing story to see him cap off his young but incredible career with a win. It would have been an emotional moment for us all. But there’s a reason that they announce the winner by saying ‘the Oscar goes to…’ They don’t want the other nominees to feel as though they are someone lesser than the others.

Because they aren’t. Not Riz Ahmed. Not Boseman. None of them, regardless of category. They all achieved something great with their cinematic achievements. And, like Chadwick’s performance, their work lives on. 

The Academy knows that. We may have forgotten it.

Message received.

Westworld – The Complete First Season: Is This a Wonderful World?

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If it’s such a wonderful world out there, why are you all clamoring to get in here? — Dolores

When Michael Crichton wrote and directed Westworld in 1973, he could have never known how reality TV would change the way that entertainment and real life have blended together, even twisting them. But in the collaboration of Jonathan Nolan (Person of Interest, The Prestige, Interstellar) and Lisa Joy (Burn Notice, Pushing Daisies), life, fiction, memory, and humanity are all poured through the fiery collander that is Westworld. The end result is one of the finest first seasons of television in history.

A word of warning: While my review doesn’t give away major plot points, simple searches of other reviews – and data sites like Wikipedia – will rob the ‘shock’ value of the plot. 

In Westworld, clients, or guests, can sign up to explore a scripted world with echoes of the American West, populated by ‘hosts,’ who are actually robots fully formed and programmed to act like humans. Clients who want to explore a world where they can sleep with a beautiful person, kill an enemy, or role play an experience from a time long forgotten are able to participate without consequence in stories that blend a John Wayne/Clint Eastwood mentality to their pleasure.

There are docile, kind Little House on the Prairie-like women like Dolores (Evan Rachel Wood), and tough madams like Maeve (Thandie Newton); there are villains like gang leader Hector (Rodrigo Santoro) and heroes like Teddy (James Marsden). All of them have roles to play in pleasing the wealthy visitors who descend from their real lives to play in this creative, interactive playground.

It’s a tricky thing though, what’s right. — Logan

From the audience’s vantage point, the guests we follow around the world are Billy (Jimmi Simpson), a weak-willed man dragged to the playground by his more aggressive, soon-to-be brother-in-law Logan (Ben Barnes). Through these two we see one of the great dynamics of the show: is it wrong to sleep around, steal, kill, and abuse the hosts/robots because they are designed for the pleasure of the guests? Or is it more of an indication about the guests themselves that they want to do those things in a vacuum with no repercussions?

Every show needs a villain and Westworld’s script allows us to see a fluidity of evil and violence, regularly in the persons of the world’s designer, Robert Ford (Anthony Hopkins), and a visitor to the world, the Man in Black (Ed Harris).  Both of these men are multi-faceted in their violence and decision-making; in fact, not all viewers will agree with my assessment that they’re the villains!

Several things become apparent, that stir the pot and make the plot go. First, the Man in Black is seeking out “the center of the maze,” a wormhole in the system of Westworld that he believes will bring him what he is looking for. Second, there’s some dissension among the ranks of Ford’s crew, as operations director Teresa Cullen (Sidse Babett Knudsen), head of programming Bernard Lowe (Jeffrey Wright), head of security Ashley Stubbs (Luke Hemsworth), and programming ace Elsie Hughes (Shannon Woodward) are exploring the possibility that someone is smuggling out information to the world at large. Third, some of the hosts seem to be experiencing glitches where they remember previous existences (or storylines) that pre-date the last time they were programmed.

With the recognition of ‘sentience’ in some of the hosts, each individual personality – host, guest, or Westworld staffer – is faced with decisions about what their moral obligation is. Do they proceed with business as usual? Does their perspective of what is ‘alive’ change? For each of them, understanding how to proceed says quite a bit about their willingness to explore their own humanity, their own culpability, in regards to a world where pain is real and decisions have consequences.

I built your mind. I have every right to wander through and change it as I wish, don’t I? — Ford

Without going into much more detail – because what would be the fun in that – the show begins to ask if there aren’t consequences for our actions, even when we think they’re done in a vacuum. [The maxim that there are no victimless crimes comes to mind.] But there’s a deeper question here, too: what does it mean to create life and what responsibility/authority does the creator have in the lives of the created?

Ultimately, we see a clash of philosophies that borders on religious. What one sees in the narrative of Westworld will probably be most impacted by what you think of your own creation. Are you an accident or chance? Are you created out of love and power? Are you destined for something greater? Are you the imago dei? What you think of your own life will impact how you see the narrative of this morally-soaked parable about the human experience. Yes, it’s laced with nudity, violence, and language, but at it’s core, it’s the beautiful ethical exploration that Game of Thrones was in its early seasons.

Special features on the Westworld Blu-ray include behind-the-scenes looks”Realizing the Dream: First Week on the Set of Westworld,” “Crafting the Narrative,” and “An Invitation to the Set.” There’s also a Gag Reel and the musical creation of the title sequence, with more important takes on the artificial intelligence of the series in “Reality of A.I.: Westworld.”

Surviving Winter’s Dream: An Interview with Timothy Lee DePriest

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Timothy Lee DePriest isn’t new to the Hollywood scene.

With guest roles in shows like Sons of Anarchy, Southland, and many more over the years, he’s more than familiar with the challenges of breaking into the industry. However, with starring roles in the sci-fi film, 2307: Winter’s Dream, and HBO’s mega-hit series Westworld, DePriest has finally stepped into the limelight. With all the attention, he admits that the sudden notoriety has been somewhat overwhelming.

“I’m [thinking] ‘What just happened to me?’” he remarks. “That [first] Westworld episode aired on a Sunday. On the Wednesday, I got a call from a director that wanted to meet me and that’s never happened to me before. It’s just so weird.”

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“Just to be on set with Ed Harris, Evan Rachel Wood, Geoffrey Wright, you learn so much. You see how it’s really done. Ed Harris is the coolest guy in the world and it just looks effortless to him. He’s just being [so] natural. So, that came along around the same time [as 2307] and it takes a couple of years so I wasn’t even sure what would happen with those things.”

With the release of 2307: Winter’s Dream, DePriest continues his work within the sci-fi world. Still, what excited him most about the project wasn’t the post-apocalyptic storyline or the epic action scenes. For him, the most appealing aspect was the opportunity to work with director Joey Curtis.

“I was really excited because [of] Joey,” he responds. “When I first learned about the project, just hearing his name and that he was involved with BLUE VALENTINE was a big sell for me because I love that movie. I’m always looking to do more quality stuff.”

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 2307: Winter’s Dream takes place in the year 2307—or 141 years ‘after man killed God’—as earth has become a barren, frozen wasteland. Forced underground by the extreme cold with a depleted population, mankind creates the ‘Humanoids’, superhuman slaves bio-engineered to stand up to the harsh conditions. When rogue humanoid named ASH-393 escapes from captivity, a team of elite military operatives, including Ishmael (DePriest), is sent into the ice-covered wilderness to eliminate the leader and the ensuing Humanoid threat.

Although science fiction isn’t necessarily his favourite genre, DePriest admits that the chance to star in films like this (or series such as Westworld) is something that he really enjoys and wouldn’t want to pass up.

“It’s odd because the films I like—and the reason I got into the business— are these scrappy, weird little films like Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, I love Jim Jarmusch’s early films, Aronofsky, Jonathan Glazer, Noah Baumbach. I like these indie, character-focused films but, of course, I love to have fun. When you’re doing sci-fi, you’re [basically] playing a superhero and that is extremely fun.“

Of course, ‘fun’ isn’t always the case when shooting a film like this, especially when it takes place in the midst of a glacial, post-apocalyptic desert.

While many of the indoor scenes were shot in a Los Angeles studio—DePriest muses that it was funny to be wiping away their sweat “because we were all bundled up shooting in Southern California”—the majority of the film takes place outdoors.

In the middle of nowhere.

In the snow.

Amazingly, the director found what he needed in an almost unexpected location: Buffalo, New York. Filming shortly after the infamous ice storm of 2014, DePriest explains that they were able to get the right effect by shooting on top of frozen Lake Erie.

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“We had to wait until we could actually physically go there,” he recalls. “[Due to the weather], we would have died because it was so cold. We came in the spring but it was still cold, and we shot on frozen Lake Erie. We were just outside Buffalo and we stayed in the cabins [of a nearby Christian camp]. The lake was right behind there and they would take us a mile out in snowmobiles to the sets that they’d built out there and we shot on Lake Erie. It was about negative 20 with wind chill. I was wondering how they would do that and it made so much sense being out on a frozen lake. It looked like there was no one out there. It was such a great location.”

With this in mind, DePriest also feels that science fiction also opens up doors for conversations about our current culture as well. In other words, while the film maintains an aura of fun, he also believes that 2307 also speaks to issues about human rights and how we treat the disenfranchised in our world.

“I had a friend who just came back from Greece and she was working with Syrian refugees. We’re all trying to find a place and, man, when you’re not wanted. Her frustration was that nobody wants these people. Why don’t we want them and how do we deal with that? It’s kind of the same deal with the humanoids. We created them and we think we own them and that we can just toss them out.”

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Somewhat ironically, while 2307 claims to take place in a time after ‘man killed God’, the film also lands on a distinctly existential question by asking who has the right to a ‘soul’. Although he, himself, doesn’t hold any specific spiritual worldview, DePriest also recognizes that this search for the soul can be a source of hope and healing.

“I went through a really dark time in my life where I was going off the rails in Hollywood, throwing myself into every excess, and I kind of hit a wall. The only thing that saved me was kind of going within. I guess that… every religious practice is like that where you try to find meaning and that soul within is probably a good place to start. For me, that’s what it feels like.”

With a hard-working attitude and a strong sense of hope, Timothy Lee DePriest seems ready to leave his mark on Hollywood. From Westworld to 2307: Winter’s Dream, he is grateful that he continues to have the opportunity to tell stories that matter.

photo by Audi England