Oscar Night in L.A.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences held the 81st Academy Awards this past Sunday, February 22nd. I am a huge film fanatic and consider myself a bit of a film geek. Hugh Jackman hosted for the first time and being a natural born performer he did very well. The show decided to change its format which was a good thing after so many years. Not all the changes will stick around but I hope one in particular will. The awards for best actor and actress in both the leading and supporting categories were presented by five award winners from previous years. Each previous winner introduced and explained a little bit about the nominee they were representing. 

The show also stuck to its basic principal of excluding blockbusters from the major awards. I will be the first person to stand up and say that I would rather see an independent passion project with a smaller budget than another cookie cutter, dumbed down, action flick. The point remains that good film making isn't restricted to dramas or the flavor of the multicultural week. Two films unjustly prejudiced against were The Dark Knight, as well as Chris Nolan not receiving a best director nod, and Wall-E. Having not seen Wall-E I can't fully speak on it's behalf but I have heard from reliable sources that it is more than just another Pixar triumph and addresses the human condition in an open and frank way. The Dark Knight was a great film. If you take away the mask and the costumes The Dark Knight is a great crime film regardless of the superhero aspect. The direction is good, the score (another gyp) is amazing and the acting by all involved serves some really great performances. When will the academy learn that budget and subject matter do not always predict good content or process?

After having been outside the Shrine Theatre for the S.A.G. Awards and being able to see the red carpet and even a few A-listers, I was really excited about the prospect of staking out the Kodak Theatre for the Oscars. Alas, duty called and I helped The Dust work on his first project of film school and thus missed the red carpet.

After enjoying the show I learned something that changed my view on missing out on the red carpet. As it turns out, representatives from the infamous Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) from Topeka Kansas were picketing the event on the corner of Sunset and Highland. WBC makes it their duty to picket the funerals of homosexuals who have died as a result of hate-crimes or the AIDS virus. At a time of celebration these people held signs depicting Heath Ledger and the words "Heath in Hell." They also held signs depicting president Obama as Satan and signs reading "God Hates America." The church has also taken to protesting the funerals of soldiers from Iraq. On the official website the church claims the reason soldiers joined the military was because "they are lazy, incompetent idiots." The church has picketed the funeral of Fred "Mr." Rodgers, Coretta Scott King and Jerry Falwell. It is important to note that WBC is not officially linked with any baptist convention or organization.

Everyday it still amazes me that we live in a country that is so proud of its freedom and society and yet we still turn a blind eye to those who are not free. We celebrate our freedom of speech but are often quick to condemn anyone who speaks their mind. We celebrate our freedom of religion but anyone who does not believe exactly as we do are considered evil and wrong. Only in a country as free as ours can a person defend their "rights" one day and do all they can to restrict the "rights" of others the next. The ultimate hypocrisy in this country is our egotistical sense of the freedom to be right, even if only in our own minds, no matter what. 

I am a christian man. I believe in the bible and the lord Jesus. I believe that the most misunderstood person in history was Jesus. A life and a message so simple and so profound that has been more misinterpreted by so many I cannot think of. I have many christian friends that cannot believe the state of the world. They are shocked day by day at the horrors of our society. They wonder in amazement how so many people disregard Christianity. To this I say look no further than WBC. How can we hope to live in peace and spread the word of love when there are so many spreading the word of hate in His name. 

I saw an advance screening of the documentary film "Religulous" by HBO political commentator Bill Maher. The film was touted for asking the tough questions many religious people today aren't willing to answer. The film really focuses on Bill's own fear of people who don't care whether they live or die because of their beliefs, making decisions that effect people who do care whether they live or die. I went to this film for the same reason many religious people did not, I wanted to hear these questions. What I saw was a well formatted series of ultimate questions intended to make even the most ardent theological scholar slip up. Though I came out of the film confident that upon opportunity I could very easily explain the majority of the questions posed, I was discouraged at the sheer blindness and unwillingness to participate in discussion by many religious people. This was the brass ring for believers, this was a chance to stand up confidently and passionately and explain the fundamentals of our faith for the dominantly non-religious audience. Yet they were no where to be found. Only regurgitated slogans and scriptures that have no meaning to people who don't have a base in the faith. 

I'm not in favor of abandoning religious beliefs or compromising what you believe to be right but the point is that we are instructed to lead by example. We cannot force anyone to believe as we do just as we would not want to be forced to believe anything we didn't agree with. All of us, religious and not have got to realize that we are all in this world together. We cannot call ourselves the land of the free if we continue to restrict the freedom of others.