And the Oscar of the noblest goes to…

The Oscar ceremony this year coincides with my birthday. For that reason I would like to write a letter like the children write to Santa. The most prestigious event of the 7th Art is about to happen with some different characteristics than the last years. 

In the previous years the Oscars were, more a political ceremony than an artistic one. Before anything it is essential to stress that I am aware and agree that all the movies that are nominated for the “Golden Statue” are technically astonishing and performed. Today the focus of this criticism is the content rather than the form.

In 2017, “Moonlight” won the best picture award, representing a lot of the actual societal problems, and distinguished itself by being pioneer in the way the winners on the cast represent minorities in the United States.  There is no doubt that societal issues such as racism, segregation, drug addiction and homophobia are a priority in the political agenda, but is cinema a political field? By asking this I am not saying that these issues are not supposed to be approached by great movies, the question is rather: ” Is that the priority in cinema? Is the political intervention the main essence of the big screen entertainment ” and should it be privileged by doing so?

For the past three years not only the choices but the ceremony as well has been invaded and blended with the political agenda. The speeches of the winners have forgotten the art, the picture, the cast and the efforts. The environment, racism and homophobia speeches took place. Not that I have something against it, but there are 364 days in which the stars can talk about social issues, do they have to use the only night entirely dedicated to cinema to do it? And even bigger question: Do they really want to do it or is it a strategy to be the noblest speech of the night? Well, no one can check the truthiness of these acts but them. I get the point. In the Oscars night the people that are paying attention to the message are not only their Instagram followers. But I feel that they are putting their own image ahead the cinema.

Everyone remembers the notorious Di Caprio’s speech when he awarded the Best Actor in 2016 by his performance in “The Revenant”. A great one matching his incredible acting skills and regardless of that, he dropped us the bomb about the global warming in the planet and how 2015 had been the hottest year recorded in human history. Great speech, he used his time to thank his loved ones and in a quick minute he made the world aware of the big issue. Until there everything was perfect, original and opportune.

My question is, if tomorrow I would utter a speech about black people discrimination starting: “I have a dream…” would it be an incredible alert to the problem or a desperate call for my own attention?