The Greatest Snub (#BOTB Results)

The Oscars aren’t about popular movies. It’s time for the Academy to accept that.  A better answer, perhaps, is something like, “The Oscars represent the way Hollywood sees itself.”   Sunny Bunch (Washington Post)

The Greatest Snub

       This past Saturday night a grandchild who was spending the night asked to watch her now favorite film The Greatest Showman.  I reminded my wife that it was quarter to nine at night and the girl would never be able to stay up for it.  My wife assured me that she'd fall right to sleep and then we could turn it off and go to bed.  As predicted, the young one fell asleep, while my wife and I proceeded to watch the entire movie for the umpteenth time.

        As the credits rolled at the end, we both marveled at what a wonderful film this is.   I mentioned to my wife that I had kept intending to turn off the DVD, but then I wanted to hear that next song and then the process would happen with that next song.  "Yes! Same with me," exclaimed my wife.  Neither one of us wanted to give up watching the film to the end.

        That's the way that film is with me and with millions of others around the world.  And yet I still am somewhat perplexed by the Oscar snub and the thumbs down by so many critics.  But that's Hollywood and the modern world of the celebrity culture.

        Looking at the negative reviews for Greatest Showman on the internet we get some rather peculiar reasoning about historical inaccuracies of the story and the characters portrayed.  Are they missing the point that this film is supposed to be a family friendly musical?  If someone wants to make a dark story about P.T. Barnum and the circus then let them have a go at it if they think that's better.  After all, The Greatest Showman leaves most people feeling happy and uplifted.  Of course that's probably frowned upon by today's Hollywood.

        Then there was the anti-circus agenda crowd.  In recent decades there has been some ultra-strange thinking about the circus.  It probably amounts more to a certain fear, envy, or ignorance about the circus along with that odd desire to erase America's past or paint it as evil.  And one of the oddest objections was that Greatest Showman had CGI animals. I had no problem with them--certainly better than CGI monsters and superheroes.

        I don't know if we'll see an Oscar snub this year, although Oscar might get snubbed by the television audience.   Will having Black Panther on the list somewhat save the day?  I'll probably be watching off and on between channel hopping.  Watching the Best Picture award is obligatory in that case--unless something distracts my attention.

         This year--as has been the case most years in the past 20 years or so--I don't have any particular favorite.   I've only seen Bohemian Rhapsody out of the films nominated.  It was a good film though it didn't have the same effect on me as Greatest Showman.   Most of the others I don't care much about seeing and most of them I probably won't see.

         There is one that I do want to see and hope is the Best Picture winner.  That film is Green Book which is about one of my favorite jazz pianists, Don Shirley.  I didn't realize that was what the story was about until just a week or so ago when I heard the film being described on some television show. Based on the topic I'll pick that as my Oscar favorite.

          I'm sure Green Book will get snubbed just like The Greatest Showman which was the greatest Oscar snub of all.   The Academy voters had their reasons I'm sure and I'm sure they were all bad reasons.





Battle of the Bands Results




The Greatest Show

         The song for the most recent Battle was "The Greatest Show" as performed by the Mexican arts collective HousePuzzle and the rock group Second Floor Stereo.  Since the song is essentially a rock song it lends itself well to treatment by a standard rock group.  There were a number of good rock covers that I found on YouTube, but this group was my favorite.

         However, the exuberance and variety displayed by the singers and musicians participating in the HousePuzzle rendition were more appealing to me.  I liked the way they had females doing the lead vocals done by males in the film while retaining the spirit and flavor of the film. It's an exciting theatrical song performance with good ensemble work.

          Nevertheless, rock rules...at least in this match up...

       


Final Vote Tally

HousePuzzle                      8 votes

Second Floor Stereo         16 votes


Next Battle on Next Friday March 1st

           I'll be biding my time until that day.  Maybe I'll suffer the Oscars and I'll likely be keeping up with happenings in Viet Nam.  Yes, more of the same ol' same ol' until April first arrives when most of you probably know what will happen then.  If you can't guess what that will be then check out my next Battle which will in part be a tribute to the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.


         Do you have a Best Picture favorite this year?   Which of the nominated films have you seen?  How out of touch with the common folk do you think Hollywood is?   

The Greatest Show (#BOTB)

“The noblest art is that of making others happy”

― P.T. Barnum

P T Barnum (Wiki)

The Greatest Showman

          When I was a kid Oscar night was almost like a holiday type event.  Kind of like Halloween or Christmas for other people that you watched on television.  The night was a night for dreams and entertainment.  I probably didn't see most of the films nominated for awards, but it didn't matter.  That was a night where you saw stars and enjoyed a show.

          Then it all became over-commercialized and politicized.  Every year it seems to get worse.  Now not only have I not seen most if any of the films celebrated on Oscar night, but I don't care to see many of them.  The Academy usually gets it all wrong as far as I'm concerned.  Last year was a travesty that seems to support my opinion about getting it wrong.

          This especially came to my attention this past September when I first saw the film The Greatest Showman.  At some I had heard about this film then forgotten about it which seems somewhat surprising to me.  Then again, I don't keep up with new movies or entertainment news in general.  I was oblivious to the film's release in December of 2017.  Then last summer when I was visiting relatives I noticed the teens in the group watching the film on DVD.  Realizing that the film was about the circus and specifically one of my childhood heroes--P.T.Barnum, I made a mental note to watch the film when I returned from vacation.

         The film blew me away.  I was captivated from the first foot-stomping scene until the good-feeling ending.  Soon after that first viewing, I bought a copy of the film for my personal library--something I don't do much anymore.  Since that purchase I've watched the film in it's entirety at least ten times not to mention the extras on the DVD and song covers on YouTube.  The Greatest Showman has easily taken a top spot as my favorite film of all time.  This is due to a great extent to the soundtrack.  Every song is a winner with each contributing to the flow and theme of the story and still being highly listenable when taken out of context of the film.

         This is where my biggest beef with the Oscars comes so far:  How could the Academy have snubbed this film as it did?   I look at the dubious line-up of Best Picture candidates last year and have to shake my head that The Greatest Showman was not on the list.  I feel sad that a film of questionable value like Shape of Water was named Best Picture--it's a film that I will likely never see because I have no desire to do so.

         Equally abominable, but so predictable, was the chorus of critics slamming the film for an array of absurd reasons.  Reading some of the reviews (by the pros as well as the users on sites like Amazon or IMDb) I have some suspicions about some of the reasoning behind not liking the film.  Some are cliched while others strike me as ignorant.  In other cases I think the reviewers are almost talking in code to express an indirectly referenced agenda.  What's going on in those cases?

         From the public--the ones who really matter for the film's success--the reactions have been overwhelmingly positive.  Considering that the film is now one of the highest grossing most successful movie musicals of all time and the soundtrack has sold millions worldwide, we unwashed masses who love the film appear to be in the majority.  This summer Barnum portrayer Hugh Jackman will be embarking on a touring production that will feature music from Showman. They are playing very large venues so there must be substantial fan base the show producers are marketing to.

         Of course it's all a matter of taste and subjective view.  I think The Greatest Showman is one of the best musical films of all time with some of the best songs I've heard.  Every time I've watched this film I feel uplifted and inspired.  Just thinking about it can move me deeply.  I can actually say that having seen this film has been a life altering experience for me. 

        Seeing all the outstanding YouTube cover versions of songs from The Greatest Showman I knew that I'd have to compile at least one Battle using one of the songs.  Rather than go with a more obvious choice like the Oscar nominated "This Is Me" (the amazing anthem of acceptance that should have been an Oscar shoo-in, but was instead snubbed with the sweet if not a bit cloying sentimental ballad "Remember Me" from the Disney film Coco), I decided to go with the big  theme song that introduces the film as well as ties everything up at the end.

          So on with the show--The Greatest Show--The Battle of the Bands...



Battle of the Bands

Battle of the Bands is the blogging event started by Far Away Series and now hosted by StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands.   This event happens each month on the 15th and on some blogs there is also a Battle on the 1st of the month.  My blog is one of those with a second Battle on the 1st of the month.   The premise is simple:  Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it.  Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.



The Greatest Show

       As the film The Greatest Showman first appears on the screen we hear the foot-stomping and the chants of "Woah" and then the magic takes hold.   To me every song in the film is an absolute winner, but "The Greatest Show" is definitely one of my favorites.  Since it's so difficult to pick just one song from the show I was tempted to use two of some of the great medleys to be found on YouTube, but instead why not just start with that iconic first song?   This is "The Greatest Show"!



HousePuzzle   "The Greatest Show"   (2018)

          This video is a collaboration by a group of artists and others from near Mexico City.   There's a lot of talent in this group as is evident in the video.  They use many of the characters and themes from the film production though they switch up the gender roles of the vocalists.  I think it works just fine and if you've never seen the film you wouldn't know the difference...






Second Floor Stereo  "The Greatest Show"  (2018)

        Here's the same song with a rock group giving it a heavy metal treatment.  In this setting the song works fine as far as I am concerned.  But you can judge for yourself...

       






Time to Vote!

     This ain't no disco, this is the circus!  It's the Greatest Show on Earth!  So come on and have some fun with us.   What's your favorite between these two choices?   Which song version do you like best? You don't have to know about music to have an opinion since it all comes down to your own personal taste.

         Please vote on your favorite by letting us know your choice in the comment section and tell us why you prefer the version you chose. Then after you've finished here, please visit the other blogs listed below who may or may not be participating this time around. And if you've put up your own BOTB contest let us know that as well so we can vote on yours.

Here are some other places where you might find BOTB posts:

 StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands

  'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS'

'Curious as a Cathy'

Sound of One Hand Typing

Angel's Bark  

Debbie Doglady's Den

Jingle, Jangle, Jungle 

Cherdo on the Flipside

A I Love Music


Winner of this Battle Announced on Friday February 22nd
          
             Any rumors of me making some special announcement are hereby revoked.  I had some wild-eyed scheme under consideration, but wisely stopped myself from proceeding.  Besides, somebody else already put my ideas out there and hearing it all made me realize how nutty my plan was. 

             And with that I'll close this post with encouragement to return next Friday to see if your favorite song version won the Battle.  And if you haven't seen The Greatest Showman yet, you must rent it, buy it, or whatever--see it!  Then let me know what you think.

          If you saw The Greatest Showman, did you like it?  If not, why not?  Do you think the film got snubbed by the Oscars and if so, why do you think that was?   Why do you think a certain segment of people disliked the film so intensely?

Meryl Streep Is Overrated

You don't always have to talk about politics or religion to piss some people off.   Any opinion you express will likely find someone on the opposing side--sometimes a lot of people.

Today

         Long before Donald Trump's notorious tweet and Streep's unnecessary acceptance speech at the Golden Globes ceremony, I've always said that I thought the multi-Oscar nominated actress was overrated.  Now do I not only think that she's overrated, but she's also an idiot.  But that's my opinion and I'm sure that I'll make some of you cringe with that statement.

         My sister and I have gotten into arguments every time I've said this over the years as she is a firm Streep adulator. Others have also found it a bit disturbing when I express this opinion of mine so I try to stay mum on the topic most of the time, but if her name comes up in a conversation I can't help but blurt out something like, "I can't stand Meryl Streep--I think she's a bore."

          Thinking that I might be wrong after hearing the floods of Streep accolades after her recent controversies and yet another Oscar nomination (oh no, not another stupid award nomination for Streep!), I decided that I should check her filmography to see if maybe I'd made an unfair assessment of Meryl Streep.

         Checking the IMDb site I discovered that Meryl Streep has been a part of  nearly 70 films and of those films there are 12 that I've definitely seen and maybe a few more that I might have seen and have forgotten that I've seen them.  Only one of these was a movie that I purposely saw because she was in it and that was A Cry in the Dark (1988) which I watched this past week-end mostly because it sounded interesting. It was good, but not necessarily because of her performance.

      I liked the The River Wild (1994) because it was a good story, but I actually didn't recall Streep being in it. I guess she did a fine job, but there are a lot of actresses who would have been good in this film. This is the case with many of the films I've seen Streep in--any actress would have been fine in the role that she played and some might have been better. Some of those films being Defending Your Life (1991) (she must have had a cameo in this one), Music of the Heart (1999) (I think I saw this, but it didn't make any impression I guess), Out of Africa (1985) (I don't remember this other than it being rather a bore as I recall--probably a suitable film for her style), and Holocaust (1978) (actually a TV mini-series that is one of my wife's favorite "films" that I bought her on DVD and I liked for the story--don't recall Streep's role that much).  

       Then there was the 1979 Woody Allen film Manhattan and that great film The Deer Hunter (1978), both which garnered early Oscar nominations for Streep.  However, if you had asked me before I had looked it up if Streep had been in either film, I would have said that I didn't think so.  In other words, the roles she played in those films made no impression on me.

        Streep also starred in two films that I absolutely hated.  The first is The Bridges of Madison County (1995).  I hated the movie and equally hated the book and didn't care for Streep's role in the movie that I hated.  This one is a big source of contention between my sister and I and will always result in an argument when the topic comes up so we usually don't discuss it.  Most women seem to love this dumb movie, but to me it's a rotten enough movie to make a case for disliking Meryl Streep period.

         Another "hate it" role I'll add is the one from the remake of The Manchurian Candidate (2004).  For one thing the role Streep played reminded me too much of Hilary Clinton of whom I'm no fan either.  The only consolation about that role is that Streep's character gets killed--oops!  Sorry for the spoiler, but if you haven't seen it, don't.  See the original from 1962.  In my opinion the remake is typical modern Hollywood liberal garbage.  Hated the film.  Hated Streep's role.

          So, I guess the argument I'm making is that I don't like Meryl Streep's acting and I don't particularly like the way she looks.  There is something about her that creeps me out.  And now she's added her political opinions to the mix and that's all the more reason for me to dislike her.

          For those who think I'm being superficially judgmental about looks and beliefs and that those things shouldn't affect my opinion of acting ability I'll offer another case--Sean Penn.  Can't stand the way he looks and hate his politics.  But every role that I've seen him in has been great in my opinion.  I can watch one of his films and forget his looks and his politics and walk away thinking he did a great job.  Too bad he's such a jerk.

        Of course, many will disagree with my assessment.  But then, many would likely ridicule some of my favorite actors like Nicholas Cage or Jean-Claude Van Damme--hey, my wife and I both like those guys and have enjoyed every film we've seen them in.  And we've seen a lot of their films.  We also think Tom Cruise, Mel Gibson, Leonardo di Caprio, and Christian Bale are far better than Streep.

        Funny, but I tend to find actors more memorable than actresses.  There are plenty of actresses I like, but none that stand out as much as actors.   Of great actresses from the past you can give me Giulietta Masina over Streep any day.  I think the roles played by either Charlize Theron or Christina Ricci in Monster blow away anything Meryl Streep has ever done.  But that's just me speaking here.  Maybe you agree or maybe not.

         If you're a Streep fan and I've offended you then I apologize.  After all, I'm just expressing my personal opinion.  And if you're Streep and you're offended then I don't really care.  You shouldn't be spouting politics on a stupid  awards show.  If you really feel the need to shoot off about your political beliefs then start a blog or something.  The ABC Network daytime show The View would probably even give you a seat right there with Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar.  If you were on that show I'd have yet another reason not to watch it.

         On the other hand, Meryl Streep, send me some of your money and I'll delete this post and replace it with one telling how much I think you're the greatest ever and write glowing reviews of all your films.  I might even watch Mamma Mia! and give it a great review.  For that you'll need to send a lot of money.

         Have I been overly harsh in my assessment of Meryl Streep?    Is there any particular actress or actor that you think is overrated?    Do you think actors and other entertainers should be expressing their political opinions and causes on public forums like award shows and concert appearances?  

         Join me next Wednesday March 15th for the Battle of the Bands.   If you love music then why don't you join us with your own Battle post.  Let me know if you'd like to join in and we can add you to the participant list.

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