Sean Penn once said that movies should have a message; otherwise, you could have a better time with an 8 ball and two hookers. Or something to that effect. I suppose he ought to know. I do agree that movies that make me think as well as feel are the ones that are most worth the ten bucks. Otherwise, I can stay home with cable.

I am a huge fan of the Ocars: the dresses, the dates, the speeches. Oh, yeah, and the movies. Here, before the Academy announces their nominations on Tuesday, some thoughts I hope they'll consider:

All of these movies made me think about them long after I saw them and made me want to talk about them with friends.
Good Night and Good Luck
Capote
Brokeback Mountain
The Constant Gardener
Walk the Line
A History of Violence
Crash
I would be happy to see any of these nominated.

I confess I haven't seen Syriana, Hustle and Flow, or Munich. Hopefully before March.

It's great that Phillip Seymour Hoffman is finally getting his due. He's one of those actors who's in every movie and is known as that guy who's in every movie who looks like that guy I sat next to in algebra. He's so great.

Speaking of which, Don Cheadle is one of the best actors around, another who is in every other movie and who disappears into every role. He's on the list of great actors who need an Oscar.

Just saw Crash. Where has Terrance Howard been all my life? He is heartbreaking in Crash and deserves the Best Supporting Actor. He is also among the most handsome men in Hollywood.

Jake Gyllenhaal is a revelation in Brokeback. Who knew he could act? Heath is getting all the well deserved accolades, but Jake is also great in the less celebrated role. I hope he's nominated.

Paul Giamatti is always so good that if he wins, it will be as much for his body of work as for his role in Cinderella Man.

Reese Witherspoon was really good in Walk the Line; her singing surprised everyone. But is this an Oscar worthy role or will she be the next in the line of pretty, popular actresses who are getting Oscars (see Renee Zellweger, Julia Roberts, Jennifer Connelly (my point exactly).

I think Michelle Williams is awesome in Brokeback Mountain. I've never seen Dawson's Creek, so I never saw her in my life but she deserves an award for the one scene where she's sitting at the kitchen table after realizing that her husband just went off with his lover. I must say, however that Rachel Weiss (sp?) was outstanding in The Constant Gardener. She has been winning for that role; she may get, and probably deserves the Oscar too.

I hope Joan Allen is nominated for The Upside of Anger, even though I didn't get why she just assumed her husband left her. I would have assumed he was dead in a ditch.

I'll post my votes for the winners before the show in March, after I've hired my stylist.

And the Award Goes To...

So, where are we? George W. Bush and his minions are defending their version of the Constitution. The Oscar nominations are imminent, which will likely feature Best Picture nods for films featuring the subversive subject of love and the longing for acceptance; our nation's addiction to oil and the democracy-challenged regimes that supply it; a quaint history of our long-solved problem of race; and a journalist who stood up to a crazy politician and his minions defending their version of the Constitution. W. for Best Actor? (Too easy, I know.)

I hope that the President's tour, which started today in Kansas, will foster an open and vigorous debate about the checks and balances of our government; to what extent the "war on terror" compells us to rethink that balance; the values we are willing to compromise for our security; and whose freedoms we are willing to sacrifice to keep the rest of us safe.

I saw Al Gore's impassioned (and a bit long) speech about warrentless wiretaps. He spoke to a full house at Constitution Hall (it took me half an hour to get it) full of like-minded progressives who thnks that the NSA's monitoring the phone calls of Americans to be slightly disturbing, regardless of where those calls originate. The take home message of the speech seemed to me to be that we should have a vigorous nations debate about this issue, with all branches of government doing their jobs. Call Al crazy. (To decide how crazy, see www.libertycoalition.org for a transcript of the speech.)

Al also admonished all of us to do our jobs; that is, excercise the rights that Tom and John and all of those wig-wearing Founding Fathers staked their lives on. The consent of the governed, et al. As long as they're listening to the calls of terrorists, it's ok? As long as they're listening to the calls of supporters of terrorists, it's ok? As long as they're listenining to the family of supporters of terrorists, and the friends of friends of terrorists, and the friends of friends of people who know a lot of Arabs, it's ok?

Oh, wait, that's me. Is it OK for the NSA to listen to my phone calls and monitor my emails, and watch where I go and who I see and what I read and what I'm writing right now? And what you're reading right now? Is it ok for the FBI to look into the activities of my friends who work to aid those Arabs who are suffering from poverty, ignorance, and hopelessness?

Is this too hysterical a response , a misunderstanding of the threats facing America, as a spokewoman for the RNC put is? To my mind, the threat is indeed too serious NOT to argue vigorously, and publicly, how our nation has and will respond to what is undoubtedly going to be a decades-long threat to our national security. I hope that our elected officials won't shy away from their responsibility. I hope my fellow citizens will allow an intelligent and thoughtful debate and won't threaten representatives who have the guts to openly discuss these issues.

I hope, too, that Jake Gyllenhal wins Best Supporting Actor.

Welcome

Welcome to my blog. Obviously, I disagree with my favorite poet, who is to be forgiven for his consternation with women who too forcefully express their opinion (see Maud Gonne). I have decided to use this forum to express random thoughts on various topics, so as not to bore my friends with my ranting and to keep from talking to myself.

Please feel free to comment and to add your own thoughts to this blog. I welcome discussion and encourage you to express your opinion. Please feel free to send comments and criticism.