(Photo: AP)Did you guess "Evidence of Hollywood Homophobia?" Roger Ebert has the scoop on some folks who think gay movies must be automatically awarded prizes just because they're gay. Or maybe it's that they think "straight" movies automatically lack artistic merit, I'm not sure.
UPDATE: Ryskind commiserates.
All I know is, we watched Cinderella Man over the weekend, and Russell Crowe was robbed of a best actor nomination. I know we're not supposed to like him, but facts are stubborn things and there's no question in my mind he's the best actor of his generation. How he gets that somewhat doughy face to tell worlds with a glance, an eyebrow, a grimace. . . If it's really true he's such a terrible person, then his playing decent people so convincingly is all the more evidence of his art.
Caught Walk the Line on my flight home from the Holy Land, and it's a worthwhile flick --but Cinderella Man was better, or certainly every bit its equal (movies do lose something on a 5-inch in-flight screen). Ron Howard was robbed, too. Its hard to shake the perception that it's because Cinderella Man doesn't have an agenda, but simply tells a story. Don't mistake me; I think there's reason to believe Philip Seymour Hoffman deserved his win and that Brokeback is an excellent (if unrealistic or pernicious) movie. But Hollywould help itself if it could adopt a truly open mind with respect to what constitutes great art and great performance. The message doesn't automatically make it so.
