If I had a vote…and let’s say I do
The Oscars are a tricky beast. There really is no way to know who the Academy gods will favor, and any effort to hazard a guess is all but pointless. So let’s!
The Indie’s Oscars
The day before the Oscars, there’s a party in Santa Monica that’s more “smart chic” than “custom couture,” more “new kid in town” than “living legend,” more “vote of the people” than “who votes for these again?” It’s the Spirit Awards, and over the last several years it’s become the indie Oscars, even as the films recognized are less and less truly independent films (case in point: several films are nominated for both Spirit Awards and Oscars.). Dress code is decidedly relaxed; hosts are the likes of Andy Samberg and, this year, Patton Oswalt; and far as I know, though it is televised, there’s no orchestra kicking winners off stage…
The Indie in the Blockbuster
Like Lincoln last year and [insert period drama here] before that, 12 Years A Slave has been an anticipated film for months and is expected to make quite a sweep come awards season. And like anyone keeping track of these things, 12 Years A Slave was on my list of films to see as soon as the opportunity presented itself. So when I walked by Lincoln Plaza and noticed a show was starting right as I finished lunch, around 2:30 on a Sunday afternoon, I snagged a ticket and snuck into a single seat at the edge of a row near the middle. And that’s when I discovered that going to a…
