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| The Oscars mix-up matters because this night was always about racial bias | The Oscars mix-up matters because this night was always about racial bias |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The biggest mistakes at the Oscars are usually said to be made by women with their fashion “fails”. I won’t bore you with the details, but last year Kate Winslet apparently looked rubbish in a glossy bin liner, another woman should have been arrested because she looked too “casual”, the great costume designer Sandy Powell with her wonderful Bowie-esque look was deemed to have made a terrible mistake. This year though, the annual fest of tit tape, weepy self-congratulation and sheer star power will be remembered for more than a frock faux pas: there was a serious cock-up. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway announced that La La Land had won best picture when actually it was Moonlight. It seems that Beatty was given the wrong envelope, looked confused and passed the buck to Dunaway, who read out La La Land. | |
| Once the La La Land people were on stage, everyone started to realise a mistake had been made and it was up to two of the producers, Jordan Horowitz and Mark Platt to tell the audience: “This is not a joke. Moonlight has won best picture.” Horowitz was immediately gracious: “I’m going to be really proud to hand this to my friends at Moonlight.” By now the cameras were on the jubilant Moonlight director Barry Jenkins, while presumably several minions who work for PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accountant which oversees the academy’s ballot-counting, were taken out for ritual slaughter. | Once the La La Land people were on stage, everyone started to realise a mistake had been made and it was up to two of the producers, Jordan Horowitz and Mark Platt to tell the audience: “This is not a joke. Moonlight has won best picture.” Horowitz was immediately gracious: “I’m going to be really proud to hand this to my friends at Moonlight.” By now the cameras were on the jubilant Moonlight director Barry Jenkins, while presumably several minions who work for PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accountant which oversees the academy’s ballot-counting, were taken out for ritual slaughter. |
| The wrong was righted. Beatty tried to explain himself. Twitter was immediately full of wits asking if in fact Hillary had won the election. | The wrong was righted. Beatty tried to explain himself. Twitter was immediately full of wits asking if in fact Hillary had won the election. |
| Jenkins began to celebrate: “Even in my dreams this could not be true. But to hell with it, I’m done with dreams because this is true.” Moonlight truly won, and it should have done. | Jenkins began to celebrate: “Even in my dreams this could not be true. But to hell with it, I’m done with dreams because this is true.” Moonlight truly won, and it should have done. |
| The “politics” of the Oscars were not about the expected Trump-bashing, which we knew would happen, there are no surprises about what Hollywood thinks of the US president. The politics of all this reside in which dreams are realised in this huge culture factory and who those dreams belong to. | The “politics” of the Oscars were not about the expected Trump-bashing, which we knew would happen, there are no surprises about what Hollywood thinks of the US president. The politics of all this reside in which dreams are realised in this huge culture factory and who those dreams belong to. |
| La La Land, even if you love it, undeniably rests on the appropriation of black culture. Its very “escapism” depends on a quest for authenticity for those who can afford to choose their own soundtrack. Moonlight, symphonic, stylised, complex draws on those marginalised by the film industry. Moonlight is about emotional deprivation but it overflows with humanity. Obviously these are two very different movies but they are freighted with what they do and don’t say about race. | |
| What some people saw in this mistake was again a cultural bias against black art, unconscious though it may be | What some people saw in this mistake was again a cultural bias against black art, unconscious though it may be |
| This is why this mix-up mattered more than a bit of onstage awkwardness. What some people saw in this mistake was again a cultural bias against black art, unconscious though it may be. Some saw a conspiracy. Some saw the biggest award of the night undermined. This is hardly a paranoid reading when we keep seeing award ceremonies where black artists lose – Adele winning best album over Beyoncé at the Grammys, or the debacle of the Brits which has grime artists perform as though domesticated pets but will not reward them. | This is why this mix-up mattered more than a bit of onstage awkwardness. What some people saw in this mistake was again a cultural bias against black art, unconscious though it may be. Some saw a conspiracy. Some saw the biggest award of the night undermined. This is hardly a paranoid reading when we keep seeing award ceremonies where black artists lose – Adele winning best album over Beyoncé at the Grammys, or the debacle of the Brits which has grime artists perform as though domesticated pets but will not reward them. |
| I was as delighted to see Moonlight win as I was to see Ryan Gosling sniggering at the side of the stage. My delight is not to do with worthiness but aesthetics, this is a profound and stunning piece of cinema. The fake news was that this was not the best film. The fake news was corrected in front of a huge audience. | I was as delighted to see Moonlight win as I was to see Ryan Gosling sniggering at the side of the stage. My delight is not to do with worthiness but aesthetics, this is a profound and stunning piece of cinema. The fake news was that this was not the best film. The fake news was corrected in front of a huge audience. |
| Mistakes however – when we slip up or misspeak – often reveal what is going on unconsciously. The awkwardness around all this is partly because the Oscar factory has faced much criticism over being too white. Now they’re “woke”. Or at least trying . Mahershala Ali deservedly won best support actor. Viola Davies won best supporting actress for the performance of a lifetime. No one can say this is tokenism. Asghar Farhadi won best foreign film but was not there as a protest against Trump’s ban on Iranians. | Mistakes however – when we slip up or misspeak – often reveal what is going on unconsciously. The awkwardness around all this is partly because the Oscar factory has faced much criticism over being too white. Now they’re “woke”. Or at least trying . Mahershala Ali deservedly won best support actor. Viola Davies won best supporting actress for the performance of a lifetime. No one can say this is tokenism. Asghar Farhadi won best foreign film but was not there as a protest against Trump’s ban on Iranians. |
| All these achievements should not be overshadowed by a stupid mistake, but they have been because mistakes somehow reveal a deeper truth which is that movies like Moonlight don’t win Oscars. Until they do. The dream factory extends its repertoire of dreams. A different America can see its own reflection. This was a night that belonged not to those who got the wrong envelope but those who pushed the envelope. A brilliant win, make no mistake. | All these achievements should not be overshadowed by a stupid mistake, but they have been because mistakes somehow reveal a deeper truth which is that movies like Moonlight don’t win Oscars. Until they do. The dream factory extends its repertoire of dreams. A different America can see its own reflection. This was a night that belonged not to those who got the wrong envelope but those who pushed the envelope. A brilliant win, make no mistake. |