Why the Academy Was So Fatuated with the Artist?

Paul sent me a link to Economist's commentary on the Artist, and I agreed with the viewpoint of the writer.

As "Why The Artist" shouldn't Win points out, "'The Artist' has its charms. Its pastiche is skilful, assured and sometimes witty. And few can deny the rapturous reactions of audiences and critics—though this blogger found the film irritating and tedious in equal measure. But to garland this slight and contrived feature as the best of the year is to say something sad about the state of cinema."

It seems that using the scene of Paris is not enough as in the case of Hugo and Midnight in Paris, the film has to be set in America with any foreign language expunged, preferably French. It also flatters its current audience by inviting them to revisit audiences' past, with "this charming man’s charming French accent.” Another pleasing factor lies in the fact that it is a film about a shaggy-dog story, an eternal triumphant theme to the people sitting on the Academy Board of Directors, especially when the dog is a wishbone.

Happy Valentines Day

Really glad to see our Tucker working hard and then enjoying piles of Valentine candies. Photo courtesy of Lee Anne, as usual.

The Onion on Downton Abbey

I almost thought it was true: Report: Watching Episode of 'Downton Abbey' Counts As Reading Book

Where Is the Fascination with Downton Abbey?

In The US Cult of Downton Abbey, Brian Wheeler, a BBC News reporter in Washington, tries to find the fascination of the series on American audience, especially among the young ones. He suggests several possibilities, such as Maggie Smith's killer one-liners, yearning for a simpler time, fascination with the class system, political incorrectness about genders, slicker drama on a free-to-air KQED.

I started to stream the first series on Netflix, after seriously challenged by Eric S. and Gary G. every time we met. To be honest, I was a little burned out by big manor houses or castles full of downstairs servants, footmen and butlers to serve their upstairs masters. To the same degree, I was wary of period costumes after consuming too many historic drams. After viewing the first episode, both Paul and I decided that we were going to like it. The reason is simple: superior acting especially by the 77-year-old Maggie Smith, who plays the imperious Countess of Grantham, and the integrity of Robert Crawley who can be influenced by his surroundings but does not hesitate to change his mind.

Needless to say, there has been an American fascination with the British, since the beginning of time, particularly her culture, legal system and class divisions. There has also been a fascination with an American abroad since Henry James. I suspect certain voyeurism is evolved in watching Robert's American wife Cora Crawley who might have money, but lacks class and history, a humiliating situation not unlike when people were fascinated with the ridiculed dropouts in Simon Cowell's American Idol.