I’m really tired of this puffery regarding Connecticut being “tarnished” because they are shown voting no on the 13th amendment to abolish slavery (the whole “just in time for Oscar” October surprise against Lincoln). Here’s the thing to know about that time, something the film makes very very clear. The key abolitionist was Thaddeus Stevens who all but had to lie to squeak this amendment through. Even people voting on the amendment were not voting for equality. Voting yes on the 13th amendment did not erase who we were, what we did or what we believed then. It can’t erase that we believed blacks unequal to whites. It can’t erase that even after the end of slavery the Jim Crow laws so badly crippled the black community they are still recovering from decades of it. And it can’t erase all of the crimes against humanity inflicted since then leading up to today. So, you know, off your high horse already:
The noteworthy participation of Black soldiers in the Civil War might seem to imply that Blacks would not only be freed of slavery, but gain civil rights as well. Nevertheless, a referendum of Hartford’s white citizens in 1866 denied the franchise to Blacks. Despite the War and despite popular sentiment against slavery, Hartford’s whites were not about to share political power.
The following year in Kentucky, the Klu Klux Klan was formed, which implies that ordinary whites in the U.S. felt so economically insecure they needed to “circle the wagons” to protect what little they had.
…
The Fourteenth Amendment forced the Connecticut legislature to remove the word “white” from the sixth article in the State Constitution so that Blacks acquired the franchise despite the majority of Hartford’s whites. This might have led to worsened social relations (as in the South), but the fortunes of the North were hinged to an expanding capitalist economy. Sam Colt was, after all, a war profiteer, and the state economy benefited greatly from the production of cloth and the newly invented canned foods needed by a mass army. War brought prosperity to Hartford, which probably mitigated social tensions for a while.
Connecticut’s Jim Crow laws (albeit nowhere near as bad as Kentucky, for example but still):
1879: Military [Statute] Authorized state to organize four independent companies of infantry of “colored men”. Companies were to receive same pay as other companies, including one company parade in the Spring and one in September.
1908: Miscegenation [Statute] Prohibited intermarriage between white persons and those persons having one-eighth or more Negro blood.
1925: Antidefamation [Statute] Prohibited motion picture theaters from showing any film which ridiculed the Negro race.
1933: Miscegenation [Statute] Miscegenation declared a felony.
1935: Education [Statute] Upheld school segregation as originally authorized by statute of 1869.
I’d go:
1: Zero Dark Thirty
2: Life of Pi
3: Lincoln
4: Argo
5: Django
6: Les Mis
7: Silver Linings
8: Amour
9: Beasts of the Southern Wild
1: Lincoln
2: Zero Dark Thirty
3: Amour
4: Argo
5: Life of Pi
6: Les Mis
7: Django
8: Silver Linings
9: Beasts
I’d place ANY of the below higher than Silver and Beasts:
The Avengers, Skyfall, Intouchables, A Royal Affair, Amazing Spider-Man, Moonrise Kingdom, The Master, The Impossible, Perks of Being…, Middle of Nowhere, No, Rust and Bone, Men in Black 3, The Hobbit, The Sessions, any of the animated feature films from 2012 (nominated and not nominated…), Cabin in the Woods and probably several more…
I’d also place the following above Beasts:
Hunger Games, Expendables 2, Magic Mike, Kon-Tiki, War Witch, Bourne Legacy, Snow White and the Huntsman, Mirror Mirror and almost anything else from ’12.
Below Beasts? I don’t know… Maybe Twilight…
@Evan – “how many fans of Lincoln have had their opinion go from “favorable” to “unfavorable” because of this press release?’ Not even the congressman’s opinion went from favorable to unfavorable (although, probably did after Kushner’s response). The congressman opens his letter backing the raves for Lincoln. To quote from the letter: “After finally sitting down to watch… Lincoln, I can say unequivocally that the rave reviews are justified”.
And for everyone’s top ten:
1. Amour
2. No
3. To The Wonder
4. Elena
5. Silver Linings Playbook
6. Looper
7. The Raid Redemption
8. The Dark Knight Rises (more for the spectacle than quality)
9. First 30 minutes of Anna Karenina
10. … (Maybe The Master? Seven Psychopaths?)
Ok, it can be funny…
My final ranking (I didn’t watch Zero Dark 30, Rustle and Bone and Looper yet):
1. The Master
2. Argo
3. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
4. Life of Pi
5. The Amazing Spider-Man
6. The Hunger Games
7. Amour
8. Silver Linings Playbook
9. The Sessions
10. Lincoln
Have now seen Lincoln, and therefore all nine best picture nominees. I wrote in an earlier thread that Argo was 80% of the way to being a great movie (the beginning), Lincoln is kind of the same thing; the beginning was terrible and made me turn the movie off for two days, but when I started watching again it actually got really good until the movie kind of fluffed the ending. As an outsider to American politics my main problem with the film is the excessive hero worship that cheapens the film. It is the same thing that made me dislike Milk; Milk is portrayed as being a progressive hero whose only real problem was that he was too awesome to negotiate with conservatives, so they had to kill him. I got the same general feeling to a lesser extent while watching Lincoln, and it made me wish that some other director had made this that was more of an outsider. Day Lewis is really good (as are most of the actors), and elevates this film more than Penn came close to doing, but this could have been a masterpiece, and it ended up merely good.
My final ranking:
1. Zero Dark Thirty
2. Amour
3. Life Of Pi
4. Beasts Of The Southern Wild
5. Lincoln
6. Argo
7. Silver Linings Playbook
8. Django Unchained
9. Les Miserables
A pretty good year where I respect even the movies I disliked, but nothing close to as good as Tree Of Life last year.
Sasha, I can see that the Congressman’s comments have really gotten under your skin. As a long-time reader, let me say: Don’t sweat it. Seriously. Writing these rebuttals is unnecessary.
His “complaint,” if you can call it that, is so unbelievably minor that it doesn’t change anything. Think about it this way: how many fans of Lincoln have had their opinion go from “favorable” to “unfavorable” because of this press release? If the answer is more than zero, I’ll be shocked.
Besides, if Hollywood cared about historical accuracy, Argo of all pictures, with its complete exaggeration of events, would certainly not be the frontrunner right now.
Ryan, zero noms for perks was the biggest wtf for me. I thought for sure it’s screenplay would have been nominated.
I’ve done some research and this is THE correct ranking of the nine nominated films. Be advised that this is in no way a subjective ranking. This is the absolute truth of the quality of these films!
1: Lincoln
2: Life of Pi
3: Zero Dark Thirty
4: Amour
5: Les Miserables
6: Argo
7: Django Unchained
Then a big drop…
8: Silver Linings Playbook
And then somehow there was a misprint on the ballots, and a sad little excuse of a film named Beasts of the Southern Wild snuck in there…
Scotty,
I’m whit you.
You have my support.
But, give up.
I gave up try to explain.
Believe me, don’t lose you time about it.
It doesn’t matter.
Hugs fella.
Thank you for the nice response Mr. Adams.
It was quite presumptuous of me to try to tell you and Sasha what you should or shouldn’t write. I apologize for that.
I just wanted to comment on the perceived negativity (which I recognize is my perception) I got from the way this current race has been shaping up in the past few weeks. It’s a shame because before Argo steamrolled it’s way through the guilds, I was very excited about the race this year because this group of films is one of the best and most diverse fields we had in a long time. I was/am sympathetic to the “cause” because I do think Lincoln has been unfairly dismissed thus far.
Anyway, I’ll keep reading this site because it’s my favorite Oscar site on the internet and always look forward to yours and Sasha’s postings when I see them. BTW, OT, but I loved your BAFTA picks because that’s how I would have voted for the most part.
I’m quite curious how you and Sasha would rank the Best Picture nominees this year.
Personally, I put Life of Pi/Amour upfront with Lincoln/Zero Dark Thirty/Beasts of the Southern Wild next, then Django. Then there’s a sort of a bigger gap with Argo and Les Miserables following. Silver Linings Playbook is clearly last to me because I really could not get into it for a number of reasons..
I’m quite curious how you and Sasha would rank the Best Picture nominees this year.
Scotty, this is just me:
1 & 2 Lincoln & Life of Pi. virtually equal levels of achievement, in my view
3. Zero Dark Thirty
4. Amour
5. Beasts of the Southern Wild
6. Argo is still an A-grade movie. Just that I think the 5 titles above are A+
7. Django, personally I can’t stand it, but I can recognize and respect what others see in it. I doubt I’ll ever watch it again. I think it’s repellent for a number of reasons.
SLP and Les Mis, decent enough films. Honorable efforts. But I have trouble comprehending how either of those 2 was nominated over these:
alt 7. The Master
alt 8. Moonrise Kingdom
alt 9. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
alt 10. The Dark Knight Rises
I totally understand how Middle of Nowhrere was overlooked (i.e., the Academy can’t appreciate movies that it can’t be bothered to watch) but Middle of Nowhere would stand alongside Amour and Beast of the Southern Wild on my personal nominations ballot.
10 more movies I loved this year:
11. Cloud Atlas
12. Wuthering Heights
13. Looper
14. Killing Them Softly
15. End of Watch
16. Magic Mike
17. The Grey
18. Killer Joe
19. Anna Karenina
20. On the Road
and just to be clear. Les Mis, Django, SLP — none of those would be in my top 30 of 2012.
and except for Amour, I’m not even counting any other international films in this ranking.
Obviously, this blog is public in that people can click on the site and read its contents without invitation. They are also free to comment if they like. If that’s not welcoming public exchange, then I don’t know what is.
Also Kate, I may be wasting my time commenting my thoughts on this article, but so are you and everyone else who is commenting as well if we follow your logic.
Scotty, this is not a public Oscar blog. It is a privately owned and operated site. Sasha pays for it and keeps it up and running everyday.
She doesn’t care about your “constructive criticism”, no matter how pure your intentions are in giving it. So, the shut-up-or-fuck-off comment is valid, because you’re just wasting your time complaining about her writing.
Btw, ZDT is dead. Good riddance.
This sort of minute detail will have absolutely no effect on the awards prospects of the film. Not worth worrying about.
“Take THAT, Connecticut!”
connecticut says no.
Take THAT, Connecticut!
So Rep. Courtney has now told the L.A. Times that there’s no Affleck conspiracy because he’s “not smart enough to know when Oscar voting begins.” Yet he headlined his press release “Ahead of Oscars…”
Keep talking, Congressman.
Oops sorry. That first sentence should read:
Bigelow-Boal naively stepped into the most controvesial US policy of our generation taking Dick Cheney’s side and were shocked, shocked that they were met with the same level of outrage that has been rained down on Washington for over 10 years.
Ryan,
Bigelow-Boal naively stepped into the most controvesial US policy of our generation and were shocked, shocked that they were met with the same level of outrage that has been rained down on Washington for over 10 years. They are a whole different can of fish. Argo and Lincoln are more similar in both admiting to ahistorical things in their films, so it only makes sense to use a similar PR strategy to get the media to move on. Add the two line post script on the DVD. At the end of the day this has no effect on Lincoln’s chances of winning at the Oscars. Kushner will still win the adapted screenplay award.
Add the two line post script on the DVD.
yeah, that’s not ever going to happen.
gosh, anybody know how many Academy are from Connecticut? Next, how many of those Connecticut Academy members are big babies?
Lincoln is a boooooring movie.
Another key point about the ZD30 controversy is that some of the most notable criticism it received upon its release (e.g., comments of former CIA director/current Sec’y of Defense Leon Panetta) has been retracted or modified. If for no other reasons – and there are other reasons – to admire ZD30, its writer and director have attempted to explore the truths behind an important aspect of recent history. It comes as no surprise such an effort would be met with sharp and heavy criticism.
sahsa hartford wasnt even the capital then it was new haven
great statment ryan adams and my greatgreat great gradfather was in congress voted for 13th 14th 15th admendment from ct i still care about lincon but dont trust holliwood other then hand writtin letters and books about people in the room i triple great grandfather voted all of this against his party the demorcate who where conservitive and appalachen republicans where libiral but mr ashely is the key role behinde the 13th admendment he was a congress man from illilnoise
Okay, Lincoln is the best. We get it.
Historical accuracy should not be sacrificed. It’s not appropriate to educate people that switching Yes to No is only a creative process.
It’s not appropriate to educate people
Some of us would say it’s not appropriate for people to rely on movies for their education.
Ben Affleck’s handling of the controvesy in Argo is the best model to follow. He admitted the chase scene was added for suspense, admitted he played down the role of the Canadians adding a post script, etc. He didn’t get defensive and go “well you know those Canadians are jerks anyway. We Americans can’t always count on them for help, there are other times they have let us down…”. Getting defensive and going on the attack is the Zero Dark Thirty model which obviously hasn’t worked. Just admit to changing the facts, explain why and let it go. Everyone else will let it go too.
Tamping down Argo’s controversy only required explaining away something something quite cool the Canadian gov’t did more than 30 years ago.
Zero Dark Thirty’s controversy required explaining something quite uncool American CIA agents did less than 2 years ago.
But sure, let’s credit Affleck’s postscript diplomacy for the only reason Argo’s kerfuffle got a shrug while ZDT’s uproar is still causing its critics to spontaneously combust.
Besides Jerry, isn’t it a little naive to advise Bigelow and Boal to admit they “changed the facts” when the whole reason they’re taking so much heat is because they maintain ZDT depicts facts that nobody wants to admit?
If only Bigelow and Boal had added a postscript, “everyone would let it go” ? yeesh, dude, get a clue.
Saying that CT had a racist populace and disenfranchise Blacks post the 13th Amendment doesn’t change the fact that those 4 Reps from CT stood up to be counted voting for the 13th Amendment. If anything it makes them appear to be very brave in going against their voting populace. More worthy of accurately depicting their real votes in a popular historical fiction like Lincoln. The more you show the state to be racist the better those 4 Reps look in history. The 13th Amendment did not make Blacks free in America or viewed as equal to Whites, we all know this. Tony Kushner has admitted he changed the voting record in the film, this is not going to hurt the film’s chances with Oscar voters just gets the truth out there.
—
California is viewed as the most liberal state in the Union, the most open to gays. Probably had progressive local laws. That did not stop the populace in voting against gay rights. These things are complicated and progress takes time.
Sasha: I love you! Actual historical analysis has got to be a rarity in writing about showbiz topics. You very clearly make the point that the state of Connecticut’s image couldn’t have been tarnished by the Lincoln movie given the state’s history of racial discrimination and hostility. (Come to think of it, the same could be said of just about any northern state, let alone the southern states!)
But too many people still don’t realize how long and painful America’s journey was toward true racial equality and justice. Even a strongly anti-slavery state like Massachusetts saw plenty of violence by whites against abolitionists in the years leading up to the Civil War. Suggesting in a movie, or here on your blog, that things were less than optimal in Connecticut (and almost everywhere else in the U.S.) should be illuminating for most people who don’t normally pay attention to this stuff.
I salute you!
Scenario #1 (which fosters lively debate and is respectful):
I think movie X is the best, because of [insert reasons]. I don’t think movie Y is the best because of [insert reasons].
Scenario #2 (which leads to anger and hurt feelings):
I think movie X is the best, because of [insert reasons]. I don’t think movie Y is the best because of [insert reasons]. AND, IF YOU CAN’T SEE THAT AND DON’T AGREE WITH ME, YOU MUST BE IGNORANT/SEXIST/RACIST/WHATEVER.
Just to point out something that should be obvious, Argo actually makes much louder claims to complete authenticity than Lincoln does. Argo ends with a whole montage of photographs demonstrating how strong the attempts to replicate reality were in the film. That is essentially an assurance to people that what they just saw was real.
As for the claims that Argo announced it was a fictionalization right up front and Lincoln didn’t, that’s not true. The creators of both movies described them as historical dramas at the time of release.
Last night I watched Argo a second time just to compare my reaction to the first viewing, where I found myself liking it a lot and being well entertained. My reactions haven’t changed though in between these viewings I learned that the climactic chase sequence at the end was like totally made up — which did raise an eyebrow.
I’ve seen Lincoln more than once, as well, and my subsequent learning about its smattering of dramatic license/historical inaccuracies hasn’t changed my opinion of the film (which is very good) nor has it even raised an eyebrow.
What does raise my eyebrow is when I see people tell someone – sometimes over and over again – what she should or should not think or do.
Now that ZD3o and Lincoln have controversial scenes, we need to dig up dirt on the truth about Argo and mental illness in SLP. Then, only then, will Life of Pi win BP.
TB,
You obviously didn’t read my post carefully enough. Why would I go read the other sites just because they like Argo when I have Argo listed as the 7th best Best Picture nominee.
I should have been clearer. When I said “lost me” I didn’t mean lost me as a reader since this is the site I go to for anything Oscar related. I meant that I got off the bandwagon, so to speak, when every post about Argo had such bitterness attached to it that it’s far from appealing.
Anyway, the whole “like it or leave it” and “F*** off” is a real mature post I must say…if Sasha was just writing a private blog entry then yeah, you may have a point. However, this is a public Oscar blog where people are welcome to have discussions, debates, and give feedback. This site would not work without the excellent writing from Sasha and Ryan and others. However, it certainly wouldn’t work without the loyal readers either.
I hope Sasha sees the value in constructive feedback, even if she ultimately disagrees with it (or thinks what I said is utterly ridiculous). I see this being more beneficial to the credibility of this site than people telling other people to “Fuck off.”
I should have been clearer. When I said “lost me” I didn’t mean lost me as a reader
then that’s the source of the misunderstanding. but if you had meant that you’re fed up as a reader then it’s sensible advice to recommend you stop hanging around, yes?
of course we value the contributions of smart considerate readers. but Kate is right that it’s not a good use of anybody’s time to tell anybody else how to run their site.
imagine if you were throwing a party or get-together and you left the door wide open to welcome anybody who wanted to stop by. nice for everybody involved. until somebody shows up and won’t stop complaining about the music or snacks. until somebody started saying he was fed up with the party and was sick of listening to you talk about whatever you wanted to talk about. the sensible thing then would be to remind that complainer the same door they came in is the way to get out.
but you’re not saying that, Scotty. so no big deal. you mean no offense and (from me) no offense taken.
but consider this: if I threw an open-invitation party and a guest kept pestering me to change the music or else they’d have to leave, know what I do? I’d crank the music up louder.
want different music? throw you own party, start your own site.
You know, Lincoln is the go-to film this year for controversy regarding historical accuracy. Everyone wants to take it down. Last time this happened to a film it was A Beautiful Mind, which still won!
(OK, I don’t know what to say about ZDT, other than it’s more than a minor detail and it’s something that makes viewers feel worse about themselves and their country rather than better.)
Nobody cares enough to try to take down Argo. Is it because everyone loves it? Everyone thinks the exaggeration of American involvement is within the realm of acceptable dramatic license? Or just that Argo isn’t the kind of film that leaves people thinking about it for more than an hour afterward?
Uhm… guys… As far as I can see, Sasha isn’t denying that Kushner changed the Connecticut vote in the film. And your reaction to her post is a bit over the top…
She very rightly states that it’s ridiculous to claim, that Kushner’s change (which is fair to point out is historically incorrect), doesn’t come close to “tarnishing” the state’s reputation in comparison to the examples she brings up.
Rep. “what’s-his-face” could have just pointed out the inaccuracy. The way it was put forth is a stupid populistic retoric, and what a funny coincidence the timing of the criticism has…
Sasha has made her personal views clear during the entire awards race, and she arguments very well on the objective winning chances of the various nominated films.
She hasn’t lost me as a reader here or as a listener to the podcast. Far from it.
Keep up the great work Sasha!
Scotty,
If you’ve been coming since it was oscarwatch, then you should know Sasha doesn’t give a shit what you or anybody else thinks she should do. She’s going to write whatever opinion is on her mind and that’s why you, me and thousands come here. You should know better man… And if you don’t like it, fuck off… Go read wells, or nikki finke or whatever. They like Argo!!
I think in the case of Argo, its controversies arose before it was even released, so they had plenty of time to spin.
At this stage of the campaign, an inaccuracy showing the Connecticut vote during a key moment in the film, is damaging for the Lincoln PR, even with Kushner’s legitimate right to artistic license.
Whereas in Argo where minor discrepancies arise, these are easily overlooked and regarded inconsequential in the Hollywood community because the film portrays them in a good light.
Life is unfair, but that’s the Academy votership.
Sasha,
Nobody is denying that Connecticut, and every other state in the Union, has a complicated history of treatment and exploitation of blacks during the post-Civil War period.
The passage of the 13th Amendment was a great and positive thing, however, we cannot forget that the Supreme Court and state constitutions and legislatures did everything in our power to limit the Reconstruction Amendments (13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments). What we ended up getting was Jim Crow Laws and Plessy v. Ferguson that explicitly told us that whites were superior to all other races. Even the dissent in Plessy v. Ferguson said that whites will always be the superior race and there was no need for segregation since whites had nothing to worry about.
Nobody is saying that Connecticut had a broad consensus in thinking that blacks should gain equal political and social standing with whites because like most states, most people did not think so. However, that doesn’t take away the fact that Tony Kushner deliberately changed Connecticut’s “Yes” vote on the 13th Amendment to a “No” vote which IMO goes beyond using creative license and is just blatantly lying about a fact that can easily be found out.
Sasha, I love this blog and have been following it since it was Oscarwatch and I was a teenager hoping against hope that Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon would win Best Director and Best Picture. Also, I absolutely loved Lincoln and would love nothing more than for Tony Kushner to win Best Adapted Screenplay as the language of Lincoln is some of the most gorgeous writing ever to be filmed on screen. However, your passion and love for Lincoln is seriously clouding your judgment on this site and I think you need to take a step back. This latest blog entry is just a desperate attempt to avert a controversy that really isn’t much of a controversy in the first place, and it really doesn’t deal with the fact that Kushner changed the vote on the 13th Amendment and no argument about how racist Connecticut’s population or legislature really was can rationalize or justify that change.
I do understand why you feel the need to do this though because of what happened to Zero Dark Thirty, but I think your spin on this whole Connecticut story is just getting into paranoia territory and you need to make this your last article in the long series of blatantly anti-Argo postings. The truth is, I was with you all the way as I found Lincoln (and Life of Pi, Amour, Zero Dark Thirty, Django, and Beasts of the Southern Wild) to be far superior to Argo and was so happy someone was writing about how ridiculous this whole campaign season was with the “Poor Ben Affleck” sentiment going way too far to the point of rewarding one of the weaker Best Picture nominees. However, the past few weeks have gotten over the deep edge, and now you’ve lost with me with this extreme Argo bitterness. I’m sure I’m not the only one you lost, and I think it will be better for you to simply stop with the anti-Argo campaign. It’s not making you look good at all.
Off topic: All five animated shorts are now available online. Take a look at them (via a german movie site): http://www.moviereporter.de/posts/die-funf-nominierten-animationskurzfilme-der-oscars
It’s okay to make up characters and conversations for a movie set 150 years ago, as those cannot always be reflected with 100% accuracy, but it’s a horse of a different color to change the way a state voted on a controversial amendment to the Constitution. Rep. Courtney is not wrong to call out Kushner for this falsehood, and while Kushner sounds awfully defensive in his response letter, he does fess up to changing the history in order to heighten the tension of the scene in question.
That being said, Sasha, this is not the big deal you’re making it out to be. Do you really think this is going to have a meaningful impact on Oscar voters? And even if it does, Rep. Courtney’s is a valid criticism, so in that case isn’t it a good thing that the voters are aware of the misrepresentation?
I simply don’t see why this detail about the film is a big deal. I find it hard to believe that Academy voters would be swayed by this tempest in a teapot.
Another film about a former US president, Wilson (1944), won 5 Oscars. That movie somehow didn’t mention the fact that Woodrow Wilson, despite the many admirable things he accomplished, he perpetuated segregationist policies, established racial segregation of federal employees, and instituted racially discriminatory hiring practices not to mention discriminatory admission policies while head of Princeton University. I don’t know whether these points were raised during the voting period leading up to the 1945 Oscars, but Wilson the film went on to win best original screenplay.
Just thought I’d mention it. . .
While the Civil War is nice and interesting and the 13th Amendment seems like a great step forward, the 14th Amendment is a far more interesting topic legally speaking.
The 14th Amendment is probably the most influential Amendment today, yes, even more than the first or the second, as it’s the foundation of nearly all of the civil rights in this country.
And Reconstruction is far more interesting to me than the stuff that led up to the Civil War. The failures of Reconstruction are still with us today. And it’s a part of our history we rarely discuss.
That’s one of the disappointments I had while seeing Lincoln. I’m no scholar about that time, but I was far more interested in seeing how the 14th Amendment came about and was sad mid-film when I realized that was not going to be part of the film (sadly, I admit I was under the impression that Lincoln was around for the 14th Amendment.)