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Well I wasted nearly five hours last Sunday. Did anyone else? You must have, if you sat in front of your faithful television watching the mawkish and vapid 74th annual “Let’s Give Credit to Ourselves” Oscars show.
Why do we do it? Why do we subject ourselves to this never-ending parade of half-dressed (make that barely-dressed) actresses and pompous actors strutting their stuff down the red carpet to an award show that just drags on and on and on until past 12:30 in the morning just so we can see what “the Academy” has voted best picture.
Even by moderate Islamic standards, we shouldn’t give time to this bedraggled puppy. The clothes on the actresses alone should be enough to make us turn the channel. I’m not saying enjoying some entertainment is bad – just this kind of entertainment.
And yet I must admit that I watch this show year after year. And every year, the morning after, I wonder why? Why did I subject myself to it? Why is it so important to know who the best actor or actress is? It’s an addiction, really. One that must be kicked.
Let’s start with the Red Carpet preening before the actual awards show. Something that was once exclusive to the E! Channel has spread like a nasty virus to other broadcast stations. So many local news programs now find it necessary to send a reporter lavishly dressed to cover this event. Since when did this become news? You want to report on who won what after the show is over? Fine. But how did “What are you wearing?” become such an integral part of our vernacular?
Let me be blunt: Could somebody please remove Joan Rivers from television. Her viscous stabs at humor alone are enough to provoke nausea. Watching her do her thing is a just a waste of time.
Secondly, let’s spend a mere moment on the clothes. Have we as Muslims become numb to gauche fashion? Are we no longer shocked to see near-naked bodies strutting across our television sets? Perhaps living in the U.S. has made us blasé about such things. Unfortunately it seems to have done that to me.
There was a time when provocative clothing in an advertisement made me turn the channel immediately. We were embarrassed to see such things. And now Gwenyth Paltrow parades across our televisions in a horrible dress that completely exposes her upper body and we barely bat an eyelash. And then there were the dresses that dared to touch the outer limits of backside cleavage. Sure, we decry the immodesty, but how many of us turn the channel or turn off the television?
Turning to the Oscars ceremony itself, Tom Cruise asked if the job of an actor is really worthy in wake of recent tragedies. His answer? A resounding “yes”. I’m not so sure. Yes we needed to move on after the mourning, to laugh and cry again at the expense of the silver screen. But giving oneself a resounding pat on the back for an acting job well done is a bit much.
But that is what the Oscars is all about – self-congratulation. Last Sunday’s ceremony was just that – an evening of actors telling themselves “Job well done!” It can be a bit sickening. There were good moments – Denzel Washington and Halle Barry breaking through the color barriers to win (though the roles they played had scenes not conducive to a Muslim audience); the lifetime tribute award for Sidney Poitier; the irascible humor of Whoopi Goldberg who cut everyone down to size.
But at the end of the day it probably would have been better to turn the channel, or better yet shut off the TV. There are so many better choices for entertainment. And now that I’ve committed these words to print, I hope I hold to them come next year.
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