There is Little Reason to Care About Oscar Nominations These Days, or Any Award Shows, Frankly

These recent days the Oscar Nominations for the films of 2023 were announced. A lot of people were upset that the director of the, "Barbie," movie, Greta Gerwig, was snubbed for a, "Best Director," nomination and that Margot Robbie was overlooked for, "Best Actress." At the same time, Ryan Gosling received a, "Best Supporting Actor," nomination (America Ferrera did also get a nom for, "Supporting Actress," it should be noted). Many folks pointed out that a big point of the ,"Barbie," movie was that men get all the credit while women who work hard are overlooked. Then the backlash to the backlash kicked in too. Other folks said how the first ever Native American woman getting a nomination for, "Best Actress," in the case of Lily Gladstone for, "Killers of the Flower Moon," was impressive and that we shouldn't care about a movie based on a toy/that was an ad for Mattel/etc. I see both sides in this but have my own opinion that I will raise in the form of a question: Why do we ever care about the Oscar nominations much at all?

Award shows are fun and fine, but they are one big exercise in navel-gazing as Hollywood pats itself on the back and says what was the, "Best," movie in the opinion of people within Hollywood. It doesn't matter what the box office said, what audiences thought, or any of that. These big award shows for movies or television are the opinion of a small group of people--and that's okay! I am but an individual and I shared my opinions on stuff last year and actually said how the, "Barbie," movie was my favorite flick from 2023. I also know my opinion only counts for so much in the World. Still, why do we put much of any stock in the Oscars, Golden Globes, Emmys, or when it comes to music, the Grammys? If you loved a movie the fact it won an Oscar shouldn't make you adore it more.

Gosling, Robbie, and Gerwig.

I get why people are mad about various individuals getting overlooked in the Oscar nominations. I also understand why others are happy with the nominations. I don't get why people care so much when year after year the declining viewership and reduced social cachet of the Oscars makes it clear individuals could care less about the show unless somebody gets slapped. An Oscar is a fun little thing to note a movie received and signifies a certain group of people wanted to honor that film. That's it though. Let's not pretend these award shows matter to any greater degree than they actually do.