Poll: Did Avatar Get Screwed At the Oscars?

by Sean Fallon on March 8, 2010

As you have probably heard by now, The Hurt Locker put a real beatdown on Avatar in last night’s Oscar haul, taking 6 total awards—including Best Director and Best Picture. For those of you that saw both films, do you think Avatar got screwed, or were the technical awards all that they really deserved?

Tagged as: avatar, Movies, oscars, the hurt locker

plhnk

are you kidding?? 53% says “yes”?? Avatar shouldn’t have even won the technical awards it got, $300 million+ and that’s all he came up with? come on!
Jeramey

i concur.

I understand that to each his own, but 51% is still a ridiculous fraction for that movie. avatar was such a mediocre movie. it doesn’t matter what kind of CG advantage it had over everything else, it was still a mediocre/predictable movie.

it begs the question on what type of readers are visiting this site
Rich

The box office receipts show which movie is best. Avatar’s message was as real life if not more deep. Good job Cameron. Enjoy the profits. Another Academy political blunder.

Justin

Are you kidding me??? For serious??? That is possibly the stupidest thing i have ever heard! Box office receipts have absolutely nothing to do with anything! Twilight got some good numbers do you think that should have won an Oscar? The Hurt Locker got no real box office time, it played at theatre for me for a grand total of 3 weeks! 3 weeks compared to a movie that has been in theatres for months now? That seems right? Im not saying Avatar was a bad movie, i loved it i saw it twice. But what it won it deserved.

Cobra

Money talks…….16 million versus 2 billion. Doesn’t take rocket science to figure this one out. Replay factor…are you going to watch the Hurt Locker more than once, no! Avatar will be viewed multiple times. What you want to bet on Blu ray sales, ten to one? The Academy historically doesn’t like science fiction, nor does it like CGI (computer generated imaging). Now from a political perspective, rumours about it being time for a female director to win best director were rampant prior to oscar night. So the question remains did she win due to directorial capabilities or her genitals? Avatar was by far a more complex film albiet the plot.

Cobra
Larry

The oscars have always avoided rewarding Sci-Fi/Fantasy, remember how Lord of the Rings was snubbed? Seems hollywood is more interested in gay cowboys, dysfuncional familys, alcoholic singers, etc. than great family entertainment.

When was the last time a movie made for children won best movie? Will never happen as hollywood does not care about movies for the general public, just keep it sleazy and you have a chance at an oscar.
http://mfg.squarespace.com mfg

avatar got what it deserved, a ton of money from people. thats what popular films/music etc is all about. as soon as you supplant critical for popular you dumb down the ambitions of the artists and make creating challenging art irrelevant. two things that would be dangerous to us all. were it not for ambition and challenging works, Dark Knight and Star Wars could never have existed for a lack of funding and vision, much less Avatar.

if you look at the myriad lists of top 100 movies, they are not populated by gross ticket sales champs. take the top 5 grossing movies (Avatar, Titanic, Dark Knight, Star Wars IV, and Shrek 2), and compare them with IMDb’s top 5* (Shawshank Redemption, Godfather, Godfather II, The Good the Bad & the Ugly, & Pulp Fiction). Tell me that critically speaking, which is what the Academy Awards is about, IMDb should replace their list.

*which is made up by popular vote, not even critics choice
Larry

No IMDB is made up of people who visit that website, I am talking about who actually visit’s the movie theatre and the winner over and over is family type movies for sales. Like I said the Oscars don’t care about about movies that you are proud to take your child to, all they want is dysfunctional, drunk and violent.

I went to the theatre yesterday to see “she’s out of your league” and we had 10 people at the movie, went to get a coke and there were 5 lines 12 people deep, the theatre was packed to see Avatar, Alice in wonderland and Percy Jackson. This is the reality of what is keeping holllywood profitable, not the sleazy movies.

The Oscars should reflect what the public likes, not what they continue to throw down our throats what they THINK we should like.
http://mfg.squarespace.com mfg

sounds like you missed my main point. were it not for challenging, and critically acclaimed (yet child unsafe) movies, those movies you extol would not exist in anything beyond a Disneyfied version. moreover, frequently not all art is popular contrary to mass-marketed perception, nor is it all intended for children. if we restrained all art to teaching lessons understandable by an 8 year old, how would art begin to frame things like war, sex, bigotry in a meaningful impacting way? should there not be films on the holocaust? should Schindler’s List have been scrapped?

and by virtue of the fact you went to see the movie ‘shes out of your league’, i will feign resignation and submit to your indelible taste in film. obviously i am not worthy to compete at wit.

(and by IMDb’s list being “popular vote” i said and meant exactly what you felt the need to “correct”, users’ votes. im a random person, my vote is in there as can anyone else’s. the example was meant to reflect that even people who went to see Independence Day and Avatar indicate that Shawshank Redemption is a better ‘film’ and that box office receipts and good film-making are not always equivalent. )
Larry

As you noticed I watched an R rated film not intended for kids, I am not saying they don’t have their place, what I am saying is give regognition to G rated movies as well at Oscar time. Why is giving a great family movie that is filling the theatres like pulling teeth for Hollywood Oscars? why have we not seen great comedys recive best actor, best movie? How is it a fantastic comedy actor like Jim Carrie is not rewarded for his talent? Because they only wabt dramatic material to matter….period.

Just look at what Hollywood rewards for best actors, best movies, etc. A drunk cowboy seems to tug at their heart strings for best actor, a war drama showing a few intense scenes gets best movie over an incrediable movie like Avatar. It is so much easier to produce The Hurt Locker than Avatar, it was politically motived to give a female director her spot light.

So Yes I am a realistic person and love the Pulp Fictions of the world but I also see the prejudice by Oscar voters over great family films. When i start seeing them included in the thinking process of Art as you remind me, then I will believe in the Oscars. For now it is a good old boys club and nothing more.
http://mfg.squarespace.com mfg

i dont disagree the oscars have a truncated, ameri-centric view of films and that it is a politically motivated old boys club. i just disagree that they should be motivated to cast ballots by anything related to ticket sales; similarly, they should not penalize a film because it sold too many tickets.
Bard Smarty

Looks like Jimmy Cameron had himself a threesome…
He got screwed by his wife – her lawyer – and the Academy.
Enjoy the $$$ Jimmy – just make sure she gets her share of
whatever that may be from the settlement. Maybe she’ll
make a sequel about whatever war the next Republican President
will get us into.