Eenie Meenie Miney No Way

I challenge you to pick the BEST picture below.

I've just asked the impossible. It feels like a crime to place Monet, Rivera, Kandinsky, Matisse, Dali, Van Gogh, or Parrish in first place and leave the rest of these masterpieces to be also rans.

There is no such thing as THE BEST in art. 

This week the Academy Awards will choose a best picture. The concept boggles my mind. 

How do you choose between:

Going back in a time machine to watch LINCOLN shape our nation.

A beloved musical combined with the grit of the original novel in LES MISERABLES.

The heart pumping escape wrapped in a Hollywood lie in ARGO.

The triumph of the human spirit over mental illness in SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK. 

A shameless reality that exists a breath away from our comfortable lives in BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD.

The transcendental journey in THE LIFE OF PI.

I regret I haven't seen ZERO DARK THIRTY, AMOUR, or DJANGO UNCHAINED, but I have no doubt each would leave its indelible imprint on me.

A masterpiece is a masterpiece. We are all the better for them.

I'd Like to Thank the Academy

I love the Academy Awards. I've had the thrill to attend in person three times. Yes, you do feel like Cinderella at the ball. 


This year I've seen every movie nominated for best picture. You should see them too. Why...

The Artist: If you love old classic Hollywood this movie is the time machine for you. It's wholly unique, and there's a great dog in it.

The Descendants: The human condition splats out all over the screen in unexpected permutations. You haven't lived until you've seen George Clooney run in slip-on shoes.

The Help: Love the book and the movie stays true to it. 

Hugo: Magic. Pure magic. Living inside the walls of a train station and solving a mystery is right up there with flying away to Neverland with Peter Pan.

Incredibly Loud and Extremely Close: We all have to deal with death and loss. Imagine trying to cope with those issues during a worldwide trauma when your capabilities for reaching out for comfort and compassion are not wired like everyone else? Unforgettable main character.

Midnight in Paris - Fab premise. Who wouldn't want to go back in time to meet Hemingway, Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald among others?

Moneyball - It's a baseball movie. Need I say more?

Tree of Life - I think Terence Malick walks on water. The way he tells a story in moments and images transports you to a parallel consciousness.

Warhorse - Epically delicious. You get lost in this movie and go on the journey right along with Joey the horse.








The most cherished Academy Awards memory I have is when I watched Tom Hanks give his best actor acceptance speech for his performance in Philadelphia. He said, "The streets of Heaven are too crowded with angels. We know their names. They number a thousand for each one of the red ribbons we wear here tonight." 


The movie, Philadelphia, was one of the first to put a face to the AIDS crisis. I lost my brother, Rick, to AIDS just a few years after that. I am forever grateful to Mr. Hanks for the dignity and respect he showed in his speech that night.


Do you have an Academy Awards memory? Ritual? Way to celebrate? See you on the red carpet.