An Academy Reminder: You are what you win

Hepburn's Oscars Image: Cliff

The news is full of horse meat (literal and figurative), sexual abuse and economic uncertainty. So it's no wonder we've all seized the opportunity to go, 'Yay! Oscars time again! As always, a wild and unpredictable ride of cringeworthy 'jokes', rehearsed 'loser faces'/'omigoodness-I-won!' faces and cronyistic voting patterns.

The Oscar ceremony itself is a depressing annual reminder that in the eyes of the gathered media the female stars are less important than the shape of their body and the fabrics they choose to drape across it to walk along a piece of red fabric. Or rather - pour their curves into in order to flaunt on the red carpet.

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Which, incidentally means that in a parallel universe it would be totally possible to argue that Seth MacFarlane's song We Saw Your Boobs was designed to be an ironic comment on the way that the performances of women actors are also overlooked in favour of a good ogle. In a universe where there had been anything about the content or delivery to support such an assertion. As it is I'm more comfortable suggesting he's an insufferably smug bloke with an adolescent sense of humour. Based purely on his other work and performance on the night, you understand. Perhaps he is sensitive, lovely and charming. Perhaps.

If you're wondering why, while we are nitpicking over the attitude of the Academy Awards, I haven't talked about The Onion's bizarre and insulting tweet describing 9-year old actor Quvenzhané Wallis as a cunt, it's because I think Pia Glen has got the best and final word on the subject on XOJane.com seriously, check her out. [Bim Adewunmi also wrote a great piece about Quvenzhané Wallis here – Squeamish Kate]

If we're going to have a celebration of film, I don't know – correct me if I'm wrong but wouldn't it make more sense for their annual international award ceremony to focus a little more on the films and the people who make them rather than the people who dressed a small percentage of the people involved in the film?

I'm comfortable suggesting he's a smug bloke with an adolescent sense of humour.

You might have missed it in the coverage of the frocks, shock and side boob but Brave won best animated feature. It's not perfect, but an animated film featuring a driven and courageous girl as its hero, along with her changing relationship with her mother, wouldn't have been made 10 years ago, much less won an academy award. I struggle to think of another film with an uncompromising female lead with such a passion for life (yes I am aware Merida is not real, but still!) that refuses to be 'tamed', shrew style.

It also hasn't gone much noted in the celebration of Daniel Day-Lewis's Best Actor Oscar trifecta that he still has a record to break. That held by four times Best Actress winner Katherine Hepburn, a fellow Oscar-winning redhead for Brave's Merida (you know how I feel about red hair) . In terms of messages for young people, particularly girls, some coverage about the film Brave's triumph and Hepburn's still unbeaten record would have been an enjoyable counterpoint to...well, everything else that DID get covered.

So sod the dresses and watch Brave instead

Squeamish Louise