Xenophobia

I thought I would put out a separate post for those frothing at the mouth because they think we’re xenophobic here at Awards Daily because we have brought up the irony of a British independent film made by British filmmakers starring British people about a British monarch being the frontrunner for Best Picture when there are nine other films in the Best Picture lineup that aren’t. ¬†I don’t think xenophobia is the right word but apparently I’ve been accused of this here and by commenters at another Oscars site.

Definition: hatred or fear of foreigners or strangers or of their politics or culture.

Rational readers of this site would laugh at this. It’s a bit like the tea partiers complaining about white rights. ¬†Really? ¬†British people complaining about xenophobia to a culture that worships their every move? I do not hate British people, British filmmakers, British stories or anything whatever to do with Brits. ¬†Again, it’s like saying we’re homophobic here, racist or sexist. ¬†Get a grip, people. ¬†What you are seeing is a desire to honor the great work being done here because it has been so exceptional this year.

As much as I lament the lack of great filmmakers in the live action short categories that come from this country, I very much appreciate that the best films in that category DO come from the British; I would never suggest awarding the one American one just because it was the American one. ¬†But in the case of this year’s Best Picture race, this is most definitely not the case; there are at least four other films by American directors that are, in my opinion, better than the film that is all but certain to win. I believe in celebrating those films period. ¬†But I also have to note the irony of our own film industry here that produced directors like Fincher, O. Russell, Aronofsky, the Coens. ¬†If the voters think The King’s Speech is the best film of 2010 then they should vote for it. I would never say they shouldn’t based on the nationality of the production.

I’ll leave out for now how insulting it is to lob this accusation at this site, particularly, after all of the carping we’ve done over the years for films that really were victims of xenophobia. Of all of the Oscars sites out there, and I’m not exaggerating when I say this, ours is among the only ones that has ever lobbed the accusation of racism at the Academy — or homophobia or sexism or agism. ¬†Calling me or this site xenophobic is not only insulting to us but it’s insulting to those filmmakers who really are victims of it.