Koltnow: Oscar puts on a pretty face

2013-02-07 16:52:46

Movie stardom is not all it's cracked up to be.

Seriously, the lavish lifestyle celebrated in the pages of celebrity-driven magazines and on entertainment fluff programs is not an accurate picture of what it's really like for movie stars.

It may seem like one continuous party 365 days a year, but that is so far from the truth. In fact, movie stars live enviable lives of stunning good looks, embarrassing wealth and a general sense of entitlement only 364 days a year. The rest of the year is an emotional nightmare.

And that nightmare is called Oscar night.

Most people assume that movie stars shine brightest on Oscar night, but that has rarely been the case. The actual Hollywood tradition is that movie stars run this town all year, but Oscar night belongs to the serious actors.

There have always been exceptions, of course, but the unspoken rule is that award shows in general, and the Oscars in particular, are opportunities for movie stars to share (however reluctantly) some of the spotlight with actors.

After all, most actors are not living the movie-star life. They don't split their time between the double-lot beach house in Malibu and the mountain-view ranch in Montana. They do not travel by private jets supplied by the studio and wear designer clothes delivered to their front door as gifts. They don't have an entourage, or a cable TV show inspired by their entourage.

Instead, most actors struggle to pay their bills and support their families by finding work outside their profession. They work night shifts so that they can run to auditions during the day, only to lose roles to movie stars with bigger names. They pay dues to a union made up of workers who can't find steady work, but gladly pay for the privilege of calling themselves "professional actors." They shell out hard-earned tip money for acting classes run by other actors who also can't find work other than teaching actors to act.

It's a tough life, but at least they always had a night set aside to honor them.

On Oscar night, these journeyman actors are singled out and saluted for quality work in films that nobody sees. Their salaries wouldn't pay the catering bill on a "Spider-Man" movie set.

Movie stars served a purpose on Oscar night. They showed up and looked pretty on the red carpet, but when it came time to hand out the awards, the movie stars retreated to the shadows and let their lesser-known colleagues enjoy the spotlight.

It's a system that has worked so well that it has become an American institution. But, like other American institutions, the Oscars are going through a transition.

To generate more excitement for their awards show, academy officials have slowly and slyly transformed it into a star-driven vehicle. They're even giving awards to the pretty people now.

Oh sure, there are still a few token awards for real actors, usually in the supporting categories. For instance, take a look at this year's nominees in the best supporting actor category: Alan Arkin ("Argo"), Robert De Niro ("Silver Linings Playbook"), Philip Seymour Hoffman ("The Master"), Tommy Lee Jones ("Lincoln") and Christoph Waltz ("Django Unchained").

Have you ever seen a more impressive list of serious actors? And there isn't a pretty face in the bunch. This is the category that gives the Oscars its credibility.

On the other hand, there are the actors and actresses nominated in the leading role categories.

For best actor in a leading role: Bradley Cooper ("Silver Linings Playbook"), Daniel Day-Lewis ("Lincoln"), Hugh Jackman ("Les Misérables"), Joaquin Phoenix ("The Master") and Denzel Washington ("Flight').

If I'm not mistaken, I believe three of these actors (Cooper, Jackman and Washington) are former winners of the People magazine Sexiest Man Alive competition. I'm not questioning their acting chops, but I don't recall Jack Nicholson or Spencer Tracy winning any pretty-boy contests.

The leading actress category is even more telling. The youngest nominee in history (Quvenzhane Wallis of "Beasts of the Southern Wild") and the oldest nominee in history (Emmanuelle Riva of "Amour") are joined by three beautiful actresses who could compete with any supermodel for the cover of a national magazine – Jessica Chastain of "Zero Dark Thirty," Jennifer Lawrence of "Silver Linings Playbook" and Naomi Watts of "The Impossible."

Based on her surprise win at the Screen Actors Guild awards, Lawrence is now the frontrunner for the Oscar. If she wins, the Oscars will have completed their evolution from a celebration of serious actors to a celebration of all actors, including movie stars.

The 22-year-old actress straddles both worlds, appearing in two serious films ("Winter's Bone" and "Silver Linings Playbook") that brought her Oscar nominations, while starring in the popular trilogy based on "The Hunger Games" books.

Apparently, some movie stars want to be taken seriously.


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