5 Things to Keep in Mind Oscar Fans

Tomorrow morning the curtain will be withdrawn, debates cast aside, and a new realm of analysis will take hold of the film blogging world - Oscar nominations. Who got in who shouldn't have. Who didn't get in but deserved to. Will James Franco appear in a blond wig beside Anne Hathaway in a Catwoman costume? (I can fantasize if I want to)

All of which inevitably leads to the other debate that comes to form this time of the year. A look at the history of the Oscars, and discussions on what should have won in the past. Meticulous steps must be taken in one intends to traverse this debate with minimal egg on face. So I've put together a list of the five things to keep in mind when you begin putting together your Oscar snub posts.

Away we go!

1. Sell it, don't say it: Yeah, yeah, we all know - "OMG Hitchcock and O'Toole gots like no Oscars yuh kno?" If you're going to make the post, you're going to have to do better than that. Analyze the nominations they go, the ones they didn't, discuss the year and time in presenting your argument. Selling a snub is a bit like selling a used car. We all know it's been beaten to death, so the better you reinforce it and apply the shine, the better you'll look in the long run.

2. All in Context: It's easy to go on and scream about how one film should 'totally' have won over the other. It's something else entirely to do it with knowledge of the time. Believe it or not, Oscars are products of the society they inhabit. Trying to remove that context is a bit like trying to discuss World War 2 without mentioning Europe or Asia. Or Marmalade without explaining the quality of food in the UK (yeah, I said it!). Without context you're assuming all events at any period of time can be viewed with complete abstract objectivity. Sorry, things just don't work that way.

3. I haven't seen it but... Every time I see this comment on a post, I immediately turn off. If you're going to argue one over the other, you'd better know both. Can't compare two things when you only know one. If you need to know why, check out the entire post I did on it last September.

4. Be creative: I eluded to it in number one, but please try and present something more than just your generic snub post. Sure, it's easy to rile up the same group of people year after year with the same debate, but then your post is little more than just another regurgitation of what others have said. And I'm sorry, statistically speaking, quite a few of them have likely said it better than you will. So try and think about things from new angles. Tackle films that people often ignore entirely from that year. If you're going to fall back on the old debate categories, do your best to bring something new to the table. Apply some element of personal investment. Do you think a film should have won due to its particular impact on you? Maybe you feel as if the theme of the movie overrides certain reasoning in favor of the eventual winner or another nominee. These things supply all the needed support you're going to want.

5. Study, Prepare, Analyze: Do some research on the Oscars. Study up on what films were left out and why. Look at your own list of favorite films from particular years. Try and think of potential nominations (or even winners) that exist beyond the same four everyone always mentions. A post on Oscar snubs should be an informative, analytical look at the films of a particular year. And yes, the second you put up that post, someone will take you on with a film of their own from that year (or defend those that were there). If you're not ready for that, you'll look like just another soap box screamer with little to no knowledge outside your championed cause. In other words, an idiot.

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There you go, now you're ready to create your snub post. But before you do, allow me to ask one simple question: Should you? Snub posts are nice to read from time to time, but I seldom apply much authority onto them. The reasoning - I accept full and well that the Oscars are a flawed system, and not always the people I want to win will win. Because of that I don't see one person winning over the other as a crime, or some sort of society degrading, moronic move. It was just a choice a group of people made, I happen to disagree with. Of course, apathetic Oscars posts never gain as much attention as "OMG IT'S ALL DOOM AND GLOOM AT THE OSCARS! WHYYYYYY! THE END IS NIGH!" *Shrug* That's just how I roll.