I wonder about the relevance of the Academy Awards. I don't think mainstream America even bothers to watch the telecast anymore. They can get the winners and highlights from the show on the internet the next day and the winners are usually all over the talk shows for the next few days. The show has always been a bit bloated and ludicrous in it's grandeur, but it's really started to become a parody of itself. And this year I have to say that they Academy Awards shot themselves in the foot in a way that I really never expected.

You see, back in January when the nominees were announced, I thought that the Academy might be able to bring itself around more in line with mainstream America by giving The Dark Knight, which up to that point had made more money than God and racked up a ton of buzz regarding award possibilities along the way, (not just for Heath Ledger but for Chris Nolan's directing and possibly even a Best Picture nod as well), a shot at the big time. I figured that with the people running the show constantly bitching about declining ratings and critics hounding the Academy about losing touch with what makes a true "best picture" nowadays, they would nominate what is arguably the cultural milestone of 2008. Even if Dark Knight didn't win any awards, John Q. Public would tune in to see if a summer blockbuster featuring a man who dresses up like a Bat and punches criminals in the face would honestly walk away with the trophy.

Well, they fucked it up.

They instead showered praise on Slumdog Millionaire, a film that I still haven't seen (not for lack of trying, I promise). And while it may be a fine film, I think the Academy Awards have finally hit the point where their existence is completely irrelevant. Honestly, even plastering the "Academy Award Winner" banner across the top of a DVD box doesn't do much to boost sales anymore. Because the average moviegoer feels that the best film never wins anyway, so it's almost like reverse psychology if you think of it that way.

I was going to go into depth about the winners and everything, but quite honestly...I just don't care. *shrug*