To the Point
The Oscars: A Year of Nostalgic Movies
Box office was not the standard for choosing this year's nominees for the Best Picture Oscar. Are Academy members focused on quality or are they out of touch with audiences?
By Warren Olney • • 51m ListenBox office clearly was not the standard for choosing this year's nine nominees for the Best Picture Oscar. Only one has topped $100 million in revenue. Are Academy members focused on quality or are they out of touch with the audience? Also, protests against Koran burning continue in Afghanistan despite a US apology. On Reporter's Notebook, could A Separation -- nominated for best foreign picture – help change American perceptions of Iran?
Banner image: Producer Michael B. Seligman speaks onstage during the 84th Academy Awards announcement held at AMPAS' Samuel Goldwyn Theater on January 24, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
In this episode
3 storiesKoran-burning Protests Continue in Afghanistan despite US Apology
Newt Gingrich has made the massive Afghan protest over the burning of the Koran an issue in his presidential campaign by attacking President Obama for expressing his "deep regret" to President Karzai.
Read the story8 minThose Old Time Oscars
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is playing up nostalgia in its ads for Sunday's Oscar Awards , "celebrate the movies in all of us." Some call that an excuse for a weak field of pictures chosen by mostly aging white men, out of touch with contemporary audiences.
Read the story34 minCan 'A Separation' Help Close the US-Iran Divide?
A Separation is nominated for Best Foreign Language Picture and for Best Screenplay, even though it was written in Farsi. The Iranian film is not about politics or war, but about two families working out problems common to people in all parts of the world.
Read the story9 min
