Wilshire & Washington on Variety.comThe "Brokeback" Vote, Reconsidered Much has changed in the years since "Brokeback Mountain," having won nearly all the major awards leading up to the Oscars in 2006, was rejected in favor of "Crash" for the ultimate best picture trophy.
Same-sex relationships have gained a greater acceptance, even if the idea of marriage has progressed in fits and starts.
One of the most prominent critics of the Academy that year, the Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan, believes that the vote would have turned out differently today.
"I can still feel my anger," Turan said at a recent panel on the movie as part of Out West, a new series at the Autry National Center of the American West. "I really think that if the Academy could have a do over they would vote for 'Brokeback.' I think that their decision over time has come to seem less acceptable and less like the right thing."
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"Brokeback" has lived on in the form of "Brokies" fan groups, who write their own stories of the characters and continue to watch the movie, over and over again. Its lines are still part of the cultural lexicon. And the fact that the Autry Museum is spotlighting "Brokeback," and the gay west in general, is considered something of an achievement.
The idea that Academy voters acted on their unspoken prejudices in 2006 is a much debated theory, and one that never can be proven. But it's hard to doubt something else that Turan wrote that night, a prediction that the movie would stand the test of time in ways that "Crash" would not: "Sometimes you win by losing."
http://www.wilshireandwashington.com/2009/12/the-brokeback-vote-reconsidered.htmlWilshire & Washington highlights the enduring relationship between entertainment and politics. More than a mere curiosity, the intersection of these worlds play out daily in fund raising, celebrity causes, show business lobbying and creative expression. Variety managing editor Ted Johnson provides the daily dose with contributions from reporters in L.A. and D.C.
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