I wonder what would have happened if, at last year's Academy Awards, Steve Carell had won Best Actor for ""40-Year-Old Virgin."" I'm guessing his acceptance speech would have been the most entertaining moment of the evening, and not to mention a delightful counter to George Clooney's smug remarks about celeb superiority. Bah.
And what about Rachel McAdams in ""The Family Stone?"" Natalie Portman in ""Garden State?"" Or, going back in time—Vince Vaughn in ""Swingers,"" Johnny Depp in ""Benny and Joon"" or Eugene Levy and any one of the staple Christopher Guest ensemble in ""Waiting for Guffman""? Even to this day, I highly doubt that Greg Kinnear will garner a nod from the Academy for his portrayal of motivational speaker step-dad in ""Little Miss Sunshine,"" or Aaron Eckhart for his role as slime ball Nick Naylor in ""Thank You for Smoking.""
Essentially, the Academy has created a serious lack of a sense of humor for itself, and I think this is a real detriment to the great comedic performances of our time. I mean, come on. We've all tried it. Some succeed often, and some fail miserably every time; it's tough to make people laugh. There are so many different things that a comedian has to harness, because there are just so many kinds of humor. Of course, it is impossible to appeal to everybody, but who seriously didn't want to see Parker Posey win an Oscar for ""Best in Show""? Anyone? Bueller?
I wonder what the Academy will be like now that Dakota Fanning has been invited as a member. Perhaps she'll lobby for the new Arthur movie or anything starring the Rugrats. I imagine that some members of the Academy, however, find themselves far too distinguished to recognize true talent in comedic performances; nevertheless, I critically question their judgment. I found quite a bit of humor in trying to decipher what the hell Heath Ledger was saying in ""Brokeback Mountain."" Mushmberyplayrytim. Ahem, excuse me? Perhaps he was told to recite his lines with pieces of dry sponge bound to the roof of his mouth. That would make sense, and that's funny.
Essentially, we live in a world grounded in humor. Last semester, I woke up one morning to the sound of my cell phone alarm. I reached off of the bed to hit snooze but instead knocked it off the ledge and, whoops, into a cup of water sitting on the floor just beneath it. This was a travesty, but later, after my phone dried and stayed alive for me, I told the story and laughed, because real life is funny. It's not all violins and willow trees, the wind making eerie music to the sound of the waves. However, there is tragedy in life, and there are reasons to cry sometimes—a lot of times. But in your darkest hour, it's truly laughter that sways, and the ability to conjure it will always win the Oscar in my book.
I just want to end this column by giving a shout-out to my cousin Briana who was an extra in ""The Last Kiss"" and my friend Ryan who worked on the set. I was really loud and annoying in the theater because of you guys, but I really don't care. See you next week.
