83. Why Do We Care About the Oscars?

With the Academy Awards mere days away, Matt and Ed discuss why exactly they care about the Oscars, especially since they both occasionally hypocritically dismiss them as not really meaning anything. In so doing, they talk about the real commercial and artistic impact that an Oscar nomination can have, wonder if the Academy secretly hate Martin Landau, and talk about some of the odder wins/snubs in Oscar history. They also try to predict who will win on Sunday, foolishly.

Notes:

- Here is the article by Mark Harris on the narrative of "X and Y" films in Oscar season that Ed mentions in the episode.

- Harris' book, Pictures at a Revolution, is an essential and entertaining work of film history that's especially interesting in examining what the Oscars can mean in a broader cultural context.