2014 Emmys:
Boredom, Predicability
and A Dash of Racism
Boredom, Predicability
and A Dash of Racism
66th Primetime Emmys :
Boredom, Predictability, and a Dash of Racism
by Paulette Reynolds
August 26, 2014
In an industry that prides itself on being creative, this year's Emmy award show proves that creativity is truly in the blind eye of the creator.
Like an old comedy with canned laughter, prompting us to chuckle at the appropriate moments, the 66th Primetime Emmys vainly attempted to tickle our funny bones and please the mainstream television viewer. Host Seth Meyers, struggled too hard to be funny and failed, proving that not all progressive comics are funny. (Perhaps Chris Rock, Kevin Hart, Whoopi Goldberg, Ellen Degeneres, Melissa McCarthy turned the hosting duties down?) And while the camera panned the audience for the strained faces of the hopeful nominees, I wondered what was the point, since we knew who was going to win anyway?
And sadly, this Emmy show didn't disappoint me at all. The winners were predictable, as the same old stars trotted up the stairs for their statuette: Breaking Bad (Bryan Cranston and co.), The Good Wife (Juliana Margulies), Modern Family, Veep, American Horror Story-Coven, The Big Bang Theory and Fargo. Y.A.W.N. (Okay, a mild surprise snapped me awake as Sherlock took home three Emmys.) Wonky Weird Al gave us a tepid musical number that even the Game of Thrones couldn’t save.
Predictable too, was the stark fact that out of seven black nominees, only the talented Joe Morton won, and that was for a "guest" role! You'd think that a liberal-controlled Hollywood would award diversity more often, wouldn't you?
Award shut-outs were Orange is the New Black, Downton Abbey, Game of Thrones, Nurse Jackie, and a small handful of innovative shows like Masters of Sex, The Americans, Episodes, and House of Lies.
There were a few funny moments:
*Steven Colbert giving props to his invisible best friend, Roscoe, for his continued success.
*Ricky Gervais colorful whining about his post-award loss.
*Sofia Vergara livening up a boring speech by Emmy brass - on a revolving stand, no less. And no - it wasn’t ‘sexist’ - it was a smart commentary that flew over the talking PC heads.
Billy Crystal's moving send-off for Robin Williams made me glad that I had stuck with this trite excuse for “creativity”.
The Fashion "Yes Please" were Allison Janney, Halle Berry, Kathryn Heigl, Sofia Vergara, Lena Headey, and Kerry Washington.
Fashion Frights included Lena Dunham's fluffy political statement, Julia Roberts black mini, Mindy Kaling's signature coral, and Kate Walsh in lemon yellow. Yellow is not the new black, Kate...shudder.
As I plowed through my taped award stinker of a show, I was grateful for my personal collection of television faves:
Elementary, Death in Paradise, Vicious, Last Tango in Halifax, Last Week Tonight, TURN, Salem, The Millers, Call the Midwife, The Mindy Project, Hell on Wheels, and of course - The Vikings!
My list of never nominated shows raises a pertinent question: With all the really creative entertainment on television, why are the same stale, white bread sitcoms and dramas dutifully "winning" every season?
Ah, dear viewers, the fiscal bottom line in the Hollywood front offices dictates who is nominated and who wins. The artist creates and along comes the Hollywood brass to shell out the awards. In the name of their one-dimensional image of a "mainstream audience" and the demographics of mediocrity, true creativity is seldom acknowledged - let alone recognized.
Boredom, Predictability, and a Dash of Racism
by Paulette Reynolds
August 26, 2014
In an industry that prides itself on being creative, this year's Emmy award show proves that creativity is truly in the blind eye of the creator.
Like an old comedy with canned laughter, prompting us to chuckle at the appropriate moments, the 66th Primetime Emmys vainly attempted to tickle our funny bones and please the mainstream television viewer. Host Seth Meyers, struggled too hard to be funny and failed, proving that not all progressive comics are funny. (Perhaps Chris Rock, Kevin Hart, Whoopi Goldberg, Ellen Degeneres, Melissa McCarthy turned the hosting duties down?) And while the camera panned the audience for the strained faces of the hopeful nominees, I wondered what was the point, since we knew who was going to win anyway?
And sadly, this Emmy show didn't disappoint me at all. The winners were predictable, as the same old stars trotted up the stairs for their statuette: Breaking Bad (Bryan Cranston and co.), The Good Wife (Juliana Margulies), Modern Family, Veep, American Horror Story-Coven, The Big Bang Theory and Fargo. Y.A.W.N. (Okay, a mild surprise snapped me awake as Sherlock took home three Emmys.) Wonky Weird Al gave us a tepid musical number that even the Game of Thrones couldn’t save.
Predictable too, was the stark fact that out of seven black nominees, only the talented Joe Morton won, and that was for a "guest" role! You'd think that a liberal-controlled Hollywood would award diversity more often, wouldn't you?
Award shut-outs were Orange is the New Black, Downton Abbey, Game of Thrones, Nurse Jackie, and a small handful of innovative shows like Masters of Sex, The Americans, Episodes, and House of Lies.
There were a few funny moments:
*Steven Colbert giving props to his invisible best friend, Roscoe, for his continued success.
*Ricky Gervais colorful whining about his post-award loss.
*Sofia Vergara livening up a boring speech by Emmy brass - on a revolving stand, no less. And no - it wasn’t ‘sexist’ - it was a smart commentary that flew over the talking PC heads.
Billy Crystal's moving send-off for Robin Williams made me glad that I had stuck with this trite excuse for “creativity”.
The Fashion "Yes Please" were Allison Janney, Halle Berry, Kathryn Heigl, Sofia Vergara, Lena Headey, and Kerry Washington.
Fashion Frights included Lena Dunham's fluffy political statement, Julia Roberts black mini, Mindy Kaling's signature coral, and Kate Walsh in lemon yellow. Yellow is not the new black, Kate...shudder.
As I plowed through my taped award stinker of a show, I was grateful for my personal collection of television faves:
Elementary, Death in Paradise, Vicious, Last Tango in Halifax, Last Week Tonight, TURN, Salem, The Millers, Call the Midwife, The Mindy Project, Hell on Wheels, and of course - The Vikings!
My list of never nominated shows raises a pertinent question: With all the really creative entertainment on television, why are the same stale, white bread sitcoms and dramas dutifully "winning" every season?
Ah, dear viewers, the fiscal bottom line in the Hollywood front offices dictates who is nominated and who wins. The artist creates and along comes the Hollywood brass to shell out the awards. In the name of their one-dimensional image of a "mainstream audience" and the demographics of mediocrity, true creativity is seldom acknowledged - let alone recognized.
COPYRIGHT 2012/2016. Paulette Reynolds. All CineMata Movie Madness blog articles, reviews, faux interviews, commentary, and the Cine Mata character are under the sole ownership of Paulette Reynolds. All intellectual and creative rights reserved.
