I don't like to make a lot of controversial statements but here goes: the Oscars often go to people who should not have won them. Yeah, I went there. From Crash to Shakespeare in Love, from Dances With Wolves to How Green Was My Valley, the Academy has a long history of overlooking greatness. These instances in the past have been well documented, and this Sunday night was no exception, as WhatCulture writer Shaun Munro's
article this week detailed. But the Academy's decisions haven't been all bad. Though it didn't win Best Picture, Pulp Fiction did take home an Oscar for Best Screenplay. The Godfather and Godfather Part II both won Best Picture. And while many may disagree, Annie Hall deservedly beat out Star Wars in the '70's. While far from a perfect track record this year, the Academy did make some good choices. So grab yourself some extra-buttery popcorn and tune in as we revisit Oscars 2013: 5 awards that were well deserved....
5. Best Animated Short Film - Paperman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rqmh1GoZjnw Coming into the 85th Annual Academy Awards, many people thought that the short animated film The Longest Daycare was the front-runner. The Simpsons, a beloved TV show that's run for well over 2 decades in prime time, submitted its nearly silent look at its most enigmatic and least well-known family member, the baby Maggie. Accompanied by a beautiful Hans Zimmer score, Maggie tiptoes through the hazards of daycare as she attempts to save a caterpillar from the threatening hammer of the monobrowed baby. The cartoon is sweet and whimsical, giving us a new look at a character we've been familiar with since the late '80's but haven't gotten to know as intimately as Homer or the rest of the Simpson clan. But the winner ended up being Paperman, a romantic short that was half-computer and half-traditionally animated. Just like the Simpsons' short, it is a whimsical story told with visuals and music alone, minimizing dialogue but still managing to capture the audience's imaginations with two characters who instantly draw us into their lives. With a chance meeting due to uncontrollable winds and loose leaf paper gone wild, we find ourselves rooting for the man to reconnect with the mysterious woman he met at the bus stop. Paperman is a beautiful short film that in less than 7 minutes manages to build a love story deeper and more profound than many Oscar award winners.