Stars and stunts

They stretched the truth to “show” it in better lights (as in Argo).

They twisted some arms, pushed the envelopes and burned both ends of the candle (one end is dream, the other memories).

They stepped into characters, sang the chorus and spoke the lines.

Light, sound, camera and …”action”.

Moving pictures. Marketing of dreams and merchandising of goods.

Set the theme and set the stage for next year and years to come.

This year is of no exception.

Except for newer versions and interpretation of old materials (Karenina, Lincoln and Hugo). Streisand finally sang Memories the way it meant to be from this vantage point when the composer himself had passed on. The last time it etched in our memory was that of  Robert Redford and herself in Black and White (Redford’s hair looked even blonde in Black and White).

Editors could afford growing hair. And soundtrack for foreign movies montage was still from Cinema Paradiso (our early moving-going experiences).

The Oscars. Hollywood annual Pilgrimage, with one billion followers, and millions of tickets and tapes sold. Stuff of dreams yet turned into hard cash.

Stars and stunts sell, even and especially in time of Sequester.