Jeff Bridges Wins Oscar Leading Role

Jeff Bridges and the other Oscar lead actor nominations reflect the cultural diversity of American relationships in recent years. Up in the Air’s Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) explores commitment issues of workaholics, Crazy Heart’s Otis Blake (Jeff Bridges) signals the high divorce rate in America and A Single Man’s George Falconer (Colin Firth) delves into a Shakespearean love suicide and issues surrounding same-sex relationships. Each Oscar leading role nominee touches upon the complexities of current ethos of/attitudes surrounding love in America and how uncertain political and economic ties have re-shaped our relationships.

Up in the Air / George Clooney — Commitment Issues

Ryan Bingham loves his job. He travels the country doing what some companies cannot: fire people. Bingham’s career
feeds his inadequacy to develop meaningful relationships. He doesn’t have to form meaningful relationships as he never settles in one location for more than a couple of days. However, his pursuit to escape the “trappings” of love changes when he meets Alex Goran (Vera Farmiga).

Bingham is not alone in the commitment department. In fact, many couples are not “committing” to marriage. Over the past four years, marriage rates have declined steadily, according to the US Census. The number of unmarried people increased to nearly one-third of all Americans over 15. AskMen attributes this decline to men, who, like Ryan Bingham, are afraid of commitment because: lack of freedom, loss of space and one sex partner, forever.

Crazy Heart / Jeff Bridges — Indecisive Relationships

Otis Blake’s life reflects the brusque image of his stage name, Bad Blake. Otis is your typical Bukowskian character — too many marriages and too many drinks. His ability to love too much contrasts with Up in the Air’s Ryan Bingham, who tries to escape the “trappings” of relationships. When Otis meets newspaper journalist Jean Craddock in Santa Fe, he is faced with his nearly suicidal lifestyle. She is a flicker of hope in his dark world of self destruction.

Otis Blake exemplifies the growing divorce rate in America and bursting the one life, one love dream of many Americans. In fact, the US has the highest divorce rate in the entire world. The divorce rate in America for the first marriage is an astounding 41 percent, according to the Enrichment Journal. And for those serial husbands, like Otis Blake, the divorce rate for second husbands is 60 percent and 73 percent for third marriages.

A Single Man / Colin Firth — Love Suicide

1962 was a time for revolution in America. The Black Panther movement was in full swing and womens rights and anti-war protestors populated the streets. However, the gay rights movement would not yet mobilize until nearly 20 years later. A Single Man explores the secrecy and intolerance regarding gay relationships in 1962 America with the story of Native Brit George Falconer (Colin Firth), an English professor at a Los Angeles area college. The death of his partner sends Falconer into a suicidal tailspin. While Up in the Air and Crazy Heart explore the sparks of new relationships, A Single Man tells a Shakespearian tragedy of unrequited and broken love.

George Falconer taps into the controversial, hot-button same-sex marriage issue in politics. Even after twenty years of progress in the gay rights movement, only five states have legalized same-sex marriage: Massachusettes, Conneticut, Iowa, Vermont and New Hampshire. An astounding 18 states believe the Constitutional bans same-sex marriage and all other kinds of same-sex unions. A Single Man explores the oppression and intolerance of same-sex relationships and how little has changed in nearly half a Century.

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