“Cinema reflects culture,”
–Jackie Chan,
Americans hoped 2009 would be a transitional year. A year in which we would rebuild our economic, political and societal structures. Reflecting upon 2009, we fell short of expectations. Instead, harsh pollutants continued to stain the environment, we faced the ongoing physical threat from terrorists, the unemployment rate grew and the impoverished faced even more emotional hardships. This year’s best picture Oscar nominees reflect the political, societal and economic insecurities we faced in 2009 with extraordinary films such as this year’s best picture Oscar winner The Hurt Locker, Avatar,
Up In the Air and other best picture nominees.
Each film portrays a separate, distinct element of insecurity. Avatar explores the effects of corporate expansionism on the environment, Up in the Air takes a unique look at job security, Hurt Locker discusses physical security through a bomb squad in Iraq and Precious peers into the emotional insecurity of the abused. Each of these films strikes a chord, whether or not you’re an unemployed white collar or an abused ghetto mother; an American soldier in Iraq or a native soldier on Pandora.
Avatar — Environmental Security
Avatar is the story of the Na’vi tribe’s fight to save Pandora’s rich environmental resources from a menacing, villainous corporation in an epic battle between man vs nature. In a world where nature and creatures are so intertwined, Avatar explores the environmental security of our planet as it faces the evils of imperialistic entities. On Earth, the California Air Resources Board recently tripled the estimate of premature deaths in California from particle pollution to 18,000 annually.
Up in the Air — Job Security
When Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) says, “We are not swans, we’re sharks,” he’s not a coach sharpening the teeth of athletes; he’s referring to the responsibility of firing people. He travels the country, with his life in a suitcase, acts as a freelance, hired-gun version of Donald Trump (“You’re Fired!”). His role taps into the unease of a very real, unstable job market, where unemployment teeters at 10 percent.
Hurt Locker — Physical Security
“Every time you suit-up, it’s life or death. You roll the dice and you deal with it,” says Sgt. JT Sanborn, played by Anthony Mackie. Sanborn, the team leader on an American army bomb squab in Iraq, isn’t talking about gambling in Vegas. Sanborn describes the feeling of being a wire away from blowing up. Not knowing if the green wire will deactivate or activate a bomb is the epitome of physical insecurity. Physical insecurity doesn’t end in the battlefield, however. Although a 694 miles trip is 65 times more risky in a car than in a plane, fear of flying continues to scare travelers as terrorist attempts, such as the underwear bomber, dominate headlines.
Precious — Emotional Security
Imagine your mother, screaming at you, “You’re a dummy. Don’t no body want you, don’t no body need you.” This is the real story of Precious. The film examines this very systemic domestic abuse in Harlem through the life of Precious. Day in and day out, Precious struggles to persevere in a hostile environment of emotional insecurity. Although not to the extreme of Precious, many college grads can find it emotionally crippling to move back into mom and dads when they seek independence and home-ownership. In fact, about 40 percent of 2008 grads still live with their parents, according to Monster’s 2009 Annual Entry-Level Job Outlook.
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