People were not happy with some aspects of Sunday’s Academy Awards.
Over on social media, there were plenty of complaints about the best picture winner, “Green Book.”
The film chronicles the real-life relationship between piano virtuoso Dr. Donald Shirley, played by best supporting actor Oscar-winner Mahershala Ali and Tony Vallelonga, played by Viggo Mortensen, who served as his driver during a concert tour of the South in the 1960s.
The movie dealt with a quite a bit of controversy, from Shirley’s family complaining that it took too much creative license to Mortensen using the N-word during a post-screening discussion (he later apologized) to one of the film’s writers, Nick Vallelonga (son of Tony Vallenlonga) issuing a mea culpa for a 2015 tweet that contained a false, Islamophobic statement.
But it’s the “white savior” trope that some saw in the drama that led to more than a few complaints that Georgia Congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis introduced the film at the Oscars.
“I can bear witness that the portrait painted of that time and place in our history is very real,” Lewis said during the introduction which he shared with actress Amandla Stenberg. “It’s seared in my memory, black men and women, our brothers and sisters, treated as second class citizens, threatened for raising their families or earning a living, beaten and sometimes killed for the crime of trying to live a life with dignity. Our nation bears the scars of that time, as do I.”
“John Lewis introducing Green Book has me sick,” writer and podcast host Aminatou Sow tweeted.
The overall sentiment from some was that the film was not exactly progressive in its themes.
Then there was upset over Glenn Close not winning best actress for “The Wife.”
Close lost out to Olivia Colman of “The Favourite.”
But even those who mourned the fact that Close has been nominated seven times and has yet to win an Oscar, still had to bow to Colman’s royal performance as England’s Queen Anne.
“WHAT DOES GLENN CLOSE HAVE TO DO!?? (Whispers: I adore you Olivia Colman. You were also brilliant),” Showtime executive Johanna Fuentes tweeted.
Another loss that annoyed people was Spike Lee being passed over for best director in favor of Alfonso Cuarón.
It felt almost historical to more than a few people on Twitter.
“In one lifetime Spike Lee has lost the Best Picture #Oscars to a movie about a Black guy driving a white lady, Driving Miss Daisy, and to a film about a Black guy being driven by a white guy Green Book…,” one person tweeted. “What are the odds?”
And as is the case every year, people were heated that someone was left out of the In Memoriam tribute.
Carol Channing, who was nominated for best supporting actress for her role in the 1967 film “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” died in January and was not included.
“Dear #Oscars, us gays are very upset that Academy Award nominated Carol Channing - an ICON - was not included in the In Memoriam segment!!!,” blogger Perez Hilton tweeted.
One thing that didn’t appear to elicit too many complaints: the fact that this year’s show was without a host.