Apparently, Straight Outta Compton is a terrific presentation of material that is uncomfortable to white people.
http://www.ew.com/article/2016/01/18/oscars-straight-outta-compton-snub
After scoring precursor nominations from the Producers Guild, Screen Actors Guild, and Writers Guild — plus a best-of-the-year citation from the American Film Institute —
Straight Outta Compton felt destined to become one of this year’s best picture nominees. Until it didn’t: The blockbuster, which earned $160 million in the U.S. and scored mightily with critics around the country, was omitted from Thursday’s Oscar nominations list to
widespread dismay.
Compton wasn’t alone in its snub. For the second straight year, every acting nominee at the Academy Awards is white, a fact that caused the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite to trend after the nominations last week. In the days since,
Spike Lee — a recent recipient of an honorary Oscar — and actress-producer
Jada Pinkett Smith have joined the chorus of voices asking for a boycott of the Oscar telecast due the lack of minority representation among nominees.
“Nobody can accuse the Academy of being racist — but they can be accused of being out of touch with the younger generation,” says the director. “Straight Outta Compton is a masterpiece, probably the best biopic since Amadeus — but many if not most of the Academy can’t fathom songs like “F— the Police.’ I know many members who wouldn’t even see the film because it represented a culture that they detest or, more accurately, they assume they detest. Younger people, even those under 50, are not only fans of the music, but much more willing to try to empathize with the world depicted in the movie. When the Academy expands to an even younger demo, movies likeStraight Outta Compton will stand a chance.”
