> I did not watch the Academy Awards Ceremony at all this year. It is the first year in many that I have managed to do this-- For several years now, I have held the opinion that the Oscars are not worth my time to watch, in part because they go too long, in part because they do not interest me enough, and in part because I am trying to cut back on the amount of TV I watch.

All that justification, and this was the first year you managed it? All that justification, and you have to ask if you're doing the right thing?

If you don't care enough about what gets what, seriously, don't bother. It's not a civic duty to watch the show, nor will you be culturally uneducated if you do not force yourself to take it all in. The Academy Awards are about peer recognition in Hollywood. That's it. If you're the kind of person that loves movies and/or cares about the art and craft of filmmaking and/or cares about the winners, then go for it. Otherwise there's no reason to bother.

As I write this, I'm having deja vu. I think this was discussed before, either here or in the Site Journal, last year or the year before. I vaguely remember someone saying that you SHOULDN'T watch the Oscars if you care about the art and craft of filmmaking, because the Oscars rarely reward the best films. I think that's a good point but overly cynical...except in the case of this year.