And the Sensible Picture Award Goes to...

It makes sense that The Artist won Best Picture at last night’s 84th Academy Awards, it really does. It was a throwback to the original art of cinema, but also proved to a new generation that silence can, perhaps, be golden. It makes a lot of sense.

However, the prestigious award is not called the “Sensible Picture” Award; it’s called the “Best Picture” Award, and it’s reserved for the best picture.

Out of the nine films nominated for Best Picture this year, only The Descendants stood out as truly deserving of the award. Through the collaborative talents of director Alexander Payne and actor George Clooney, the film excels at depicting a man torn between honor and anger, lost without the wife who betrayed him. Clooney embodies his character completely: a lawyer, a trustee, a father, a husband, a widower. It is his most honest performance to date.

The Descendants is not carried by Clooney by any means. Shailene Woodley, who played Clooney’s eldest daughter, stole every scene. Her authentic performance boasted raw emotion missing from many young actors today.

Even off the big screen, The Descendants resonates. The novel really gets to the core, exposing the story as a beautiful conflict of emotions that settles with the audience in a very memorable way. This is where The Artist fails.

It is a highly regarded film in terms of creativity and being visually striking. However, it does not have a unique or even memorable plot; it’s Singin’ in the Rain with darker undertones. The Artist has not affected audiences the way past Best Picture winners have. Five years from now, The Artist will become one of those Best Picture winners no one can seem to name.

This is not because silent films are considered “outdated”—I personally enjoy quite a few—but The Artist’s win can be attributed more to the fact that it is a silent film rather than because it deserved to win.

Aside from The Descendants, however, there really was no competition. The nominees for Best Picture fell flat this year. Sure, many of the movies nominated were good (The Help, Moneyball), some even great (Midnight in Paris, Hugo), but most were merely average and placeholders (the rest of the nominees).

So The Artist won Best Picture. As for most predictable result, that goes to the Academy.