Are the Oscars Anti-Teen?

• Author: NORTHROP, MICHAEL
• Position: Brief Article

Teen movies may rule at the box office, but not with the Academy

Fans of teen films can save themselves a road trip to Hollywood for the 73rd annual Academy Awards on Sunday, March 25. Art-house films like Pollock and Billy Elliot and non-blockbusters like Chocolat and The Contender filled out the major nominations. Hip, contemporary, younger-leaning movies were shut out of the Best Picture race, and the acting categories were almost entirely without teen-friendly faces. Kate Hudson, age 21, picked up a Best Supporting Actress nomination for Almost Famous, but that was about it.

Why such slim representation? Well, you have to start by looking at what was out there. Last year's teen crop was not a particularly good one. Down to You amounted to a schlocky paint-by-the-numbers romance. Bring It On was a cheerleader flick that used a skimpy plot to justify even skimpier outfits. In Road Trip, well, Tom Green put a mouse in his mouth. And those were some of the better offerings.

Even if the field of teen flicks had been stronger in 2000, it likely wouldn't have mattered. The average age of the 5,607 voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is over 50, and it's a safe bet that most of them still haven't seen She's All That, or any movie with Freddie Prinze Jr. or Rachael Leigh Cook, for that matter. Teen films are just not on their radar.

FILMS FOR OLDER FOLKS

The Academy voters, like anyone else, are more likely to see films that fit their own age group and interests. Since they're all involved with the film industry, they tend to recognize more high-concept artistic movies outside the mainstream, the ones playing at the small theater downtown rather than the multiplex at the mall. As a result, a poll by the Los Angeles Times conducted before last year's Oscars found that only 1 percent of Americans had seen all five Best Picture nominees. A few major hits still end up on ballots, including Gladiator and Erin Brockovich this year, but they have to earn critical kudos, not just multimillions.

The acting categories also favor the older generation. A study released last year by Pace University found that the average age of Best Actor nominees during the past 25 years was 45.6 years. Best actresses? 40.3. Teen films can be well-acted, but their casts are young and stocked with newcomers. Just as you may never have seen a movie with Oscar winner Geoffrey Rush, up again for Best Actor in Quills, many Academy voters still don't...