Lost Highway Times...Paths in Oblivion

Look people, we have to get some clarity on this. Brokeback Mountain was a great movie and a breakthrough in terms of gay relationships and struggles being portrayed on film, but the anti-Crash campaign really should be toned down.

I have not seen the movie. But a whole lot of people that I know have seen it and it's been highly recommended to me and described in good detail. From what they say, and from what I understand, Crash is an equally breakthrough film when it comes to race relations in America and in portraying the experience of minorities in America.

There shouldn't be this conflict, because at bottom the two movies appear to be trying to break similar ground: to portray parts of American life either neglected by the media or very much misunderstood.

I could understand the protest if the best movie of the year was something like "Armageddon", or some throw away movie which might be fun and have commercial success but is lacking in artistic value, but pitting a film against racism against a film about homophobia? That's not right. Just isn't.

We should be flexible enough to see similar struggles engaged in by our brothers and sisters, honor them, and not quibble about whose oppression is more important. It's all important. And, quite frankly, although gay rights are extremely important I think that portraying the experience of racism in America accurately is more immediately needed.