Oscar Night Blues

So much politicking and campaigning goes on in the weeks preceding the big night, that one wonders if the hype is ever really worth it. The honour of prefixing one's name or movie with ‘Academy Award winner' usually comes with obvious commercial fillips but is by no means a guarantee for future success. In some cases, the award has been a poisoned chalice, with recipients' fortunes taking a significant dip for the worse.

Halle Berry, the first black woman to win in the Best Actress category, has lurched from one disastrous movie to the next since picking up her gong. Catwoman was widely derided, and roles in Gothika and Perfect Stranger did nothing to cement her reputation. It did not help that she suffered a very public break-up with her husband not long after her Oscar win. Reese Witherspoon, the Best Actress at the 1996 awards also split up from her husband, Ryan Philippe, shortly after her Oscar win. Adrien Brody, who won the Best Actor award for a nuanced performance in The Pianist, can no longer be described as a Hollywood leading man after some poor career choices.

Lack of support

The ‘best supporting' categories in particular have become something of a curse for its winners over the years.

Marisa Tomei was lauded as the next big thing after she won her best supporting actress award in My Cousin Vinny. However, she never really rose to the ranks of leading lady in spite of the early hype. She did receive critical acclaim for her role as a stripper in Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler but this came about 16 years after her Oscar success. The intervening years were filled with low budget fare and made-for-TV movies.

Mira Sorvino did not do much better after her best supporting honour for Mighty Aphrodie. Apart from being Paul Sorvino's (Goodfellas) daughter, she had an easy charm and appeal that made her seem guaranteed for long-lasting success in Hollywood. It was not to happen. Stinkers like Mimic, The Summer of Sam and The Replacement Killers ensured that she no longer got a choice of plum roles. She has recently been restricted to working on the small screen.

In 1996, Cuba Gooding Jr. already had a string of promising performances behind him. In his big screen debut, Boyz in the Hood, his was one of the standout performances in a strong cast. He followed that up with strong supporting performances in movies like A Few Good Men, Losing Isaiah and The Tuskegee Airmen.

On his big night, his supporting actor nod for Jerry Maguire seemed like a pit stop rather than the apogee of a promising career. Sadly, a choice of poor roles in subsequent years means he has failed to develop either as a credible character actor or a reliable box-office draw. Some of his film credits in the past few years include Snow Dogs, Norbit, Daddy Daycare and the frankly embarrassing Boat Trip.

In 1999, as Gooding Jr. was putting finishing touches to the abysmal Chill Factor, Roberto Benigni was leaping across seats to pick up a Best Actor award for It's a Beautiful life (there's a reason why they call him ‘Bananas Benigni'). The award did precious little for his career and he has been virtually unheard of since. Inauspicious parts in Asterix and Pinocchio did not enhance his appeal and he effectively retired from acting in 2005.

Big names

Even well established names have seen their careers stall after winning Oscars. Gwyneth Paltrow, who won a Best Actress award for Shakespeare in Love in 1999, said that the pressure of the win hampered her career. By the age of 26 she was deemed ‘unaffordable' for many of the leading female roles. She has settled for bit parts in recent times, such as her role as Tony Starks' secretary in Iron Man. Paltrow is now better known as the wife of Coldplay frontman, Chris Martin.

The career of Kim Basinger came to an almost abrupt end after her win for playing a Veronica Lake look-alike in 1997's critically acclaimed ‘LA Confidential'. Ms Basinger may, however, be subject to an altogether different Hollywood stereotype which discriminates against women who are beyond a certain age. Whatever the case, there has been a paucity of good parts offered to her in the past decade. Ironically, her ex-husband, Alec Baldwin, is getting better films roles in his middle age.

Nicole Kidman has also suffered some rotten luck since 2003 when she was named Best Actress for The Hours. She was until then on a winning streak which included star turns in Moulin Rouge and The Others. Post-Oscar roles in The Human Stain, The Stepford Wives, Birth and Bewitched, failed to capture the public's imagination, which in turn reflected in modest audience figures.

Charlize Theron followed her Oscar win in Monster with the instantly forgettable Aeon Flux which sank at the box office. Battle in Seattle and Sleepwalking have also been missteps in her recent career.

They love me

In spite of this, each year--and 2010 has been no different--filmmakers and actors lobby for accolades with a fervour that would make a politician blush. They may be poor barometers of future success but there remains no greater accolade in the acting world than receiving the twelve-inch trophy. Sally Fields perhaps summed up the euphoria of winning an Oscar when she gushed: "You love me, you really love me," after snagging her second award over 20 years ago. The actor's eternal concerns of finding work are instantly swept away in that moment. The self-doubt and insecurities that plague even the most seasoned performers are cast aside. At that very moment in time, the whole world loves you; they really love you.