The World According to Patty

I think the pandemic broke me.

Lately I feel like I have become a misanthrope. Those who know me well, would probably already describe me as, "Someone who doesn't suffer fools gladly," but the pandemic seems to have exacerbated my #1 on the Enneagram strong desire for fairness and justice personality traits. However, at my core, I do believe I am a hopeful romantic/idealistic optimist. Interesting combination, right? Sometimes it is very exhausting being me.

Each year I enjoy watching the Academy Awards. I am not so idealistic and naïve that I don't understand all the politics and favoritism involved. There is rarely a year when I am happy with the results because in the World According to Patty, who and what should win often do not win. And yet, I continue watching every year because of that fairness, justice, optimism thingy I mentioned.

Of the ten films nominated this year for Best Picture, I have seen eight. Of those eight, two of them I couldn't even finish because I found them to be unbearably pretentious and annoying. I have things to do, People! I don't have time to waste two or three plus hours on schlock!

All Quiet on the Western Front had been on my Netflix watchlist for several weeks, but I hesitated to get into it because let's face it, war films can be brutal and difficult to sit through. After Saving Private Ryan (a brilliant film, by the way), I vowed that I would never watch another war film as long as I lived. And yet. And yet. I did see Dunkirk and 1917. So, last night, on Oscars Eve, I finally girded myself to watched All Quiet on the Western Front. I think I keep going back to this genre because film can be such a powerful artistic vehicle and the best war films are actually anti-war cautionary tales. The latest version All Quiet on the Western Front is one of the best examples of this that I have ever seen. Not to mention, some of the most extraordinary film-making, period. It also served to illustrate the point I have been making forever: If we women ran the world, there wouldn't be any wars!!! In my, never-to-be-humble opinion - this should win for Best Picture. None of the others come close. Even the two films I did not get around to seeing, I'm sure are no match.

With the exception of Women Talking, all those other films are simply more Hollywood self-congratulatory narcissism. BOOM. Patty has spoken.