A Part of Your Parade: Why 'Boyhood' Deserved to Win Best Picture

On Sunday night, Birdman took home Best Picture along with 3 other Oscars. The win was not a major surprise since it had picked up a lot of pre-Oscar awards from the important Screen Actors, Producers and Directors Guilds. But many Boyhood fans like myself had hoped that Boyhood would still take home Best Picture with Birdman taking Best Director-that way both films took him the two top prizes and in categories where they both shined.

The thing is, I can't be too mad that Birdman won Best Picture because I really liked that film and thought it was worthy of its nominations. But, like with most Oscar victories, it's not really a matter of which nominee is better than the others (too subjective) but it's a matter what statement the Academy wants to make by choosing the winner. And like with most baffling Oscar nominations, wins and snubs, the questions is: what is actually being rewarded here?

I predict that 2014 will become known as one of the best years for movies in the 21st century. With films like Boyhood, Birdman, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Wild, Gone Girl, Nightcrawler, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Edge of Tomorrow, The Theory of Everything, Under the Skin, Interstellar, The LEGO Movie, How to Train Your Dragon 2, Big Hero 6, Ida, The Imitation Game, Guardians of the Galaxy among many, many others, we've seen a group of films that have pushed boundaries either by technical innovation, film writing/directing/acting or simply through confident and stylish execution. 

If I wanted to pick a film that could best represent 2014, I mean, it would just have to be Boyhood. Richard Linklater's film, spanning 12 years and lasting almost three hours, is an achievement because it balances timelessness and nostalgia exceptionally. It's an honest, risky passion project, an experimental indie film that could have only been a product of its creators. Linklater's filmography is full of films about growing up. The passage of time is one of his most cherished themes. So Boyhood represents the culmination of his career as a whole.

Throughout the 12 years he made the film, Linklater was growing up as a filmmaker and as a man. This allowed Boyhood to shift perspective. I've said this before on my blog: Boyhood isn't just Boyhood--it's Girlhood, Childhood, Motherhood, Fatherhood, Adulthood. One of the major points of praise for Boyhood comes from its universality. Even in telling a specific story about a specific family, the film finds simple truths about life. Everyone is growing along with the film. Everyone, not just Linklater, is bringing their personalities and their experiences to the table. The wide, truly honest range of perspectives could only have been achieved by a true passage of time.

And this is why the 12 year production of Boyhood matters so much. It enhances the film in ways a normal production schedule couldn't. Boyhood's detractors accuse the film of being nothing more than a gimmick. But that misses the point. The innovation behind Boyhood's production isn't just that Linklater had the idea of making a film over 12 years--it's what that expanded time allowed for in terms of storytelling and atmosphere. The film always feels "in the moment," something a more traditional period piece could never achieve.

I just have a feeling that a film like Boyhood cannot be made again. Boyhood is a truly special, once in a lifetime kind of movie. It feels more like what I want an Academy Award winner for Best Picture to be but rarely is: epic, honest, meaningful and enduring. Birdman has many merits (including terrific acting, precise direction and cutting dialogue) but Boyhood should have been the symbol for the amazing year 2014 was for films. It's the pinnacle of the kinds of achievements the year has brought. It's the kind of film that should be rewarded in an effort to promote similar forward progression in the future.

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