Inside The Oscar Wars

Covert ops. Big bucks. Malice aforethought. And Russell Crowe. The Oscar campaign is so dirty, it could make a great movie

This was to be a gentler, G-rated Oscar race. After 9/11, surely Hollywood and the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences would behave with dignity. They would nominate the films (in February), vote on the finalists (by this Tuesday), then assemble, suavely tuxed and Armanied, for the Oscarcast on Sunday. They would cheer as Ron Howard finally won a Best Director prize, for A Beautiful Mind. It would be a very Opie evening. And, please, no fighting.

Are you kidding? Movie people--behave? Not with tens of millions of dollars in increased revenue from ticket sales and video...

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