UPDATED: Nov. 24, 2010, 5:34 p.m.

Legendary French-Swiss filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard was presented with an honorary Oscar on November 14. But he was not present to accept the award.

 

It is not unusual for cinematic icons not to attend award’s ceremonies, but Godard’s absence may be linked to a recent controversy surrounding him. In the weeks leading up to the second Governors Awards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, accusations of anti-Semitism have hit Godard with uncommon ferocity.

 

Godard has been consistently hailed as one of the most accomplished and influential filmmakers. In film publication Sight & Sound’s grand, oft-referenced poll of greatest films, conducted in 2002, Godard was voted the third-greatest director of all time. The next poll will not be published until 2012.

 

Claims concerning Godard potentially being an anti-Semite continue to fuel one of the most heated arts vs. ideals debates in years. The Academy stood its ground in defending the award, reiterating the honor reflects his work as a filmmaker, not his worldview. He has never incurred Mel Gibson-level outrage with a comment or action, which might have influenced the Academy’s forgiving nature.

 

In his 1976 documentary ‘Here and Elsewhere,’ Godard contrasted the image of Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir with that of Adolf Hitler. He has noted that Jews became heavily involved in cinema early on due to quotas that segregated them from a vast array of professions, but he is quick to point out that they also came to a quick arrangement with the Mafia.

 

Godard’s comments are shamefully bigoted, though it might be wise to take much of what he says with a grain of salt. Godard loves to toy with words, often using his superior intellect to ruffle feathers.

 

One of his more famous quotes is ‘To be or not to be. That’s not really a question.’ Godard has long loved to make fun of Hollywood, comparing Los Angeles to a big garage.

 

When an interviewer equated him to Picasso, Godard responded, ‘I don’t like the comparison. He painted too many plates.’

 

Rather than show up to receive the New York Film Critics Circle’s first career achievement award, Godard merely wrote a letter to NYFCC Chairman Armond White with a seemingly absurd list of reasons for why he could not accept the award. An example was failing to cast Frank Sinatra in ‘Contempt’ (1963), arguably his finest film.

 

But Godard should by no means be given the benefit of the doubt. Racial denigration of any kind is horrible, and Godard is reputed to have said some horrible, hurtful things. He has claimed to not be anti-Semitic, but evidence of his feelings — verbal and cinematic — would attest otherwise.

 

Godard is currently attached to direct an adaptation of Daniel Mendelsohn’s National Jewish Book Award-winning memoir, ‘The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million,’ which centers on the author’s quest to discover what happened to his relatives who died in the Holocaust.

 

Regardless of the quality of the film, taking on such a project will be a step in the right direction for Godard.

 

smlittma@syr.edu

Published on November 22, 2010 at 12:00 pm