When the great director Billy Wilder was asked, “What makes a movie unforgettable?” His answer was simple: “A little bit of magic.” We're all here tonight or sitting at home watching because something came off a movie screen. A little bit of magic touched our lives. And you always remember where you were: the theatre, the popcorn, the people you were with when it happened.
It's 1968, my family was living in Ottowa, Canada. The movie was Stanley Kubrick's 2001 Space Odyssey. I couldn't stop thinking about it: what is life? What is space? What is existence? I was six years old. And I knew right then and there I wanted to be an astronaut.
My family traveled a lot. The white-hot trail of Jaws, I was over in Kentucky. Senior year New Jersey, Apocalypse Now. Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, Raging Bull. I knew I wanted to be an actor.
In good times and poor times, movies were my lifesaver. And then last September came an event that would change us. An actor friend said to me, “What are we doing? What are we doing? Is it important? Is it even important what I do? And what of a night like tonight? Should we celebrate the joy and magic that movies bring? Well, dare I say it? More than ever.
A small scene, a gesture, even a glance between characters can cross lines, break through barriers, melt prejudice, just like plain make us laugh; it brings us all together, that little bit of magic. That is just me.
Tonight we are going to listen to you. Documentary film maker Eorris crisscrossed America, asking movie-goers and cultural-makers a question: “what do movies mean to you?” And you answered. So let's expand this beautiful stage into every one of your homes. And maybe even some of you will answer this question as you stand on this stage tonight, “what do movies mean to you?” So pull up a sofa. It's just us, talking. It's Oscar night.
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