Before I proceed, I present to you my biases:
I like Kevin Costner. Always have, from “Silverado” straight through to “Dances With Wolves” (one of my favorite films), right down to “Swing Vote.” Is he a great actor? He can be. See here. Regardless, he’s something even better; a great movie star with charm, charisma and that kind of easygoing sincerity that appeals to the Midwestern in me. Also, he takes a lot of unfair guff from elite snobs perched in the oh-so precious critical community, and I’m not above choosing my friends based on their enemies.
On the other hand, I don’t like James Cameron. But you knew that.
Over the past couple days something remarkable has happened. Kevin Costner’s elbowed James Cameron right out of the Hollywood Branch of the Gulf Oil Spill Spotlight.
Whose invention is BP taking seriously?
Who testified before Congress yesterday?
Who hasn’t testified before Congress?
Whose help is BP not interested in?
Whose help is the White House not interested in?
But more importantly, who earned the right to be taken seriously?
The moment someone flipped on the Gulf Oil Spill Spotlight, the most dangerous place in the world appears to have been between James Cameron and a microphone. Yep, there he was — there was Cameron being Cameron, summoning that endless reservoir of ego to call the BP engineers “morons.” Which, when translated from Hollywood-to-English means, “I know better.”
And what exactly is Cameron’s claim to fame that gives him license to peacock around gathering experts and calling hardworking people dealing with a catastrophic problem morons?
“I made movies with Ed Harris and Leo in really deep water.”
Okay, even I know that’s a little unfair. But whatever Cameron’s underwater expertise might be, compare that to my man Kevin, who has spent years and millions of his own dollars researching and developing a vacuum technology specifically designed to solve this very problem.
And I don’t care what Costner’s motives are. Whether he wants to win the Nobel Peace Prize or make billions of dollars off his invention doesn’t matter.
Why?
Because unlike Cameron, Costner’s earned it.
Kevin Costner is not some Hollywood Glory Hound desperately trying to insert himself into a disaster. No one can claim he’s taking advantage of this disaster to advance himself. On the contrary, because he’s paid his dues, you can only admire the guy for being prepared for this disaster; prepared to actually do something constructive above and beyond hurling insults when people don’t listen to him.
And Costner’s invention may not work. But whatever his motivations, God bless the guy for trying; for putting his money, elbow grease and sweat equity where his mouth is.
And now we pause for a little poetic justice…
Does anyone doubt that once that oil started gushing Cameron didn’t see himself as The Great White Savior of the Gulf? And then what happened? Aw-Shucks Kevin ambles on in, keeps his head down, rolls his sleeves up, and steals the glory right out from under him.
Which only seems fair. After all, didn’t Cameron try to plagiarize a little of Costner’s glory by casting blue people in “Dances With Wolves” and calling it “Avatar?”
I hear the Na’Vi have a new name for Cameron: He Who Now Knows Karma’s A Bitch.
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