You need a montage

Unlike, oh, pretty much most other people, I love the montages during awards shows. Love them. It seems like every year, people complain about the montages. And I can understand why. The show already runs so long, why just make it longer? But I can't help it. I'd rather forgo acceptance speeches than get rid of the montage.

I wish I could explain it. Maybe it's the delight at recognizing a movie I've seen, or it's that my flea-sized attention span enjoys a series of quick images. Or maybe it's that a montage shows the best moments of whatever the montage is about.

And it's not confined to awards shows. Possibly the best montage is the makeover montage in a movie. There is nothing like seeing the heroine model a bunch of different outfits and hairstyles in rapidfire succession. (That alone makes me want to see 27 Dresses). And, naturally, there's the training montage. Who wants to waste precious minutes seeing the hero train for months? A rock song and a couple of minutes, and look! He or she is ready to face evil.

(I admit I'm also a sucker for shipper montages on YouTube. I've spent many a happy hour watching Jim/Pam and Veronica/Logan videos. Yes, my life is that pathetic.) (I'm talking pathetic to the point of not being able to hear Avril Lavigne's "Girlfriend" without thinking of the Karen/Jim/Pam video. Because it's awesome.)

That being said, I'm meh on montages of people getting handed awards. It's kind of sweet seeing, say, an old Charlie Chaplin, but I don't really need to reminisce about last year's Oscars.