Oscar Vidiocy?

The latest trend in Oscar hype--sending videocassette copies of nominated films to members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences--is causing something of a flap. Especially rankling, say some academy members, is the copy of “Dead Poets Society” distributed by Touchstone Pictures. It features an intermittent bottom-of-the-screen crawl citing the movie’s reviews, box-office grosses and Golden Globe nominations.

“There has been a lot of grumbling” about the cassette, admits academy veep Charles Powell. “Speaking for myself and not the academy, it would seem to be counterproductive to what they were trying to do.”

Or, as another member put it: “Sending out a defaced copy of the film like that to the academy membership is simply the height of stupidity and bad taste.”

Disney marketing execs wouldn’t comment. But a studio spokeswoman says the videos “were demo copies produced for home video retailers. They were not (originally) intended for academy members . . . these were the only copies we had available to send.”

Disney’s also earning barbs for dispensing copies of “The Little Mermaid” dotted with anti-piracy warnings. Likewise Universal, for sending out “Field of Dreams” cassettes that opened with plugs for Universal’s theme park. “Dreams” producer Lawrence Gordon defended the version, saying, “It would have been wrong to doctor it for the academy. We wanted it sent out just as it was for video stores.”

Some members object to the idea of sending videos at all, since the movies weren’t created for the small screen.

Orion Classics reportedly started the trend when it shipped videocassettes of “Camille Claudel” to Oscar voters. Academy members have also received copies of Universal’s “Do the Right Thing” and cassettes containing special-effects highlights from Fox’s “The Abyss.”

One of the more prestigious films of the year, Goldwyn’s “Henry V,” also warranted a video for members--but it featured only the trailer.