Nominated, Yet Not Nomianted

Holy cow Batman: God has been disqualified from the Oscars!

Alright, sorry for the outdated Batman pun, but can any of you honestly blame me for that?  Who would have thought such an unknown Christian film would be the most controversial Oscar nomination of the year?  First the song “Alone Yet Not Alone” (from the film of the same name) was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Song category, beating out songs from other artists such as Taylor Swift and Coldplay.  Then, because of accusations that the song was favored because the songs writer, Bruce Brouton, was a former governor and current music branch executive committee member, the songs most unique nomination has been pulled by the Academy.  Why?  Because Brouton e-mailed some 200 plus voting members and let them know that this song existed and to ask them to at least listen to it and consider nominating it.

That’s it.

No CD’s were pressed, no lavish parties were thrown, and no favors were called in.  He simply let Academy members know the song was in contention for an award and brought its existence up with other members.  Somehow this violates the Academy’s campaigning rules though, so the nomination has been yanked.  No other song has been nominated in its place, which makes the whole thing all the more strange.  

The thing that makes my head spin on this is how can such a simple act be considered a violation of campaigning rules by the Academy?  Let’s not pretend that the Oscars are a big popularity contest to a certain extent.  Campaigning is the lifeblood of what keeps these awards breathing from the beginning to end.

If there is no campaigning there is no money or perks to be made in all of this, and thus there is no reason to have awards.  Studios throw big parties and invite their fellow Academy members and friends all the time, for the sole purpose of kissing butt while mentioning “by the way, you going to vote for my movie?”  

Harvey Weinstein has used e-mail addresses and much, much more to get his films nominated.  The ethnics behind campaigning have always been in question.  Remember the whole “Hoop Dreams” scandal?  That was a situation where it was well documented that members of the documentary branch fudged with the voting numbers of that film, where a few members were so threatened by outsiders coming onto their turf that they gave the film their lowest grades to force it off the ballot.

I don’t recall the Academy acting swiftly to fix what was an obvious abuse of power in THAT situation!  For that matter, songs by music branch members get nominated all the time.  Is the Academy going to go back in the past and disqualify every song that is by a music branch member that campaigned even a little bit?  From where I stand the grassroots campaign for this song was in no more violation of the Academy’s rules than any other campaigning that was done for the other songs.  

I mean, if this song could get disqualified because a few e-mails were sent out, then why does Disney get to keep their nomination when they send out screeners, pressed CD’s, and (you guessed it) e-mails with multiple YouTube links?  You can hear the song below and judge for yourself if it should have been nominated or not, because the Academy won’t be doing that now.

"The Lorax" Is The Best Musical You Didn't See Coming

Thneedville

Despite now being able to say that "The Muppets" finally bagged a Best Song Oscar for a Muppets film, last years pitiful Best Song nomination count was pathetic.  It's not like there weren't any good songs to nominate, the voters of that category just seemed out to lunch or something.  Provided they pull their act together, then chances are one of the catchy songs from "The Lorax" seems like a good early contender for Best Song.  My pick for a likely nomination is "Thneedville" (which you can listen to on Spotify above), but other people have soft spots for "How Bad Can I Be" and "Let it Grow."  As usual we'll just have to wait and see.

My Ideal "Best Song" Nominations

Here are the songs I would love to see be nominated for Best Song.  Whether they do or don't, I guess we'll see.

Albert Nobbs - "Lay Your Head Down" by Sinead O'Connor

Captain America: The First Avenger - "Star Spangled Man" by Alan Menkin

Gnomeo & Juliet - "Hello, Hello" by Elton John

Happy Feet Two - "Bridge of Light" by Pink

The Muppets - "Life's A Happy Song" by The Muppets

Here Comes the Family (Films)

This is a great time to go to the movies if you've got families.  "The Muppets" was released to great critical acclaim and has re-introduced the characters in a way that means they'll be coming back in a big way after the dust settles with this film.  "Arthur Christmas" was released to great critical acclaim and is poised to become a new holiday classic for many families.  And Martin Scoresese's "Hugo" was released to great critical acclaim and is hailed as one of the best films of the year.  In fact, these three films are three of the best reviewed films of the year.  I know, I was sort of surprised too.  We're lucky to get one great family film a YEAR (much less three in a WEEK)!

So people have wondered that since the reviews are great, where do these films stand with Oscar?  Well, "Arthur Christmas" is officially the front-runner to win Best Animated Feature.  Provided that Spielberg's "The Adventures of Tintin" doesn't pull a surprise win, I think this is the one to beat.  "The Muppets" will get a Best Song nomination for "Pictures in My Head," but I think the witty screenplay has a chance of being nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay as well.  As for "Hugo"...well folks, this is the big one.  I think "Hugo" will be running in the race for Best Picture.  Word-of-mouth is going to make this film a sensation.  The 3D may wake the Academy up and make them realize this style of film making needs its own award.

Despite being pretty reliable, Scoresese is an underdog because he's directing a family film instead of a gritty drama (the Academy loves underdog stories).  Finally though, this is a movie (as Sasha Stone constantly reminds us) is a movie the Academy could just "like."  The trick to winning in this race is to be a movie that everyone can like (if not outright love), and in this respect "Hugo" has a lot going for it.  Either way, ignoring the Oscar race altogether, this is rare time when family films are plentiful in theaters, and parents need to take advantage of this because who knows when this much quality family entertainment will just fall into our laps again?

"Happy Feet Two" is NOT Winning Best Animated Feature (But it Might Win Best Song)!

I saw "Happy Feet Two" tonight on IMAX 3D.  You can read my full review here, but to sum it up: "Happy Feet Two" will NOT be nominated for Best Animated Feature!  It's not as dull as "Cars 2" was, but it certainly failed to live up the quality of the original film.  That said, I DO believe that P!nk has got Best Song in the bag with her downright moving song "Bridge of Light."  Listen to the song below...

...and tell me that's not one of the most things you've heard all year.  And trust me, this is BETTER in the movie itself!  Hey, I said the movie wasn't good, I didn't say it was terrible.  There were some great scenes in that movie...just not enough to make it a good movie, and competition is still even without Pixar in the race this year.  But Best Song...man, I'm almost tempted to say this win is in stone, but maybe the Broadway song from "Captain America: The First Avenger" will sneak in there.  Who knows?

Patriotism Never Sounded So Catchy

For those who are feeling particularly patriotic this morning, take a listen to "Star Spangled Man," a catchy Broadway-style tune by Alan Silvestri (the Oscar-nominated composer who wrote the "Back To The Future" theme) for the new film "Captain America: The First Avenger."  And yes, I would SO love to see this nominated for Best Song and performed with lots of flamboyant glee at the Oscar telecast next year!

Best Song Frontrunner

Disney's "Winnie The Pooh" is currently out in theaters.  Chances are you haven't seen it (it DID open opposite of "Harry Potter and the Death;y Hallows Part II" after all).  Well, I did, and though it's not the best animated film I've seen, I wouldn't be too surprised to see it win Best Animated Feature.  It's not complicated but it's so charming and sweat that it's hard not to leave with a big smile on your face, which could go a long way with the increasingly aging Academy members.  One aspect I did like though was the music, which was written but Kristen and Robert Lopez (who was one of the co-writers of the "Avenue Q" score if you can believe it).  I don't know if this song is going to be groundbreaking, but it's fun and catchy enough that I think it would be a lot of fun to see this nominated for Best Song.

Eligible Best Songs

These are the songs eligible for Oscar for Best Song this year:

“All Is Love” from “Where the Wild Things Are”
“Almost Over You” from “My One and Only”
“Almost There” from “The Princess and the Frog”
“AyAyAyAy” from “The Maid”
“Back to Tennessee” from “Hannah Montana The Movie”
“Being Bad” from “Duplicity”
“Blanco” from “Fast & Furious”
“Brothers in Arms” from “Brothers at War”
“Butterfly Fly Away” from “Hannah Montana The Movie”
“Cinema Italiano” from “Nine”
“Colorblind” from “Invictus”
“Depression Era” from “That Evening Sun”
“Don’t Walk Away” from “Hannah Montana The Movie”
“Dove of Peace” from “Bruno”
“Down in New Orleans” from “The Princess and the Frog”
“Fly Farm Blues” from “It Might Get Loud”
“Forget Me” from “I Love You, Beth Cooper”
“God Bless Us Everyone” from “Disney’s A Christmas Carol”
“Here” from “Shrink”
“Hideaway” from “Where the Wild Things Are”
“Hoedown Throwdown” from “Hannah Montana The Movie”
“I Bring What I Love” from “Youssou N’Dour: I Bring What I Love”
“I See You” from “Avatar”

“(I Want to) Come Home” from “Everybody’s Fine”
“If You’re Wondering” from “The Lightkeepers”
“Impossible Fantasy” from “Adventures of Power”
“Innocent Child” from “Skin”
“Invictus 9,000 Days” from “Invictus”
“Legendary” from “Tyson”
“Let Freedom Reign” from “Skin”
“Loin de Paname” from “Paris 36”
“Ma Belle Evangeline” from “The Princess and the Frog”
“My One and Only” from “My One and Only”
“Na Na” from “Couples Retreat”
“Never Knew I Needed” from “The Princess and the Frog”
“New Divide” from “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen”
“New Jersey Nights” from “Adventures of Power”
“New York Is Where I Live” from “Did You Hear about the Morgans?”
“No Time for Love” from “Simon & Malou”
“One Day” from “Post Grad”
“Only You” from “The Young Victoria”
“Other Father Song” from “Coraline”
“Petey’s Song” from “Fantastic Mr. Fox”
“Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea” from “Ponyo”“
Possibility” from “The Twilight Saga: New Moon”
“Raining Sunshine” from “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs”
“Running Out of Empty (Make Ourselves at Home)” from “Lymelife”
“Smoke without Fire” from “An Education”
“Somebody Else” from “Crazy Heart”
“Stu’s Song” from “The Hangover”
“Take It All” from “Nine”
“Through the Trees” from “Jennifer’s Body”
“Trust Me” from “The Informant!”
“Un Bouquet des Violettes” from “New York, I Love You”
“We Are the Children of the World” from “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”
“We Love Violence” from “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”
“The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)” from “Crazy Heart”
“When You Find Me” from “Adam”
“Winter” from “Brothers”
“The Word Is Love” from “Oy Vey! My Son Is Gay!”
“You Got Me Wrapped around Your Little Finger” from “An Education”
“You’ll Always Find Your Way Back Home” from “Hannah Montana The Movie”
“You’ve Been a Friend to Me” from “Old Dogs”

Lambert At The Oscars?

I know I was very vocal in my disgust for Roland Emmerick's "2012" was even made.  I mean, how many times can this guy destroy the world?  He did this in "Independence Day," "Stargate," "Godzilla," "The Day After Tomorrow"...let's just say this is not one of my favorite directors, and this movie pained me because I know it was going to be a big hit.  What I didn't realize at the time was that Adam Lambert did a track for the movie.  Who's Adam Lambert?  Well, for those who don't know (probably very few) he was a contestant on "American Idol" last year, who was the favorite to win when he ended up coming in second in what became one of the shows (and televisions) most loud upsets.

Lambert was very flamboyant, strange, and not someone who looked like he belonged on AI.  But he also sounded great.  He had a style that blew everyone away.  Listening to his debut album "For Your Entertainment" he comes off as the new Davie Bowie, and his loss was felt by everyone who saw the show and voted for him.  But he has an original song in "2012."  It's called "Time For Miracles."  And while it doesn't has Adam's usual style it's a very good ballad.  This makes it a favorite to get an Oscar nomination.  Which...makes this interesting all of a sudden.  Wouldn't it just be the ultimate vindication if Adam Lambert, who is widely considered the guy who was most robbed on AI on the stage performing at the Academy Awards?

Not only that, what if he wins?  I can't think of any better revenge against the public for losing to Kris Allen.  Kris Allen gets an AI crown and an album that has yet to chart.  Adam Lambert gets a "out-of-the-door" hit album and an Oscar early next year.  The idea just makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside doesn't it?

Buy Adam Lambert's "For Your Entertainment"

Buy "Time For Miracles" MP3 from Amazon.com

This Is Jackon's Moment

Though I know most of you are groaning at the idea of the upcoming Sony release of "Michael Jackson's This Is It" the fact of the matter is that movie IS coming!  Yeah it's taking advantage of Michael's death (as well as people's willingness to all of a sudden buy anything with his name on it), but the one aspect we're not looking at is how this will affect the Oscar race.  No, I don't think this is going to be nominated for Best Picture.  I question whether or not the movie will even crack the Best Documentary Feature race.  However the title track of the movie has never been released before, and the studio is making this song a movie exclusive.

If I'm not mistaken this makes it an easy favorite for the Best Song race, a category that has been losing respect slowly but surely over the past several years due to lame nominations and even worse winners.  If nominated "This Is It" will be the favorite song to win.  The only question left will be who sings the song.  I'm not even going to speculate and let the producer of the show deal with that problem.  You know, once a producer is picked that is.

Jonas Brothers Road To Oscar?

The new Jonas Brothers concert film opened at number 3, making slightly more then $12 million dollars. This was not what Disney was expected. Clearly they'd like us to THINK the Jonas Brothers are more popular then they really are! The movie was outgrossed by "Madea Goes To Jail" (#1) and "Slumdog Millionaire" (#2). While it's doubtful their movie career is going to take off don't count them out of an Oscar just yet. There is at least one original song in this concert that was performed exclusively for this movie. That means they could get an Oscar nomination in the Best Song category should the Academy want tween viewers to tune into the show next year. Will it win? Doubtful, but if an original song is performed by a popular artist I assume it to have a good chance at garnering a nomination regardless of the quality. The Academy has done this before and they'll do it again.

Will Clint Sing His Way To Another Oscar?

Clint Eastwood is an Oscar darling. He's directed two Best Picture winners ("Unforgiven" and "Million Dollar Baby"), he's been nominated for several other films. He's also an acclaimed actor, writer, and producer. Like a fine wine he gets better with age. One thing he is not known for though is his musical talents. On top of writing, directing, producing, and (sometimes) acting in his films, he usually writes the music for his movies. His scores aren't always as good as scores that come from dedicated composers, but, hey, it's still one more talent he can add his name to. Though Clint's son, Kyle, has written the score for his latest movie, "Gran Torino," Clint himself wrote the title song for the album.

And what a beautiful song it is.

Right now, with all the Oscars Clint has, people are dubious on whether or not the Academy would give him another one (especially during a year of high competition). Well, I'm skeptical about him getting another Best Director award, but if he gets the multiple nominations I think he will, then the easiest way to honor that achievement (and not hurt too many peoples feelings) to give him an Oscar for this slow, moving, and haunting song. We'll first have to see if it even gets nominated, but I'm feeling pretty confident about this one.

Love Narnia's Melody

I know the race for Best Picture is more interesting, but I feel that Regina Spektor's wonderful song from "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian" has got a very good shot at winning Best Song. If you haven't heard it yet, then feel free to listen to it now: