The nominations for Hollywood’s annual tribute to itself are in and, hmm… not my favorite batch of Best Picture nominees this year (I was profoundly disappointed by The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and David Fincher’s Zodiac was my favorite movie of last year!), but we’re not here to talk movies. We’re here to discuss the usual travesty that is the Academy’s music nominations. Here they are:
Original Score
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Alexandre Desplat
Defiance, James Newton Howard
Milk, Danny Elfman
Slumdog Millionaire, A.R. Rahman
WALL-E, Thomas Newman
Original Song
“Down to Earth” from WALL-E, Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman
“Jai Ho” from Slumdog Millionaire, A.R. Rahman and Gulzar
“O Saya” from Slumdog Millionaire, A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam.
As far as score goes, no real surprises there, though I guess I would like to say that WALL-E certainly qualified for Best Picture as much as the moribund Button. That stupid Best Animated Feature award regularly ghettoizes some of the year’s best movies (Ratatouille, Persepolis, The Incredibles).
In the Original Song category, I thought these three things immediately:
“Only three nominees?!”
“No Bruce Springsteen?!”
“M.I.A. got an Oscar nomination?!”
The third thought is a nice bit of news, but I thought that this was another surefire year for The Boss. His song from “The Wrestler” is a soaker; when that trailer comes on, that thing guts me. It gets me right here. As far as there only being three nominees, that’s usually a good thing, as some years they struggle to get to five. Not seeing Randy Newman up for another song he crapped out is a nice development, but there were definitely more than three original songs out there. Was it that hard not to include Springsteen? Bah. I get worked up every year over the Oscar noms, and I promise myself that I won’t.
Anyway, not a total travesty here. Go M.I.A. Also, I do like that WALL-E song. I think it was because I saw some kids bouncing around to it after the movie. It made me really happy.
Bruce was robbed:
Academy Awards [Official site]
I agree about Bruce, and not just because I’m from Jersey. (I’m generally not a Bruce fan, but I know a great song when I hear it.) I also agree with animated pictures getting screwed, but I disagree with them getting screwed due to the Animated Feature category, which was started simply because the films never got nominated otherwise. They’re still not going to get nominated for Best Picture, but at least they’re getting some recognition. Let me preface this by saying that I absolutely hate anime, but there is zero doubt in my mind that Spirited Away was the best film of 2002. The ‘03 Best Picture was Chicago, which is an excellent film that I’ve seen half a dozen times, but I would put Miyazaki’s masterpiece head and shoulders above that and the other nominees.
And @Chris Molanphy: Then why is Meryl Streep nominated again? Don’t get me wrong, she’s an incredible actress, but she’s already been nominated for, what, 13 of these? And yeah, she’s only won two, but why not give her spot to, say, Sally Hawkins?
Do the same people who vote on the movie awards vote for the music awards too?
@Lax Danja House: I think that nominations now mostly come from the various guilds/groups themselves and past winners. Then the Academy as a whole votes.
@Rob Murphy: Though the Jenny Lewis track on the Bolt soundtrack (with help from Gillian Welch) was a pretty damn good song and would’ve made a perfectly acceptable 4th nomination.
@kicking222: That’s my point — Streep is the exception to any rule you could make, like Newman. They nominate her for showing up.
@SAShepherd: Never heard that! I love Gillian Welch, though.
Wall-E was easily the best picture of last year. Benjamin Button sucks major balls. Just saying.
Have you ever seen the fourth song on a list of three?
If you’ve ever seen the fourth song on a list of three then you’ve seen me.
I’m more sad that we won’t get to see Clint Eastwood singing at the Oscars.
Or, you know, the ice capades interpreting Clint Eastwood’s singing or something.
Anyway, not a total travesty hear
A telling slip.
Anyway, no Bruce? Why, the clouds have already lifted from my day!
Miley Cyrus and John Travolta wuz robbed!
Don’t forget that Bruce already has an Oscar for “Streets of Philadelphia.” Academy people are famous (infamous?) for deciding someone doesn’t “need” an award anymore, regardless of merit.
Given the Slumdog-vs.-Slumdog song race left in this category, we’re now in the odd position of a probable Peter Gabriel win. As a longtime Gabriel fan, I’m actually a little psyched about this.
Oh, and as long as we’re digressing a little on the movie front…
Totally agree about the ongoing travesty of animated-feature ghettoizing. That Pixar, the most consistently great studio of the last decade-plus, still doesn’t have a Best Picture nominee is a true blight on the Academy.
(Short explanation: actors’ branch is the single largest voting bloc, and what do actors hate? Movies that don’t require actors! On-screen, at least. Swear to God, someone could adapt Maus into the greatest animated feature ever and it still wouldn’t make the Best Picture race.)
Of course, much as I enjoyed WALL-E, I’m still fuming about Ratatouille, 2007’s best picture in any genre, missing last year’s Oscar race.
It’s too bad there’s no place for Rachel Getting Married — which had the best music in any film, IMO, though no score or original song. I want a quasi-noise band, or some Sun City Girls soundalike to play the ceremonial march at my wedding.
@Chris Molanphy: Yeah, I don’t think that’s why Springsteen got left out.
In the 14 years since Springsteen won for “Streets of Philadelphia,” Randy Newman has been nominated 12 times. He won in 2002, and was nominated again in 2007. So I don’t think the Academy is that keen to avoid repeat song awards, especially if they’re separated by more than a decade.
Ratatouille was okay.
@KurticusMaximus: Fair point, but you can’t use Newman as a rule/precedent for anything. He’s L.A. royalty now, like Meryl Streep.
it just seems like the Oscars all around this year was a means to get back at the Golden Globes (including avoiding Kate Winslet forgetting who “the other one was” drawing the ire of both England and Angelina Jolie, who was the other one)
A few unfair picks and DOUBLE slumdog tracks? seems a but unfair, even if M.I.A is pulling an Eminem and more than likely taking a statue or award home at somepoint before her baby’s due.
@Chris Molanphy: True, but the music awards are awash in “royalty” who get nominated constantly.
The Academy gets a little ridiculous in refusing to give actors repeat awards, but I don’t think they care as much about the music awards.
Besides, they’re definitely not obsessive enough to refuse to give someone 2 nominations in 15 years.