Oscar music: Too many rules?

DJ JBJ Mon, Feb 25, 2008 at 11:14 AM EST

This is yet another case of how the Disney Company controls Hollywood. Three songs at the exclusion of so much good work out there is ridiculous. It is typical when you consider that the only reason there is an animated film category is for Disney to have its films considered outside the mainstream films thereby increasing their odds of winning every year. The Disney company lobbied the academy for this category and you need only look at the results and the nominations over the few years of its existence to understand what a bag job this is.

queen of disrepair Wed, Jan 23, 2008 at 09:04 PM EST

I don't have problem with Enchanted being nominated - each of the songs drives a plot point (although Happy Working Song is my favorite song from the movie). I wish Sondre Lerche had been nominated for the Dan in Real Life work he did. And the song from Music and Lyrics would have have been a great nomination - I just hope that I don't have to hear Aimee Mann or Beyonce singing at the Oscars EVER AGAIN...

wildcat76 Wed, Jan 23, 2008 at 02:13 PM EST

I'm just glad that at least FALLING SLOWLY was even nominated -- based on these wacky rules. I read that the director John Carney, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova never imagined the widespread success of ONCE. They thought they'd just be selling copies of the DVD at concerts of Glen's band THE FRAMES. After ONCE wrapped, they probably thought let's go ahead and put FALLING SLOWLY on THE COST and THE SWELL SEASON cds, too. These rules are crazy -- why were none of Eddie Vedder's songs from INTO THE WILD nominated instead of that unmoving So Close song.

louis Wed, Jan 23, 2008 at 11:55 AM EST

Jonny Greenwood, I take my hat off to you. I can't remember the last time I heard a score that shared an equal part of a films overall greatness--as much as the photography, the actors, and the story itself--as yours did. Truly unforgettable. It will be scrutinized and studied in film schools for many, many years. Here's keeping an eye on your Hollywood career.

mark Wed, Jan 23, 2008 at 11:49 AM EST

I too think it's outrageous. Although the oscars have been steadily losing credibility over the last, say, 30 years, it's simply a smack in the face for what was indeed one of the most powerful, evocative and haunting scores in memory.

Pelle Wed, Jan 23, 2008 at 08:58 AM EST

Bring back the Adapted Score category! That will solve all these problems. If "All That Jazz" could win with its inclusion of "On Broadway," surely someone can lobby the Academy to bring back the Adapted Score award so that Greenwood and others could be honored as they so deserved to be.

Matthew Cruz Wed, Jan 23, 2008 at 01:25 AM EST

Jonny Greenwood's score didn't deserve a nomination. It was too intrusive and self-conscious. I can't handle scores that overpower their visuals.

Secondrink Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 10:49 PM EST

Really, the Oscar voters make the most moronic selections about 80% of the time...probably even more than that; I haven't done the math, haha. I'm so pissed about the JG snub and now that I know what the regulations are, I'm flipped out about the other snubs too. Idiots! Is it not about how the music fits with the film and its over all quality? Ugh.

CV Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 10:23 PM EST

Madonna not getting nominated? How about the music from Saturday Night Fever not getting nominated. There's no movie without it...after that, you can't take this category seriously, although it's gotten a bit better than it was back in 1978.

But where are "Way Back Into Love" or "Pop Goes My Heart"?

SDA333 Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 07:44 PM EST

And why was "Way back Into Love" from "Music and Lyrics" snubbed? I saw this movie a month ago and STILL can't get this song out of my head. A perfect pop song.....

Tina Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 06:43 PM EST

I'm sorry, but I LOVE "That's How You Know" and I hope it wins.

Will Amy be performing it at the Oscars? (should they go on)

Sarah Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 06:32 PM EST

"Falling Slowly" must win. Everything else is fluff.

Bear Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 06:29 PM EST

Maybe I'm just too accepting...but if a song's in a movie (for a legitimate length of time) then it should be eligible for nomination. It's also disgusting to me that movies made from earlier musicals can't get their songs nominated; in all likelihood it's not the same cast and it's probably twenty years later anyway, so why act as though all the work the actors did just doesn't matter? AAARGH! Anyway, my experience has also been that just because a movie gets nominated for a bigajillion Oscars doesn't mean the score should be also; the list this year hews much too closely to the other categories. Why wasn't Pirates of the Carribean nominated? Well, simply, the voters were being snobs about it; if they can't take a movie seriously, you can bet they won't nominate the music (but they'll reward them for technical feats, which actually, ends up looking a little embarrassing, can't say why). Anyway, done ranting.

Rose Tyler Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 06:00 PM EST

So this all means that the music from Sweeney Todd can't be nominated because it was written for the stage production, right? And all the Across the Universe music can't because even though sang by different people they are Beatles songs, correct? Same with the song at the end of Juno. Ok so now I can almost see why Enchanted got 3 nods. Almost. But where is "Pop Goes My Heart"? Who wouldn't want to see Hugh Grant shake his thing on live TV, if there is a telecast!?

Ben Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 05:30 PM EST

As Madonna has never been nominated for her songs which defined the movies -- even when the movies were crap, the songs were classic -- this category has not been a serious one for me. The sheer amount of Disney pap that gets nominated is disgusting. I certainly hope "Falling Slowly" gets the award as the song is beautiful and FIT INTO THE STORY of the movie rather than being tacked on to the end. I was surprised "Ladies' Choice" from Hairspray wasn't nominated.

adam875 Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 05:27 PM EST

Well, Alan Menken doesn't have enough Oscars, so 3 nominations... oh wait, he has MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE ALIVE.

It's been years and I still can't believe "Come What May" from Moulin Rouge wasn't eligible because it was written for another movie... even though it was never actually USED. How does the academy even KNOW that it was written for something else if they scrapped it the first time around??

Mike Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 05:04 PM EST

Eddie Vedder was definitely snubbed for his great work on ITW by the excessive Enchanted nominations but I take solace in the fact that Glen Hansard will be defeating all three of them, and deservedly so. There's no solace to be taken in the Jonny Greenwood technicality snub.

Wendy Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 04:38 PM EST

John Mayer was robbed. 'Say' is a fantastic song that summed up a crappy movie that was specifically written for it.

Gringo Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 04:17 PM EST

The best song category never ceases to irk me. I simply do not understand why they are so resistant to great songs. From Alanis Morissette to Emmylou Harris. It's time to rethink the "rules"

Maddie Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 04:07 PM EST

Falling Slowly was deemed eligible because it was composed specifically for the film Once. After that film finished shooting, but before it was released in theaters, the song appeared on The Swell Season and The Cost. A similar eligibility question arose two years ago regarding Bird York's song In The Deep from Crash. The song was released on her album, The Velvet Hour, before Crash hit theaters. However, in both cases, as long as the song was written initially for the film, it is allowed in the Best Original Song category.

Auriana Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 04:03 PM EST

There are always going to be complaints on the nominees, especially in the music categories. I think above all the others, these two categories rely mostly on personal taste in music. I don't see what the big deal is about Enchanted being nominated for 3 songs. Personally, I love them and it's the first time since the Lord of the Ring movies that I actually recognize and LIKE a song nominated. That being said, it's been a dry year for me in terms of scores. I only found a handful this past year worth buying (300, PotC:At World's End, Order of the Phoenix, Stardust and Enchanted) and only two of those have made it into my cd player for continued playing (Enchanted and Pirates...sorry HP but since Williams left you just havn't been the same). Granted, the only score that was nominated that I've actually heard was Ratatouille and it didn't leave an impression on me (loved the movie though). Again, all personal opinion. I'd have loved to see the music for 300 or PotC nominated.

Strepsi Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 03:51 PM EST

AH is right - and to the existing rules for "Song" I'd add:
SONG MUST BE IN THE ACTUAL MOVIE FOR MORE THAN 1 MINUTE. SONGS OVER CLOSING CREDITS NOT ELIGIBLE. I mean, when even notable films like Lord of the Rings are cramming a pop song at the end credits SOLELY to be eligible for an Oscar this has got to stop. Especially risible in Musicals, where the "new" song (so it can be eligible) is over the credits. I call Bullsh!

AH Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 03:45 PM EST

The song category is meaningless. Most of the songs nominated in recent years are either played over the end credits or so obscure as to negate their importance to either filmmaking or American culture at large. If you go back through the list of best song winners, I guarantee most people will not recognize at least 50 percent of them. Let's stop getting so upset over a category that "You light up my life" and "Let the river run" and that random Annie Lennox song won.

And for those of you with any sort of memory, you forget that Disney owns this category. And very few of the songs in this category are ever critical to the plot. All of the Enchanted songs were.

RakuMon Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 03:44 PM EST

Wait, if Eddie Vedder's "Into the Wild" was too "song based," then why the heck didn't he get any Best Song noms?!?!