2012 Best Original Song - Adele Heals 007's Oscar Wounds

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WON AND SHOULD'VE WON: "Skyfall," Skyfall

Prior to the 2012 Oscar ceremony, the James Bond film franchise had never received much in the way of affection from the Academy.

In terms of actual wins, only Goldfinger and Thunderball had scored prizes - in Best Sound Effects and Best Visual Effects, respectively, over nominal competition. Diamonds Are Forever received a nomination for its sound effects and Moonraker nabbed a nod for its visual effects. The most well-received Bond flick was actually The Spy Who Loved Me, which managed three nominations in 1977 - Best Art Direction, Best Original Score and yes, Best Original Song.

The Spy Who Loved Me's "Nobody Does It Better" (perhaps the all-time greatest Bond song) was one of three Bond pictures to show up in Best Original Song, the other two being the eponymous themes to Live and Let Die (fun) and For Your Eyes Only (dreadful adult contemporary).

Come 2012, more than three decades since the last 007 appearance in Best Original Song, the Academy was at last ready to embrace a Bond theme for victory, though, to be fair, I'm not so sure "Skyfall" would have triumphed (or even been nominated) without the beloved juggernaut of a performer that is Adele.

I don't quite consider "Skyfall" one of the strongest Bond themes - looking back over all of them, I'd rank it right around #10 - but it is nicely orchestrated, of course gorgeously performed and has the good fortune of headlining one of the best non-Connery films in the franchise. It is also a lot more entertaining than its Best Original Song company in 2012, an otherwise pretty forgettable foursome of tunes that didn't even much resonate at their time of release.

I would argue there are basically three tiers in quality in this category - "Skyfall," then the Life of Pi and Ted tracks and then way behind them, the Chasing Ice and Les Miz tunes.

Mychael Danna's music to Life of Pi is truly sumptuous stuff, a whole-heartedly worthy winner in Best Original Score. "Pi's Lullaby" pairs Danna's composition with lyrics by Bombay Jayashri and, while the track is certainly affecting, I'm not sure Jayashri's contribution brings a whole lot to the table - the tune doesn't soar any higher than anything else on the soundtrack.

Ted's "Everybody Needs a Best Friend" is amiable-enough, composed by Family Guy's Seth MacFarlane and Walter Murphy and performed by Norah Jones, but I almost wish MacFarlane had gone the South Park route and given his original song some raunchy bite. For being included in such a raw, side-splitting film, this is pretty light, generic stuff.

I won't spend much time on the other two nominees, other than to say Les Miserables' "Suddenly" is yet another stage-to-screen adaptation original song that pales completely in comparison to the original stage music, and Chasing Ice's "Before My Time" is a lifeless sleeping pill.

The Oscar-winners ranked (thus far)...

  1. "Over the Rainbow," The Wizard of Oz (1939)
  2. "The Way You Look Tonight," Swing Time (1936)
  3. "Streets of Philadelphia," Philadelphia (1993)
  4. "Lose Yourself," 8 Mile (2002)
  5. "High Hopes," A Hole in the Head (1959)
  6. "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)," The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
  7. "Mona Lisa," Captain Carey, U.S.A. (1950)
  8. "Baby, It's Cold Outside," Neptune's Daughter (1949)
  9. "(I've Had) the Time of My Life," Dirty Dancing (1987)
  10. "The Windmills of Your Mind," The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
  11. "The Way We Were," The Way We Were (1973)
  12. "Let the River Run," Working Girl (1988)
  13. "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
  14. "Under the Sea," The Little Mermaid (1989)
  15. "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, On My Darlin')," High Noon (1952)
  16. "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," The Lion King (1994)
  17. "Beauty and the Beast," Beauty and the Beast (1991)
  18. "I'm Easy," Nashville (1975)
  19. "You'll Never Know," Hello, Frisco, Hello (1943)
  20. "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe," The Harvey Girls (1946)
  21. "Fame," Fame (1980)
  22. "Theme from Shaft," Shaft (1971)
  23. "Secret Love," Calamity Jane (1953)
  24. "White Christmas," Holiday Inn (1942)
  25. "Moon River," Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
  26. "Take My Breath Away," Top Gun (1986)
  27. "When You Wish Upon a Star," Pinocchio (1940)
  28. "Thanks for the Memory," The Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938)
  29. "Lullaby of Broadway," Gold Diggers of 1935 (1935)
  30. "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah," Song of the South (1947)
  31. "A Whole New World," Aladdin (1992)
  32. "My Heart Will Go On," Titanic (1997)
  33. "Flashdance...What a Feeling," Flashdance (1983)
  34. "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," Arthur (1981)
  35. "I Need to Wake Up," An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
  36. "Last Dance," Thank God It's Friday (1978)
  37. "Colors of the Wind," Pocahontas (1995)
  38. "Falling Slowly," Once (2007)
  39. "You Must Love Me," Evita (1996)
  40. "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)," Dick Tracy (1990)
  41. "Days of Wine and Roses," Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
  42. "For All We Know," Lovers and Other Strangers (1970)
  43. "All the Way," The Joker Is Wild (1957)
  44. "It Might As Well Be Spring," State Fair (1945)
  45. "The Last Time I Saw Paris," Lady Be Good (1941)
  46. "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening," Here Comes the Groom (1951)
  47. "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing," Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955)
  48. "Skyfall," Skyfall (2012)
  49. "The Weary Kind," Crazy Heart (2009)
  50. "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp," Hustle & Flow (2005)
  51. "It Goes Like It Goes," Norma Rae (1979)
  52. "Born Free," Born Free (1966)
  53. "Never on Sunday," Never on Sunday (1960)
  54. "I Just Called to Say I Love You," The Woman in Red (1984)
  55. "Up Where We Belong," An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)
  56. "Three Coins in the Fountain," Three Coins in the Fountain (1954)
  57. "Chim Chim Cher-ee," Mary Poppins (1964)
  58. "Call Me Irresponsible," Papa's Delicate Condition (1963)
  59. "Evergreen (Theme from A Star Is Born)," A Star Is Born (1976)
  60. "Al otro lado del río," The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
  61. "Things Have Changed," Wonder Boys (2000)
  62. "Swinging on a Star," Going My Way (1944)
  63. "Into the West," The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
  64. "Man or Muppet," The Muppets (2011)
  65. "We Belong Together," Toy Story 3 (2010)
  66. "Jai Ho," Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
  67. "If I Didn't Have You," Monsters, Inc. (2001)
  68. "You'll Be in My Heart," Tarzan (1999)
  69. "You Light Up My Life," You Light Up My Life (1977)
  70. "Gigi," Gigi (1958)
  71. "The Continental," The Gay Divorcee (1934)
  72. "Sweet Leilani," Waikiki Wedding (1937)
  73. "Buttons and Bows," The Paleface (1948)
  74. "Talk to the Animals," Doctor Dolittle (1967)
  75. "The Shadow of Your Smile," The Sandpiper (1965)
  76. "When You Believe," The Prince of Egypt (1998)
  77. "Say You, Say Me," White Nights (1985)
  78. "The Morning After," The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
  79. "We May Never Love Like This Again," The Towering Inferno (1974)

2011 Best Original Song - Longing for the Rainbow Connection

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2011 - Best Original Song

The nominees were...

"Man or Muppet," The Muppets
"Real in Rio," Rio

WON: "Man or Muppet," The Muppets

SHOULD'VE WON: "Real in Rio," Rio

In the category of Best Original Song at the 1979 Oscars, I sided with The Muppet Movie's "The Rainbow Connection" over that year's actual winner, "It Goes Like It Goes," from Norma Rae. Composed by the legendary Paul Williams, "The Rainbow Connection" was a sweet heart-tugger, performed just heavenly by Kermit the Frog (AKA Jim Henson).

"The Rainbow Connection" had so many great qualities, nearly all of which are missing in "Man or Muppet," one of composer/Flight of the Conchords star Bret McKenzie's four original tunes from 2011's otherwise-amusing The Muppets. The song is charmingly performed by Jason Segal and Peter Linz (featuring Jim Parsons and Bill Barretta) and I dig McKenzie's attempt to deliver a send-up of Elton John adult contemporary, but the tune just doesn't catch fire, really isn't all that funny and lacks the heart that's so often found in the best Muppet songs.

In a supreme eyebrow-raiser, the Academy nominated just one other song in 2011 - again, a product of the category's bizarre points system - and that one isn't so extraordinary either, though I do ever-so-slightly prefer it. Rio's "Real in Rio" may not be especially catchy or even very memorable but it does at least have a ton of energy and enthusiasm behind it, with solid instrumentals by the brilliant Sergio Mendes.

No surprise, there actually were great original songs to be nominated in 2011 - most notably, Mary J. Blige's "The Living Proof" from Best Picture nominee The Help and Sinead O'Connor's "Lay Your Head Down" from Glenn Close Oscar vehicle Albert Nobbs - but the screwy nominating system here did them in.

The Oscar-winners ranked (thus far)...

  1. "Over the Rainbow," The Wizard of Oz (1939)
  2. "The Way You Look Tonight," Swing Time (1936)
  3. "Streets of Philadelphia," Philadelphia (1993)
  4. "Lose Yourself," 8 Mile (2002)
  5. "High Hopes," A Hole in the Head (1959)
  6. "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)," The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
  7. "Mona Lisa," Captain Carey, U.S.A. (1950)
  8. "Baby, It's Cold Outside," Neptune's Daughter (1949)
  9. "(I've Had) the Time of My Life," Dirty Dancing (1987)
  10. "The Windmills of Your Mind," The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
  11. "The Way We Were," The Way We Were (1973)
  12. "Let the River Run," Working Girl (1988)
  13. "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
  14. "Under the Sea," The Little Mermaid (1989)
  15. "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, On My Darlin')," High Noon (1952)
  16. "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," The Lion King (1994)
  17. "Beauty and the Beast," Beauty and the Beast (1991)
  18. "I'm Easy," Nashville (1975)
  19. "You'll Never Know," Hello, Frisco, Hello (1943)
  20. "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe," The Harvey Girls (1946)
  21. "Fame," Fame (1980)
  22. "Theme from Shaft," Shaft (1971)
  23. "Secret Love," Calamity Jane (1953)
  24. "White Christmas," Holiday Inn (1942)
  25. "Moon River," Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
  26. "Take My Breath Away," Top Gun (1986)
  27. "When You Wish Upon a Star," Pinocchio (1940)
  28. "Thanks for the Memory," The Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938)
  29. "Lullaby of Broadway," Gold Diggers of 1935 (1935)
  30. "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah," Song of the South (1947)
  31. "A Whole New World," Aladdin (1992)
  32. "My Heart Will Go On," Titanic (1997)
  33. "Flashdance...What a Feeling," Flashdance (1983)
  34. "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," Arthur (1981)
  35. "I Need to Wake Up," An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
  36. "Last Dance," Thank God It's Friday (1978)
  37. "Colors of the Wind," Pocahontas (1995)
  38. "Falling Slowly," Once (2007)
  39. "You Must Love Me," Evita (1996)
  40. "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)," Dick Tracy (1990)
  41. "Days of Wine and Roses," Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
  42. "For All We Know," Lovers and Other Strangers (1970)
  43. "All the Way," The Joker Is Wild (1957)
  44. "It Might As Well Be Spring," State Fair (1945)
  45. "The Last Time I Saw Paris," Lady Be Good (1941)
  46. "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening," Here Comes the Groom (1951)
  47. "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing," Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955)
  48. "The Weary Kind," Crazy Heart (2009)
  49. "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp," Hustle & Flow (2005)
  50. "It Goes Like It Goes," Norma Rae (1979)
  51. "Born Free," Born Free (1966)
  52. "Never on Sunday," Never on Sunday (1960)
  53. "I Just Called to Say I Love You," The Woman in Red (1984)
  54. "Up Where We Belong," An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)
  55. "Three Coins in the Fountain," Three Coins in the Fountain (1954)
  56. "Chim Chim Cher-ee," Mary Poppins (1964)
  57. "Call Me Irresponsible," Papa's Delicate Condition (1963)
  58. "Evergreen (Theme from A Star Is Born)," A Star Is Born (1976)
  59. "Al otro lado del río," The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
  60. "Things Have Changed," Wonder Boys (2000)
  61. "Swinging on a Star," Going My Way (1944)
  62. "Into the West," The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
  63. "Man or Muppet," The Muppets (2011)
  64. "We Belong Together," Toy Story 3 (2010)
  65. "Jai Ho," Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
  66. "If I Didn't Have You," Monsters, Inc. (2001)
  67. "You'll Be in My Heart," Tarzan (1999)
  68. "You Light Up My Life," You Light Up My Life (1977)
  69. "Gigi," Gigi (1958)
  70. "The Continental," The Gay Divorcee (1934)
  71. "Sweet Leilani," Waikiki Wedding (1937)
  72. "Buttons and Bows," The Paleface (1948)
  73. "Talk to the Animals," Doctor Dolittle (1967)
  74. "The Shadow of Your Smile," The Sandpiper (1965)
  75. "When You Believe," The Prince of Egypt (1998)
  76. "Say You, Say Me," White Nights (1985)
  77. "The Morning After," The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
  78. "We May Never Love Like This Again," The Towering Inferno (1974)

 

2010 Best Original Song - Ahem, Where Is Cher?

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WON: "We Belong Together," Toy Story 3

SHOULD'VE WON: "If I Rise," 127 Hours

2010 marked a pretty damn solid year at the Oscars - even though I'm not the least bit fond of The King's Speech - with terrific contenders like Black Swan, The Fighter, Inception, True Grit, Animal Kingdom and Another Year, among others. Natalie Portman, Christian Bale and Melissa Leo? Fabulous winners.

Yet, for all of the strength seen across the bulk of categories, Best Original Song that year marked one of the most deadly-dull line-ups to ever grace the category, a sleepy, entirely unremarkable batch of four songs that is exceedingly difficult to select a favorite among.

The Academy, faced with this anemic foursome, opted to go with Oscar mainstay Randy Newman here, awarding him a second Best Original Song prize, this time for Toy Story 3's "We Belong Together." About on-par with Monsters, Inc.'s "If I Didn't Have You" (his first winner) when it comes to utter lack of imagination, it is handily the weakest tune Newman composed for the Toy Story series.

The thing is, Newman's competition wasn't all that superior. In fact, Country Strong's "Coming Home," inexplicably performed by Gwyneth Paltrow, is even less appealing than the Toy Story tune, a cookie-cutter country ballad that would make the likes of Faith Hill and LeAnn Rimes cringe. Tangled's "I See the Light" is another merely agreeable Alan Menken composition that makes you long for the days of Howard Ashman - it's pretty-enough but there's no magic there.

Ultimately, I least dislike 127 Hours' "If I Rise" here, a reasonably interesting A.R. Rahman piece that's more satisfying than his Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire work and gets a nice boost from Dido's always-affecting vocal work. Is it incredible stuff? No. But it's the only song I had the faintest bit of interest listening to multiple times over the past few days of revisiting this line-up.

The real eyebrow-raiser of 2010 Best Original Song is the Academy for once ignored Diane Warren, despite her having won the Golden Globe this year for Burlesque's "You Haven't Seen the Last of Me," a dynamite, perfectly fitting ballad for Cher. In most years, such a song shouldn't really be in contention for an Oscar but in this snoozefest, I would have handily given Warren the win.

The Oscar-winners ranked (thus far)...

  1. "Over the Rainbow," The Wizard of Oz (1939)
  2. "The Way You Look Tonight," Swing Time (1936)
  3. "High Hopes," A Hole in the Head (1959)
  4. "Streets of Philadelphia," Philadelphia (1993)
  5. "Lose Yourself," 8 Mile (2002)
  6. "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)," The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
  7. "Mona Lisa," Captain Carey, U.S.A. (1950)
  8. "Baby, It's Cold Outside," Neptune's Daughter (1949)
  9. "(I've Had) the Time of My Life," Dirty Dancing (1987)
  10. "The Windmills of Your Mind," The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
  11. "The Way We Were," The Way We Were (1973)
  12. "Let the River Run," Working Girl (1988)
  13. "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
  14. "Under the Sea," The Little Mermaid (1989)
  15. "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, On My Darlin')," High Noon (1952)
  16. "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," The Lion King (1994)
  17. "Beauty and the Beast," Beauty and the Beast (1991)
  18. "I'm Easy," Nashville (1975)
  19. "You'll Never Know," Hello, Frisco, Hello (1943)
  20. "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe," The Harvey Girls (1946)
  21. "Fame," Fame (1980)
  22. "Theme from Shaft," Shaft (1971)
  23. "Secret Love," Calamity Jane (1953)
  24. "White Christmas," Holiday Inn (1942)
  25. "Moon River," Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
  26. "Take My Breath Away," Top Gun (1986)
  27. "When You Wish Upon a Star," Pinocchio (1940)
  28. "Thanks for the Memory," The Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938)
  29. "Lullaby of Broadway," Gold Diggers of 1935 (1935)
  30. "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah," Song of the South (1947)
  31. "A Whole New World," Aladdin (1992)
  32. "My Heart Will Go On," Titanic (1997)
  33. "Flashdance...What a Feeling," Flashdance (1983)
  34. "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," Arthur (1981)
  35. "I Need to Wake Up," An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
  36. "Last Dance," Thank God It's Friday (1978)
  37. "Colors of the Wind," Pocahontas (1995)
  38. "Falling Slowly," Once (2007)
  39. "You Must Love Me," Evita (1996)
  40. "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)," Dick Tracy (1990)
  41. "Days of Wine and Roses," Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
  42. "For All We Know," Lovers and Other Strangers (1970)
  43. "All the Way," The Joker Is Wild (1957)
  44. "It Might As Well Be Spring," State Fair (1945)
  45. "The Last Time I Saw Paris," Lady Be Good (1941)
  46. "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening," Here Comes the Groom (1951)
  47. "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing," Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955)
  48. "The Weary Kind," Crazy Heart (2009)
  49. "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp," Hustle & Flow (2005)
  50. "It Goes Like It Goes," Norma Rae (1979)
  51. "Born Free," Born Free (1966)
  52. "Never on Sunday," Never on Sunday (1960)
  53. "I Just Called to Say I Love You," The Woman in Red (1984)
  54. "Up Where We Belong," An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)
  55. "Three Coins in the Fountain," Three Coins in the Fountain (1954)
  56. "Chim Chim Cher-ee," Mary Poppins (1964)
  57. "Call Me Irresponsible," Papa's Delicate Condition (1963)
  58. "Evergreen (Theme from A Star Is Born)," A Star Is Born (1976)
  59. "Al otro lado del río," The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
  60. "Things Have Changed," Wonder Boys (2000)
  61. "Swinging on a Star," Going My Way (1944)
  62. "Into the West," The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
  63. "We Belong Together," Toy Story 3 (2010)
  64. "Jai Ho," Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
  65. "If I Didn't Have You," Monsters, Inc. (2001)
  66. "You'll Be in My Heart," Tarzan (1999)
  67. "You Light Up My Life," You Light Up My Life (1977)
  68. "Gigi," Gigi (1958)
  69. "The Continental," The Gay Divorcee (1934)
  70. "Sweet Leilani," Waikiki Wedding (1937)
  71. "Buttons and Bows," The Paleface (1948)
  72. "Talk to the Animals," Doctor Dolittle (1967)
  73. "The Shadow of Your Smile," The Sandpiper (1965)
  74. "When You Believe," The Prince of Egypt (1998)
  75. "Say You, Say Me," White Nights (1985)
  76. "The Morning After," The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
  77. "We May Never Love Like This Again," The Towering Inferno (1974)

2009 Best Original Song - Where the Wild Things Weren't

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WON AND SHOULD'VE WON: "The Weary Kind," Crazy Heart

For me, one of the more aggravating Oscar snubs of the past decade came in 2009, when the Academy ignored Spike Jonze's entrancing film adaptation of the classic Maurice Sendak children's book Where the Wild Things Are. It's a picture I saw three times over its first two weeks in theaters, a film chock-full of the same sort of legit movie magic that wins me over in the likes of E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory - an awe-inspiring heart-tugger that never feels the least bit forced. (I admittedly felt the same way about this year's The BFG, though I suspect not many would concur.)

So, no surprise, I was quite chagrined over the Academy's awarding of zero Oscar nominations for the film, which, to be fair, was not exactly a box office smash. I would have recognized it in Best Picture, Director, Art Direction, Cinematography and so on. I also, no doubt, would have awarded the film's music, composed by the delightful Karen O and Carter Burwell.

"All Is Love" was likely the film's only prayer in Best Original Song - it may have been its only hope for any Oscar nom - and would have been a richly deserving nominee, particularly given the ho-humness of the category's actual nominees this year.

I do think the Academy got the win right here - Crazy Heart's "The Weary Kind," composed by Ryan Bingham and T-Bone Burnett, is a nice, moody piece and certainly one of its film's more memorable parts (to be fair, not saying much). But is it even close to among the finest winners in the category? Not in the slightest - it's simply the least bland of an underwhelming bunch.

I mildly dig The Princess and the Frog, mostly on the basis of some of the vocal work (Keith David can do no wrong), but while Anika Noni Rose couldn't be more charming on nominees "Almost There" and "Down in New Orleans," these Randy Newman-composed tracks simply aren't all that interesting or exciting. Paris 36's "Loin de Paname" is also pretty unremarkable stuff.

At least those three a tad more agreeable than "Take It All," one of the original tunes composed for Rob Marshall's embarrassing film adaptation of the Broadway musical Nine. While performer Marion Cotillard is actually one of the picture's more tolerable players, she's so poorly directed in this scene and the tune is a complete dud. At least the even-shittier Kate Hudson original song wasn't nominated instead.

The Oscar-winners ranked (thus far)...

  1. "Over the Rainbow," The Wizard of Oz (1939)
  2. "The Way You Look Tonight," Swing Time (1936)
  3. "High Hopes," A Hole in the Head (1959)
  4. "Streets of Philadelphia," Philadelphia (1993)
  5. "Lose Yourself," 8 Mile (2002)
  6. "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)," The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
  7. "Mona Lisa," Captain Carey, U.S.A. (1950)
  8. "Baby, It's Cold Outside," Neptune's Daughter (1949)
  9. "(I've Had) the Time of My Life," Dirty Dancing (1987)
  10. "The Windmills of Your Mind," The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
  11. "The Way We Were," The Way We Were (1973)
  12. "Let the River Run," Working Girl (1988)
  13. "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
  14. "Under the Sea," The Little Mermaid (1989)
  15. "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, On My Darlin')," High Noon (1952)
  16. "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," The Lion King (1994)
  17. "Beauty and the Beast," Beauty and the Beast (1991)
  18. "I'm Easy," Nashville (1975)
  19. "You'll Never Know," Hello, Frisco, Hello (1943)
  20. "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe," The Harvey Girls (1946)
  21. "Fame," Fame (1980)
  22. "Theme from Shaft," Shaft (1971)
  23. "Secret Love," Calamity Jane (1953)
  24. "White Christmas," Holiday Inn (1942)
  25. "Moon River," Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
  26. "Take My Breath Away," Top Gun (1986)
  27. "When You Wish Upon a Star," Pinocchio (1940)
  28. "Thanks for the Memory," The Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938)
  29. "Lullaby of Broadway," Gold Diggers of 1935 (1935)
  30. "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah," Song of the South (1947)
  31. "A Whole New World," Aladdin (1992)
  32. "My Heart Will Go On," Titanic (1997)
  33. "Flashdance...What a Feeling," Flashdance (1983)
  34. "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," Arthur (1981)
  35. "I Need to Wake Up," An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
  36. "Last Dance," Thank God It's Friday (1978)
  37. "Colors of the Wind," Pocahontas (1995)
  38. "Falling Slowly," Once (2007)
  39. "You Must Love Me," Evita (1996)
  40. "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)," Dick Tracy (1990)
  41. "Days of Wine and Roses," Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
  42. "For All We Know," Lovers and Other Strangers (1970)
  43. "All the Way," The Joker Is Wild (1957)
  44. "It Might As Well Be Spring," State Fair (1945)
  45. "The Last Time I Saw Paris," Lady Be Good (1941)
  46. "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening," Here Comes the Groom (1951)
  47. "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing," Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955)
  48. "The Weary Kind," Crazy Heart (2009)
  49. "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp," Hustle & Flow (2005)
  50. "It Goes Like It Goes," Norma Rae (1979)
  51. "Born Free," Born Free (1966)
  52. "Never on Sunday," Never on Sunday (1960)
  53. "I Just Called to Say I Love You," The Woman in Red (1984)
  54. "Up Where We Belong," An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)
  55. "Three Coins in the Fountain," Three Coins in the Fountain (1954)
  56. "Chim Chim Cher-ee," Mary Poppins (1964)
  57. "Call Me Irresponsible," Papa's Delicate Condition (1963)
  58. "Evergreen (Theme from A Star Is Born)," A Star Is Born (1976)
  59. "Al otro lado del río," The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
  60. "Things Have Changed," Wonder Boys (2000)
  61. "Swinging on a Star," Going My Way (1944)
  62. "Into the West," The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
  63. "Jai Ho," Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
  64. "If I Didn't Have You," Monsters, Inc. (2001)
  65. "You'll Be in My Heart," Tarzan (1999)
  66. "You Light Up My Life," You Light Up My Life (1977)
  67. "Gigi," Gigi (1958)
  68. "The Continental," The Gay Divorcee (1934)
  69. "Sweet Leilani," Waikiki Wedding (1937)
  70. "Buttons and Bows," The Paleface (1948)
  71. "Talk to the Animals," Doctor Dolittle (1967)
  72. "The Shadow of Your Smile," The Sandpiper (1965)
  73. "When You Believe," The Prince of Egypt (1998)
  74. "Say You, Say Me," White Nights (1985)
  75. "The Morning After," The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
  76. "We May Never Love Like This Again," The Towering Inferno (1974)

 

2008 Best Original Song - Slumdog Hits the Oscar Jackpot

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WON: "Jai Ho," Slumdog Millionaire

SHOULD'VE WON: "Down to Earth," WALL-E

Welcome to 2008, yet another funky three-nominee year in Best Original Song (a result of the category's oddball points system). What makes '08 a particular head-scratcher is there were certainly more than a mere three tunes worthy of recognition. The true best original song of the year - Bruce Springsteen's "The Wrestler" (from the Mickey Rourke picture) - inexplicably wasn't even nominated, despite taking home the Golden Globe.

Instead of awarding The Boss, the Academy utilized Best Original Song to shower even more love on Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire, which came out of nowhere in '08 to all but sweep the year's Oscars, defeating more traditionally awards-baity projects like Frost/Nixon and Milk.

The winner in Best Original Song, A.R. Rahman's "Jai Ho," is I think very much emblematic of the picture's strengths and weaknesses, a piece full of buoyant energy that nonetheless leaves me a tad cold in the end. Rahman's orchestrations are pretty remarkable but the production overall leaves me both exhausted and disinterested by the halfway mark. The other Slumdog song, "O...Saya," doesn't quite have that same enthusiasm but also is a little more nuanced. I'm just not in love with either of the tunes.

For me, this one's a clear slam dunk for Peter Gabriel's lovely "Down to Earth," which nicely compliments Disney-Pixar's greatest film to date, WALL-E.

The Oscar-winners ranked (thus far)...

  1. "Over the Rainbow," The Wizard of Oz (1939)
  2. "The Way You Look Tonight," Swing Time (1936)
  3. "High Hopes," A Hole in the Head (1959)
  4. "Streets of Philadelphia," Philadelphia (1993)
  5. "Lose Yourself," 8 Mile (2002)
  6. "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)," The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
  7. "Mona Lisa," Captain Carey, U.S.A. (1950)
  8. "Baby, It's Cold Outside," Neptune's Daughter (1949)
  9. "(I've Had) the Time of My Life," Dirty Dancing (1987)
  10. "The Windmills of Your Mind," The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
  11. "The Way We Were," The Way We Were (1973)
  12. "Let the River Run," Working Girl (1988)
  13. "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
  14. "Under the Sea," The Little Mermaid (1989)
  15. "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, On My Darlin')," High Noon (1952)
  16. "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," The Lion King (1994)
  17. "Beauty and the Beast," Beauty and the Beast (1991)
  18. "I'm Easy," Nashville (1975)
  19. "You'll Never Know," Hello, Frisco, Hello (1943)
  20. "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe," The Harvey Girls (1946)
  21. "Fame," Fame (1980)
  22. "Theme from Shaft," Shaft (1971)
  23. "Secret Love," Calamity Jane (1953)
  24. "White Christmas," Holiday Inn (1942)
  25. "Moon River," Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
  26. "Take My Breath Away," Top Gun (1986)
  27. "When You Wish Upon a Star," Pinocchio (1940)
  28. "Thanks for the Memory," The Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938)
  29. "Lullaby of Broadway," Gold Diggers of 1935 (1935)
  30. "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah," Song of the South (1947)
  31. "A Whole New World," Aladdin (1992)
  32. "My Heart Will Go On," Titanic (1997)
  33. "Flashdance...What a Feeling," Flashdance (1983)
  34. "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," Arthur (1981)
  35. "I Need to Wake Up," An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
  36. "Last Dance," Thank God It's Friday (1978)
  37. "Colors of the Wind," Pocahontas (1995)
  38. "Falling Slowly," Once (2007)
  39. "You Must Love Me," Evita (1996)
  40. "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)," Dick Tracy (1990)
  41. "Days of Wine and Roses," Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
  42. "For All We Know," Lovers and Other Strangers (1970)
  43. "All the Way," The Joker Is Wild (1957)
  44. "It Might As Well Be Spring," State Fair (1945)
  45. "The Last Time I Saw Paris," Lady Be Good (1941)
  46. "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening," Here Comes the Groom (1951)
  47. "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing," Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955)
  48. "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp," Hustle & Flow (2005)
  49. "It Goes Like It Goes," Norma Rae (1979)
  50. "Born Free," Born Free (1966)
  51. "Never on Sunday," Never on Sunday (1960)
  52. "I Just Called to Say I Love You," The Woman in Red (1984)
  53. "Up Where We Belong," An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)
  54. "Three Coins in the Fountain," Three Coins in the Fountain (1954)
  55. "Chim Chim Cher-ee," Mary Poppins (1964)
  56. "Call Me Irresponsible," Papa's Delicate Condition (1963)
  57. "Evergreen (Theme from A Star Is Born)," A Star Is Born (1976)
  58. "Al otro lado del río," The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
  59. "Things Have Changed," Wonder Boys (2000)
  60. "Swinging on a Star," Going My Way (1944)
  61. "Into the West," The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
  62. "Jai Ho," Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
  63. "If I Didn't Have You," Monsters, Inc. (2001)
  64. "You'll Be in My Heart," Tarzan (1999)
  65. "You Light Up My Life," You Light Up My Life (1977)
  66. "Gigi," Gigi (1958)
  67. "The Continental," The Gay Divorcee (1934)
  68. "Sweet Leilani," Waikiki Wedding (1937)
  69. "Buttons and Bows," The Paleface (1948)
  70. "Talk to the Animals," Doctor Dolittle (1967)
  71. "The Shadow of Your Smile," The Sandpiper (1965)
  72. "When You Believe," The Prince of Egypt (1998)
  73. "Say You, Say Me," White Nights (1985)
  74. "The Morning After," The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
  75. "We May Never Love Like This Again," The Towering Inferno (1974)