Wow: Oscar nominated songs pretty mediocre

  • Tuesday, January 22, 2008 9:54am
  • Life

Broadway-friendly tunes from “Enchanted” dominated the Oscar nominees for best song, as Eddie Vedder was overlooked.

Three songs from “Enchanted” were nominated, to which I say: Really? I mean, one I can understand. The reggae-accented showstopper “That’s How You Know” is catchy enough. But “Happy Working Song,” a Snow White spoof, is nothing new, and the lame weep-fest “So Close” doesn’t feel worthy of a high school prom.

Seriously. Three songs? Three?

“Falling Slowly,” a pop-folk song from “Once,” and “Raise It Up,” a gospel number from “August Rush,” rounded out the list.

Vedder’s stripped down acoustic number “Guaranteed”, from “Into the Wild,” was considered a frontrunner for a nomination after it was shortlisted with 58 other songs by the Academy in December.

Vedder aside, the Academy shortlisted a lot of good tracks in December: Songs from “Walk Hard” delivered reliable country rock that was heavy with amusing innuendos; Sondre Lechre wrote some of his typically lush pop for “Dan in Real Life”; and, if you want Broadway, look no further than Hairspray’s “Come So Far, Got So Far to Go,” a song that’s better than anything in “Enchanted.”

So seriously, what the hell, three? Here are videos of the nominees. Whatever:

Amy Adams – “Happy Working Song” – Film clip

Jon McLaughlin – “So Close” – Film clip

Amy Adams and cast – “That’s How You Know” – Film clip

The Frames – “Falling Slowly” – Music video

Jamia Simone Nash and Impact Repertory Theater (I think) – “Raise It Up” – Film clip

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