OVP: Best Original Song (2005)
The Nominees Were...
"In the Deep" Music & Lyric by Kathleen York & Michael Becker, Crash
"It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp," Music & Lyric by Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman, & Paul Beauregard
"Travellin' Thru," Music & Lyric by Dolly Parton, Transamerica
"It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp," Music & Lyric by Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman, & Paul Beauregard
"Travellin' Thru," Music & Lyric by Dolly Parton, Transamerica
My Thoughts: We move forward to the Best Original Song category this week in 2005 (oh what I wouldn't give to be living 2005, at least the back half, which might have been the best year of my life, right now-2020 is rough, y'all). This is our last three-wide race, weirdly in a category that just one year earlier was five-wide...with a quintet of songs that are all lesser than these tunes. It's always difficult to figure out what exactly is happening with the music branch, but let's give it a shot, shall we?
25 years after she stormed the Oscars with "9 to 5" (but lost to Fame), Dolly Parton was back with "Travellin Thru." This film has not aged well, but its soundtrack is exceptional (it's weirdly in heavy rotation in my house for a movie I didn't like), and Dolly gets the best song of the bunch with a bouncy number that encapsulates the film, though it doesn't really factor into the movie in a major way. It loses some points for me, though, for just being an end credits song-it would have meant more as it capped off the film if we'd had stronger hints of the song throughout the movie. Still, you can't argue too much with any Dolly number.
"It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" does not have the same deficit when it comes to importance to the film. The song is a constant refrain throughout the movie, and the major crux of Terence Howard's DJay's story. The hook is intoxicating-it's hard not to start humming the refrain as you say the title, but honestly-the rest of the song is a snore. This was only the second rap song ever nominated for an Oscar, but it doesn't hold a candle to the iconography of "Lose Yourself," which admittedly is a tough bar to cross ("Lose Yourself" is one of the great rap ballads of the 2000's), but it feels like the sort of tune that was nominated due to it being atypical, not because it's particularly strong.
The final nomination is from Crash, and it too has a really important spot in the film. The "In the Deep" scene is critical that it works within Crash-the movie falls apart if it doesn't feel like it has an emotional payoff. In a lot of ways the film is copying almost verbatim the way that "Save Me" was used in Magnolia a few years earlier-this isn't an original idea as a way to tie together a multi-storyline film like Crash, but it is effective. Say what you will about Crash (and I have, and will continue to do so as we hit the bigger ticket moments in 2005), but "In the Deep" is its best asset.
25 years after she stormed the Oscars with "9 to 5" (but lost to Fame), Dolly Parton was back with "Travellin Thru." This film has not aged well, but its soundtrack is exceptional (it's weirdly in heavy rotation in my house for a movie I didn't like), and Dolly gets the best song of the bunch with a bouncy number that encapsulates the film, though it doesn't really factor into the movie in a major way. It loses some points for me, though, for just being an end credits song-it would have meant more as it capped off the film if we'd had stronger hints of the song throughout the movie. Still, you can't argue too much with any Dolly number.
"It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" does not have the same deficit when it comes to importance to the film. The song is a constant refrain throughout the movie, and the major crux of Terence Howard's DJay's story. The hook is intoxicating-it's hard not to start humming the refrain as you say the title, but honestly-the rest of the song is a snore. This was only the second rap song ever nominated for an Oscar, but it doesn't hold a candle to the iconography of "Lose Yourself," which admittedly is a tough bar to cross ("Lose Yourself" is one of the great rap ballads of the 2000's), but it feels like the sort of tune that was nominated due to it being atypical, not because it's particularly strong.
The final nomination is from Crash, and it too has a really important spot in the film. The "In the Deep" scene is critical that it works within Crash-the movie falls apart if it doesn't feel like it has an emotional payoff. In a lot of ways the film is copying almost verbatim the way that "Save Me" was used in Magnolia a few years earlier-this isn't an original idea as a way to tie together a multi-storyline film like Crash, but it is effective. Say what you will about Crash (and I have, and will continue to do so as we hit the bigger ticket moments in 2005), but "In the Deep" is its best asset.
Other Precursor Contenders: The Golden Globes almost always go with more celebrities in their lineups, so Dolly is the only holdover of these two, with us getting Mel Brooks (The Producers' "There's Nothing Like a Show on Broadway"), Alanis Morisette, (Chronicles of Narnia's "Wunderkind"), and Bernie Taupin (Brokeback Mountain's "A Love That Will Never Grow Old," sung by Emmylou Harris). You also have the random song "Christmas in Love," from Christmas in Love an Italian holiday spoof starring Danny DeVito, and that's literally the only reason you might have heard of it-it's one of those movies I wouldn't believe existed were it not for its nomination. Brokeback's song was deemed ineligible for insufficient airtime in Brokeback, so if there's a third place here it's probably Mel Brooks (nominating the new song in a stage musical was kind of hot at the time).
Songs I Would Have Nominated: The Oscars enforce their rules so arbitrarily-I would have found room for Emmylou Harris' song-it comes at a critical moment in Brokeback, and it's a fine piece of music. I also would have found room for "The Maker Makes" from Brokeback Mountain, as Rufus Wainwright's sad melody washes over the movie so well.
Oscar’s Choice: In a bit of an upset (I predicted Dolly, others predicted "In the Deep," but few picked the winners), Hustle & Flow won the Best Original Song Oscar and became a staple of the rest of Oscar emcee Jon Stewart's jokes for the evening.
My Choice: It is hurting my heart to say this, because I am the biggest Dolly fan, and I actively disliked the movie Crash, but..."In the Deep" is the best of the three here and the point of the OVP is to not let your own personal prejudices get in the way of whom you'd pick. Had I had an actual Oscar ballot, I might have gone with Transamerica (Dolly Parton should have an Oscar), but for the OVP, Crash gets the gold with Transamerica and Hustle & Flow coming behind it.
Those are my thoughts-how about yours? Am I alone in picking Crash here, or does someone want to join me over in the "deep" end? Do you think Dolly will ever get a trophy (I think based on the frequency she produces new music for movies she wants one)? And would "A Love That Will Never Grow Old" have won if it'd been deemed eligible? Share your thoughts below!
Also in 2005: Sound Mixing, Sound Editing, Art Direction, Cinematography, Costume, Film Editing, Visual Effects, Makeup, Previously in 2005
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