Countdown to the Oscars: Best Original Song

Welcome to this year’s edition of Last Cinema Standing’s Countdown to the Oscars, where we will break down each of the 23 categories, analyze the films, and make some guesses at their awards prospects.

Best Original Song

The nominees are:

“It Never Went Away” from American Symphony

“I’m Just Ken” from Barbie

“What Was I Made For?” from Barbie

“The Fire Inside” from Flamin’ Hot

“Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)” from Killers of the Flower Moon

“It Never Went Away”

One of things I love about this project every year is the discovery of fascinating tidbits of information I would have never known otherwise. Case in point: the wildly successful career of Dan Wilson, who co-wrote this song with documentary subject Jon Batiste. Wilson previously won the Grammy for song of the year as a co-writer of The Chicks’ “Not Ready to Make Nice.” He also won album of the year for producing Adele’s 21. But, most of us probably know him best as the writer of “Closing Time,” from his days with his band Semisonic. 

This is a classic “credits song for a documentary” nomination, and the song is pretty good, though not among the best of either artist’s work. Still, for a ‘90s kid who loves rock music, it’s pretty damn cool that the “Closing Time” guy has an Oscar nomination now. You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here, indeed.

“I’m Just Ken”

Greta Gerwig really pulled out all the stops in putting together the music team for Barbie, which is not quite a musical but sure is inspired by a lot of musicals. We’ll get to “What Was I Made For?” in a second, but first, let’s marvel at the work of nominated song writing duo Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt, who previously won this award as co-writers with Lady Gaga and Anthony Rossoando on “Shallow,” from A Star Is Born.

Personally, I’m stoked Ryan Gosling has confirmed he will perform this song on the Academy Awards stage. I predict it will be one of the showstopping moments of the night, much like “Naatu Naatu” was last year. This is actually my preferred winner this year. As beautiful as the Billie Eilish performance is on the other nominated Barbie song, the execution of “I’m Just Ken” is narratively crucial. A huge section of the movie falls flat if this song isn’t perfect. Luckily, it is.

“What Was I Made For?”

But, even with that said, I understand how Eilish and co-writer Finneas O’Connell have taken the lead in this category with their heartfelt ballad. It is a well-constructed song that the duo has been promoting the hell out of – I thought their performance at the Grammys was particularly engaging. The song also has pride of place in the film, playing over the emotional climax of the story as Barbie finally makes a choice about her future. Eilish and O’Connell walk a fine line with a composition that is appropriately melancholic without ever tipping into the maudlin. It really is impressive stuff.

“The Fire Inside”

If the music branch can’t be bothered to do anything different, neither can I. Here is, word for word, exactly what I wrote last year:

“This is the Diane Warren song this year. Here is, word for word, exactly what I wrote about her nomination last year:

“At a certain point, one really has to feel for the Music Branch – not me, I don’t have any sympathy for a branch that so consistently gets this category wrong. But, members really, really love Diane Warren, and they seem positively desperate to get her an Oscar. This is the fifth consecutive year in which Warren has received a nomination and seventh out of the previous eight. She has 12 total nominations and no wins. She probably could have won for “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” from Armageddon or “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” from Mannequin, but she didn’t. So, here we are in an endless cycle of nominating not very good work every year just to try to get her over that hill.

“This brings us to ‘Somehow You Do,’ which not only is not very good, but it is actually quite bad. More than that, it is part of a pretty bad movie. Ironically, the song’s lack of subtlety is kind of a perfect fit for the generically somber addiction drama that is Four Good Days. Once again, Warren will be a bridesmaid, and even if I can muster no sympathy for the Music Branch, I do feel a little bad for Warren having to get dressed up every damn year just to lose an award.

“Let me update the numbers for you: This is six consecutive years, eight out of nine, and 13 total nominations with no competitive wins. She does have an Oscar now, as this very year she was the recipient of an honorary award. That did not satisfy her peers, who are demanding she be voted queen for a day at the big show. It ain’t gonna happen. I haven’t watched Tell It Like a Woman. I probably won’t. But, I listened to this song, and once again, it was quite bad. There’s probably nothing to be done about this situation, so perhaps the Academy would be best off just reserving a couple seats for Warren every year.”

Every year this happens, this section is just going to keep getting longer. Once more, an update on the numbers: Seven years in a row now. Nine of the past 10. 14 nominations and no competitive wins. It ain’t gonna happen this year either. At least Flamin’ Hot is pretty watchable, which can’t be said for many of the films she’s been nominated for recently. Anyway, whatever.

“Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)”

Indigenous musician Scott George is the first Osage performer ever nominated in this category. Translated from the Osage language, George says the lyrics to the song mean: “Stand up, be tall, and be proud. We’re still here.” It’s a powerful message that Scorsese uses over the final images of the film, an Osage drum circle that represents exactly that: a community of people who suffered unimaginable tragedy but who are still here, standing tall. 

The final analysis

This is primarily a Barbie fight, and it’s actually surprising that the third big song from the movie – Ronson and Dua Lipa’s “Dance the Night” – did not manage to nab a nomination, as well. I guess they just had to find a place for Warren. 

I find that a good way to jump to the front of the line when a movie has multiple song nominations is to be the big ballad. The fun song gets nominated, but the ballad wins. I’m looking at a trio of Disney contenders from the early ‘90s that prove this point rather well: “Beauty and the Beast” won the award over the also nominated “Be Our Guest” and “Belle”; for Aladdin, “A Whole New World” beat “Friend Like Me”; and for The Lion King, “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” beat both “Circle of Life” and “Hakuna Matata.”

Now, in every one of those cases, I prefer the fun song. Give me “Be Our Guest,” “Friend Like Me,” and “Hakuna Matata” all day, every day. And while we’re at it, throw in “I’m Just Ken.” Alas, it pays to be the ballad. Eilish and O’Connell won this award two years ago for their James Bond song, “No Time to Die,” and look well on their way to another victory.

It will be a history-making win for Eilish, who at 22 years old will become the youngest two-time winner in Academy Awards history. Her 26-year-old older brother O’Connell will be the second-youngest two-time winner. Both will push ahead of Louise Rainer, who had earned her second Best Actress trophy by the age of 28. 

And, just for the sake of providing more fun trivia, when Eilish won this award two years ago at the age of 20, she became the second-youngest Original Song winner ever. She was roughly three months older than Markéta Irglová was when she won this category for “Falling Slowly” from Once in 2008 (for the films of 2007), four days before her 20th birthday.

Will win: “What Was I Made For?” from Barbie

Should win: “I’m Just Ken” from Barbie

Should have been here: “Live That Way Forever” from The Iron Claw

A note about my favorite snub: Sean Durkin’s excellent wrestling biopic came out a little too late in the year to pick up steam with the Academy, which is a shame given it could have done well in a number of categories with just a little more momentum. The actors have received the lion’s share of the attention around “snubs,” but I want to take a second to highlight Richard Lee Parry and Laurel Sprengelmeyer’s  rock anthem “Live That Way Forever.” It’s a lovely composition that Durkin integrates into the film in ways that are both narratively and thematically satisfying. More of this, please.

Countdown to the Oscars: Best Original Song

We’re counting down the days until the Academy Awards! We’ll be here, breaking down each of the 23 categories, talking a bit of history, and trying to figure out who is going to win all those gold statues. So check back throughout the next three weeks for Last Cinema Standing’s Countdown to the Oscars.

Best Original Song

The nominees are:

“Lift Me Up” from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

“This Is a Life” from Everything Everywhere All at Once

“Naatu Naatu” from RRR

“Applause” from Tell It Like a Woman

“Hold My Hand” from Top Gun: Maverick

You don’t need to hear me go on about this category again. Go back and read every previous installment of this series over the years if you want to know my complaints. At this point, it’s a plus if the Music Branch of the Academy doesn’t actively embarrass itself with its nominees. With one glaring, annual exception, this list accomplishes at least that.

“Naatu Naatu” – I can’t guarantee M.M. Keeravani’s and Chandrabose’s absolute banger of a pop song is going to win the Oscar, but I can guarantee that the three minutes it takes to perform will be the best three minutes of the ceremony. This ear worm is impossible not to move to, and it’s likely you have seen videos on social media of people dancing in the aisles to this song at packed screenings of the film. Get Hugh Jackman up on stage to perform this song with the film’s stars and open the show that way – boom, instant hit.

A critical darling, there was buzz around RRR for nominations up to and including Best Picture. None of that materialized, but “Naatu Naatu” is undeniable, and as the film’s only nomination, there’s a good chance fans of this wild ride will take the opportunity to reward it in the only way they can. For what it’s worth, it’s also the only song in the lineup that fits what I believe to be the spirit of the award, in that its performance is integral to the plot of the film. But, the Academy has never really cared about that.

“Lift Me Up” – What a good break for the producers of the Academy Awards. Hot off a much talked-about halftime performance at the Super Bowl, Rihanna has confirmed she will perform her closing credits song from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever at the Oscars. This, combined with the next song we’re going to talk about, is exactly what the Academy hopes for in this category: buzzy stars they can sell to advertisers and young people. Last year, they got Billie Eilish and Beyoncé. As replacements, they could do a lot worse than Rihanna and Lady Gaga (next one down). 

While I’m not a fan of closing credits songs in this category, “Lift Me Up” feels more necessary than most, coming as it does on the heels of a powerfully emotional entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. By the end of Ryan Coogler’s latest Black Panther movie, we are thrilled by what we have seen but mourning for our lost star, Chadwick Boseman. Rihanna’s song, penned with Coogler, composer Ludwig Göransson, and Tems, hits all the right notes, sending the audience out on a high.

“Hold My Hand” – Lady Gaga is quickly becoming a fixture at this ceremony. A three-time Song nominee and one-time winner already, Gaga has also performed as part of past tribute packages and just last year helped Liza Minnelli present the Best Picture Oscar to CODA. Due to Minnelli’s obviously declining health, the moment teetered on the brink of disaster, but Gaga’s grace and compassion under immense pressure saved the day and is now remembered as one of the more heartwarming moments in recent Oscars history.

As for “Hold My Hand,” it is exactly the kind of song you would imagine would accompany a Top Gun sequel in the year 2022. It is listenable, forgettable, and entirely too on the nose. Which is to say, it’s not that far removed from “Take My Breath Away,” the pop anthem from the original Top Gun that won this category in 1986. At the very least, the Academy will get its Gaga ratings bump once again.

“This Is a Life” – Exactly as oppressively whimsical and all over the map as the film in which it appears, this track from Everything Everywhere All at Once is notable mostly for the composers – Son Lux, Mitski, and David Byrne. Byrne is a previous Oscar winner for Best Original Score for The Last Emperor in 1987. Now, 35 years later, if this is what it takes for the man behind the Talking Heads to get another statue, so be it.

“Applause” – This is the Diane Warren song this year. Here is, word for word, exactly what I wrote about her nomination last year:

At a certain point, one really has to feel for the Music Branch – not me, I don’t have any sympathy for a branch that so consistently gets this category wrong. But, members really, really love Diane Warren, and they seem positively desperate to get her an Oscar. This is the fifth consecutive year in which Warren has received a nomination and seventh out of the previous eight. She has 12 total nominations and no wins. She probably could have won for “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” from Armageddon or “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” from Mannequin, but she didn’t. So, here we are in an endless cycle of nominating not very good work every year just to try to get her over that hill.

This brings us to “Somehow You Do,” which not only is not very good, but it is actually quite bad. More than that, it is part of a pretty bad movie. Ironically, the song’s lack of subtlety is kind of a perfect fit for the generically somber addiction drama that is Four Good Days. Once again, Warren will be a bridesmaid, and even if I can muster no sympathy for the Music Branch, I do feel a little bad for Warren having to get dressed up every damn year just to lose an award.

Let me update the numbers for you: This is six consecutive years, eight out of nine, and 13 total nominations with no competitive wins. She does have an Oscar now, as this very year she was the recipient of an honorary award. That did not satisfy her peers, who are demanding she be voted queen for a day at the big show. It ain’t gonna happen. I haven’t watched Tell It Like a Woman. I probably won’t. But, I listened to this song, and once again, it was quite bad. There’s probably nothing to be done about this situation, so perhaps the Academy would be best off just reserving a couple seats for Warren every year.

The final analysis

Anything could win, except the Warren song. There is not really a clear frontrunner. There is no Bond song nominated this year for the Academy to vote blindly for. No Pixar or Disney movie with a catchy pop hit like “Remember Me” (Coco) or “Let It Go” (Frozen). No musical with a single standout tune like “City of Stars” (La La Land) or “Shallow” (A Star Is Born). Just a bunch of really famous people writing popular songs for big hit movies (and Diane Warren).

I am going to place my chips on “Naatu Naatu” because that is what’s most fun to do and because I think the love for RRR is real and needs somewhere to go. But if Rihanna ends up holding an Oscar – which would be a cool but strange win for Coogler, as well – or Lady Gaga wins another, I won’t be the least bit surprised. If the Best Picture heat for Everything Everywhere All at Once carries the day, that wouldn’t be so out of the ordinary either. For now, let’s bet with our dancing shoes on.

Will win: “Naatu Naatu” from RRR

Should win: “Naatu Naatu” from RRR

Should have been here: “Ciao Papa” from Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio

A note about my favorite snub: This is actually the animated musical that deserved recognition in this category, but because it is not from Disney or Pixar, it did not get the same attention. Now, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio is a Netflix production, so no one is crying over lack of promotion, and it will likely win Best Animated Feature, but this jaunty little number that plays a couple of times in the film to great effect deserved to be here.

Next time: Animated Feature

Countdown to the Oscars: Best Original Song

Moana, which is nominated in the Best Original Song category

Welcome to Last Cinema Standing’s Countdown to the Oscars, our daily look at this year’s Academy Awards race. Be sure to check back every day leading up to the ceremony for analysis of each of the Academy’s 24 categories and more.

Best Original Song

The nominees are:

“The Empty Chair” from Jim: The James Foley Story

“Audition (Fools Who Dream)” from La La Land

“City of Stars” from La La Land

“How Far I’ll Go” from Moana

“Can’t Stop the Feeling” from Trolls

After a dire year last time around in this category, the music branch rights the ship with four excellent, deserving nominees and one that should be nowhere near a nomination but is at least a passably enjoyable song. So much goes wrong with the music categories each year – and I complain about it every time – it is genuinely surprising when the branch gets it right, or as close to right as they are likely to get.

Of course, these films made it easier than most. In the first place, you have a wildly popular, incredibly successful musical filled to the brim with original songs and dominating the awards race. It received two nominations, the maximum allowable under the rules. To fill out the category, try to grab the biggest stars you can because if nothing else, it will make for an entertaining performance at the ceremony, and boy, did they ever grab the biggest stars around.

My wish every year for this category is that the nominees reflect their importance to the films in which they appear, whether they are integral to the plot or simply evocative of the emotions at play. With one exception, once again, these songs pass that test with flying colors, and I am left with only praise for a branch I often find laughably out of touch and whose nominations are often downright preposterous. Okay, I suppose I had to get my shots in still, but this remains an excellent selection of nominees.

“Audition (Fools Who Dream)” from La La Land – This is going to sound hypocritical from someone who just called another group of people out of touch, but I don’t listen to the radio or even go to stores that often, so I have no idea what people are listening to when it comes to new music. However, I know La La Land is a popular film, and within that popular film, this is the most popular song. It also happens to be the song most integral to the film’s plot.

It is the turning point at the end of the film’s second act when the characters make decisions that will set them on the path to the film’s climax. In addition to being a catchy, important song within the context of the musical, the lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul perfectly capture the essence and themes of the film. Composer Justin Hurwitz builds the musical accompaniment to a glorious climax, and it becomes one of those “stand up in the theater and cheer” moments that are all too rare.

“City of Stars” from La La Land – All due respect to stars Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, whose performances are wonderful, but their voices do not hold up to the rigors of a musical. Stone performs admirably on “Audition,” but the deficiency is highlighted in the film’s ensemble numbers like “Another Day of Sun” and “Someone in the Crowd,” which are led by experienced musical performers. Ultimately, this does not affect the enjoyment of the film, but “City of Stars,” a duet between Gosling and Stone, loses some of its luster due to the only-passable voices of its singers.

In addition, while Hurwitz’s composition is used throughout as a key piece of underscoring, becoming a leitmotif for the film’s central couple, the song as a whole and its use in the film does not exactly cry out for recognition. Its most prominent placement is under a montage, and while it is effective, it is less effective than the film perhaps wants or even needs it to be.

“How Far I’ll Go” from Moana – I have written about this song before in some depth here, but it bears repeating just how revolutionary Lin-Manuel Miranda’s composition is in terms of Disney movies. For nearly 80 years, Disney movies have sold a certain version of young girls, and they have sold it successfully. Even those who break out of their shells tend to discover what they needed was “right here all along.” They often limit in the same breath as they empower. Not so with Miranda’s powerful ode to exploration and self-discovery.

Moana (voiced by Auli’i Cravalho) is a soul on a mission, and what she needs is not on her island but beyond the reef that surrounds it. It is somewhere out there, beyond anything she has ever known, and the beauty of the song is that it expresses the inner call she feels to discover whatever is waiting for her. She is conflicted, of course, caught between obligation and desire, but for once, the film does not argue for her duties and obligations but for her need to break free. Even “Let It Go,” from Frozen, the most popular Disney song in years, rings hollow in the context of the whole film. But, “How Far I’ll Go” is a mission statement and a blueprint for a heroine the likes of which we have rarely seen.

“Can’t Stop the Feeling” from Trolls – Remember when I admitted above I do not listen to the radio? I don’t, but as soon as I heard this song, I felt I had heard it before. It has a classic, timeless pop feel to it, which makes sense, coming as it does from one of our foremost popular music artists, Justin Timberlake. Co-written with Max Martin and Shellback, two of the most successful songwriters and producers of the current century, “Can’t Stop the Feeling” is disposable, bubble-gum pop at its finest.

How perfect it is then for this disposable, bubble-gum movie. Trolls is a mildly enjoyable children’s entertainment, but this song easily will be its longest-lasting cultural legacy. About a group of trolls who live by the credo “Hug, Dance, Sing” and teach a species of monsters how to find happiness through love – and music – “Can’t Stop the Feeling” is the film’s climax. Its entire payoff is predicated on the success of this song, and what do you know? It works. If the song does not quite reach the heights it purports to – teaching the power of love – it at least gets toes tapping and hips moving.

“The Empty Chair” from Jim: The James Foley Story – The outlier here, the cynic in me wants to say this nomination only exists because the name Sting is attached to the credit, although co-songwriter J. Ralph is a three-time nominee himself. This is Sting’s fourth nomination but his first for a documentary, while J. Ralph has carved something of a niche composing songs for socially conscious documentaries (Racing Extinction and Chasing Ice before this).

Jim: The James Foley Story is an intimate, unflinching look at the life and death of conflict journalist James Foley, who was beheaded by members of ISIS in a now-infamous video. It is a worthwhile project, though the film does not perhaps tease out all the ideas it could from its subject matter given its narrow focus. Hopefully this nomination draws attention to the film and the issues it raises, but as a song that plays over the closing credits and accomplishes nothing the score could not, I cannot say I fully support its inclusion here. Plus, the song is just okay.

The final analysis

The only award La La Land is 100 percent certain to lose, that is only because both of its nominated songs cannot win – unless there is a tie, in which case we really would be in for an historic sweep. This probably does come down to “City of Stars” against “Audition,” and the latter simply has greater emotional impact within the film and is the more memorable composition.

Will win: “Audition (Fools Who Dream)” from La La Land

Should win: “How Far I’ll Go” from Moana

Should have been here: “Drive It Like You Stole It” from Sing Street

Because it is a great song from a great movie and one of my favorites of last year, here is “Drive It Like You Stole It” from writer-director John Carney’s Sing Street:

Tomorrow: Best Original Screenplay

Countdown to the Oscars: Best Original Song

Sam Smith's opening titles theme for Spectre, "Writing's on the Wall," is nominated for Best Original Song.

Welcome to Last Cinema Standing’s Countdown to the Oscars, our daily look at this year’s Academy Awards race. Be sure to check back every day this month for analysis of each of the Academy’s 24 categories.

Best Original Song

The nominees are:

“Earned It” from Fifty Shades of Grey

“Til It Happens to You” from The Hunting Ground

“Manta Ray” from Racing Extinction

“Writing’s on the Wall” from Spectre

“Simple Song #3” from Youth

Almost every year, this category is just a joke. Remember yesterday when I wrote about how nice it is that the makeup artists are willing to look outside the prestige world and nominate the best work. Well, the music branch takes that lovely idea, distorts it, and coughs up a nominations list that is frankly embarrassing. Maybe this is easy to miss since the Academy has gotten lucky the last few years with zeitgeist-capturing winners such as “Let It Go” from Frozen, “Skyfall” from Skyfall, and “Glory” from Selma. It is arguable whether any of those is a deserving winner, but I promise no song nominated this year is as enjoyable to listen to as any of those.

I have thought about this category for a few days now and had been considering softening my stance. As I wrote at the end of last month, I think it is great these nominations have shined a light on two important, well-made documentaries that deserve a much wider audience. Associating itself with worthy causes is about the best thing this category has done in the last couple decades, but then I remember that forever, people will be able to say, “The Oscar-nominated box-office smash Fifty Shades of Grey …,” and I get sad all over again.

The thing is I do not think the music branch or the Academy as a whole knows what it wants out of this category. As it seems now, the winners tend to be the most enjoyable or popular songs that happened to have been written for a movie, regardless of their impact on, place in, or importance to the film. Well, there is an awards show already that recognizes the best context-free song: the Grammys. The show is this weekend.

Of these five nominees, only one has any meaning to the plot of its film, and the best thing I can say about that song is that it is interminable. The other four nominees are, by turns, pointless, indelicate, ill conceived, or actively annoying. I do not ask that every year every song rise to the level of “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp” from Hustle and Flow, “Falling Slowly” from Once, or “The Weary Kind” from Crazy Heart – songs I believe establish a gold standard for recent winners – but rarely have things felt this dire.

“Writing’s on the Wall from Spectre – The last movie I saw in the great Ziegfeld Theatre before it was recently shut down was Spectre. It was a lovely experience, seeing a throwback spy thriller in that wonderful movie house. Fittingly, Spectre felt like it had more in common with the old James Bond movies of the Sean Connery or Roger Moore era than with the new, self-consciously gritty entries in the series. Still, every Bond movie feels like a Bond movie, and it starts right at the beginning with a big action sequence followed by the opening titles set to the new theme song.

Adele and Paul Epworth’s “Skyfall” is a tough act to follow, to be sure, but it is hard to overstate how aggressively bad Sam Smith and James Napier’s “Writing’s on the Wall” is. It barely works as a listenable song, let alone a coherent commentary on the themes or even the plot of Spectre. One of the Ziegfeld’s best qualities was its amazing sound system, and the longer “Writing’s on the Wall” played through those awesome speakers, the angrier I got. It would have been a good time to grab a snack.

It is beyond baffling to me that this song could be nominated. Hell, it won the Golden Globe, though the Hollywood Foreign Press, in keeping with its celebrity-first, quality-second history, has nominated and awarded some genuinely terrible songs over the years just based on star power. If this song wins the Oscar, which it very well could, it would be for the same reasons. Smith has the name recognition, and Spectre blew the rest of these nominees out of the water in terms of box office.

“Til It Happens to You” from The Hunting Ground – Probably the only nominee that could compete in terms of star power is this composition from Diane Warren and Lady Gaga. I will not sit here and argue that the song does not have certain qualities or that its subject matter is not important, but I will admit to being confused by its message within the context of the film.

Kirby Dick’s campus sexual assault documentary is a powerful look at how universities are set up to protect rapists and ignore victims, a sobering, infuriating investigation into a broken and backward system, and a radical call to action that focuses on survivors and their quest for justice. The lyrics to the song assert, “’Til it happens to you/you won’t know how it feels/’til it happens to you/it won’t be real,” which is true enough but also quite disempowering for those of us not personally touched by sexual assault.

Both the film and the song are about survivors, as they should be, but while the film is also about how we all should be angry and doing something about this problem, the song seems to run counter to that point. The song essentially says if we have not experienced this trauma, we should shut the hell up about it, which again is totally fair but not exactly conducive to open dialogue.

This is Lady Gaga’s first Academy Award nomination, though she did perform that weird tribute to The Sound of Music at last year’s ceremony, a moment a lot of people liked much more than I did. She has confirmed she will be back to perform this song at this year’s ceremony, which if nothing else, should be an emotional moment. Warren has been nominated eight times, including last year for “Grateful” from Beyond the Lights, but she has never won. This could be her year.

“Earned It” from Fifty Shades of Grey – Ugh. Written by The Weeknd, Belly, Jason “DaHeala” Quenneville, and Stephan Moccio, all first-time nominees, the song is fine. I am just mad I had to watch this movie to write this piece. “Earned It” is a credibly sexy song, but it is wasted on possibly the least sexy movie ever made about sex. There is not one redeeming thing about this movie, up to and including the fact that this fairly solid composition is deployed in such unmemorable ways.

“Earned It” was a top-five hit on the U.S. singles charts and is nominated for three Grammy Awards this weekend, so its cultural cache is enough that it could strike a chord with Oscar voters – younger ones, most likely. The Weeknd’s performance at the Academy Awards ceremony also promises to be one of the weirder musical moments in the show’s history, so that should be fun as well.

“Manta Ray” from Racing Extinction – This song is long and plodding and plays over the end credits of the film, though its piano theme is used extensively throughout the score. I cannot fathom how this was included over 69 other eligible songs. I am glad it was because it led me and hopefully others to this great documentary with an urgent message, but the fact remains this was not even the best original song to play over the last 10 minutes of the film. That would be J. Ralph and Sia’s “One Candle,” which for whatever reason was not eligible for a nomination.

J. Ralph was previously nominated for the song “Before My Time” from Chasing Ice, another environmental documentary, while this is co-songwriter Antony Hegarty’s first nomination. At best, the song is so inconsequential that it gives viewers time to reflect on the message laid out in director Louis Psihoyos’ mass extinction documentary. “Manta Ray” probably should have no place in this category, but at least it comes from one of the best films of the year.

“Simple Song #3” from Youth – From the only movie actually about a composer, David Lang’s “Simple Song #3” is the only nominated song this year that fits my idea of what a Best Original Song winner should be. It is integral to the plot, and it is used well within the context of the storytelling, which if you think about it is not a high bar to clear. The entire subtext of director Paolo Sorrentino’s lugubrious meditation on aging is whether the main character can come to terms with the legacy his songs have created for him.

We hear certain themes from the song throughout Lang’s score for the film, and everything builds up to the audience finally hearing the song in its entirety. It needs to land with authority and with conviction, and it does – for about the first two minutes. Unfortunately, the song lasts for about six minutes. The extended runtime of the song is infuriating at first, then laughable, and finally exhausting, coming as it does at the end of a rather taxing film experience.

The final analysis

Throw a dart. I would say it comes down to “Writing’s on the Wall” and “Til It Happens to You” with a slim possibility that “Earned It” sneaks through to the win. More voters obviously will have seen the big-budget Bond picture and the based-on-a-bestseller sex movie than the independent documentary, but it might not matter. Lady Gaga’s star power is such that people may vote for it just because it is her, whether or not they have seen the movie. On top of that, she has been everywhere recently, including a knockout performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the Super Bowl. So if pressed, I would bet my money on the culturally ubiquitous star walking away with this award.

Will win: “Til It Happens to You” from The Hunting Ground

Should win: “Simple Song #3” from Youth

Should have been here: “Feels Like Summer” from Shaun the Sheep Movie

A quick note on “Feels Like Summer,” written by Ilan Eshkeri, Nick Hodgson, and Tim Wheeler, from the Best Animated Feature nominee Shaun the Sheep Movie: It is the only eligible song I have heard that fulfills the criteria I think of when I think of Best Original Song and manages to be entertaining at the same time. It is used multiple times throughout the film in different arrangements, and it ultimately proves necessary to resolving the main conflict of the plot in an extraordinary sequence that pays off narratively and emotionally.

Tomorrow: Best Original Score

On Racing Extinction and why the Oscars matter

Director Louie Psihoyos' documentary Racing Extinction is a powerful call to action for anyone concerned about our planet's future.

I love the Academy Awards. That love is among the main reasons I devote so much time and energy to this site. I do not claim the Academy is infallible. Hell, I do not agree with even a majority of the winners most years, though I would argue they are more in the ballpark than many critics would have you believe. For me, it is not necessarily about the winners. It is about what an Academy Award stands for – if not for an objective best, then for the quest for transcendence through art.

It is a lofty goal that maybe the Academy does not always live up to, but even its existence is good for art, artists, and fans. The diversity scandal in which the Academy is embroiled saddens me because it undermines the soul of the institution, which is as much about pointing a way forward for the film industry as cherishing and preserving its past. Diversity is more than the future, though. It is the now, and the Academy is distressingly behind.

Activist Shawn Heinrichs surrounded by shark fins in Racing Extinction.

President Cheryl Boone Isaacs and the governors board are to be commended for their quick work in making adjustments to the membership and voting guidelines to address concerns of racial and gender diversity within the Academy. Change has been a long time coming, and it is arriving late, but progress is progress, and I hope the Academy will not be satisfied by a few new rules and instead press on to become an all-inclusive organization that represents and reflects the whole film community.

In the wake of this current, though sadly not new, controversy, some have called for a boycott of the Oscars ceremony, Spike Lee, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Michael Moore among them. I would not fault anyone for making an ethical decision or abiding a personal moral code, but I cannot help but feel a blanket boycott is a bit like throwing the baby out with the bathwater. This feeling became more acute after viewing the masterful documentary Racing Extinction.

Every year, when the nominations are announced, I begin the frantic process of tracking down and watching the more obscure nominees that I failed to see in theaters – a list which this year includes the fantastical Swedish oddity The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared and the gorgeously animated When Marnie Was There. Last night, I caught up with Kirby Dick’s campus sexual assault documentary The Hunting Ground and Louie Psihoyos’ Racing Extinction.

Psihoyos won an Academy Award six years ago for his dolphin slaughter exposé The Cove, and while his second feature unfortunately has not been nominated for Best Documentary, it will be included in the broadcast as a Best Original Song nominee for J. Ralph and Antony Hegarty’s “Manta Ray.” We will talk about the song’s chances next month in our Countdown to the Oscars feature, but right now, I want to address the greater importance of this film.

Racing Extinction concerns the human-caused mass die-offs of an alarming array of the planet’s species – from some of the earth’s smallest creatures, the phytoplankton that provide the oxygen we all breathe, to its largest, the blue whale. While it is not as singularly focused as The Cove nor as accomplished from a filmmaking standpoint, it makes up for these minor shortcomings with the strength of its convictions and the power of its message.

This is not a global warming movie, though that topic is addressed, too. Racing Extinction is about the myriad ways human interference has forever altered the global ecosystem, overfishing sharks and manta rays to near extinction, wiping out frog and bird species left and right through sheer carelessness, and yes, raising the temperature of the earth to dangerous levels. Every single one of us is in part responsible for the state of things, but the beauty of Psihoyos’ approach is that he tasks each of us also with taking responsibility for being part of the solution.

A blue whale dives ever deeper in Racing Extinction.

Too many films of this type present a doomsday scenario and leave it at that. Well, anyone who is paying attention – which is to say, anyone who would watch a documentary like this – is well aware of the mountain we have to climb. We just need a guide. The reality presented in Racing Extinction is dire, but it is paired with hope for a brighter future and faith that humanity has the will to work toward that future. Nihilism has never been useful, and Psihoyos knows this. Instead, he fosters urgency with optimism, which makes Racing Extinction a must-see film.

I was familiar with Psihoyos from The Cove and his photography and conservation work. I am an admirer, but I would have been unlikely to seek out Racing Extinction had it not been nominated for an Academy Award. Frankly, there are just too many movies to see everything, and the Oscar nod was just the motivation I needed to discover this wonderful documentary. Others hopefully have sought out the film as well for similar reasons. I do not know if the original song nominees will be performed on the Oscars telecast this year, but if they are, it will provide a great showcase for this film’s necessary message, and one hopes even more people will be drawn to it.

That is the power of the Academy Awards and the mission of an organization such as the Academy. Issues of diversity absolutely should be raised, and that conversation should continue in the film industry far beyond the Academy. Maybe the Academy Awards are silly and inherently problematic, but they also provide a forum for awareness and consideration of the world and our place in it. I hope that at least is a mission we can all support.