Disney at the Oscars 2010: UP, Princess and the Frog

[Sotiris]

Avatar losing wasn't the second biggest shocker, or even a shocker at all. It was a great movie, but not that great.

People expected Avatar to win not because it was "that great" (and since when do Oscars have to do with the best films?) but because of all the hype and the box office records. Was Titanic the best film of 1997? No, but it still won 11 Oscars.

[tsom]

Thoughts on the show:

- The Weary Kind is a nice song and all, but mark my words, in ten years, that song will be forgotten, while Newman's work will still resonate.

I agree!

[toonaspie]

Multi-Quoting here, I hope you dont mind since I know multi-posts will just irritate.

First off, I only watched the first half of the show last night due to illness. There was some good stuff for the most part but I kinda liked last year's show better. When they had that extravagant opening number the first thought that came to mind was "looks like they had plenty of money left over from last year". In case you didnt get it: last year Hugh Jackman did a funny musical number that was designed to be "done cheaply" due to the recession.

onto the quotes

Honestly, I have nothing against Pixar. I love their movies as much as the next guy. I'm just a little peeved that their movies keep winning year after year, ever since Ratatouille won it back in 2008. And to be honest, I kind of felt TPatF was a little more deserving of Best Animated Feature, and UP of Best Picture.

Ratatouille is my least favorite Pixar film which was kinda why I was iffed off by it getting the win. But after checking Wikipedia, the competition was VERY thin that year (the only other films nominated were Persopolis and Surf's Up) so Pixar was going to win it either way.

Up, was never really a contender, honestly. But, it is a step in the right direction. Who knows, within the next 20 years, an animated film may win an Oscar for Best Picture. But it will take time before that happens.

I personally felt they picked a bad year to start stretching the Best Picture nominations to 10. I felt that some films like "The Blind Side" and "District 9" were only nominated just to fill in some gaps. Of course this wouldve meant that Up would not have been nominated. Honestly it doesnt bother me anymore since the Best Animated Feature category was created. I have yet to see an exceptionally Best Picture worthy animated film ever since the category was created.

I guess that's what Disney gets for hiring Randy Newman.

At least with Menken, despite TP&TF's financial success or lack thereof, we would have had another excellent album. As it is, TP&TF has gone by completely unnoticed by the general public.

I'm sorry, but how dare you blame Randy Newman for neither of the movie's two songs winning? That's like blaming the Sherman Brothers for being nominated but not winning any Oscars for their work on Chitty Chitty Bang Bang or Bedknobs and Broomsticks, even if the former isn't a Disney movie.

I said it before and I said it again. They picked the WRONG songs for Oscar consideration. I was surprised that none of Ray's songs were nominated cause they were the more elegant songs in the film.

Taking Alan Menken out to me was actually a good thing. I feared he would've made PatF waaay too broadway and would've taken some of the style and substance out of the New Orleans setting of the film instead of adding to it. Note that Alan Menken was assigned to do Home on the Range but that certaintly didnt help that film get any fame.

People expected Avatar to win not because it was "that great" (and since when do Oscars have to do with the best films?) but because of all the hype and the box office records. Was Titanic the best film of 1997? No, but it still won 11 Oscars.

Well funny you should say that because the very complaint that people had just a year before was that The Dark Knight SHOULD'VE been nominated because of its hype and box office records. It was also believed to be the reason why the Best Picture nominations were stretched to 10.

Since I havent seen half of these movies, you're free to prove me wrong on this. The only Best Pictures nominess from this year that I've seen were Up and Precious.

[Sotiris]

Well funny you should say that because the very complaint that people had just a year before was that The Dark Knight SHOULD'VE been nominated because of its hype and box office records. It was also believed to be the reason why the Best Picture nominations were stretched to 10.

Since I havent seen half of these movies, you're free to prove me wrong on this. The only Best Pictures nominess from this year that I've seen were Up and Precious.

I didn't say Avatar ought to/deserved to win; i said people expected it to. Expecting something to happen and wanting something to happen are two totally different things.

Btw, I thought that the complaint last year was that The Dark Knight should have been nominated not because of the hype and the box office earnings but because it was a good film (the consensus of the critics thought so anw) and the reason it got snubbed by the Academy is that it belongs to the superhero genre.

[Disney's Divinity]

I was surprised that none of Ray's songs were nominated cause they were the more elegant songs in the film.

You mean "Ma Belle Evangeline" or "Going Down the Bayou"? Those are arguably the worst in the movie, imo. The only song that wasn't nominated that I think might've deserved to be was "Dig A Little Deeper." Let's be honest, "Almost There" is a fairly lackluster song, that's only good because of the animation it accompanies--I was very surprised it was nominated.

Taking Alan Menken out to me was actually a good thing. I feared he would've made PatF waaay too broadway and would've taken some of the style and substance out of the New Orleans setting of the film instead of adding to it. Note that Alan Menken was assigned to do Home on the Range but that certaintly didnt help that film get any fame.

It's strange since you feared a too-Broadway feeling, but then you mention Home On The Range where he clearly wasn't very Broadway at all. And, even if I did understand the attempt for freshness with TP&TF by not using Menken (which is strange since they were trying to revive animation with a tried/true formula), I'm sure there are other composers out there other than Newman. The Pixar connection is the only justification I could find for him being picked at all.

And even if Menken would have added a Broadway quality to it...it was supposed to be a musical, right? Would that have been so wrong? Besides, looking at his track record, he never forgets about the film's background, which is why each soundtrack he's done has had aquatic, Arabian, classical, natural, gospel, medieval atmosphere's where appropriate. It's hard for me to believe that any music he could have written would not have had a New Orleans vibe.

Also, to the last comment of the quote, if it was directed to me, I said "regardless of TP&TF's success" in regards to Menken. I didn't say he could help the film sell, I said that "at least" we would've had another great album and people would still regard Disney as having some excellent music. HOTR is a perfect example of my opinion, since to me HOTR's soundtrack was one of the only good things about the movie.

[estefan]

I'm sure there are other composers out there other than Newman. The Pixar connection is the only justification I could find for him being picked at all.

He was also picked due to him being from New Orleans and they wanted to give the film that authentic New Orleans sound (hence also hiring Dr John to sing the main theme).

Though I find it funny that one featurette that had John Lasseter saying how pleased he was that "they picked my good friend Randy Newman to write the song", when it was Lasseter himself who brought in Newman.

[megustajake]

Avatar losing wasn't the second biggest shocker, or even a shocker at all. It was a great movie, but not that great.

People expected Avatar to win not because it was "that great" (and since when do Oscars have to do with the best films?) but because of all the hype and the box office records. Was Titanic the best film of 1997? No, but it still won 11 Oscars.

"Titanic" was more of a phenomenon than "Avatar", and I would argue that it was the best movie of 1997.

[megustajake]

I was surprised that "Almost There" was even nominated. "But I've climbed a mountain, and I've crossed a river, and I'm almost there". Wow. "Down in New Orleans" is a great song, though. I'm not surprised "A Weary Kind" won. It's a good song, with strong lyrics.

"The Princess and the Frog" did lose some of it's steam when Randy Newman was hired to write the songs. I liked his work on "Cats Don't Dance" better.

[toonaspie]

Taking Alan Menken out to me was actually a good thing. I feared he would've made PatF waaay too broadway and would've taken some of the style and substance out of the New Orleans setting of the film instead of adding to it. Note that Alan Menken was assigned to do Home on the Range but that certaintly didnt help that film get any fame.

It's strange since you feared a too-Broadway feeling, but then you mention Home On The Range where he clearly wasn't very Broadway at all. And, even if I did understand the attempt for freshness with TP&TF by not using Menken (which is strange since they were trying to revive animation with a tried/true formula), I'm sure there are other composers out there other than Newman. The Pixar connection is the only justification I could find for him being picked at all.

And even if Menken would have added a Broadway quality to it...it was supposed to be a musical, right? Would that have been so wrong? Besides, looking at his track record, he never forgets about the film's background, which is why each soundtrack he's done has had aquatic, Arabian, classical, natural, gospel, medieval atmosphere's where appropriate. It's hard for me to believe that any music he could have written would not have had a New Orleans vibe.

Also, to the last comment of the quote, if it was directed to me, I said "regardless of TP&TF's success" in regards to Menken. I didn't say he could help the film sell, I said that "at least" we would've had another great album and people would still regard Disney as having some excellent music. HOTR is a perfect example of my opinion, since to me HOTR's soundtrack was one of the only good things about the movie.

I just dont agree with the idea that EVERY Disney musical should take on the Broadway style...at not the conventional Broadway style. Personally I think doing that will just make the Disney films stale and repetitive. Besides there have been some good films that werent very musical but are still considered Disney classics. "Lilo & Stitch" is a notable one.

[Rudy Matt]

I didn't say Avatar ought to/deserved to win; i said people expected it to. Expecting something to happen and wanting something to happen are two totally different things.

Well, seeing as how Avatar was a bit silly, thin, shallow, and laughable, I didn't expect it to win, nor want it to win. Not that I have any affection for the bollocks called Hurt Locker, either.

[Stats87]

I'm still surprised Ponyo didn't get a nomination, but "The Secret of Kells" took the spot of non-American animated film

[Sotiris]

"The Princess and the Frog" did lose some of it's steam when Randy Newman was hired to write the songs. I liked his work on "Cats Don't Dance" better.

Everyone did. It the only good soundtrack he ever made. That and the song "When She Loved Me" in Toy Story 2. That's all folks!

Admittedly, the songs in TPatF were not completely garbage like the rest of his Pixar songs but were still forgettable and mediocre at best.

For the "falling in love" sequence we had the lame song "Ma Belle Evangeline" for crying out loud when the love song shoulda been the most beautiful song in the film.

Let's make a comparison, shall we?

"Beauty and the Beast", "A Whole New World", "Ma Belle Evangeline".

Notice the huge difference?

And I shall not even bother with the score which was practically non-existent.

We're talking about a songwriter whose only Oscar was for "If I Didn't Have You"

[o0Andy0o]

Biggest shocker to me of the night: Precious winning Best Adapted over Up in the Air. Jason Reitman wrote an amazing screenplay and it won the Golden Globe. But don't get me wrong, I was happy that Precious won the award because I LOVED the movie. As much as I wanted Avatar to win Best Picture, I knew The Hurt Locker was going to in the end. Avatar had too many factors that would cause it to not win. Another thing that shocked me was The Hurt Locker winning both Sound awards over Avatar. I feel Avatar was more deserving of both sound awards, just like last year WALL-E was more deserving of them over The Dark Knight and Slumdog Millionaire (WTF!).

But in the end, which movie has both the critical acclaim and the money? Avatar.

Which movie only has the critical acclaim? The Hurt Locker.

[DisneyJedi]

I didn't say Avatar ought to/deserved to win; i said people expected it to. Expecting something to happen and wanting something to happen are two totally different things.

Well, seeing as how Avatar was a bit silly, thin, shallow, and laughable, I didn't expect it to win, nor want it to win. Not that I have any affection for the bollocks called Hurt Locker, either.

Honestly, I don't give a rat's BUTT if it was a ripoff of Pocahontas or Dances With Wolves, I thought it was awesome.

And it's not fair, because I think Avatar or UP deserved the Best Picture Oscar more.

[Poody]

Again, never disappointed that there were no musical performances from the nominated songs this year. It makes the show not even worth watching for me.

Yet, instead they do some stupid interpretive dance to the nominated scores.

[Sotiris]

Again, never disappointed that there were no musical performances from the nominated songs this year. It makes the show not even worth watching for me.

Yet, instead they do some stupid interpretive dance to the nominated scores.

Ditto!

[ajmrowland]

^You're first sentence condradicts itself.

Also, the animated "interviews" were hilarious!

[Rudy Matt]

"The Princess and the Frog" did lose some of it's steam when Randy Newman was hired to write the songs. I liked his work on "Cats Don't Dance" better.

Everyone did. It the only good soundtrack he ever made. That and the song "When She Loved Me" in Toy Story 2. That's all folks!

Admittedly, the songs in TPatF were not completely garbage like the rest of his Pixar songs but were still forgettable and mediocre at best.

For the "falling in love" sequence we had the lame song "Ma Belle Evangeline" for crying out loud when the love song shoulda been the most beautiful song in the film.

Let's make a comparison, shall we?

"Beauty and the Beast", "A Whole New World", "Ma Belle Evangeline".

Notice the huge difference?

And I shall not even bother with the score which was practically non-existent.

We're talking about a songwriter whose only Oscar was for "If I Didn't Have You"

Dude. You are out of your freaking mind. Newman has been nominated over a dozen times and his songs for Toy Story, Toy Story 2, A Bug's Life and Monsters Inc. have become new American classics. His "only" Oscar win? Are you insane? As if "Oscar wins" are some easy commodity?

[SpringHeelJack]

Newman has been nominated over a dozen times and his songs for Toy Story, Toy Story 2, A Bug's Life and Monsters Inc. have become new American classics. His "only" Oscar win? Are you insane? As if "Oscar wins" are some easy commodity?

...when did "The Time of Your Life" become a "new American classic"?

[Stats87]

"The Princess and the Frog" did lose some of it's steam when Randy Newman was hired to write the songs. I liked his work on "Cats Don't Dance" better.

Everyone did. It the only good soundtrack he ever made. That and the song "When She Loved Me" in Toy Story 2. That's all folks!

Admittedly, the songs in TPatF were not completely garbage like the rest of his Pixar songs but were still forgettable and mediocre at best.

For the "falling in love" sequence we had the lame song "Ma Belle Evangeline" for crying out loud when the love song shoulda been the most beautiful song in the film.

Let's make a comparison, shall we?

"Beauty and the Beast", "A Whole New World", "Ma Belle Evangeline".

Notice the huge difference?

And I shall not even bother with the score which was practically non-existent.

We're talking about a songwriter whose only Oscar was for "If I Didn't Have You"

I thought the songs were good, but the problem was they only work within the context of the film. None of the songs are something I could see myself ever listening to unless I was watching the movie. The film also lacked an "it" song, a song that people first think of when the movie's title is mentioned. This is even more of a let down when you consider that BatB, TLM, Aladdin and The Lion King had more then one.

When I found out Newman was doing the music and not Menken, I was disappointed. But I did think that maybe Menken's music wouldn't fit the style of the film.

At least Menken is doing the music for Rapu....Tangled