THE OSCAR NOMINATIONS ARE IN
But as everyone in the industry knows, the Oscar nominees were announced this morning. And despite all the hullabaloo about "Gladiator" grabbing 12 nominations, "Crouching Tiger, Snacking Manatee" grabbing 10 or Steven Soderbergh putting two films in major play (both "Traffic" and "Erin Brockovich" grabbed five), what we're all about is the music.
Naturally, we're all a little put out that "Almost Famous"—an office favorite—got snubbed for Best Picture. It did, however, grab four nominations including Best Screenplay (Written Directly For The Screen) and Supporting Actress nods for both Frances McDormand and Kate Hudson. And don't even get us started about the wholesale lack of attention paid to "High Fidelity."
Despite that, there's still some pretty cool news to report in the Original Score and Original Song categories.
There's an interesting battle building in the Original Song category, with Sting, Bjork, Randy Newman and Bob Dylan all going toe-to-toe. Currently favored to win is Dylan, whose "Things Have Changed" was one of only three nominations for the under-appreciated "Wonder Boys." It's Dylan's first Oscar nomination.
In fact, the Original Song category is dominated by first-timers: only two of the 10 songwriters nominated have been previously honored by the Academy. The grizzled veteran is 14-time nominee Newman ("A Fool In Love" from "Meet The Parents"). Other than that, only Jorge Calandrelli (co-writer of "A Love Before Time" from "Crouching Tiger, Wheezing Weasel") has been previously nominated in this category. Calandrelli was nominated for his score to 1985's "The Color Purple." Whoever wins in this category will win his or her first Oscar, as even Newman with his 14 noms has never won.
Leading the Original Score nominees is perennial nominee John Williams—who with 39 nominations (and five wins) is the most nominated living person—for "The Patriot." Both Rachel Portman ("Chocolat") and Hans Zimmer ("Gladiator") have previously won Oscars, for 1996's "Emma" and 1994's "The Lion King," respectively. Despite, four previous nominations, Ennio Morricone ("Malena") has not won an Oscar. Only Tan Dun ("Crouching Tiger, Laughing Hyena") is nominated for the first time—although he also grabbed an Original Song nom.
The Oscars will be broadcast on March 25 on ABC. For the complete list of Oscar nominees, feel free to visit Oscar.com.
Original Song
"A Fool In Love" from "Meet The Parents," Randy Newman
"I've Seen It All" from "Dancer In The Dark," Bjork, Lars Von Trier and Sjon Sigurdsson
"A Love Before Time" from "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," Jorge Calandrelli, Tan Dun and James Schamus
"My Funny Friend And Me" from "The Emperor's New Groove," Sting and David Hartley
"Things Have Changed" from "Wonder Boys," Bob Dylan
Original Score
"Chocolat," Rachel Portman
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," Tan Dun
"Gladiator," Hans Zimmer
"Malena," Ennio Morricone
"The Patriot," John Williams
