by Chris Feil
This year’s longlist of eligible Original Song contenders should be arriving right on schedule in a month’s time, so what better time to shed some light on a few under-the-radar favorites than the present! Conventional wisdom at this stage in the race is falling as it typically does: to big pop stars and returning songwriting champions...
Among the former, we have Beyoncé with The Lion King’s “Spirit”, Taylor Swift (co-writing with Andrew Lloyd Webber) with Cats’ dreary “Beautiful Ghosts”, and a possibly underestimated player with Elton John for Rocketman’s “I’m Gonna Love Me Again”. Of the previous winners, Randy Newman (a possible double nominee this year, as he provides Marriage Story’s lovely score) is back to Pixar with Toy Story 4’s “I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away”. But there’s also Pasek and Paul with Aladdin’s “Speechless” and the charming marrieds Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez giving Elsa not one, but two anthems in Frozen 2 - “Into the Unknown” and “Show Yourself”.
But I’d wager there might be a different frontrunner: Harriet’s “Stand Up”. The song closes the film, but packs the kind of emotional punch that the Academy’s songwriting branch has really responded to in recent years. Plus, with co-songwriting duties going to the film’s star Cynthia Erivo (along with Joshuah Brian Campbell), this one has a leg up on its competition.
However, aside from those contenders, there are still some great options outside of those expected names. Here are five original songs from films this year worthy of the Academy’s attention...
Her Smell - “Control” - Written by Alicia Bognanno
There might not be an original song contender as essential to character arc or narrative impact as this one, a song that has lingered throughout the year. Central to Her Smell’s reflective (and necessary) downshift is the performance of “Control”, both an admission of guilt and submission to addiction by Elisabeth Moss’ Becky Something. There’s an obvious roadblock here in how few people have seen the film, but it might be helped by the darkest-of-dark-horse awards talk for Moss’ Gothams and Indie Spirit-nominated work. You can’t consider her performance without thinking about this song.
Wild Rose - “Glasgow (Ain’t No Place Like Home)” - Written by Caitlyn Smith, Kate York, and Mary Steenburgen
I see that straight people have finally gotten word that Mary Steenburgen is a songwriter now, though we covered this during the film’s initial release. While that unexpected story helps this one stand out in what is always an overcrowded field, it’s emotional power speaks for itself. But I have some concerns about eligibility here: distributor Neon isn’t including the film in their FYC material (yet, at least) despite including almost their entire year’s lineup. Might this one have eligibility issues, perhaps along the lines of not being written especially for the film?
High Life - “Willow” - Written by Stuart Staples and Dan McKinna
Speaking of a film not mentioned in their distributor’s FYC efforts. That might be more sensible for this (brilliant) very Academy-unfriendly film, though this song deserves a shot for its how it embodies the film’s human emotional core. Hinted first in the film as musical whisper, the lullaby blossoms at the close of the film, warmly punctuating what is ultimately a somber meditation on human nature. And hey, Robert Pattinson is kind of a lovely singer.
Frozen 2 - “Lost in the Woods” - Written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez
A casual perusal of Frozen 2 reactions will find that a good number of us found the big songs to be somewhat underwhelming. But that is not the case for this hilarious riff on an REO Speedwagon or Chicago-esque power ballad for Johnathan Groff’s Kristoff. It’s satisfying on both an individual song level, and in terms of providing the film with something musically fresh. Sometimes the b-sides are just better.
Queen and Slim - “Yo Love” - Written by Vince Staples, Leken Taylor, Jairus Mozee, and Ricardo Valdez Valentine, Jr.
One of the trickiest balancing acts in Queen and Slim is its Before-Sunrise-meets-Thelma-and-Louise take on the black experience in America; it’s both vast and incredibly intimate. “Yo Love” distills all of that as elegantly as Melina Matsoukas’ direction, capturing the film’s tense but sumptuous tone. If part of the job of a film’s signature song is to embody the film as a whole, then few this year will have the full romantic force of this one.
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