Eight is Not Enough: Jonny Greenwood's 'Blood' Score DQ'ed
Filed under: Drama, Awards, Oscar Watch, Paramount Vantage
When I saw Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood, I was mesmerized by the musical score. In the opening, dialogue-free scenes, the dissonant, rhythmic, disturbing music and the raw imagery draws you into a very different world. Even people who didn't like the movie as a whole were impressed by Jonny Greenwood's remarkably effective original musical score.Everybody, that is, except the music branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which evidently feels that Greenwood's score is not sufficiently original and ruled it ineligible last week. In his Red Carpet District blog for Variety, Kristopher Tapley reports: "The disqualification has been attributed to a designation within Rule 16 of the Academy's Special Rules for Music Awards (5d under 'Eligibility'), which excludes 'scores diluted by the use of tracked themes or other pre-existing music.'" Tapley says that Greenwood's score includes "35 minutes of original recordings and roughly 46 minutes of pre-existing work," as well as "peripheral augmentation" from a piece Greenwood composed for the BBC in 2006.
Tapley indicates that the Academy was aware of all these "inclusions" since early December -- it had already ruled out Into the Wild and Enchanted for having too many songs -- but did not make a final determination on Blood until it notified Greenwood last Thursday, January 17. (Academy nominating ballots were due on Saturday, January 12.) Sources at distributor Paramount Vantage are "baffled," though respectful of the Academy's decision, telling Tapley they only wished they had known sooner so they could appeal the ruling.
There Will Be Blood ended up with eight Academy Award nominations (including one for Best Sound Editing), which is one short in my opinion. The films that did get nominated? Atonement, The Kite Runner, Michael Clayton, Ratatouille, 3:10 to Yuma. I haven't seen most of those: anything memorable from their original scores stick in your mind?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-06-2009 @ 3:04AM
cinematical said...
I'm sorry...you "haven't seen most of those"? As in you've only seen two and you didn't get time to watch "Atonement"? Sigh.
Regardless, I enjoyed the score from "Ratatouille" quite a bit but I liked the score from "There Will Be Blood" quite a bit more...so yes, perhaps one short.
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1-22-2008 @ 7:34PM
Jordan said...
honestly the only score that sticks out is the atonement score but only because it was ridiculously heavy-handed. considering the original score that won last year, it's ridiculously hypocritical of the academy to deny jonny greenwood....oh well, we fans know which score is truly the best.
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1-22-2008 @ 7:42PM
dukrous said...
I'm a fan of the Rataouille score, and it's a very low key score incorporating a lot of french musical themes, if not french music all together. I'm also happy that it was nominated for best original screenplay.
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1-22-2008 @ 8:21PM
Liz Lacy said...
I've seen three of the nominated films and can't recall 3:10 to Yuma or Ratatouille's music at all, though I can say that the music in Michael Clayton was elegant but understated, and I remember thinking it was good at the time.
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1-22-2008 @ 9:53PM
whoiscraig said...
I don't trust anyone who honestly feels as if Jonny Greenwood's score deserves a nomination. I'm not sure the Academy has good reasoning behind their decision but regardless, Jonny Greenwood doesn't get a nod from me.
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1-23-2008 @ 2:48AM
lauren said...
ratatouille was just as much fun as the movie, and id be thoroughly satisfied if it wins (since ...blood ain't in the running. woe). but atonement was wonderful if only because of the inclusion of the typwriter and other environmental sounds into the score, which in its own way was very creative and innovative. but still, its a sad day for my favorite oscars category :(.
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1-23-2008 @ 7:22AM
Tarheel said...
If the score wasn't done by "the guy from Radiohead" would there still be this much of an outcry?
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1-23-2008 @ 9:25AM
mike said...
3:10 had a brilliant score... though I still feel the score from Jesse James is the best of year, yes even better than Greenwood's. Jesse James' score stands the best on it own away from the film.
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