Aside from providing yet another chance to obsess over Jennifer Lawrence’s perfection, this year’s Oscars honored one of my favorite songs: “Let It Go” from the movie “Frozen.”
There aren’t many movie songs that affect me the way “Let It Go” did. I was humming the tune the entire trip home after seeing “Frozen” for the first time.
Usually, I only like soundtracks that are purely instrumental—that is, without any lyrics. In general, when singers are featured in films, their words and melodies seem forced.
A prime example would be Pharrell Williams’s “Happy” from “Despicable Me 2.” Yeah, it’s been on the top 10 charts for weeks, but I can’t help thinking of “Lost Queen” from his album G I R L whenever I hear it.
Here’s the first part of the chorus from “Happy”:
“Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof/Because I’m happy/Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth/Because I’m happy.”
And the same for “Lost Queen”:
“I think you are a lost queen/Let me serve you, serve you” (insert sighs and the sounds of waves).
I actually like “Lost Queen,” but the vast differences between it and “Happy” make me feel as though Williams is faking the movie soundtrack.
Of course, some artists change over time. Just look at Taylor Swift. If I didn’t know that “Tim McGraw” and “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” were both Swift songs, I would swear they were sung by different artists.
But such a rapid artistic change, which is coincidentally just in time for a movie (and a “little” paycheck), makes me a tad suspicious.
That’s why “Let It Go” is so great—I feel completely comfortable listening to it, not as though I’m being conned.
Perhaps this is because my only experience with Idina Menzel before “Frozen” was in “Wicked” (two similar styles of music).
But, then again, isn’t that the whole point?
Shouldn’t film producers try to find singers experienced in the style they’re going for? It seems only logical.
Naturally, they’re also looking for big names to draw people to their movie. But Menzel is just as popular as Williams, especially in the over-30 circles.
Either way, the Oscar for Best Original Song went to a worthy candidate. I mean, not just any song can remain stuck in my head for an entire month!
