Post by sparklingblue on Jun 26, 2004 7:20:03 GMT -5
AFI List "Over the Rainbow"
by Joal Ryan
Jun 22, 2004, 8:05 PM PT
We needed a list to tell us "Over the Rainbow" is the greatest movie song of all time?
Probably not, but the detail-oriented types at the American Film Institute have spelled it out anyway, affixing Dorothy Gale's Kansas lament from the The Wizard of Oz to the top of its latest water-cooler-argument starter, "100 Years...100 Songs."
The tuneful list was revealed Tuesday in a three-hour CBS special hosted by disco-era musical god John Travolta, whose pipes, along with those of Olivia Newton-John, helped lift "Summer Nights" from Grease to the 70th spot.
The rest of the Top 10, meanwhile, was filled out with the usual iconic suspects: "As Time Goes By," from Casablanca; "Singin' in the Rain," from Singin' in the Rain; "Moon River," from Breakfast at Tiffany's; "White Christmas," from Holiday Inn; "Mrs. Robinson," from The Graduate; "When You Wish Upon a Star," from Pinocchio; "The Way We Were," from The Way We Were; "Stayin' Alive," from Saturday Night Fever; and "The Sound of Music," from, yes, The Sound of Music.
Just as past AFI lists were self-explanatory ("100 Years...100 Laughs," for instance, compiled the so-called best film comedies), "100 Years...100 Songs" sought to rank, yes, the top ditties in the history of tie-in soundtracks
An AFI-tapped jury of 1,500 Hollywood powerbrokers (actors and directors) and others (critics, historians, screenwriters, etc.) were asked to peruse 400 nominees, and select the top songs that helped "set a [movie's] tone," create a "cultural impact" and leave a lasting "legacy."
None of this criteria explains how Carly Simon's modestly memorable "Let the River Run," the Staten Island Ferry commute anthem from Working Girl, made the final cut (in 91st place), and the cult-inspiring "Time Warp" from Rocky Horror Picture Show didn't.
Debatable results are the hallmark of the AFI lists.
There's no fun, after all, in agreeing that, yes, "Jailhouse Rock" (from the Elvis cell-block movie of the same name) deserves to be ranked 21st, if not higher.
There's much fun, however, in arguing that perhaps Bruce Springsteen's monotone "Streets of Philadelphia" (number 68), an Oscar winner from Philadelphia, is an itty-bitty less pop-culturally identifiable than, say, Oz's "Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" (number 82) or even Dirty Dancing's "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" (number 86).
And, another thing, when people think of the rock musical Hair, do they really think of the 1979 box-office misfit? Is its "Aquarius" (33rd place) really a cinematic set piece, or a way for voters to honor a cool Broadway score?
Since the AFI wasn't picky on source material--unlike the Oscars, it didn't care if a song had been written explicitly for the film in which it was featured--movies with road- and audience-tested tunes fared best on the list.
Broadway-turned-film hits The Sound of Music and West Side Story each landed three songs in the Top 100--"The Sound of Music," "My Favorite Things" (number 64) and "Do Re Mi" (number 88) from the Rodgers-and-Hammerstein former; "Somewhere" (number 20), "America" (number 35) and "Tonight" (number 59) from the Bernstein-and-Sondheim latter.
Singin' in the Rain, regarded as the greatest movie musical, also placed three songs: the title song, "Make 'em Laugh" (number 49) and "Good Morning" (number 72).
Judy Garland, regarded as the greatest movie musical star, belted five of the songs: "Over the Rainbow"; "The Man That Got Away" (number 11), from the 1954 version of A Star Is Born); "The Trolley Song" (number 26), from Meet Me in St. Louis; "Get Happy" (number 61), from Summer Stock; and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" (number 76), also from Meet Me in St. Louis.
Daughter Liza Minnelli upheld family tradition, belting even louder on two AFI-honored numbers, "Cabaret" (number 18), from Cabaret, and the "Theme from New York, New York" (number 31), from New York, New York.
In the spirit of diversity, Eminem and Kermit represented with one entry each. The rapper charted with "Lose Yourself" (number 93) from 8 Mile; the frog, with "Rainbow Connection" (number 74), from The Muppet Movie.
Of interest to film buffs, The Song of the South, held by Disney from theatrical and home-video release in the United States since the 1980s for its not terribly enlightened portrayal of African-Americans, earned respect for its Oscar-winning hit, "Zip-a Dee-Doo-Dah" (number 47).
Rock mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap was shut out, as were the offbeat likes of South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut and rat-ballad-boasting Ben.
Songs from movies released through 2002 were eligible for inclusion. Latter-day honorees included: Chicago ("All That Jazz," number 98); Moulin Rouge ("Come What May," number 85); and Titanic ("My Heart Will Go On," number 14).
by Joal Ryan
Jun 22, 2004, 8:05 PM PT
We needed a list to tell us "Over the Rainbow" is the greatest movie song of all time?
Probably not, but the detail-oriented types at the American Film Institute have spelled it out anyway, affixing Dorothy Gale's Kansas lament from the The Wizard of Oz to the top of its latest water-cooler-argument starter, "100 Years...100 Songs."
The tuneful list was revealed Tuesday in a three-hour CBS special hosted by disco-era musical god John Travolta, whose pipes, along with those of Olivia Newton-John, helped lift "Summer Nights" from Grease to the 70th spot.
The rest of the Top 10, meanwhile, was filled out with the usual iconic suspects: "As Time Goes By," from Casablanca; "Singin' in the Rain," from Singin' in the Rain; "Moon River," from Breakfast at Tiffany's; "White Christmas," from Holiday Inn; "Mrs. Robinson," from The Graduate; "When You Wish Upon a Star," from Pinocchio; "The Way We Were," from The Way We Were; "Stayin' Alive," from Saturday Night Fever; and "The Sound of Music," from, yes, The Sound of Music.
Just as past AFI lists were self-explanatory ("100 Years...100 Laughs," for instance, compiled the so-called best film comedies), "100 Years...100 Songs" sought to rank, yes, the top ditties in the history of tie-in soundtracks
An AFI-tapped jury of 1,500 Hollywood powerbrokers (actors and directors) and others (critics, historians, screenwriters, etc.) were asked to peruse 400 nominees, and select the top songs that helped "set a [movie's] tone," create a "cultural impact" and leave a lasting "legacy."
None of this criteria explains how Carly Simon's modestly memorable "Let the River Run," the Staten Island Ferry commute anthem from Working Girl, made the final cut (in 91st place), and the cult-inspiring "Time Warp" from Rocky Horror Picture Show didn't.
Debatable results are the hallmark of the AFI lists.
There's no fun, after all, in agreeing that, yes, "Jailhouse Rock" (from the Elvis cell-block movie of the same name) deserves to be ranked 21st, if not higher.
There's much fun, however, in arguing that perhaps Bruce Springsteen's monotone "Streets of Philadelphia" (number 68), an Oscar winner from Philadelphia, is an itty-bitty less pop-culturally identifiable than, say, Oz's "Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" (number 82) or even Dirty Dancing's "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" (number 86).
And, another thing, when people think of the rock musical Hair, do they really think of the 1979 box-office misfit? Is its "Aquarius" (33rd place) really a cinematic set piece, or a way for voters to honor a cool Broadway score?
Since the AFI wasn't picky on source material--unlike the Oscars, it didn't care if a song had been written explicitly for the film in which it was featured--movies with road- and audience-tested tunes fared best on the list.
Broadway-turned-film hits The Sound of Music and West Side Story each landed three songs in the Top 100--"The Sound of Music," "My Favorite Things" (number 64) and "Do Re Mi" (number 88) from the Rodgers-and-Hammerstein former; "Somewhere" (number 20), "America" (number 35) and "Tonight" (number 59) from the Bernstein-and-Sondheim latter.
Singin' in the Rain, regarded as the greatest movie musical, also placed three songs: the title song, "Make 'em Laugh" (number 49) and "Good Morning" (number 72).
Judy Garland, regarded as the greatest movie musical star, belted five of the songs: "Over the Rainbow"; "The Man That Got Away" (number 11), from the 1954 version of A Star Is Born); "The Trolley Song" (number 26), from Meet Me in St. Louis; "Get Happy" (number 61), from Summer Stock; and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" (number 76), also from Meet Me in St. Louis.
Daughter Liza Minnelli upheld family tradition, belting even louder on two AFI-honored numbers, "Cabaret" (number 18), from Cabaret, and the "Theme from New York, New York" (number 31), from New York, New York.
In the spirit of diversity, Eminem and Kermit represented with one entry each. The rapper charted with "Lose Yourself" (number 93) from 8 Mile; the frog, with "Rainbow Connection" (number 74), from The Muppet Movie.
Of interest to film buffs, The Song of the South, held by Disney from theatrical and home-video release in the United States since the 1980s for its not terribly enlightened portrayal of African-Americans, earned respect for its Oscar-winning hit, "Zip-a Dee-Doo-Dah" (number 47).
Rock mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap was shut out, as were the offbeat likes of South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut and rat-ballad-boasting Ben.
Songs from movies released through 2002 were eligible for inclusion. Latter-day honorees included: Chicago ("All That Jazz," number 98); Moulin Rouge ("Come What May," number 85); and Titanic ("My Heart Will Go On," number 14).
especially the seminal Goldfinger at #53! Feh.
