:welcome1: Well gang, it is movie night and while I usually like this theme I am getting tired of them using two of the songs done tonight as they have been sung several times on this show. Jeesh do the producers of this show know that there have been tons of movies with some truly great songs in them I ask? Guess I better get back to the real beginning of tonight before I say anything further about the songs. Ryan Seacrest starts us off by saying as we see the contestants that all these faces came with a dream. It's a dream they all share but only one will win the title which occurs in 14 days. This is American Idol!
Ryan then descends the staircase looking mighty spiffy in his suit. He welcomes us, the judges and the top 4 to another Tuesday night of performances. Tonight our group will not only sing solo but also part of a duet.
Jamie Foxx has been selected to mentor our group for "movie night". He was asked back since last year he did such a great job with the contestants for the "rat pack theme". As you all know Jamie has been in some movies; Dreamgirls, The Soloist and has even won an Oscar for his awesome portrayal of the legendary "Ray" Charles. Mix that up with his multi-platinum musical career and you indeed have an impressive person giving pointers to our group of four. Jamie is in the audience tonight and explains he had shirts made that say either "contestant" or "artist" which signifies whether they are ready for the big time I think. Kind of corny I thought but I am sure the contestants will cherish getting this from Jamie.
The Performances:
Lee DeWyze is up first singing the song "Kiss From A Rose" by Seal and from the movie "Batman Returns". I actually love this song but feel it has been used too many times on this show and frankly speaking no one has done it as good as Seal in my opinion. Lee is no exception to that rule as he had alot of rough notes throughout and at times sounded so off-key in parts. Randy and Ellen agree that he did nothing great with the song. Kara does mention the pitchy notes. Simon says it verged on karaoke (ouch) and feels he should have gotten a contestant shirt rather than the artist one. My grade: D
A predictable choice as Mike Lynche picks the Michael Jackson song "Will You Be There" from the movie "Free Willy". He has a back-up choir and overall it was a pleasant rendition, not great mind you but good. Randy however did not love this performance. Ellen calls it predictable but thinks Mike is consistently good. Kara does not feel the song and calls it safe. After much confusion on Simon's part who can not get the connection of this song to the actual movie he tells Mike he thinks he gave 100%. My grade: B
DUET TIME:
Lee and Crystal Bowersox are singing the song "Falling Slowly" from the movie "Once". Both are playing guitars as usual and sing to each other rather than the audience. Frankly I thought Crystal out-shown Lee on this number especially in the beginning. Lee does get better as the song progresses and they do harmonize well once they got it right. Again it was good but not great for me. Both Randy and Ellen do call it great and loved it. Kara thinks they brought out the best in each other and this is one of her favorite moments of the season. Simon calls it a fantastic song. My grade: B+
Back to the solos as Casey James picks an odd choice I thought. He is singing "Mrs. Robinson" from the movie "The Graduate". The surprising thing is he is playing the mandolin and his actual vocals I thought were quite good. It almost sounded lyrical to my ears. Responding to Randy's question about why he picked this song, I loved how he said for a alot of reasons as he gazes at Kara. Randy sort of liked his cool and laid-back performance. Ellen hopes he gets a big boy guitar but liked it. After much ribbing from her fellow judges Kara thinks he is fighting to stay in the game. Simon on the other hand calls it lazy and not much substance. My grade: B+
My girl Crystal is certainly back in the game as she performs the Kenny Loggins song "I'm Alright" from the movie "Caddyshack". She makes it her own by giving a southern-rock vibe to it with her guitar. I thought the drum back-up also was good. Randy thinks she is a real artist and liked how she switched it up. Ellen thinks she made the song better which Kara agrees with. Simon says she is back in the game. My grade: A
DUET TIME:
Another overly used song is being sung by Casey and Mike. There are performing Bryan Adams "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman" from the Don Juan DeMarco movie. Standing behind the judges with guitars in hand they each have a solo moment before they perform together. This actually came off better than I thought it would as they both sounded good. Again I was not totally blown away but feel they matched the prior duet by Lee and Crystal. Randy calls it really good and loved the guitar playing. Ellen jokes "that as a matter of fact she has loved a woman". Kara calls the duets incredible and better than the solos (not sure that is a good thing). Simon agrees with Kara. My grade: B+
I predict that the only safe person this week will be Crystal. It is a toss-up on who will be the bottom 2. Frankly I am not as impressed with Lee as the judges have been throughout this competition so I am placing him as one of my bottom 2 along with Mike. However, it is possible that Lee's fans may save him so of course Casey could be standing with Mike. My choice to go home is Mike although I would not be un-happy if Lee was eliminated. By the way, have to mention that Lee has two prior albums out before this show. I have listened to both and sadly neither is that good.
On the results show we get to listen to the screaming voice of Fantasia. The other guests for the night are Daughtry and a real treat I'm looking forward to; Bon Jovi. I will be back later with my re-cap. In the meantime, enjoy your day!
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Subject: Movie Night - Top 4 - 5/11/10 
Wed May 12, 2010 10:46 am
Whatever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!