Composing Greatness: #4. Oscars 2019 Edition - "Isle of Dogs"

Scene from Isle of Dogs

Welcome to a very special edition of Composing Greatness. In this limited series, I will be looking at the five scores nominated for this year's Best Original Score category. To avoid favoritism, the list will be done in alphabetical order of composers and feature the same guidelines as the original series. This is meant to explore the music behind the great films of 2018, and provide insight into what makes each of them special and whether or not they deserved to be nominated at all. Join me all week as I listen to the  music, leave some thoughts, and hopefully sway you to check out these wonderful, wonderful scores.

Coming Soon: Composing Greatness Looks at This Year's Nominees

Terrence Blanchard

In what will become an annual tradition, it's time once again for Composing Greatness to revive itself for a week of covering every Best Original Score nominee from this year's ceremony. Given the great diversity in styles, it's going to be fun to look through what's here and find the heart of why these scores were nominated. So feel free to join in, starting the week of February 18 as I cover all five of the scores in alphabetical order by title. How will BlacKkKlansman, Black Panther, If Beale Street Could Talk, Isle of Dogs, and Mary Poppins Returns compare with previous nominees? You'll have to wait and see.

*NOTE: Due to Composing Greatness' return, this month's Legitimate Theater has been cancelled. Please feel free to enjoy it next month when it returns.

Review: "Isle of Dogs" Proves that Anderson Can Make Garbage Beautiful

Scene from Isle of Dogs

*Note: Originally published on Optigrab

How can director Wes Anderson, a man on the verge of self-parody, continue to be one of the defining independent auteurs of modern cinema? It seemed like he reached the apex with the Oscar-winning The Grand Budapest Hotel where his lavish style was met with madcap energy and a subtle attack on his critics. It seems impossible for him to be as charming and artful without at some point stretching too far beyond the stratosphere. Thankfully, Isle of Dogs is not that. Instead, it's a reinvention of narrative, combining Japanese influence with his posh sensibilities. As much issues could lie in a film that features the white voice actors as heroes, Anderson has more on his mind that is interesting, poignant, and innovative in ways that prove he still has a lot to say, even if visually he can't get any more interesting. 

The First "Isle of Dogs" Trailer is Wes Anderson Back in His Great Old Animated Ways

Scene from Isle of Dogs

In general, one could believe that stop motion animation is an inferior art form. After all, it takes so long to get right that studios like Pixar and Dreamworks Animation just bypass the endeavor all together. However, there's something to be said for filmmakers who pull it off. In 2009, director Wes Anderson did just that with the amazing Fantastic Mr. Fox. It will be nine years since the animated world had last seen him, but the first trailer for Isle of Dogs has the familiar sense of whimsy and awe that even his live action movies have. It may seem a little disconcerting at times, but there's no denying that an Anderson animated tale can't be told any other way than stop motion. It wouldn't be quirky enough.