Red? Anne Hathaway vs. Hayden Panettiere, Singing

Longtime readers will know of my love for the soundtrack to Hoodwinked, an excellent soundtrack that was out of print for awhile but is now easily available. So now the long-delayed sequel, Hoodwinked Too!, is in theatres, and I'm wondering whether I should go with the family to see it. (We've subsequently acquired a copy of the original on DVD, and we like it quite a bit.) I was nervous because despite the original's director and creator Cory Edwards' assurances that the sequel was good (he's a co-writer on the new movie), I wasn't getting a good vibe from the trailer, and, what's worse, Todd Edwards, who was responsible for the soundtrack, is nowhere to be found on this film. Instead, what we have is this, courtesy of Hayden Panettiere, brought in to replace Anne Hathaway as the voice of Red: Hayden Panettiere - "I Can Do It Alone" (from Hoodwinked Too!) [YouTube] Sigh. So... generic. And so not intriguing to me. (Oh, and the video would appear to give away a major plot twist, so foo on that, too.) Finding clips of the first movie online is obviously a little difficult, but I would just direct you to...

The Hoodwinked Soundtrack - Back! In! Print!

I'd be giddier about this news except for the fact that I already have the awesome soundtrack to Hoodwinked, the animated retelling of Little Red Riding Hood via Rashomon from early 2006. But I'm giddy, nonetheless, because the soundtrack, out of print due to contractual disputes, according to director Cory Edwards, is back in print. That's right, all you quizzical commenters, you need no longer troll eBay for auctions. Instead, Amazon and iTunes (and many others) are happy to be of assistance. The bad news, such as it is, is twofold. First, the mp3 version of the soundtrack is only available for purchase in full. Having said that, some of the songs ("Great Big World," with Anne Hathaway on vocals, or the stunning "Red is Blue," with Ben Folds) are probably worth 2 or 3 bucks apiece by themselves, so $10 for the album isn't too bad. Second, I'm guessing that the reason the parties got their acts together and put the soundtrack back in print is that Hoodwinked Too!: Hood vs. Evil will be released in January 2010, and they probably want to cash in. I'll probably want to see that with the kids (the original, while not perfect, was pretty good), but I'm disappointed to see no mention of original soundtrack creator Todd Edwards (co-director of the movie and Cory's brother) nowhere in the credits for the new movie. So, to sum. If you are a rockist family, don't delay. Get the album. (Because who knows when the whole thing will collapse and it goes OOP again.)

Hoodwinked Soundtrack: Back Again!

Well, I can't explain it, because it's been out-of-print due to contract disputes (see director Cory Edwards' explanation here). It's certainly not cheap on Amazon ($30+) or eBay ($50+). But I ordered (and received) this week a brand-new, sealed copy of the awesome Hoodwinked soundtrack (Top 10 of 2006 for me, here's my review) for about $15 delivered. I don't know how long this will last, but my guess is, not long. Where is it?

New Music from Hoodwinked Co-Director Todd Edwards

I've been meaning to mention this for awhile now, but if you grooved to the music of Hoodwinked, there's some new music from Todd Edwards, the co-director of the movie, and the man responsible for much of the movie's awesome soundtrack. Edwards' creation, Blick Van Glory has its own website and Myspace page. The Myspace page has 4 songs streaming, and while they're not really kids-related, they are some great power-pop and alt-pop tunes with a very '80s vibe. "The Sophomores" has the video, but my favorite is "Eskimo Love Song." Or maybe "Odyssey John." I don't know. They're all good. The album is due for a spring 2007 release. By the way, co-directors Todd and Cory Edwards both explained in notes to me or comments here why you can't buy the Hoodwinked soundtrack except on eBay. As Cory stated in the comments on my review of the album, "is due to contract disputes between the movie's investor and the record company. As the director, I can tell you that it was completely out of the hands of the filmmakers... and it absolutely KILLS us that no one can easily buy this product now. It is a fantastic disc and booklet that Ryko did a great job on and we're very proud of it. I have faith that it will resurface someday."

Review: Hoodwinked Original Motion Picture Soundtrack - Various Artists

When did I know how seriously I'd started to take this whole "kids and family music" thing?When I spent $25 for an out-of-print kids' music CD -- to be specific, the Hoodwinked Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.Now normally I'd just chalk it up to the semi-obsessional nature of being a niche expert, but I'm used to hearing -- and reviewing -- albums that with print runs of just 1,000 copies.What in the name of the Pulp Fiction soundtrack is going on, then, when a soundtrack of a movie produced by the Weinstein Company goes out of print six months after its release? Especially when it's as good as this one. There are three songs on here which are in my top ten kids' songs of the year, two of them in my top ten songs of the year, period.And they're all completely different."Great Big World," which I've raved about before, has a fantastic '60s-esque sound with a Phil Spector "Wall of Sound" production and crystal clear vocals from Anne Hathaway."Bounce" is an old school rap whose lyrics sound pretty nonsensical (if albeit pleasing to the ear) until you see the movie, after which they make sense (the song rolls over the closing credits).And "Red is Blue" is a stunning ballad which works both within the movie, representing character Red's interior monologue, and outside of it.Listening to the song in the movie, I thought, they have Ben Folds down cold.And then in the closing credits, I noticed that Ben Folds sang the freakin' song!Though he didn't write it, he did add the piano hook -- it's definitely the best Ben Folds soundtrack song of 2006. The rest of the songs cover most of the past 30 years sonically -- "Critters Have Feeling" could've been on the Cars' Heartbeat City, "The Real G" has a Limp Bizkit rock-rap sound (in a good way), "Glow" has a bit of an Elton John feel, and "Eva Deanna" is a very fine Pixies rip-off.Most of the credit for the awesomeness of the soundtrack has to go to co-director and songwriter Todd Edwards, who wrote 9 songs here.The rock tracks here have a very Pretty Woman soundtrack feel, where you know that some of the songs' interest will fade over time, but it's still a fine collection of songs. Now the question remains, is this a good album to recommend for listening with kids?Well, yes and no.Yes, because there are so many good songs here.No, because I'm not sure the kids will necessarily connect to the songs (aside from the "hey, I remember that song in the movie!" effect, which may be enough).In addition, while there's nothing wrong with the score, its placement scattered throughout the disk may be more distracting than enlightening. I'd peg the age-appropriateness of the album at ages 5 through 10.You can see music videos for three of the songs (including the catchy "Critters Have Feelings") at the movie's website.I'd also note that the album also includes song notes from Edwards and complete lyrics.So all you people searching the website for the lyrics, just buy the album!(And if you need to know where to get the CD at a reasonable (i.e., not $50) price, drop me a line.) You don't need to have enjoyed the movie -- or even to have seen the movie -- to enjoy the Hoowinked soundtrack (though it'll add a little bit to your enjoyment).I definitely recommend this album, but it's not so much for your kids as it is for yourself.Your kids are likely to get tired of it long before you do.

Song of the Day: Great Big World - Anne Hathaway

(Because "Song-of-the-Whenever-I-Get-Around-To-It" isn't nearly as catchy...) The Little Red Riding Hood spoof Hoodwinked wasn't a huge hit -- wink-and-you-miss-it, you might say. (In any case, I winked, and I missed it.) But I've heard "Great Big World" a few times, and it's almost enough to make me want to see the movie. It's the typical "intro" musical song, where a character sets the stage, so to speak, for the events to follow. These seemed to be a lot bigger in the animated Disney musicals of the early 1990s ("Belle" from Beauty and the Beast is the best example, a textbook example really, of how to write one of these tunes.) Lyrically, "Great Big World" talks about just that, an apropos subject for a lead character who I'm assuming is about to walk into the woods. (Without having seen Hoodwinked, I don't know if it sets the stage visually as well as "Belle" does in its movie.) Sonically, "Great Big World" harkens back to those big bright poppy tunes of the 1960s, with a massive wall of sound, especially on the chorus. But it's Hathaway's delivery that fully sells me on the song. Hathaway has a clear voice that isn't perfect or pitch-corrected to death (at least, it doesn't sound that way to me). And she delivers the lyrics with a slightly sarcastic attitude that makes me smile ("They say that goodies / Make the world / Go round"). The combination of the retro-pop and Hathaway's voice reminds me of the Bangles in their late-80s heyday. Good song all the way 'round. You can hear a sample of "Great Big World" (and every other track from Hoodwinked's soundtrack here). You can see some Bangles videos, including the sorta "Great Big World"-esque (but not really) "Walk Like an Egyptian" here. (Go on, you know you want to.) And there are hundreds of sites where you can get mp3's from the Beauty and the Beast soundtrack, but you really ought to just see the movie if you haven't already. It's by far my favorite animated Disney musical (excluding those from the wizards at Pixar, of course.) And now, thanks to my daughter, I'm watching it repeatedly once more.