Idol Worship - The Final Four Go to the Movies

It's performance night for the Idols and the final four Idol wannabes will be working with Jamie Foxx as they select songs from the movies to sing for your votes. It should be an entertaining show because not only will the final four sing a solo, but they will also team up with one of their fellow finalists to sing a duet--wonder if they will make them lip synch like they do on elimination night...wouldn't that just be awful!

But let's not think about that right now, instead let's check out the solo performances.

First up with Jamie was Lee Dewyze. Lee went with the "Kiss From a Rose" from Batman Forever by Mr. Heidi Klum (aka Seal). As Lee practiced the song, Jamie got all up in his face--just let he did a couple of years ago with Danny Gokey. A week after ditching his guitar in favor of singing with Harry Connick, Jr.'s big band, Lee was back to the comfort zone of playing his acoustic guitar and dressed in a black and white flannel--looking ever the street corner singer. He didn't sound at the top of his game tonight, but it looked like he sure enjoyed himself--as did the audience. When it came time for the judges to share their thoughts, Randy didn't feel Lee did much with the song and was "pitchy at times". Ellen didn't offer much of a critique simply telling him he's good. Kara followed Ellen's lead, but went a step further saying "you are great!". Simon called it "karaoke...you tried too hard to sound like the original". As much as I would like to disagree with Simon and Randy, I can't. It was a disappointing performance, but he's still got a duet to sing, so there is still hope.

Big Mike was next and went with song by another Mike--as in Michael Jackson. Big Mike took on the King of Pop's "Will Be There". Mike didn't sound so good when he was with Jamie, so the jury was out leading up to his big live performance. When Big Mike hit the stage he was accompanied by a Gospel group following him down the steps at the back of the Idol stage. I wasn't overly thrilled with the performance--Big Mike did about the same as Lee...which wasn't much beyond "cover" the song...I'm not sure that is good enough to win the competition. But what did the judge's think? As always, Randy was the first to offer his thoughts. Randy liked the song, but didn't love it and would have rather had Big Mike select an R&B song. Ellen noted that the song was from Free Willy..."one of the greatest movies of all time". She also called Mike's performance "predictable". Kara wished for goosebumps, but was left unsatisfied. Simon questioned what "Free Willy" is and struggled to link a movie about a whale with what Mike did on stage...and when Kara tried to explain it the movie to him, he became even more confused. And I'm pretty sure that confusion is going to lead to Big Mike being in trouble come elimination night.

So with two rather disappointing performances in the bag, Ryan introduced the first duet of the night: Lee and Crystal who sang "Falling Slowly" from Once. For those keeping track at home, there will be no voting for this song...so just sit back and read my comments and wish you could have seen the first magic moment of the evening. Lee and Crystal sounded really good and may want to consider recording a song or two together post-Idol! What a surprise...and no lipsyncing! Randy was equally impressed and thought they could have a hit record. Ellen called them the "New Captain and Tenille"! Kara thought it may be the best moment of the season. Simon called it a "fantastic song"! Cue the applause and cheers.

Our third solo performance of the night came courtesy of Texas-native, Casey James. Casey struggled to find the soul of "Mrs. Robinson", but Jamie was able to coax it out of him. And in an odd twist, Casey chose to sit on a mini stage adjacent to the judge's table and play his mandolin. As Casey sang his song and the young ladies in the audience clapped and waved their arms, he seemed to grow more confident as the song reached the end of his alloted 90 seconds. When it was all said and done I don't know if Casey blew anyone's socks off, but he certainly sounded a lot better than the first two solo acts--which isn't saying much tonight. Before offering his critique, Randy asked if there was any special meaning behind his song selection--cue the uncomfortable Casey-Kara jokes. Ellen wished he would have used a bigger guitar and took the song to new heights. Kara pointed out that Casey made a good song choice (no surprise) and stepped out of his comfort zone. Simon thought it was a lazy performance and a missed opportunity to make a bigger impact. So to net it out--no one loved his performance, but at least he was able to bring back Kara-crush story line that had all but died several weeks ago.

Rounding out the night's solos, Crystal went with "I'm Alright" from Caddyshack--a questionable song selection, but one that fits the night's crazy song choices. Crystal opted to go with her acoustic guitar and had a percusion player with her on stage. Listening to Crystal sing what is far from a "great" song, I was somewhat surprised at how much I enjoyed her version of the Kenny Loggins hit. Randy credited her with switching up the song even though it wasn't his favorite. Ellen felt she took the song and made it better. Simon said Crystal is "back in the game" after receiving less than glowing reviews the past couple of weeks.

The final performance of the night was courtesy of Casey and Big Mike who duetted on "Have You Really Ever Loved a Woman"--Bryan Adams' hit from Don Juan deMarco. I think I was one of the five people to actually see that lame movie in the theatre and the best thing about it was when it ended...and the second best thing was this song. The boys did a pretty good job on the song, but not quite in the same league as Lee and Crystal--although Kara said the duets were better than the solo performances tonight...no argument from me.

BTW: Ellen answered the musical question asked by Casey and Mike with a resounding "yes...I have loved a woman". A comment that was met with lots of applause and laughter.

With the performance part of the show over, it's up to you the voter to decide who stays and who goes home tomorrow night. If it were my call, I would say goodnight to Casey--I like him, but he seems to have peaked where the other three still have something left in the tank.

Tune in tomorrow to see how your favorite does. Until then, I will continue watching TV so you don't have to!

Charlie