American Idol Goes to the Movies for the Top 7! Who will go home this week?

Welcome back to American Idol folks! "Songs from the Cinema" were what songs were song on American Idol this week. We brought hits from the Silver Screen to the small screen as director extraordinaire Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill Vols 1 & 2) mentored our Top 7. Quentin, as you may know, has been a pretty vocal fan of American Idol since the very beginning even guest judging in Season 3. With all of this talk of Simon Cowell calling it quits after next season, maybe Quentin could replace both him AND Kara DioGuardi (yep, I'm getting tired of her!) Finally, after going roughly 10 minutes over last week, the American Idol powers that be only let 2 judges speak per contestant. (and they STILL ran over late!) Unfortunately, this meant that only Randy and Kara covered some of the contestants. Looks like America may have to actually decide for themselves this week who was the best and worst instead of being swayed by the inconsistent judging panel!

So MOVIE week may as well have been BALLAD week as 6 of our 7 performers opted to move American with their slow tunes. The band was on stage and dressed up for the occasion. Who will be going home this week? Difficult to say, but I have some ideas! Let's dig in to find out how everyone did.

1.) Allison Iraheta

"Please vote for me America! I didn't choose to go first!"

Song: "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith
Film: Armaggedon

Uh oh, Allison went first! The former bottom 3 dweller turned possible top 2 finalist had some pretty big shoes to fill with this power ballad. Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell spoke VERY highly of her which might help counter-balance the curse of going first this week. I guess someone finally got a wake up call over at American Idol and told them that Allison is the real deal! Unfortunately, I wasn't drinking from the Kool-Aid this week. I thought the song was totally in the wrong key for her and she sang the whole thing too low. She had some arm spasms that I might compare to the likes of Megan Jorkrey (Well, she changed her name 3 or 10 times, why can't I get a shot?!). That being said, I don't think it was the worst performance in the world, and her track record speaks for itself. Hopefully, the strong judges comments will keep her in the running for another week. Even if she did end up in the bottom 3 and voted off, I think she would land the Judges' save based on the feedback.

2.) Anoop Desai

"Look into my eyes....let them WOO you!"
Song: "Everything I Do I Do it for You" by Bryan Adams
Film: Robin Hood Prince of Thieves

Ugh, I think I heard enough of that song in 1991 to last me 18 years and beyond! (yep, still too early!) One more time, Anoop turns to the ballad and shows that he only has one thing to provide America. A delightful slow song. And don't get me wrong, he really sang that tune beautifully! But, come on! Another ballad? This guy is signing a one way ticket into becoming the successor to Peabo Bryson! I guess Disney might be looking for a new "go to" ballad guy! Anoop received positive remarks from Randy and Kara, whatever that is worth. The truth is, I think the bottom 3 is unavoidable for Anoop from now on unless he REALLY tries something crazy and takes America by surprose. So the question will just be if someone was just that much worse than him!

3.) Adam Lambert

"Which Adam do I want to be today? hmmmmm....I got it, we're bringing back the JAZZ HANDS! "

Song: "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf
Film: Easy Rider

What else is there to say about Adam Lambert? There is nothing in the world like him! I mean, that VOICE? AMAZING! His vocals were in another stratosphere again tonight as they usually are. But he seemed more in control of his high notes than normal. He didn't overdo or overuse them (unless you want to count the 3 crazy high notes at the end when 1 may have been just fine. But WOW!) So, then why the "jazz hands" slam on Adam above? Come on!!! Like Simon alluded to, don't you guys just find him a bit too "1960's Broadway musical" sometimes? (I picked a random decade, it still applies today too!) I am not saying that he should stop what he is doing. I mean clearly, he is lighting the world on fire. It was a nice touch with him kickin' it with Ricky Minor during the "chorus" and then the back-up singers. He changed the melody up again to a famous rock song, but this time it didn't bother me as much. It just seemed to work this time. Everyone else has a lot of work ahead of them to keep up with Adam. But that doesn't mean I won't root for the underdogs. Let's see if Adam can keep me interested for 2 weeks straight, because it hasn't happened yet!

4.) Matt Giraud

"I may not have worn my nifty hat during my performance tonight, but I still wore it when I met Quentin. Am I the MAN or what?!"

Song: "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman" by Bryan Adams
Film: Don Juan DeMarco

Well, I guess when you talk Movie Songs, it makes sense that 2 Bryan Adams songs were chosen for tonight's performances. He was the Kenny Loggins of the 90's! All that Matt's performance did tonight was remind me of when Chris Daughtry sang it back in season 5. And sadly, Matt's performance just didn't match up. He was all over the place with the song, not really staying in key. Kara was actually right when she said that he tried to add a bit too much to this one. It has a simple melody that begs to be sung just the way it is. Matt has flirted with the bottom 3 before, and he might just find his way back there this week. Should be interesting!

5.) Danny Gokey

"Maybe I should lose my signature glasses, grow a beard and people will think that I have changed things up!"

Song: "Endless Love" by Lionel Richie
Film: Endless Love

Danny is starting to remind me of Anoop a little bit. Personality-wise, Danny is the champion over Anoop and it is what keeps him interesting on the show. But singing-wise? He seems to be reaching into the same bag of tricks. The slow build-up during the song and, as Paula said, SLAYING the crowd by the end of it. Yeah, he did really sing the 2nd half of the song well. Now I don't have a degree in determining the "magic tambour in voices" like Paula Abdul does, but I do have a keen sense to know when an act is getting old. Danny keeps going for these inspirational tunes, that surely mean a lot to him especially with all of the tragedy in his life. But it is all just starting to sound like more of the same each week for me. Simon mentioned that David Cook took a Lionel Richie song last season and turned it on it's side and created a brand new engaging version of it. (that would be "Hello" by the way) While it's not fair to compare Danny to David (David clearly having the rare talent to change up music like that), I still get his point. Danny is up against someone who clearly isn't afraid to change up tunes and really turn some heads (Adam). And if he doesn't try to mix things up a bit, his journey may end before his pre-destined final 2.

6.) Kris Allen



Song: "Falling Slowly" by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova
Film: Once

Hey, I never heard of the movie and never heard the song. Maybe that is why it was so refreshing. I actually really enjoyed Kris's performance tonight. I may have been worried for him if he sang this in the #1 spot, but going closer to the end it may have left a lasting impression. Kris has been surprisingly a pretty solid performer through his top 13 campaign. Hopefully, me not being able to think of anything else to say about the performance isn't bad news for him this week!

7.) Lil Rounds

"Look what you did judges! You made me cry real tears! Why doesn't anyone understand my artistry?!"
Song: "The Rose" by Bette Midler
Film: The Rose

Well, Lil, maybe no one gets it because the one week you got praised you performed a Mary J. Blige song. The weeks since? Celine Dion, Martina McBride, Tina Turner, Bette Midler. Yikes...if only the judges were able to listen to me way back during audition season when this dud rolled into town! Lil tried to "GOSPEL-ize" a Bette Midler song. It just turned into a warbled mess. Her pitch was all over the place, the S's in the song were nowhere to be found, I could barely understand what she was singing! Paula even was unable to formulate a critique of positives OR negatives! Of course, Simon really delivering that hard message that Lil is not the "artist" they expected her to be will only drive those crazy phone dialers to save her yet another week. (especially with her going last). But, we can all pray for small miracles!

So we need to make some predictions! Here goes nothing!

Should be Safe: Adam (based on performance), Danny (based on popularity)

Should be Bottom: 3: Anoop, Lil, Matt

You just never know: Allison, Kris

My Bottom 3 Picks: Anoop Desai, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraud Bonus Pick: Allison Iraheta

Elimination Pick: Anoop Desai

I think Anoop really has run his course. Matt's performance wasn't that great this week either and could find him packing his bags. Lil, as I said, should get the support to survive one more week. Ugh, and Allison, well the judges' support should keep her okay this week. And I'm sure America was more on board with her performance than I was! I can be a bit picky sometimes! We shall see.

Speaking of bottom 3, does anyone want to wager any bets that the results show will show 2 groups of 3 (one being the bottom 3) and then Ryan having Adam (the immediate safe person) choose which set of 3 to stand with? I mean, I will actually be upset if they DON'T do it! I just hope one of these times the safe contestant actually betrays 3 of his friends and picks the other 3 instead of this "sitting in the middle" nonsense!

So that's it for me tonight folks. Miley Cyrus (pretaped) and Jennifer Hudson will be on the results show. I am sure I will find many kind words to say about Miley's performance! In the meantime, please share your thoughts on the show below. Hope you enjoyed my ramblings and I'll see you after the results!

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