Musical Montage: Elton John “Someday Out of the Blue”
In the early days of Dreamworks Animation, the company consistently tried to outdo Disney. For 2000’s The Road to El Dorado, they not only brought in Elton John a la The Lion King for multiple songs on the movie’s soundtrack but animated him into the movie itself as the narrator. Kevin Kline and Kenneth Branagh play con artists Tulio and Miguel, who wind up in the mysterious South American city of El Dorado, where they are mistaken for gods. The movie underwent drastic tonal shifts, with Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg wanting big, serious animated epics while the screenwriters envisioned an animated homage to the Bob Hope and Bing Crosby “Road to…” musical comedies. After The Prince of Egypt came out, Katzenberg decided that their next film should have a lighter tone. The Road to El Dorado became the musical buddy comedy initially envisioned and a cult classic. Elton John and Tim Rice composed ten songs for the movie’s soundtrack, while Hans Zimmer provided the movie’s score. “Someday Out of the Blue” was released as the first single from the movie’s soundtrack and reached #49 on the Billboard Hot 100. The music video features live-action Elton John and his animated alter ego from the movie, which Joseph Kahn and Bibo Bergeron co-directed. Check it out below.
