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Sandler visits 'X Factor,' singers go to the movies for inspiration

It was movie night on Wednesday’s “X Factor,” and if it did nothing else, it showed that the judges have some eclectic selections in their DVD collections.The final 11 all had to take songs off of movie soundtracks, again taking a page from the “American Idol” handbook. But perhaps inspired by their visit to the “Jack and Jill” premiere, and their subsequent banter with Adam San
Drew Ryniewicz's self-designed dress brought on a rare sartorial comment from Paula.
Drew Ryniewicz's self-designed dress brought on a rare sartorial comment from Paula.Fox / Today

It was movie night on Wednesday’s “X Factor,” and if it did nothing else, it showed that the judges have some eclectic selections in their DVD collections.

The final 11 all had to take songs off of movie soundtracks, again taking a page from the “American Idol” handbook. But perhaps inspired by their visit to the “Jack and Jill” premiere, and their subsequent banter with Adam Sandler, few went with a conventional choice. Sandler may have looked like he was auditioning for the role of the autopilot in an “Airplane!” remake, but the contestants showed a lot more life in singing songs from the forgotten files of American cinema.

Remember “You, Me and Dupree?” Probably not. L.A. Reid certainly hadn’t. But that forgotten comedy with Kate Hudson, Owen Wilson and Matt Dillon had “Fix You” by Coldplay, which got the single-named Drew a positive response. The bad news for her is that Paula Abdul criticized her wardrobe, the first time in recorded history she’s done so for any contestant, and it turned out that the teenager designed the dress herself. Awkward!

Interestingly, Simon called that film “one of my favorite movies of all time.” I always figured him to be more of a “Local Hero” or “Gregory’s Girl” fan. But it was a good day for Kate Hudson in general, who also had her “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” serve as the inspiration for Lakoda Rayne.

Meanwhile, Rachel Crow went for something from the legendary “Cadillac Records.” The Stereo Hogzz picked Cristina Aguilera’s “Ain’t No Other Man” from “Get Smart.”  And “Car Wash” provided the tune for Marcus Canty and his silver jacket that had anyone watching the show in HD seeing spots for hours afterwards. I’m not sure where the judges get their DVDs from, but The Dollar Store is a strong candidate.

Stacy Francis went with something from “The Bodyguard,” but not the songs everyone had heard of. Instead of “I Will Always Love You” or “I Have Nothing,” she sang “Queen of the Night,” which L.A. Reid didn’t like even though he wrote it. Melanie Amaro chose “Man in the Mirror” and persevered despite a sore throat. Those were the two most powerful female vocals of the night

L.A. gave two of his men conventional choices that they did in unconventional ways. Astro’s “Lose Yourself” by Eminem featured shoutouts to the late Heavy D and Joe Fraizer, while Chris Rene put his own lyrics to Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise.”

And Nicole played it safe with the rest of her over-30s. Leroy Bell got “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For,” perhaps singing about his attempts to connect with the audience, while Josh Krajcik told us all that he gets by with a little help from his friends. He’s hoping those friends voted early and often to keep him from joining inTENsity in getting sent home and deleted from the opening credits.

What did you think of the soundtrack choices from the artists? What song, from what movie, would you rather have heard? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page!

 

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