Perfect Song, Perfect Scene #9

Opening Credits, Jackie Brown (1997): "Across 110th Street" by Bobby Womack

Getafilm Gallimaufry: Animal Kingdom, Get Low, Let Me In or Leave Me Out, & Perfect Song #8

[This series includes scattered thoughts on various movie-related topics. I was looking for a word that started with the letter "g" that means collection or assortment, but lest you think I'm some elitist wordsmith, know that I'd never heard of "gallimaufry" and I don't even know how to say it, but it was the only other option the thesaurus provided aside from "goulash" (too foody) and "garbage" (no).]

_______________________________________________________________

Animal Kingdom (A)

Aside from being among the best indie movies of the year, David Michôd's Animal Kingdom is also the Feel Bad Movie of the Year. It's not graphic, it's not lewd, and it's not even particularly violent, but you become so intimate with the cold, calculating, evil characters that you just want to shower immediately afterward. I haven't been this disgusted walking out of a film since Boy A, another excellent movie that not coincidentally deals with trust, regret, family, and crime.

Stories about criminal families are nothing new, but Animal Kingdom boasts such a crackerjack script and stellar cast that you don't even realize you've heard this story before (it helps that the actors are unfamiliar to American audiences). I was a big fan of the stylistic flourishes (understated use of slow motion, haunting music, etc.) and undercurrent of unpredictability, and well, I'll just say it: if Animal Kingdom were made by a veteran American director like Scorsese, it would be a shoo-in for a Best Picture nomination.

Best of 2009: Part 3

Read the Best of 2009: Part 1

(overlooked performances, disappointments, favorite settings)

Read the Best of 2009: Part 2

(best scenes, worst movies)

_______________________________________________

The 12 Best Original Scores of 2009

The last two years I've created a "missing soundtrack" as a list of the best music from each year: singles released during the year that would have lent themselves well to particular scenes in particular movies from that year. It was a lot of fun, but a lot of work, especially last year when I was trying to embed video and audio and get timing down and link here and there and everywhere.

It's a little sad for me, but I'm going to abandon that model this year and instead focus on the best music from movies during 2009, not the best music from 2009 that belonged in movies, if that makes sense. More specifically I'm focusing on original scores here, not movie soundtracks (though I list 10 at the end). Here then are the twelve musical scores, in no particular order, that won me over in 2009 by enriching specific scenes or adding the perfect atmosphere to the overall story and images.

Moon, Clint Mansell. I wasn't even through the opening credits of Moon when I realized I was listening to the best musical score of the year. Mansell, who has made a name for himself scoring Darren Aronofsky films (notably Requiem for a Dream), achieved the perfect balance of tension, loneliness and an unsettling fatalism in the main theme, "Welcome to Lunar Industries":

Avatar, James Horner. It wasn't until my second viewing of Avatar that I realized how excellent the score was, and how important it was to keeping the pace of a 160-minute film. The percussion and triumphant, soaring choral stanzas in it brought to mind classics like Jurassic Park and The Mission, and I think I'll be remembering this music for many years to come as well. Here is a clip of the score when Jake and the other Na'vi climb up Iknimaya, incidentally the exact scene I described in Part 2:

 

A Serious Man, Carter Burwell. Having scored nearly all of the Coen Brothers' films, Burwell obviously has a real knack for setting the right mood around their typically tortured characters. In A Serious Man, Burwell created an ominous tone for the endless tribulations of Larry Stuhlberg, while never moving into overly dramatic or frighteningly dark territory:

Where the Wild Things Are, Carter Burwell. Here on "Sailing", Burwell (with the help of Karen O) creates the perfect environemnt for Max's melancholic, meditative journey (to be fair it sounds a little similar to A Serious Man, though it's no less effective). The original songs on the soundtrack got the majority of attention when this movie came out, but Burwell's score lingered with me longer than anything else:

Perfect Song, Perfect Scene #7

Napoleon's Dance, Napoleon Dynamite (2004): "Canned Heat" by Jamiroquai

Perfect Song, Perfect Scene #6

[Originally this post was going to be my only tribute to Michael Jackson, as it features one of the best, if not the most recent, uses of his songs in a movie. A secondary choice, and I'm completely serious, would be "Will You Be There" over the closing credits of Free Willy. Anyway, I'd rather not remember why I saw 13 Going on 30 in the theater, but I will never forget the ear-to-ear grin I had on my face throughout this scene as I resisted the urge to actually get up out of my seat and start dancing, as is always the case when MJ comes on.]

Party for Poise Magazine, 13 Going on 30 (2004): "Thriller" by Michael Jackson

Perfect Song, Perfect Scene #5

Opening Credits, Brown Sugar (2002): "Act Too (Love of My Life)" by The Roots

Best of 2008: Part 3

Read Best of 2008: Part 1
Read Best of 2008: Part 2

NOTE: Because of funky formatting and embedded content, this particular post is best viewed using Microsoft Internet Explorer. Switch now if you can...
___________________________________

The Best Music (That Wasn't In Movies) in 2008:
...the soundtrack that should have been...

By the number of times I've mentioned it, it's obvious I had a great deal of fun picking songs for the "missing soundtrack" of last year, which was simply the best music of 2007 matched up with the appropriate movies of 2007. I didn't mean for it to be a predictor of what songs would show up on soundtracks and/or in movies in 2008, but that's kind of what happened, so I milked it.

Well I'm not trying to do it again here anyway; I'm just having fun with the music that I listened to and the movies I watched in 2008. It was a middle-of-the-road year for music in my opinion. A couple of classic albums and some major singles, but not too much that can be considered legendary.

I celebrated the return of 90's alt-rock (Counting Crows, Lenny Kravitz, Weezer, Ben Folds) and enjoyed the rise of a new mainstream hip-hop superstar (Li'l Wayne), the continuation of the neo-soul/R & B sound (John Legend, Duffy, Ne-Yo, Musiq Soulchild, Usher), a retro throwback or two (The Cool Kids, Al Green, Seal), radio-friendly pop (Robyn, Craig David, T.I., Kanye West), some solid hipster favorites (Kenna, Santogold, Devotchka, TV On the Radio, Beck, Common, The Roots), and more...

_______________________________

(In no particular order, but notable albums are highlighted. These embedded clips are an animal and they just refuse to center in Firefox, but I hope they work. If not, just click on the song title and it will take you a new page to hear it.)

"The Angel and the One" by Weezer from The Red Album

Scene: Solemn scene with steadily building emotion - veterans reflecting on their combat experience.

2008 Movie: Stop-Loss

If I was tech savvy I'd make some mash-up video instead, but I'm not, so just do this: Start the song and then, at the 0:30 second mark of the song, start the trailer - but MUTE it and replay it.

_______

"Fade Into the Background" by Ne-Yo from Year of the Gentleman
Scene: Guy painfully reflects on what could have been when he sees ex with new man.
2008 Movie: American Teen, Made of Honor

"Público" by Orishas from Cosita Buena
Scene: Dancing scene in Latin American city, or montage music for documentary about Cuba.
2008 Movie: N/A

"Tie My Hands" by Lil Wayne feat. Robin Thicke from Tha Carter III

or
"Soldier" by Erykah Badu from New Amerykah Part One (4th World War)

Scene: Melancholic reflection on coming up through difficult circumstances in New Orleans.

2008 Movie: Trouble the Water

If I was tech savvy I'd make some mash-up video instead, but I'm not, so just do this: Start the song and then immediately start the trailer - but MUTE it.

_______

"The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived" by Weezer from The Red Album
Scene: Montage of arrogant guy acting arrogant (or, guy puffs himself up to regain confidence after a break-up).
2008 Movies: Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Role Models, Step Brothers, Pineapple Express, RocknRolla

"I'm A Lady" by Santogold (feat. Trouble Andrew) from Santogold
Scene: Independent young woman confidently marches through city streets - lots of frame freezes.
2008 Movie: Priceless

"Delayed Devotion" by Duffy from Rockferry

Scene: Scorned woman rebuffs advances from pathetic ex trying to win her back .

2008 Movie: My Blueberry Nights, Vicky Cristina Barcelona

If I was tech savvy I'd make some mash-up video instead, but I'm not, so just do this: Start the song and then immediately start the trailer - but MUTE it.

_______

"(The Forgotten People)" by Thievery Corporation from Radio Retaliation
or
"African Problems" by Seun Kuti + Fela's Egypt 80 from Seun Kuti + Fela's Egypt 80
Scene: Opening Credits - aerial and drive-by shots of bustling, exotic urban setting.
2008 Movie: The Pool, Body of Lies


"Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)" by Beyoncé from I Am...Sasha Fierce
Scene: Woman lashes out at long-time boyfriend with commitment issues.
2008 Movie: Sex and the City

"Me" or "Guarantees" by Atmosphere from When Life Gives You Lemons You Paint That Sh*t Gold

Scene: Lonely, depressed young man aimlessly walks streets looking for someone who understands him.

2008 Movie: Boy A

If I was tech savvy I'd make some mash-up video instead, but I'm not, so just do this: Start the song and then immediately start the trailer - but MUTE it.

_______

"New World" by Devotchka from A Mad and Faithful Telling
Scene: Closing Credits - Fade music in at end of quiet, subdued ending scene, possibly at a cloudy beach or in a city at dawn or dusk; begin fading to black at 1:40 mark and roll credits. (oh, and never mind this song was already awkwardly used in an NBA finals ad last June)
2008 Movie: The Edge of Heaven, The Grocer's Son, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, Reprise

"What You Thought You Need" by Jack Johnson from Sleep Through the Static
or
"Love Like This" by Natasha Bedingfield (feat. Sean Kingston) from Pocketful of Sunshine
Scene: Not-too-sappy montage of young couple experiencing new love or sheepishly making up.
2008 Movie: Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Yes Man

"On Almost Any Sunday Morning" by Counting Crows from Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings

Scene: Sullen character walks or drives alone on a cloudy morning.

2008 Movie: The Wrestler, Frozen River, Elegy

If I was tech savvy I'd make some mash-up video instead, but I'm not, so just do this: Start the song and then immediately start the trailer - but MUTE it.

_______

"I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time" by Mariah Carey from E=MC2
Scene: Silly romantic ending when the guy and girl finally get together on their way to happily ever after.
2008 Movie: You Don't Mess With the Zohan (you should get this joke if you've seen the movie...)


"Dancin' Til Dawn" by Lenny Kravitz from It Is Time for a Love Revolution
Scene: Sleazy guy eyes beautiful woman in nightclub before moving in to show off disgusting dance moves.
2008 Movie: Semi-Pro

"Bring It On" by Lenny Kravitz from It Is Time for a Love Revolution

Scene: In slow motion, unlikely heroes get charged up before facing foes in major battle.

2008 Movie: Tropic Thunder, Role Models

If I was tech savvy I'd make some mash-up video instead, but I'm not, so just do this: Start the song and then immediately start the trailer - but MUTE it.

_______

"Freeway" by Aimee Mann from @#%&*! Smilers
Scene: Driving scene, character running away from something with chaotic emotion.
2008 Movie: Rachel Getting Married

"You Don't Know Me" by Ben Folds feat. Regina Spektor from Way To Normal
Scene: Guy and girl meet for the first time, strike up awkward, guarded romance.
2008 Movie: In Search of a Midnight Kiss, Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

"Northern Skies" by Dido from Safe Trip Home

or
"Lost!" by Coldplay from Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

or
"Be Still" by Kenna from Make Sure They See My Face

Scene: Montage interlude at 2/3 mark, character lets go of angst and finds new hope.
2008 Movie: Reprise, Paranoid Park

If I was tech savvy I'd make some mash-up video instead, but I'm not, so just do this: Start the song and then immediately start the trailer - but MUTE it.

____________________________

A few weeks ago I received an interesting email related to these matches (but maybe more so to my Perfect Song, Perfect Scene posts) from the brains behind Soundtrack Guru, a new website dedicated to answering that age-old question: "What was that song that was playing during that scene in that movie?"

As you'll find out, it works like magic for movies that feature a bunch of random songs that sound great in the movie but probably wouldn't comprise a good enough soundtrack to buy. Movies like Anchorman or The Departed. Know that it's a fairly new venture and it's all user-generated (so far as I can tell), so your favorite movie probably won't be listed until you do it yourself. Also, it seems to be fairly TV-heavy at the moment, but I suppose TV viewers have the same questions as we do.

Anyway, it's off to a pretty good start and I'd be surprised if you didn't discover the name of at least one song that you've been thinking about for years.

...to be continued...

Perfect Song, Perfect Scene #4

Christmas Concert, Love Actually (2003): "All I Want for Christmas" by Mariah Carey (as sung by Olivia Olson )

Perfect Song, Perfect Scene #3

Final scene, Rushmore (1998): "Ooh La La" by The Faces

Perfect Song, Perfect Scene #2

Opening title sequence, Midnight Cowboy (1969): "Everybody's Talkin'" by Harry Nilsson

Perfect Song, Perfect Scene #1

This is the first in a new feature series on Getafilm. I enjoy music about as much as I enjoy movies, and this "Perfect Song, Perfect Scene" series will highlight movie scenes that are perfectly complemented by a particular song. Originally, the first choice was going to be the opening credits of Midnight Cowboy backed by Harry Nilsson's "Everybody's Talkin'", but it was recently removed from YouTube for copyright violations. The same thing may happen with my other choices, as well as with my "Short Cuts" clips, so enjoy them while they last.

So it's not Midnight Cowboy, but if this first one doesn't get you in the mood to play beach volleyball on a hot August afternoon, it should at least make you laugh pretty hard.


Topless Air Force volleyball, Top Gun (1986): "Playin' With The Boys" by Kenny Loggins