Popular music and film - the good, the bad, the dreadful

johnny_ultimate

It's easy to hire John Williams, Hans Zimmer or Clint Mansell to score your film. Get someone else to write something that directly enhances the images on screen. Using music that already exists is much harder, and the effects can be very different. Let's talk about the best examples and, of course, the worst.

The good:
Despite it playing like twenty five times during the film, California Dreamin' is one of the most memorable elements of Chungking Express, adding to the overall dreamy atmosphere. Wes Anderson and Quentin Tarantino may overload their films with popular music: some good, some bad. But Needle in the Hay in the Royal Tenenbaums (and the shocking images that go along with it) or the playful Chick Habit at the end of Death Proof (providing a welcome change of pace after the atmospheric car chase that preceded it, while cheekily referencing the feminist revenge themes) are excellent music cues, alongside many others. Then there's something like Rhapsody in Blue over the Manhattan prologue - the driving pace of the song and the gorgeous black & white photography a wonderful introduction to Woody Allen's love letter to the city. Unpredictable music choices that enhance the images or themes are always to be welcomed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyaj2P-dSi8

The bad:
There's a scene in Hall Pass where one character gives out to another for not recognising or liking the Snow Patrol song in the background or something along those lines. Seriously? Snow Patrol? Such on-the-nose references in an attempt to be hip can be painful, having quite the opposite effect. A lot of indie films are guilty of this crime. I like Garden State for the most part, but some of the vocal references to band and a reliance on an acoustic-alternative soundtrack have become unwelcome cliches in the American independent scene. And while I again liked the King's Speech, the climactic scene lost a little of its power for me by reusing a Beethoven composition that has been in an awful lot of films recently (like the Fall). Copying music cues that have proven to work in other places can just feel like a lazy choice.

The dreadful:
I don't completely buy into the whole "good film music is the kind you don't notice" school of thought, because I will certainly notice a standout track on a soundtrack. But when the music choice is so awful it pulls you out of the film it certainly is notable. The worst offender for me is a recent example: Hallelujah in Watchmen. Considering the film contains at least one spectacular music cue (Bob Dylan over the opening credits) the rest of the film's reliance on popular music is a farce, loyal to the comic or not. When Hallelujah kicks in in its cheesy glory, it's genuinely embarrassing watching the overwrought sex scene unfold on-screen. It proves that taking things to literally when it comes to cueing popular music can have very detrimental effects indeed.

So - your favourites and least favourites? And what do you think makes a music cue work or not work?

JBnaglfar

I always loved the soundtrack to Dario Argento's 1975 film Deep Red (Profondo Rosso), which was provided by an Italian prog band called Goblin. I know prog is not exactly pop music, but it was pretty popular back in the 70's.

The soundtrack works fantastically well with the film imo. The sounds of the synths add much to the overall tone of the horror film, providing what I can only think of as a sense of 'light unease' - unease in terms of enhancing a 'creepy' atmosphere, yet it keeps it at a fairly light rather than intense tone. Watching this film, I realised that prog and horror are a perfect match. Odd time signatures and syncopation (putting an emphasis off the music's main beats) has often been used in prog music to suggest tension, to suggest that things are off kilter. This musical quality is an obvious advantage to a Horror soundtrack.

Here is a montage of some scenes throughout the film, set to a song from the soundtrack. As its a horror film, this contains some mildly gory scenes. (not sure what the etiquette here is regarding stuff like that so just want to leave that disclaimer there :pac:)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLIrAswLrhU

bnt

I thought Heat had some very interesting pop-ish soundtrack choices by Elliot Goldenthal, some bordering on the avant-garde. There's the U2 / Brian Eno "Passengers" project, which provided this track, Always Forever Now:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFKedKEX87s

and an Ambient favourite of mine before I saw the movie: Michael Brook's Ultramarine, which you can hear over the scene in which the gang are having dinner with their wives & girlfriends but the cops are watching them:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITFyP9b7ius

Not so keen on the Moby stuff, such as his cover of Joy Division's New Dawn Fades, but that's just me. :cool:

I am one of those folks who appreciates it when a soundtrack doesn't jump out at me yet adds to the weight of the film. Before I watched The Social Network I knew Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails) did the soundtrack, and worried it might be too "industrial", but I didn't have to explicitly think about the soundtrack at all while watching the film. It was definitely there, though - I would have missed it.

As for "dreadful": I mentioned Nora Ephron's films in another thread, but it applies here too. Her over-use of old pop and jazz songs to control your mood is like having a slab of Toblerone rammed up my ... nose.

krudler

I'm not a big fan of Tarantino, but man can he put a tune to a scene.

This was instant movie cool the second it you saw it, 8 guys walking, and nothing else, yet its as cool as fcuk.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzMpH9jjo4w

Another stunningly good match of music to scene:

(I do loathe the self indulgent annoucement thats its "the 4th film by Quentin Tarantino" though)

paddy kerins

The Tron Legacy soundtrack is one of the best I've heard. It just suits the film so perfectly

There are so many great examples of music being used brilliantly in cinema but this is one of my all time favourites.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9v9utOMX4hU

krudler

This is just impossible not to like:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgd46QiHz4I

c'mon who wouldnt want to be part of something like that just once in their life

Renn

At least the OP gave a bit extra in the post than just posting your favourite songs from films - I'll have a think and try and dig out some youtube videos of some of mine. Might be hard to do with spoilers and all that

indough

+1 for tron legacy and the southland tales scene. that movie had a couple of good music scenes though, for example the short car scene with muse playing behind it (which i think was an homage to the opening of kiss me deadly which also features on some screens throughout the movie), the wave of mutilation scene and the memory gospel dancing scene at the end

mikom

Not a movie, but if I close my eyes and listen to this I could easily be in merlotte's rocking back in a high stool whilst suppin' on a beer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aspA8WRRTz8

I think it's a little unfair to expect people to be posting in depth discussions of film at 2am. I'd rarely simply post a youtube link but as I'm half asleep and posting from my Ipod I really don't fancy writing a long post but I will once I get back to my computer tomorrow or the next day as will many of the others who have posted one line posts thus far.

Corkfeen

I was tempted to use afternoon delight but another one stands out for me. Mad World basically summed up Donnie Darko and wasn't originally written for it, granted it was a remake of the rather ****e tear for fears song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PUFJmsCZLE

Sl!mCharles

Probably a bit obvious, but whenever I think of well-placed songs in films, I always think of this.

The whole film has a great soundtrack, but this scene was one that resounded particularly. Ideal song choice, very memorable I thought. Lou Reed's own heroin background and the song's ambiguous, interpretive lyrics make it even more effective.

starts at 1.50 or thereabouts

Jako8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zc2wtHmXUGU

I thought 500 Days of Summer had a great soundtrack and utilised it very well. The music in the above scene fits nicely when watching the movie imo.

Gotta love the dance number too. :P

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgVNgYXFi_Q

2 stand out music moments in this film for me and the first thought I had when I came across this thread:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s59k4rhzWgo

And of course, the disco scene is priceless

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3bAmld2sHo

Mickeroo

The music in Magnolia by Aimee Mann pretty much made the movie for me, excellent soundtrack.

Wes Anderson's soundtracks are generally great, The Royal Tenenbaums to me is the greatest soundtrack I've ever witnessed, not only is it al good stuff but every single song is meticulously chosen to hit the right note when it is used, Needle In The Hay is one example which has already been mentioned but I think this bit is just as good!! I'm pretty sure I posted this in a similar thread on here already

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bl6FbeoXeHQ

I also love the end of Fight Club when Where is my Mind kicks in. I could probably write a thesis on this subject, sometimes the choice of music can make or break a movie, I think soundtracks are often underplayed in their importance, theres nothing better than picking the right song for the right moment in a movie, the same is true of a decent theatrical score,for example this piece of music almost single handedly turned Transformers 1 into a watchable movie:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H0JDomv8ac

An example of how music can sometimes ruin a movie would be recently for me anyway the bloody Lady Gaga montage in the Karate kid remake, what were they thinking, the theatrical score was quite good and if they just held that tone rather than the stupid kiddy orientated pop music it would have benefited to no end, not that it was a classic in any right besides.

The downright dreadful though, well that has to go to the Owl City soundtracked montage in the middle of Legend of the Guardians, the rest of the film was quite serious in tone with a good score which held the sense of wonder and foreboding, then that stupid pop song popping up in the middle(and at the end again??) completely destroyed the atmosphere of the film.

Gillington

In a film about a band you'd expect the soundtrack to be good,but I think the use of Tiny Dancer in Almost Famous is brilliant,one of the most memorable scenes in the film

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Qn3tel9FWU

Outkast_IRE

a lot of the stuff john murphy does is excellent. this is epic no other word for it !!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWlXU2DeYkQ

or 28 days later this is some song if there was a zombie apocolypse this is the song that will be playing from my house !!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ST2H8FWDvEA

KilOit

Love adagio in d minor in Sunshine, it's one of my favorite sci fi movies of all time and the soundtrack was perfect

BopNiblets

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbwFXngs9Lw

Phony Scott

Admittedly I haven't seen this film in years and I'm dying to reassess it when the special edition of the film comes out. I can't think of many films that devided people quite as much as 'Blue Velvet'. Even if you think the film is awful or brilliant, this scene is sublime, hypnotic and unforgettable.

What's not to like about it, it is creepy and bizarre. I haven't a clue what is going to happen to the main character and his safety is flipped on its head by the song 'In Dreams' which always made me question what whether or not we were seeing was real or just a dream. Dean Stockwell almost steals Dennis Hoppers thunder with this one scene. Intense stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDZItMrmtNI

And of course, I can't forget my favourite movie of all time 'Apocalypse Now'. I could choose two scenes, namely this one and the one involving 'Ride of the Valkyries', both songs I'm not entirely keen on but they are jaw dropping scenes combined brilliantly with music. I have to side with The Doors opening track because it sets the tone for everything to come to perfection.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njfbVrYn4CU

Renn

That scene is amazing and I'd take a good guess that your reassessment will be positive given that you've posted that scene. It's actually supposed to be getting a blu-ray release sometime...with some recently found deleted scenes in the extras which should be cool.

abouttobebanned

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LJEPkc4ztE

bonerm

Always liked this one

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubpRcZNJAnE

It's an instrumental cover of The Smiths "Please Please Let me get what I want". A nice break in the middle of the movie.

The Mad Hatter

Two pages and not a single mention of Stanley Kubrick?

I won't post it on the off-chance that someone hasn't seen the film, but the end of Doctor Strangelove is an all-time classic.

And there's also Malcolm MacDowell's (in)famous performance of Singin' in the Rain as he kicks the hell out of a pensioner in A Clockwork Orange.