Good taste as a love letter
A soundtrack is the unsung hero of the movie-watching experience, taking the backseat to more obvious aspects. As such, its power is often woefully underestimated: when good music is paired with a good film, it is a seamless union made in muso heaven, neither so jarring that it steals the scene nor so subtle that it comes across as an afterthought. When fine tunes are teamed up with a steaming pile, it can outclass the very movie it was meant to support and condition people into believing the production was not a complete waste of time. A saving grace if you will.
The songs featured in The Perks Of Being A Wallflower clearly belong to the former category. For that we can all blame music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas, whose collection of sonic missives articulates the joy and pain of Stephen Chbosky’s touching screen adaptation. From Charlie, Sam and Patrick tearing up the dancefloor to Come On Eileen by Dexys Midnight Runners to L7’s Pretend We’re Dead humming in the background during a tense make-out session, hers was a fireworks display of retro coolness. It was, to apply what I learned from Perks, good taste as a love letter, a way to recontextualize old tunes and introduce the mixtape mindset to an audience that may not have experienced the magic the first time around.
Music by association
Because it is deeply personal and relies more on intuition than intellect, discovering new music is an unfettered pleasure no matter how it is done. For instance, I will forever associate music by Tears For Fears, The Church and Echo and the Bunnymen with Jake Gyllenhaal’s Donnie Darko since that was how gloomy ‘80s new wave became real to me, however obliquely, in 2004. Radiohead’s Fake Plastic Trees, meanwhile, will always equal Clueless: “Uh, the maudlin music of the university station,” declares Cher Horowitz in that memorable scene.
“We all experience music autobiographically,” says Rob Gordon, John Cusack’s character in 2000’s High Fidelity. “I’ll have certain songs that mark certain times in our life and I think we’re not rare in that way.” Here are a few more films — some truly excellent, others not so — that not only opened my eyes but my ears as well.
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The Romantics (2011)
The stars: Katie Holmes, Anna Paquin, Dianna Agron, Josh Duhamel, Adam Brody, Malin Akerman, Elijah Wood
The story: Over the course of one night, seven close college friends reconvene to watch two of their own tie the knot.
The sounds: The Bird and The Bee - Preparedness
Bedouin Soundclash - Brutal Hearts
The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
The stars: Adrien Brody, Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman
The story: A year after burying their father, three brothers travel across India by train in an attempt to bond with one another.
The sounds: Joe Dassin - Aux Champs-Élysées
The Kinks - This Time Tomorrow
The Rolling Stones – Play With Fire
Ceremony (2011)
The stars: Uma Thurman, Michael Angarano, Reece Thompson, Lee Pace
The story: Two friends, one of whom falls for an older woman about to be married, travel to a beach town in hopes of breaking up the wedding. They soon find themselves out of place among the British groom and his more sophisticated guests.
The sounds: Ezra Koenig - Papa Hobo (Paul Simon cover)
General Public - Never You Done That
Jacques Dutronc - Et moi, et moi, et moi
Kate Bush - This Woman’s Work
LOL (2012)
The stars: Miley Cyrus, Demi Moore, Douglas Booth
The story: A broken-hearted teen starts another year of high school and struggles to balance family, her studies, friends and romance.
The sounds: The Rolling Stones - You Can’t Always Get What You Want
BB Brunes – Coups et Blessures
Keane - Somewhere Only We Know Keane
Rock Mafia - The Big Bang
Amores Perros (2000)
The stars: Gael García Bernal, Emilio Echevarría, Goya Toledo
The story: A car accident in Mexico City is recreated using three distinct perspectives, each one a reflection of the apparent cruelty of humans toward animals.
The sounds: Café Tacuba - Aviéntame
Control Machete – Si Señor
Celia Cruz – La Vida Es Un Carnaval
Julieta Venegas – Me Van A Matar
