“Music is the soundtrack to the crappy movie that is my
life.”
-Chris Rock
If your life was a movie, what songs would you use for the
soundtrack? Would you stick to a more classical Hollywood style
where character dialogue is the foreground, or would you go for a more poetic
approach, using the musical lyric to drive your (arguably) captivating
narrative? For the music lover, this question can be extremely difficult to
answer and narrow down a proper list of fifteen or so songs. That being said, this
question gives light to the weight that music has in film. Soundtracks are inevitably
essential to most movies and I argue often act not as a sibling, but as a twin,
reflecting an identical image of a screenplay through the musical form.
As a part of our attempt to be more cultured last summer, my older brother
and I embarked on a quest to watch all twenty-three James Bond movies in order from
1962’s Dr. No to 2012’s Skyfall. Talk about sibling “bonding.” Puns aside, we found that the Bond theme songs, as well as other action movies such
as the Bourne trilogy, often have a reoccurring
motif in its movie soundtrack that reflects and enhances the “feel” or the mood
of the film. However, these examples clearly aren’t the only films that have
such an ample musical impression. In any genre, if observed, one can often find
a direct correlation between a film’s soundtrack to its particular theme/message.
Although this correlation can be ambiguous, the role that music plays in movies
is nothing short of substantial.
But what about the movies that don’t have a soundtrack-driven/backed
storyline? With documentaries and movies that scarcely use pieces
of music, the essence of the music being used is heightened. These songs are used
to enhance our watching experience and are thus imprinted into our minds, triggering a specific response to the pictures expressed on screen. I will never forget
the graphic images that accompany Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful
World” in Michael Moore’s documentary Bowling
For Columbine that finishes with the lasting line “…oh yeah” while footage
of the second plane hitting the twin towers in New York City rolls like a eerie nightmare (link to scene at bottom of post). Likewise I will never forget the haunting climax in the 2010 French drama Of Gods
and Men where Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake Suite booms from a radio over the
Trappist monk’s symbolic supper, serving as the only track for the film’s
soundtrack (link to scene at bottom of post). Both these scenes are memorable because of
the essence of the music; the irony and the melancholy of the relationship
between the songs used and the footage on the screen promotes a genuine and extraordinary
emotional reaction.
Then of course are the movies that are soundtrack-driven. Take the 2011
silent film The Artist, whose Ludovic
Bource soundtrack, not the brilliant acting of Jean Dujardin, I think should be
credited as the most substantial reason for its success and Best Picture
Academy Award (see example in link at bottom of post). One of my favorite
movies and genres, The Artist, and
most classic silent films are treasured because of their great acting, but I argue
that when you take out the soundtrack, you lose 75% of the emotion. Ultimately,
you lose the film itself.
Now I don’t want to take away credit from those interpreting the screenplays, but I will say the really good actors are those that don’t need a soundtrack. One of my personal favorite actors of all-time, Daniel Day Lewis, is one of them. What I find are some of his best acted scenes, the “poor little rabbit” scene from Gangs of New York, the “Daniel vs Eli” scene from There Will Be Blood and the “immense power” scene from Lincoln, all are portrayed without music (links at bottom of post). It’s acting in its purest form. It’s beautiful. It’s poetry. Of Gods and Men, a film I referenced earlier in regards to its use of the Swan Lake Suite, doesn’t have music in the rest of its 122 minute length, and it’s an absolutely astounding film (and one of my favorites), winning the Grand Prix at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival.
Now I don’t want to take away credit from those interpreting the screenplays, but I will say the really good actors are those that don’t need a soundtrack. One of my personal favorite actors of all-time, Daniel Day Lewis, is one of them. What I find are some of his best acted scenes, the “poor little rabbit” scene from Gangs of New York, the “Daniel vs Eli” scene from There Will Be Blood and the “immense power” scene from Lincoln, all are portrayed without music (links at bottom of post). It’s acting in its purest form. It’s beautiful. It’s poetry. Of Gods and Men, a film I referenced earlier in regards to its use of the Swan Lake Suite, doesn’t have music in the rest of its 122 minute length, and it’s an absolutely astounding film (and one of my favorites), winning the Grand Prix at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival.
Moreover, you don’t always need a great soundtrack to make a great film,
but I think it certainly helps. A look at the list of Best Picture winners is a look at
most of the greatest movie themes/soundtracks in history. So what happens when Speilburg
is without Williams? Jackson without Shore? Nolan without Zimmer? Abrahms
without Giacchino? Lord knows what would've occurred if they didn't collaborate.
But I’m sure glad they did.
Links:
BFC: Wonderful World: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imOU9SK_q0I
BFC: Wonderful World: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imOU9SK_q0I
OGAM: Swan Lake: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrYLJzA1eNs
The Artist: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vipC25SWI6U
Daniel Day Lewis:
Poor Little Rabbit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrkw1UgX3q0
Daniel vs Eli: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UejQlR-P9E
Poor Little Rabbit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrkw1UgX3q0
Daniel vs Eli: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UejQlR-P9E
Immense Power: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zym58tsKmbI
My Top Ten Favorite Movie Soundtracks:
1. The Lord of the Rings: Return
of the King – Howard Shore
2. Forrest Gump – Various Artists
3. O Brother Where Art Thou – Various Artists
4. Once – Glen Hansard & Markéta Irglová
5. I’m Not There – Various Artists
6. Into the Wild – Eddie Vedder
7. The Artist – Ludovic Bource
8. Hugo – Howard Shore
9. Pulp Fiction – Various Artists
10. Wonder Boys – Various Artists
Honorable Mention:
Mean Streets - Various Artists, The Graduate - Various Artists, The Departed - Various Artists
Honorable Mention:
Mean Streets - Various Artists, The Graduate - Various Artists, The Departed - Various Artists
My Top Ten Favorite Original Movie Themes/Songs:
1. Raiders
March (Raiders of the Lost Ark)– John
Williams
2. Everything
else by John Williams. Seriously. Everything.
3. Falling
Slowly (Once) – Glen Hansard
4. The
entirety of the Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit soundtracks –Howard Shore
5. Fare
Thee Well (Inside Llewyn Davis) –Marcus
Mumford & Oscar Isaac
6. Live
and Let Die (Live and Let Die) – Paul
McCartney
7. Time (Inception) – Hans Zimmer
8. The Magnificent
Seven (The Magnificent Seven) - Elmer
Bernstein
9. Things Have Changed (Wonder Boys) – Bob Dylan
10. Society (Into the Wild) – Eddie Vedder
Honorable Mention:
Streets of Philadelphia (Streets of Philadelphia) - Bruce Springsteen, Lose Yourself (8 Mile) - Eminem, Goldfinger (Goldfinger) - Shirley Bassey, As Time Goes By (Casablanca) - Dooley Wilson
