The Roundtable
What is your favorite song used in a movie?
Everyone likes music and movies, and I’m assuming everyone especially enjoys when those two come together. Sometimes I catch myself singing “Kiss From A Rose” from the Batman Forever soundtrack, and the other day there were a couple of people singing “I Believe I Can Fly” and “Space Jam” from the glorious Michael Jordan movie, Space Jam. So we asked the HEAVE staff – what is your favorite song from a movie?
Mark Steffen - No one can forget the good times that were 1985. Reagan reigned with a Hollywood-fist, we still believed those guys in Depeche Mode were straight and Michael J. Fox not only taught us how to make-out with your mom, but tore a hole in the space-time continuum to make his own family more affluent while single-handedly stealing the rights to "rock-n-roll" from Chuck Berry and insulting African Americans everywhere.
That's why "Johnny B. Goode" is my favorite use of a pop song in a movie. First off, no one can deny the absolute hilarity of Fox's absurdly terrible lip-syncing to Mark Campbell's vocals. McFly is rocking what can only amount to the prime-time hipster attire, except he does it well (take note all you booty-shaking house-partiers and American Apparel addicts). The icing on the cake, however, is not the way in which Marty McFly has set into motion his own good fortune, effectively going against the single rule for traveling in the past ("don't interfere") and it's not when he goes into a convulsion and rips apart a solo that Slayer would be proud of. No, it's the brilliance of writer/director Robert Zemeckis and his idea to take "Marvin Berry" of the original band at the dance and have him call his cousin, "Chuck (Berry)," to exclaim, "You know that sound you've been looking for? Well, listen to this!" Never mind the decades of rock and roll roots that African Americans had laid down. Never mind Chuck Berry's status as a legend. Mr. Zemeckis, you and your Hollywood blockbuster can throw all that to the wind. Indeed, it SHOULD be an affluent white teen from Southern California who invents one of the greatest cultural movements in history: Rock n’ Roll.
All sarcasm aside, it's a great scene, one of the best pop songs of all time, and an amazingly fun and clever movie all-around.
Amy Dittmeier - Music and film go hand in hand. What would Jaws be without those strings? What would Darth Vader be without the Imperial March? Music can only make a good scene better if it’s the right song. In Quentin Tarintino’s film Pulp Fiction, music plays such a pivotal part. There are many great songs in this film’s repertoire, from Dusty Springfield’s “Son of a Preacher Man” to Chuck Berry’s “You Never Can Tell.” But the best one occurs in one of Pulp Fiction’s more intense scenes - possibly one of the most shocking in modern film.
It’s such a calm scene at heart. Mia puts on “Girl, You’ll Be A Woman Soon” and Urge Overkill breaks it down. She’s totally coked up and dancing around her affluent living room. It’s not seductive in any sense, but the way she moves with the music has a definite quality to it. Vincent Vega’s in the bathroom talking himself down – literally. This is his boss’s wife, and when your boss is a large crime lord it means she’s off limits. It all seems very romantic; with Mia trapped in this loveless marriage and finding a true connection with Vincent that can save her from a life of sadness. Or you know, the heroin in his coat pocket can save her just as quickly. If you don’t know what happens next, stop reading this, go to your nearest video store and rent this movie.
Immediately. Urge Overkill makes Neil Diamond way cooler, maybe because they don’t sound like washed up lounge singers when they tell that special lady that her lonely virginal days are over. When Neil Diamond says it, it’s like that creepy uncle from the bad side of the family hitting on you at the family picnic. The slow tone of the song coupled with the shocking events that happen afterward makes it all the more perfect. Like I said, if you haven’t seen Pulp Fiction please do, because you’re not a true American until you see someone on film OD.
Alyssa Vincent - This is a nearly impossible question to answer, given that approximately seven key songs went through my head the second I started pondering this. So, I'm going to include a favorite, plus some runner-ups. Believe it or not, my favorite movie song doesn't even have a great title. Nor is it from some dramatic film. Its entitled "Holiday Flight"/"Making the Plane," and it's from one of my favorite movies of all time: Home Alone. Now, why does this song, which isn't more than two minutes long, deserve such recognition? Because it managed to make O'Hare Airport a dream destination of mine instead of one where security lines are annoyingly long. Whenever I travel, I end up fantasizing that I'll arrive late, and get to run through the airport at top speed - with this song playing over a sound system, of course - just like that kooky family did in Home Alone. I dare you to listen to this and not want to run around like you're on a mission of the Christmas variety.
And now, I give you the honorable mentions! "These Days" in The Royal Tennenbaums, and "Transatlanticism" in The Puffy Chair. The Nico classic in a Wes Anderson movie is fantastic, mainly because Gwyneth looks exactly like Nico here, and I think it's beautiful that all you hear is the song for a solid minute. If you like the concept of lifting a boom box over your head and pretending that you're John Cusack in Say Anything, rent The Puffy Chair. I bought this movie just for it's reimagination of that iconic scene, complete with a much better song than "In Your Eyes."
Joe Roth - Eric Clapton's "Layla" stands out as one of the 70's signature guitar tracks. Martin Scorsese saw fit to include this song in his magnificent film Goodfellas. Scorcese is a master at using the right song at the right moment. His taste in pop music and placement of songs in his films is as strong as the images he sees through the lens.
Andy Scott - When it comes to excellent songs in movies, one movie stands alone —Juno. Featuring an undeniable pantheon of indie all-stars, this movie is packed with moment making songs. With contributions from Cat Power, Belle & Sebastian, multiple songs from Kimya Dawson, and even a track by the movie’s leading actors. There is just too much good material to choose from. Though the movie goes through many different emotional highs and lows there is always a perfect song to accompany it. This is one movie that actually has a soundtrack worth investing in.
Posted by Wes Soltis on Sep 19, 2008 @ 7:00 am
