Favorite Movie Moments in Music

Ok, it took a kick in the pants but I’m finally done with this meme that Leah tagged me with. My favorite music moments from movies, including a bunch of YouTube links so you can experience them (or something close to them), too.

• Duran Duran: Notorious (Donnie Darko)

When Donnie’s little sister performs with Sparkle Motion, I smile really, really big. Sometimes I doubt your commitment to Sparkle Motion.

• Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers: Shall We Dance (Shall We Dance)

I grew up watching old Astaire movies with my dad on Sundays, this one is my favorite, and this dance sequence always makes me feel nostalgic and old. In a good way.

• Hans Zimmer: God U Tekem Laef Blong Mi (The Thin Red Line)

The link is just to a trailer for the movie, but the song is featured towards the end. You’ll know it, it’s a choir of children singing. I love Malick, this is one of my favorite movies, and I generally hate war movies.

• Olivia Newton John and John Travolta: You’re the One That I Want (Grease)

Oh man, Sandra Dee gets funky. I love this shit.

• Spinal Tap: Bitch School (This Is Spinal Tap)

I really was hoping to find “Sex Farm”, but this one will do.

• Pete Seeger’s Chase Scene with Nicholas Cage (Raising Arizona)

“You sonofabitch!”

• Peter Gabriel: In Your Eyes (Say Anything)

Sue me.

• The Beatles: Hard Day’s Night (Hard Days Night)

Come on, look at how cute they are. Oh George.

• Everything Royal Tenenbaums

The Royal Tenenbaums is arguably one of the most smartly put together soundtrack/scores out there, and if we talk about music at all you probably already know my favorite scenes, and which songs get me in the tummy. Richie’s suicide scene is also a favorite, as is the end scene featuring Van Morrison’s “Everyone”. Nico’s “These Days” is absolutely my favorite song from the movie, because without any dialogue the audience knows exactly what is going on between Margot and Richie, and the simplicity of that moment betrays the complexity of their relationship perfectly. So true to life, so honest - nothing is ever as simple as that scene, not even that scene. Stand up straight, let me get a look at you.

• Otis Redding: Try A Little Tenderness (Pretty in Pink)

How she doesn’t totally give up on Blaine at that point is totally beyond me. Who doesn’t want a Ducky? Well, maybe if Ducky looked like Blaine, but not if he was named Blaine. Actually, Ducky is unfortunate, too. Rick? Whatever. This scene re-defined what crushes were all about.

So check this out - I saw a work print of Royal Tenenbaums in NY at a film fest about four months before it was released. The end scene was originally cut to The Beatles ‘Anthology’ version of “I’m Looking Through You”, which was just ridiculously cool. The opening also used The Beatles “Hey Jude” instead of Elliott Smith. Apparently The Beatles initially agreed to license the songs because they liked the film, then backed out at the last minute because they didn’t want to be deluged with film use requests. Funny, eh? So I always think of the ending the way I saw it.

whoa… your redesigned blog looks like a um… well… a blog!

Doesn’t Michael Jackson own the Beatles licenses? And not the (mostly dead) Beatles? And the opening does use “Hey Jude”, but it’s the Mutato/Mothersbaugh version instead, Elliott Smith doesn’t appear until the suicide scene.

“I’m Looking Through You” might have been cool, but I can’t imagine it not being Van Morrison at this point.

Tom,
I’ve heard that the Beatles (or whomever owns the Beatles stuff now) backed out at the last minute, but I’m not sure where I learned that. I do that ever since then I’ve noticed that there aren’t ever Beatles songs (originals, anyway) in movies. Strange. Explains the I Am Sam soundtrack, anyway.

Ryan,
I know, right!? Weird. But I’m digging it. I get sick of “bloggish” looking sites, but at the end of the day I don’t have the patience to design anything else - it’s too time consuming and people don’t like it, ultimately.

Aaron,
You’re like the expert on this shit. No, seriously.

I’m generally down with live performances, like the two Birthday Party-spinoff groups playing in Wings of Desire, or (my favorite) the Yardbirds with Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page playing before an utterly slackjawed audience in Antonioni’s Blow-Up. I tend to think that music in cinema is generally manipulative and cheap, substituting for mise-en-scene or actual acting.

And consider yourself SUED.

That Raising Arizona scene is a great pick!

I also heard that Sony now co-owns the Beatles music that MJ bought because he needed the money. I wonder if you’ll start seeing them in Sony pictures now.

that’s a badass list.
god…i love lists.
i would probably also include the duran duran segment in donnie darko. hell, maybe even a couple more portions of that movie, too. i also like your ‘thin red line’ choice.
also, if i were to compile my own list like this, i would probably have to include something from tenenbaums/rushmore/life aquatic. it would be very easy to let the list get bogged down in songs from wes anderson films. i don’t know how i’d avoid that and give others fair consideration.

OMG! Yay! Just as I *KNEW* … you had an awesome list.

I love that line from Donnie Darko btw.

I used to be obsessed with Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, so cool choice. You should read her autobiography. It’s realllly good.

And the Strangers song by the The Kinks was great. I didn’t remember it from the movie…so I’m happy to have re-found it.

Come on, this is the classic without which no movie music list could be complete.

Well, it’s not duelling banjos if one guy has an acoustic guitar. It is strange that that actor also played evil CEO Dick Jones in Robocop.