Cinema Hype

I just added a movie soundtrack to my iTunes.

I know what you’re going to ask: Away We Go, or (500) Days of Summer? If I were you, I’d think the same thing. An awful lot of people that like the same things I like are celebrating the summer of 2009 and the rise of the hipster romance by discovering Alexi Murdoch and rediscovering The Smiths, and with good reason. Good guess.

So I won’t be offended if you smirk a little when I tell you what I’m really bopping along to these days: Hairspray. Not even the original; the re-make. I love it, you guys. I’ve had “Without Love” and “You Can’t Stop the Beat” and (randomly) “Ladies’ Choice” for a long time; somehow, I thought that I didn’t need the whole thing. And oh, was I wrong. You think you don’t need Christopher Walken singing “You’re Timeless to Me,” but you do. You think Elijah Kelley on “Run and Tell That” isn’t totally necessary in your life, but you’re wrong. And by you, I mean me.

Movie soundtracks are like that, though. They’re eclectic; they’re just as likely to be riddled with bad (or at least not-great) songs as they are to be good to the last drop—as with (500) Days of Summer, where you can get Regina Spektor’s “Us” if you also want Hall and Oates’s “You Make My Dreams Come True” to spring up every time you use the Shuffle function. Or, if they’re tied immediately to the story (as in a musical), they can be extremely specific—good background for a fictional life, maybe, but not so much for a real one. Soundtracks, ironically, sometimes don’t make the best background music.

On the other hand, when they’re good, they can be great, and for many of the same reasons that they’re not great. They’re eclectic; they introduce us to artists we would never have heard otherwise. And they’re specific: they’re a little reminder, over and over again, of the time we went to see that movie, and we felt just the way the songs make us feel, and we liked it enough that we wanted to hear that experience over and over again.

So, readers, what’s your favorite movie soundtrack, and why?

movie soundtracks, (500) Days of Summer, 500 Days of Summer, Away We Go, Hairspray, Christopher Walken, Elijah Kelley, Hall and Oates, You Make My Dreams Come True, Regina Spektor, Us

This week’s Quotation Sensation separated the musical from the unmusical, or maybe the people who love tiny realist Irish urban folk musicals (”realist” in the sense that all of the music takes place in an appropriate context for singing—not, say, bursting into song in the middle of a normal, unmusical moment) from the people who…well, don’t. Maybe the Rodgers and Hammerstein crowd wouldn’t have gotten this one. Which is too bad; it’s a good movie with a good soundtrack, one that actually provided a worthy song (”Falling Slowly”) for the annual Oscar “what on earth are we going to nominate for Best Song?”-athon.

In any case, reader Brady correctly connected this quotation:

“’How come you don’t play during daytime? I see you here every day.’

‘During the daytime, people would want to hear songs that they know, just songs that they recognize. I play these song at night or I wouldn’t make any money. People wouldn’t listen.’

‘I listen.’”

to Once, the musical romance from 2006, pointing out that the main characters are known only as “Boy” and “Girl.” Extra points for picking out the quotation from the beginning of the movie, when Glen Hansard’s accent is still basically unintelligible. Congratulations, Brady!

As promised, your cheer:

You either used the context clues
or knew the lines from when he woos!
Way to get this part of Once;
in Irish musicals, you’re no dunce!

Wooooo! Thanks for playing, Brady and everybody else. A new quotation goes up on Friday. Tell your friends! (Or don’t, if you want less competition for the coveted cheer. I’ll leave that up to your consciences.)

Quotation Sensation, movie quote game, movie quotes, Once, Glen Hansard

AHA! You thought you could get rid of me, but I just keep coming back. Yeah.

Okay. Maybe not. If you didn’t think you could get rid of me, I appreciate that. I wish I could say that I was off doing something exciting, or at least had planned a little blog vacation, but unless taxes and mild sleep deprivation count as something exciting, I’m going to have to disappoint.

So let’s have some catch-up time, shall we? Just a few things on my mind?

- It appears that Zac Efron has a movie coming out this weekend, which keeps confusing me when I see the TV spots and think, “You guys. HSM3 came out last fall! You can stop with the commercials!” Only recently did I discover that it’s a whole separate movie. Allegedly.

- I mostly find Efron sort of off-putting—something about his attempts to seem sexual while actually coming across completely asexual—but I do like him in the remake of Hairspray. Gotta give props for his rocking out, complete with knee-slide, on “Ladies’ Choice.” On a semi-related note, with two minutes and a proper pair of scissors, I could get his hair out of his face, once and for all. (I also say things like, “Get off my lawn!”)

- Just to be clear, the 2007 Hairspray is a movie I keep coming back to on account of its general delightfulness. I love everybody in it and everything about it, and every single one of you should see it. Amanda Bynes and the super-hot Elijah Kelley, in particular, make me happy when skies are gray. Like so:

- Did you hear that the Coen brothers are supposedly adapting Michael Chabon’s hardboiled Jewish-Alaskan detective novel The Yiddish Policemen’s Union? It’s just too perfect: the Coens’ particular brand of brutality mixed with humor should hit all the high points beautifully. It’s awhile off, but nothing bad ever came of ridiculously high expectations, right?

- While I sort of loathe Russell Crowe on a personal level—to the point where I often skip his movies, even though I get that he’s super-talented—I am excited about State of Play, which comes out this weekend. We could use something exciting in this sad little spring lull. That, and I like the idea that Helen Mirren hangs out in my neighborhood (fictionally). Very exciting!

- Speaking of Mirren, check out the cast on her upcoming adaptation of The Tempest (Mirren plays a gender-switched version of Prospero)! The Tempest has always been my least favorite of Shakespeare’s plays, but I might be tempted to show up for this.

Nice talking to you all. See you tomorrow. Promise.

Zac Efron, 17 Again, Hairspray, High School Musical, Amanda Bynes, Elijah Kelley, Coen brothers, The Yiddish Policemen’s Union, Michael Chabon, Russell Crowe, State of Play, Helen Mirren, The Tempest

As part of our CH Exclusive! series of fictional interviews, today we’re interviewing Miley Cyrus, also known as Hannah Montana, star of the hugely popular Hannah Montana television show and the upcoming Hannah Montana: The Movie.

Cinema Hype: So, Miley, why don’t you tell us a bit about the upcoming Hannah Montana movie?

Miley Cyrus: Well, the movie is really cool—it’s about this girl named Miley, and she has this alter ego named Hannah Montana, who sings and has a TV show. But she starts getting really famous and turning into kind of a…I don’t know, I guess you’d say kind of a diva? And she has this super-overprotective dad named Billy Ray, who used to be a singer, too, and…

CH: I’m sorry, Miley; what I meant was, could you tell us a little about the plot of the movie?

MC: I just did.

CH: No, the movie.

MC: …I did.

CH: You know, why don’t we just move on? Miley, can you tell us a little about the experience of making a feature film after all these years of television work?

MC: Well, I’m starting to get older, you know, and it’s just been such a great challenge, playing this character. I feel like the experience has really stretched my creative boundaries.

CH: Miley Cyrus, teen star, playing Miley Stewart, teen star, plus alter ego Hannah Montana.

MC: Yes. I just really identify with Miley in the movie, you know? She’s such a unique fictional person, and I wanted to get that across onscreen. I really hope my performance does justice to the strength of her character.

CH: Do you find that you identify with Miley, Miley?

MC: Yes! I mean, it’s actually kind of amazing, like she was written for me, or something!

CH: You don’t say.

MC: Yeah, because Miley is this huge star with this alter ego, and, like, I might get to be that way someday, you know? Because I have an alter ego, too! And I know that a lot of girls have dads who won’t let them leave the house, ever, and try reinvent themselves as Celebrity Dads, but sometimes it seems like Miley’s talking just to me. She’s just so universal and so personal, all at the same time. Sometimes, it’s like I can’t even talk about her because I’m her and she’s me.

CH: Well, it sounds like you and Miley are very close.

MC: I know! Isn’t it amazing? I’m, like, getting to be an adult. And I feel like Miley is really helping me grow a little bit taller and a little bit older every day.

CH: That’s so meta.

NOTE: This interview is a work of fiction, part of the CH Exclusive! series. Cinemahype.com has never spoken with Miley Cyrus or anybody associated with her.

Miley Cyrus, Hannah Montana, Miley Stewart, Billy Ray Cyrus, Hannah Montana movie, CH Exclusive, fiction, fictional interviews, fake interviews

Congratulations! Somebody on eDate likes the looks of you! User pontipee1954, 38, of Oregon, USA, asked us to contact you on his behalf. Here’s what this dreamy dude had to say:

Re: Bless yore beautiful hide, wherever you may be

Hey, there, darlin!

P.S. I have a large family. Please don’t ask me about them until after the ceremony.

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, musicals, online dating

It’s not hard to see how the original Mamma Mia! came about—how you’d go from a well-loved 78 of ABBA Gold to a Broadway musical. You’re listening, and you’re thinking, “Man, wouldn’t it be great if all of these groovy ABBA songs made a story?” And then you’re in your beanbag chair, concentrating really hard, and you write it all down in your favorite spiral notebook, and then you grow up and become a famous Broadway producer, and you finally make the ABBA musical, because…well, because how can you not?

It’s not as easy to see exactly how the Mamma Mia! movie happened, how the flattish story and unconnected plot points made it to two hours on the big screen. Except that, well, everybody loves ABBA. Don’t they? We’ll make an exception for people who don’t like harmonies and hooks, and for people who don’t like silly dancing, and for people who don’t like Swedes, but then, we don’t really want to hang out with those people anyway. Everyone in Hollywood must love ABBA, because here we are. Wouldn’t you have loved to have seen those pitch meetings? I mean, come on.

So, nothing much happens? Correct. Character arcs don’t make any sense? Not really, no. Pierce Brosnan makes silly faces when he sings? Absolutely. If these are things that bother you, go see Space Chimps instead (or, better, learn to blame the musical). If you’re ready to put things like “depth of character” (pish!) and “realistic relationships” (tosh!) behind you, get thee to a multiplex, and bring your tallest shoes—platforms, obviously; what is this, Sex and the City?

Because this movie is all about the silliness and the music and the dancing, and in those areas, it excels. Just try not to fall in love with this particular rendition of “Dancing Queen”—it’s one of the best moments, sweet and funny and infectious and inspiring in a way that doesn’t totally make sense, which is maybe one of the hallmarks of a great musical. And maybe Meryl Streep wasn’t totally necessary here, but she’s always a welcome addition; she comes on a little strong—“manic hippie” suits her disturbingly well—and pulls her own weight musically, though she’s no virtuoso (virtuosa?). Of the three potential (former and future) love interests, Colin Firth is by far the least ridiculous, because he plays the guitar and can actually sing; Brosnan looks pained, and what’s happened to Stellan Skarsgard over the last decade is unclear. But it doesn’t matter: they’re there, and they’re shaking their things, and it is funny and sexy-ish, if that’s the kind of thing you’re into. And anyway they’re eclipsed by Christine Baranski and Julie Walters, scene-stealers both, and so all is forgiven. It seems like only the lovely future-mega-star Amanda Seyfried is playing the straight woman, but she’s up to the job (not that she can’t play silly; she does, after all have psychic boobs). It’s big and it’s rollicking and it might cause you—or others—to jump up and dance around the theater.

And THAT is when, as a musical producer, you know you’ve won.

Mamma Mia!, Mamma Mia, Mama Mia, ABBA, Abba, Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skaarsgard, Amanda Seyfried, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, musicals, movie reviews

I think I first knew I’d love Once when I watched the Oscars. “Falling Slowly” won for Best Song, and then there was that incident with Glen Hansard using all of Marketa Irglova’s talking time to give a wholly endearing victory speech, prompting Jon Stewart to let her come out and give her own adorable and inspirational remarks. I don’t have a ton of experience with low-budget Irish indie-music romantic dramas, but somehow this confluence of events—these people, rather—appealed to me.

Deep down, Once isn’t so far off the romance-movie track, complete with one especially improbably-lit scene involving a grand piano and an unfinished song. But then, if you can believe it, it’s also far simpler than most of what makes it to the theater: Boy meets girl, boy likes girl, girl likes boy, boy and girl record music together. Something like that. In fact, the straight-arrow plot is refreshing, considering the obvious and recitable formula we see in so many studio romances. Once lacks wacky friends, over-witty dialogue, and any kind of mid-wedding/pre-flight confrontation at the end—it turns that standard on its ear, actually—but instead, it has feeling and timing and a kind of quiet watchfulness that’s like a good, bittersweet folk song. (It’s also worth mentioning that this is a musical—not a massive dance-numbers-in-the-streets musical, but a story told through music. Be prepared.)

One of the best and most surprising parts of Once is how Hansard and Irglova—both professional musicians—wear the hat of “actor” so convincingly; neither comes across half as self-consciously as half the trained actors in Hollywood. If someone told me that Hansard—who looks, kind of hilariously, like a combination of Hugh Laurie and Dr. Cox from Scrubs—were the only lonely Irish musician in Dublin (or at least the loneliest Irish musician in Dublin), I’d probably believe it. Irglova sings and plays the piano beautifully, but even more importantly in this instance, she sparks. She’s the chemistry behind the movie; the light and warmth she brings to her onscreen relationship with Hansard isn’t far off from what she brings to their songs. This is a movie where the main characters don’t even have names (the credits call them “Boy” and “Girl”), but where character is built from the inside out and speaks without shouting, and the writing and acting mesh so that all the audience gets is ambience, in the best way.

Check out Once. You’ll get a song and a story stuck in your head, but you probably won’t mind too much.

Once, Glen Hansard, Marketa Irglova, The Frames, folk music, Dublin, Irish movies, Oscars, Best Song, Falling Slowly, Jon Stewart, Hugh Laurie, Scrubs