Songs that capture film scenes perfectly
I'm big fan of films, both movies and TV, and thoroughly appreciate
great scenes that use songs to perfectly set the mood. I'm not talking
about film scores that are made to match the movie, but songs written
and produced independently, often by successful and legendary singers /
songwriters.Therefore, I'm not including John Williams for
Star Wars or Indiana Jones.
From time to time, I recall scenes
from random films that are triggered by songs I hear just for being out
and about. And whenever I get a chance to mess around Youtube, I
revisit the scenes. Here are is a countdown of five scenes I consider to be the best:
5) In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida in Manhunter
In the final confrontation of Manhunter, Dollarhyde was about to
kill his next victim. He began playing Iron Butterfly's popular rock
anthem, "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", as mood music.
I'm not sure
what's cooler -- Will Graham jumping headlong through the windows or
Dollarhyde catching him on the other side?
4) Renegade in Supernatural, Nightshifter episode
Supernatural is well-known for using 70s-80s rock songs in some
form or another. But this scene takes the cake. The brothers Sam and
Dean Winchester had just one-upped the FBI who had been chasing them for
murder, theft, and other capital crimes. The Styx song "Renegade" sums
up what the brothers are after this episode.
Another one worth
mentioning is the melancholic end scene of Heart with "Silent Lucidity."
3) Tiny Dancer in Almost Famous
You can't watch the bus scene in Almost Famous and be in a bad
mood afterwards. It's a feel good scene.
This scene reminds
me of any field trip I've taken and all I can do on the way home is sit
and jell in the bus. There's really nothing to do but appreciate
whatever music is playing. Great song by Elton John, too.
2) When the man comes around in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
What I like about this scene is that you know that there's gonna be a
lot of bodies hitting the floor.
"When the Man Comes Around" by
Johnny Cash is a perfect fit for this scene. It's a song about the coming of
Armageddon. It's about death and destruction, yet, it does not dominate
the scene. It's not a blaring, thumping, loud and in-your-face type of
song that many filmmakers like to use for action sequences.
1) The Promise in Napoleon Dynamite
This is the scene that I first recognize as having the perfect song. How else can you end a movie about a nerdy teenager in a small mid-western town? He gets a girl! It's a powerful ending as "The Promise" by When in Rome plays while fading to credits.