By In 2011, we saw the return of 80s synth in Drive, 90s techno in Hanna, Trent Reznor and Atticus Rose working their magic yet again with The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and even the return of the musical comedy with The Muppets. If you’re anything like me, you walked away from most movies itching to get home so you could find the soundtrack on iTunes. So which soundtrack is still seeing play on your portable cassete player, and more importantly, why the hell are you still using a a walkman? Join us after the break to find out.
Ahh The Muppets! How many times did you play “Life’s a Happy Song” during your morning commute? We were all clearly ecstatic to see/hear The Muppets return to true form and with the aid of Flight of the Conchords’ Bret McKenzie, this marriage of comedy and nostalgia was sure to hump our eardrums for weeks to well after the film debuted. That Flight of the Conchords charm shines clearly as McKenzie’s work led to sweet and funny songs like the aforementioned “Life’s a Happy Song”, “Me Party”, “Man or Muppet” and most importantly Chris Cooper’s gut wrenching rap “Let’s Talk About Me”. It’s great that McKenzie was nominated by a lesser known award show (rhymes with BOSCAR), but I’m sure that an award from a film blog whose female writers constantly plot to rape him on a podcast is much more meaningful. Though seriously, if The Muppets lose to Rio this year, there will be rioting in the streets.
As someone who personally voted for Drive, I have to say it’s a shame Cliff Martinez’s work on the soundtrack earned him a bronze instead of a silver. Considering I’m writing this while listening to “Tick of the Clock” and I often remind myself that I am in fact “a real human being and a real hero”, that bias alone might dismiss my vote.
Also, to answer the other question, the only logical reason you’re still using a portable cassette player is that you’re a time traveler who’s traveled to your future/our present. In that case… welcome! We have a black president and small magical devices that can hold all the songs in the world and make phone calls. Shit is awesome here. Check bellow for the full break down.
The Muppets – 5
Hanna – 3
Drive – 2
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo – 2
Midnight in Paris – 1
Captain America: The First Avenger – 1