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9 Great Examples of Soundtrack Dissonance

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9 Great Examples of Soundtrack Dissonance

Contrast is an important part of filmmaking, and a great way to add contrast to a scene is to ensure the music adds a whole new layer. This is called soundtrack dissonance, which is a technique many filmmakers keep in their filmmaking toolbox. Soundtrack dissonance allows filmmakers to flirt with multiple genres and tones within a single scene, making for a more entertaining and engaging film experience. Here are nine great examples of soundtrack dissonance that give a sense of how impactful music can be to a scene.

Good Morning, Vietnam

The Vietnam War was a dark moment in United States history. While the two World Wars before strengthened the spirit of the US, the Vietnam War seemed to divide the country in two. In Barry Levinson’s 1987 war comedy Good Morning, Vietnam, he utilized soundtrack dissonance by playing Louis Armstrong’s “What A Wonderful World” over images of war-torn Saigon and the tension between American soldiers and Vietnamese citizens. This choice gave the scene an ironic, yet tragic meaning.

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The Silence Of The Lambs

The soothing melody of the “Goldberg Variations” composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and performed by Jerry Zimmerman was the perfect choice for Hannibal’s (Anthony Hopkins) escape scene in Jonathan Demme’s The Silence Of The Lambs. Earlier in the film, it is referenced that Hannibal attacked a nurse and his heart rate didn’t exceed 85 bpm. Using such a subtle song to accompany such a grisly and intense act gives the audience a glimpse inside the mind of Hannibal Lecter and how he may be able to keep his heart rate so low during his attacks. And seeing a bloody Hannibal meditate to the sounds of the “Goldberg Variations” is one of the most haunting images ever committed to celluloid.

American Psycho

“Hip To Be Square” by Huey Lewis and the News is an iconic song from the 1980’s but it’s nearly impossible to hear the song without thinking about Mary Harron’s 2000 film adaptation of Bret Easton Ellison’s novel American Psycho. In the film, Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) discusses the intricacies of this 80’s mixtape staple before aggressively murdering his coworker Paul Allen (Jared Leto) with an ax. The scene changes tones so fast, yet the upbeat rhythm of “Hip To Be Square” continues to linger in the scene as a blood-soaked Bateman lustfully digests the heinous act he just committed. The scene is horrifying, but one can’t help but smirk at the satirical contrast between image and sound.

Monty Python’s The Life Of Brian

Monty Python’s The Life Of Brian, directed by Terry Jones, is a 1979 religious farce that follows a man named Brian (Graham Chapman) who is mistaken for the Messiah. The film ends with Brian being crucified; however, the ending is far from sad. As Brian and other prisoners dangle from the cross, they begin singing the jolly, upbeat song “Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life,” written by Monty Python’s own Eric Idle. This scene stirred up a lot of controversy claiming that it poked fun at the crucifixion of Jesus, but the scene is humorously uplifting regardless. Without the use of “Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life,” the final scene in The Life Of Brian would not be as memorable and hilarious as it is.

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Shaun of the Dead

No one can make a zombie attack scene as funny as Edgar Wright. In Shaun of the Dead, Shaun (Simon Pegg) and his group take refuge in their favorite pub and must fight the zombified pub owner after the jukebox begins playing Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now.” The fact that the characters even comment on how ridiculous it is that Queen is playing only adds to the humor of the scene. Wright has always had bold musical choices in his films and does an amazing job choreographing and editing to the rhythm of the songs he chooses. This scene in Shaun of the Dead is one of the funniest scenes of the 21st century thanks to Wright’s use of soundtrack dissonance.

Reservoir Dogs

Quentin Tarantino is another filmmaker who takes pride in his musical taste and does not shy away from sharing them with his audience. This is an aspect of the auteur’s style and has been on display since his first film, Reservoir Dogs. There is a scene in the film where Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen) tortures a police officer (Kirk Baltz) to the song “Stuck In The Middle With You” by Steelers Wheel while it plays over the radio. The easy-going tone of the song conflicts with the brutality of the scene, while also showing how deranged Mr. Blonde truly is.


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Don’t Torture A Duckling

Similar to the scene in Reservoir Dogs, Lucio Fulci’s 1972 giallo classic Don’t Torture A Duckling features an early example of soundtrack dissonance. The film contains a scene where an occultist woman who is thought to be a child murderer is beaten to death by angry townspeople. The scene is scored by the upbeat sounds of “Rhythm” by Luis Bacalov and “Crazy” by Wes and the Airedales as they play over a car radio. The loud music is utilized by the attackers to conceal the woman’s screams, but it also works to make the men in the scene seem more sadistic. Fulci was able to deliver a shocking scene that has pioneered soundtrack dissonance in film.

The Evil Dead

Throughout the insanity that is Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead, Ash (Bruce Campbell) experiences unrelenting torment from the deadites. There is a scene in the film where he is exploring the basement, when a record player suddenly begins playing the traditional jazz song “Charleston.” The song adds to the chaotic nature and unpredictability of the scene. This moment gives the audience an early glimpse of Raimi’s old-timey sensibilities while also adding some cheekiness to an otherwise horrifying scene.


Office Space

Easily one of the most recognizable scenes on this list is the printer scene from Mike Judge’s Office Space. Set to the gangster rap song “Still” by Geto Boys, Peter (Ron Livingston), Michael (David Herman), and Samir (Ajai Naidu) go out to an isolated field where they destroy a faulty printer. The scene plays out like something you’d see in a gangster film, but the reality of the situation is it’s just three dorky white-collar guys taking out their pent up aggressions on a printer. Had the scene been accompanied by any genre of music other than gangster rap, the scene would not be as memorable as it is today.


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Review: SAMARITAN, A Sly Stallone Superhero Stumble

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Review: SAMARITAN, A Sly Stallone Superhero Stumble

Hitting the three-quarter-century mark usually means a retirement home, a nursing facility, or if you’re lucky to be blessed with relatively good health and savings to match, living in a gated community in Arizona or Florida.

For Sylvester Stallone, however, it means something else entirely: starring in the first superhero-centered film of his decades-long career in the much-delayed Samaritan. Unfortunately for Stallone and the audience on the other side of the screen, the derivative, turgid, forgettable results won’t get mentioned in a career retrospective, let alone among the ever-expanding list of must-see entries in a genre already well past its peak.

For Stallone, however, it’s better late than never when it involves the superhero genre. Maybe in getting a taste of the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) with his walk-on role in the Guardians of the Galaxy sequel several years ago, Stallone thought anything Marvel can do, I can do even better (or just as good in the nebulous definition of the word).

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The property Stallone and his team found for him, Samaritan, a little-known graphic novel released by a small, almost negligible, publisher, certainly takes advantage of Stallone’s brute-force physicality and his often underrated talent for near-monosyllabic brooding (e.g., the Rambo series), but too often gives him to little do or say as the lone super-powered survivor, the so-called “Samaritan” of the title, of a lifelong rivalry with his brother, “Nemesis.” Two brothers entered a fire-ravaged building and while both were presumed dead, one brother did survive (Stallone’s Joe Smith, a garbageman by day, an appliance repairman by night).

In the Granite City of screenwriter Bragi F. Schut (Escape Room, Season of the Witch), the United States, and presumably the rest of the world, teeters on economic and political collapse, with a recession spiraling into a depression, steady gigs difficult, if not impossible, to obtain, and the city’s neighborhoods rocked by crime and violence. No one’s safe, not even 13-year-old Sam (Javon Walker), Joe’s neighbor.

When he’s not dodging bullies connected to a gang, he’s falling under the undue influence of Cyrus (Pilou Asbæk), a low-rent gang leader with an outsized ego and the conviction that he and only he can take on Nemesis’s mantle and along with that mantle, a hammer “forged in hate,” to orchestrate a Bane-like plan to plunge the city into chaos and become a wealthy power-broker in the process.

Schut’s woefully underwritten script takes a clumsy, haphazard approach to world-building, relying on a two-minute animated sequence to open Samaritan while a naive, worshipful Sam narrates Samaritan and Nemesis’s supposedly tragic, Cain and Abel-inspired backstory. Schut and director Julius Avery (Overlord) clumsily attempt to contrast Sam’s childish belief in messiah-like, superheroic saviors stepping in to save humanity from itself and its own worst excesses, but following that path leads to authoritarianism and fascism (ideas better, more thoroughly explored in Watchmen and The Boys).

While Sam continues to think otherwise, Stallone’s superhero, 25 years past his last, fatal encounter with his presumably deceased brother, obviously believes superheroes are the problem and not the solution (a somewhat reasonable position), but as Samaritan tracks Joe and Sam’s friendship, Sam giving Joe the son he never had, Joe giving Sam the father he lost to street violence well before the film’s opening scene, it gets closer and closer to embracing, if not outright endorsing Sam’s power fantasies, right through a literally and figuratively explosive ending. Might, as always, wins regardless of how righteous or justified the underlying action.

It’s what superhero audiences want, apparently, and what Samaritan uncritically delivers via a woefully under-rendered finale involving not just unconvincing CGI fire effects, but a videogame cut-scene quality Stallone in a late-film flashback sequence that’s meant to be subversively revelatory, but will instead lead to unintentional laughter for anyone who’s managed to sit the entirety of Samaritan’s one-hour and 40-minute running time.

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Samaritan is now streaming worldwide on Prime Video.

Samaritan

Cast
  • Sylvester Stallone
  • Javon ‘Wanna’ Walton
  • Pilou Asbæk

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Matt Shakman Is In Talks To Direct ‘Fantastic Four’

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According to a new report, Wandavision’s Matt Shakman is in talks to direct the upcoming MCU project, Fantastic Four. Marvel Studios has been very hush-hush regarding Fantastic Four to the point where no official announcements have been made other than the film’s release date. No casting news or literally anything other than rumors has been released regarding the project. We know that Fantastic Four is slated for release on November 8th, 2024, and will be a part of Marvel’s Phase 6. There are also rumors that the cast of the new Fantastic Four will be announced at the D23 Expo on September 9th.

Fantastic Four is still over two years from release, and we assume we will hear more news about the project in the coming months. However, the idea of the Fantastic Four has already been introduced into the MCU. John Krasinski played Reed Richards aka Mr. Fantastic in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The cameo was a huge deal for fans who have been waiting a long time for the Fantastic Four to enter the MCU. When Disney acquired Twenty Century Fox in 2019 we assumed that the Fox Marvel characters would eventually make their way into the MCU. It’s been 3 years and we already have had an X-Men and Fantastic Four cameo – even if they were from another universe.

Deadline is reporting that Wandavision’s Matt Shakman is in talks to direct Fantastic Four. Shakman served as the director for Wandavision and has had an extensive career. He directed two episodes of Game of Thrones and an episode of The Boys, and he had a long stint on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. There is nothing official yet, but Deadline’s sources say that Shakman is currently in talks for the job and things are headed in the right direction.

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To be honest, I was a bit more excited when Jon Watts was set to direct. I’m sure Shakman is a good director, but Watts proved he could handle a tentpole superhero film with Spider-Man: Homecoming. Wandavision was good, but Watts’ style would have been perfect for Fantastic Four. The film is probably one of the most anticipated films in Marvel’s upcoming slate films and they need to find the best person they can to direct. Is that Matt Shakman? It could be, but whoever takes the job must realize that Marvel has a lot riding on this movie. The other Fantastic Four films were awful and fans deserve better. Hopefully, Marvel knocks it out of the park as they usually do. You can see for yourself when Fantastic Four hits theaters on November 8th, 2024.

Film Synopsis: One of Marvel’s most iconic families makes it to the big screen: the Fantastic Four.

Source: Deadline

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Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase Star in ‘Zombie Town’ Mystery Teen Romancer (Exclusive)

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Dan Aykroyd and Chevy Chase have entered Zombie Town, a mystery teen romancer based on author R.L. Stine’s book of the same name.

The indie, now shooting in Ontario, also stars Henry Czerny and co-teen leads Marlon Kazadi and Madi Monroe. The ensemble cast includes Scott Thompson and Bruce McCulloch of the Canadian comedy show Kids in the Hall.

Canadian animator Peter Lepeniotis will direct Zombie Town. Stine’s kid’s book sees a quiet town upended when 12-year-old Mike and his friend, Karen, see a horror movie called Zombie Town and unexpectedly see the title characters leap off the screen and chase them through the theater.

Zombie Town will premiere in U.S. theaters before streaming on Hulu and then ABC Australia in 2023.

“We are delighted to bring the pages of R.L. Stine’s Zombie Town to the screen and equally thrilled to be working with such an exceptional cast and crew on this production. A three-time Nickelodeon Kids Choice Award winner with book sales of over $500 million, R.L. Stine has a phenomenal track record of crafting stories that engage and entertain audiences,” John Gillespie, Trimuse Entertainment founder and executive producer, said in a statement.

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Executive producers are Trimuse Entertainment, Toonz Media Group, Lookout Entertainment, Viva Pictures and Sons of Anarchy actor Kim Coates.  

Paco Alvarez and Mark Holdom of Trimuse negotiated the deal to acquire the rights to Stine’s Zombie Town book.

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