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Sunday, January 4, 2009

Fourth Midnight: The Soundtrack Kiss

Some kisses just go better with pop culture. The perfect marriage of soundtrack to scene can raise the emotional impact exponentially. Yes, James Horner's instrumental provides a timeless slant to the kiss, reaching an emotional touch point that spans generational tastes. But compare Titanic iconic kiss scene:

To the tabletop finale in Sixteen Candles:

If the photo isn't enough to jog your memory, try this yummy tribute to Jake Ryan, complete with the original kiss scene at 4:20. Who isn't instantly transported back to the 1980s when the Thompson Twins' If You Were Here accompanies the moment?

My favorite soundtrack kiss is Never Been Kissed. Any kiss that lays out the plot's climax right in the title, builds toward it the entire duration of the movie and inspires an entire grandstand to break out into spontaneous kisses gets my vote:

Who would have guessed The Beach Boys? But, somehow, it's perfect. Neither of these pop-culture-esque kisses are spectacular in and of themselves. There's no tempest blowing their hair or heightened moment of impending separation. They're simple and unforgettable because they join our own embedded memories of the songs to the character's experience.

What's your favorite soundtrack kiss?

7 comments:

Charles Gramlich said...

hum, does Kirk kissing Uhuru count?

Kim Lenox said...

Oh, boy. Sixteen Candles! YES!

All of those John Hughes films had great kisses.

And this isn't a physical kiss but somehow even better:

That scene in SAY ANYTHING where John Cusack holds up the boom box and plays Peter Gabriel's IN YOUR EYES.

Sigh. Better than a kiss.

Miladysa said...

This is going to sound like a scratched record but The Year of Living Dangerously... *sigh*

Katie Reus said...

Aww, I love Sixteen Candles :) One of my favorite movies is Love Actually and I love pretty much all the kissing scenes, but I teared up when Jaime and Aurelia first kissed and when Natalie & David (the Prime Minister) did (hope I got the names right, lol)

L.A. Mitchell said...

Charles...what was that-the Star Trek theme song? :D

Kim...Most of John Hughes films did have a great kiss, didn't they? I still remember The Breakfast Club and Pretty in Pink's kiss scenes very well.

Miladysa...I checked it out just for you. Is it the one where he pins her in the hallway. I think I've found it. We still have two midnights to go... :)

Katie...I'm probably the only person who hasn't seen that movie. Must watch soon!

Barbara Martin said...

Viggo Mortensen kissing Liv Tyler in LOTR.

Jen FitzGerald said...

Definitely, Never Been Kissed.

Woo hoo!

Jen