Serious Contenders: Adventureland Triple-Feature, Velvet Underground/Crowded House/Replacements

I have a lot to say about the movie Adventureland, since I'm a sucker for "manic pixie dream girl" movies, particularly those that uncover the flaws in that archetype. What really interests me is the music: all the best MPDG films have awesome soundtracks since the people that make them (and therefore usually the characters) are music aficionados who let their love of tunes guide their feelings and actions. This one begins with this classic Velvet Underground cut, which mellowly slips you into the film's disenfranchised white middle class aesthetic:



Jesse Eisenberg's main character is a bit of a music snob who frequently extols the greatness of Lou Reed, whose music runs throughout the film, but that doesn't stop them from using some great tunes contemporary to the film's late-80's setting. Later during one of the warmest moments of the film, the main characters watch the July 4th fireworks and this gem wells up, crystallizing this moment of yearning, of being with someone and yet somehow separated:



It's funny how context can rescue a song for you, because I never thought much of Crowded House before then, but the thought of those characters in that moment with that song underscoring the moment really does it for me. Of course, the film ends with a song that is truly excellent no matter the context:



"Unsatisfied" features one of those great, dreamy acoustic intros that melts into a powerful electric verse and rough vocal, driving the film toward its climactic scene. All these songs are serious contenders in their own way, and their usage in that one film is spot on.

If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. If you've seen it but wrote it off, well, it's not for everyone. But for me, it does a great job exemplifying what music can mean to a person, to our relationships, to our everyday lives.