Thursday, January 3, 2013

They walk in beauty like the night: Sofia Coppola, her heroines and their songs


Sofia Coppola is full of surprises when it comes to the music of her films. 

Exhibit A: she chose Air to score her first film The Virgin Suicides, one year after they had just released their debut album. Their Moon Safari was admittedly highly acclaimed, but still it was quite a bold move for a first-time director. 
Exhibit B: she managed to make indie genius Kevin Shields write music for Lost in Translation; Shields had disappeared completely from music since My Bloody Valentine released their seminal Loveless in 1991 and obviously his re-appearance came as quite a surprise at the time.
And finally, in what could be her most unexpected move, she chose the golden era of new wave and post-punk (Siouxsie, New Order, Bow Wow Wow, Cure) as an inspiration and guide for the candy-coloured style of Marie Antoinette; apparently it was also one of the main objections some critics had with that particular film. 
Her latest feature Somewhere is scored by her husband Thomas Mars (singer of Phoenix) and features again an eclectic and varied choice of tracks.

"Playground Love" - Air (The Virgin Suicides, 1999)
The unforgettable languous saxophone riff is ideal for the airy, hazily sensual atmosphere of the movie. Kirsten Dunst relishes the pleasures of teenage love before things turn bad. Really bad.



"Just Like Honey" - Jesus and Mary Chain (Lost in Translation, 2003)
Soundtrack to the famous ending scene which caused the cinephile crowd to incessantly argue throughtout internet about what exactly Bill Murray whispers to Scarlett Johansson; who knows if it will ever be revealed. The song also features the same legendary drum pattern to Ronettes' "Be My Baby".



"Hong Kong Garden" - Siouxsie and the Banshees (Marie Antoinette, 2006)
Kirsten Dunst as Marie Antoinette and the rest of French aristocracy party and dance carefree to Siouxsie's post-punk anthem from 1978.




"Cool" - Gwen Stefani (Somewhere, 2010)
Another movie, another Sofia Coppola heroine on a quest for maturity and self-knowledge: this time it's 12-year-old Elle Fanning playing the daughter of estranged movie star Stephen Dorff who unexpectedly finds himself responsible for her upbringing. In a wonderful sequence Elle is performing ice skating figures like a pro, accompanied by a contemporary pop tune by Gwen Stefani and her dad's realisation of his role as a father.