from Winner: Omar Muniz, Chicago IL
Matty, this is a great question and it has my mind flipping through
its endless index of movie scenes. I felt compelled to write about
California Dreamin' by The Mamas and the Papas because of how it
represents the Americanization of Hong Kong in Wong Kar Wai's
Chungking Express. I then turned to the final song in The 40 Year Old
Virgin, The Age of Aquarius by The Fifth Dimension, the perfect finale
to a really fun movie. And then of course you've got memorable songs
from O Brother Where Art Thou and Reservoir Dogs (cutting off the ear
scene) and the list goes on and on.
But in the end, I had to go with a personal selection. The song I
chose for my favorite song in a movie moment is heard in the opening
scene of the film I watched most during my high school and college
years. Because it's in the film's opening scene, every time I hear it
I'm reminded of what is very much a comfort movie for me. And it
reminds me of the coming-of-age nostalgia that one layer of the movie
reveals. My favorite song in a movie moment appears in a film by the
songman himself, Martin Scorsese in his 1973 film, Mean Streets. The
song from the opening credits is Be My Baby by The Ronettes and it
plays over home videos of guys from the neighborhood, laughing,
drinking and partying in public. Harvey Keitel, Bobby D, Richard
Romanus, all those guys. Its a heavenly prelude to the heavy conflict
that ensues in the film. And whenever I hear that tune, and it is a
popular one, I think of this, my favorite film growing up and the
grainy VHS tape I used to own it on, almost as grainy as the home
video shown in the movie. I think of all the times I watched it and
the different stages of life I was in when I watched it. Mostly, I
think of my own friends throughout the years, especially those who
aren't around any longer. The song takes me back to those careless
times when (and pardon the cliché) things were simpler. And I imagine
Scorsese used the song because it reminded him of those young New York
days, growing up in the neighborhood in the 50s. I can't imagine many
people feel the same way towards this scene, but it's one that's
impossible for me to forget.
As a side note, it really irks me when people hear that same tune and
say "That's the song from Dirty Dancing! Nobody puts baby in the
corner!" And they cackle hideously for minutes on end. Then, like a
true film snob, I interrupt sharply and advise them that the song was
used in a much better movie 12 years beforehand, and in a much better
way, if I may say so myself.