for the record

Author: Emily Temple

A good soundtrack can do absolute wonders for a film. In fact, some films become popular before they come out almost solely based on the buzz, Internet or otherwise, about a slamming sonic backdrop. And a film, to be fair, can do wonders for a song. Think of "Miss Misery," for which Elliott Smith received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song when it appeared on the "Good Will Hunting" soundtrack. The more recent "Across the Universe," on the other hand, a musical chronicling the 1970s exclusively through Beatles songs, rests heavily on the unshakable fortress of its music. I sat through the horrible acting complacently, completely enthralled both with the interpretations of my old favorites, and the unmistakable glee of piecing together the nods and winks (I mean dialogue like: "Where'd she come from?" "Oh, that's Prudence. She came in through the bathroom window"). Musicians themselves both inspire and frequently feature in films - in 2006's "Wristcutters: A Love Story," Shea Whigham plays a Ukrainian ex-rocker who looks an awful lot like Gogol Bordello frontman Eugene Hutz, and is in fact inspired by him. Hutz incidentally starred alongside Elijah Wood in the sub-par film adaptation of Jonathan Safran Foer's "Everything is Illuminated," and is a good friend of "Wristcutters" director Goran Dukic. "Wristcutters" boasts a soundtrack full of Gogol Bordello, which lends it its aggressively irreverent, manic-depressive atmosphere and undead hipster charm.

The most recent film-music wonder team is "Juno," a movie about a precocious 16-year-old (Ellen Page) who finds herself impregnated by her awkwardly long-limbed friend Bleeker (Michael Cera). While it is my general opinion that hearing a good song for the first time in a movie is an easy way out, and rather cheapens the experience of a new track, "Juno" certainly does its illustrious soundtrack justice. After viewing the film, it's hard to believe that writer Diablo Cody didn't have some of the soundtrack in mind ­- that's how snugly it fits. However, according to Page, who plays the dry and charmingly weird Juno, director Jason Reitman asked her fairly early on what kind of music she thought her character would listen to, and her immediate response was "The Moldy Peaches." Reitman had never heard of the New York City duo, but he soon fell in love with them, and we now have a movie (and a soundtrack) full of Kimya Dawson, the female half of the band, who perfectly complements the characters and the feel of the film.

"Juno" ends with Cera and Page's characters singing a duet version of The Moldy Peaches' "Anyone Else But You," accompanying themselves on two acoustic guitars on the front steps of Bleeker's parents' house. I had heard of this scene before seeing the movie, and since I too listened to the soundtrack first, I had also heard their version. To be honest, when I saw it for myself on the big screen, I was a little disappointed. I'm all for breaking down the diagetic/non-diagetic sound barrier, I'm all for this song in this movie, I'm all for my own smug acknowledgement that I know all the bands that the on-screen characters know. However, the scene seems tacked-on and forced, a waste. When I heard that there was to be a "live" version of this grossly adorable song in the film, I pictured a tentative and nervous Cera lifting his guitar and squeaking out the first lines ­- you're a part time lover and a full time friend - and getting to see the relief and pleasure wash over his face when Page chimes in on the next verse. I thought I would then bask in the indie cuteness as they bonded over the relevant lyrics and mutual knowledge of this fairly obscure little ditty. Instead, the duet only comes at the very last moment in the film, so disjointed from the rest it could have almost played in a little box while the credits rolled. Bleeker and Juno have already confessed their mutual love and been united, the baby has been born, and all is well. It still seems awkward, like the rest of the film, but contrived, unlike the rest. Then again, who can really resist?