Music makes a movie. There’s nothing quite like a perfectly placed song to bring the tears or make you smile. A lot of thought goes into placing that song in its proper place. Once you’ve seen the movie, a good soundtrack can help you replay those certain scenes in your head and provide a soundtrack for your own life. Here are five soundtracks and why they are great, with some honorable mentions of course.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Guardians of the Galaxy has been praised since its release, and one of the shining parts of the film is the inclusion of Peter Quill’s (Chris Pratt) Walkman complete with its own mixtape. The mixtape consists of oldies but goodies, such as “Hooked on a Feeling” by Blue Swede, “I Want You Back” by the Jackson 5 and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. Fans of the mixtape can purchase it for themselves with the Awesome Mix Vol. 1 available now.
The Fault in Our Stars
The Fault in Our Stars is a tearjerker, and the soundtrack is filled with songs that can bring tears to your eyes — “All I Want” by Kodaline and “No One Ever Loved” by Lykke Li for example — but there were plenty of moments in the movie where laughter was the best medicine. “While I’m Alive” by STRFKR and “Boom Clap” by Charli XCX are some songs that balance out the somber tunes.
Wish I Was Here
Zach Braff knows the power of a great soundtrack. Garden State’s went platinum. Even though Wish I Was Here’s soundtrack probably won’t reach that status, the mixture of original and older songs establishes Braff as someone who understands the pull music has. As he said in an interview with Billboard, the soundtrack was created “so people would want to relive the film through the music.” With the help of songs like “Cherry Wine” by Hozier and “The Mute” by Radical Face, the soundtrack does just that.
Begin Again
This soundtrack is filled with songs featured in the film sung by Adam Levine and Keira Knightley as their characters, so the album tells the story of Begin Again a bit differently than the other albums on this list. Blending together in one feel-good album, the soundtrack encompasses what you’ll love about the movie in 16 glorious songs.
Chef
Chef’s soundtrack captures the essence of summer in the perfect mix of 17 songs. Soft rock and Latin influences dominate the album and creates a variety of tunes that you can’t help but groove to.
Soundtracks of mention: 22 Jump Street has party tunes, Boyhood covers your indie needs, Get On Up is full of soul, Divergent has its ethereal feel, The Giver takes you to a new world and the soon-to-be-released If I Stay soundtrack.
Image from Amazon
