From Lyrics to the Silver Screen: Films Inspired by Songs

Submitted By: Tia Briggs
Music has long served as the inspiration for many forms of art. Literature, for instance, has been using music and song lyrics as its muse. However, Hollywood is perhaps most dependent on music, songs, and song lyrics. Besides the need for soundtracks and background music, among other practical purposes, music and song lyrics often find their way through the titles of the movies themselves. Obviously, when the title of the song is used as the title of the movie, one can expect that the song and the lyrics would play huge roles in the movie. And just as well—music and song lyrics, after all, can add a much needed depth to any film.
An earlier example is the movie Stand By Me, titled after the song by Ben E. King. The song itself is often interpreted as a love song, with lyrics that go “And darlin', darlin', stand by me”—the darling in the lyrics seen as term of romantic endearment. Yet, in the movie adapted from the Stephen King novella The Body, the song takes a different—and wider—meaning. Here, the lyrics can pertain to friendship rather than romantic. The movie, after all, is a coming of age story of four teenage boys who embarked on a journey to retrieve a dead body for a reward. The song, with its poignant lyrics, definitely fit the story. Note how this part of the lyrics can refer to friendship’s endurance: “If the sky that we look upon / Should tumble and fall / And the mountains should crumble to the sea / I won't cry, I won't cry, no I won't shed a tear / Just as long as you stand, stand by me.” This movie shows how the three artistic mediums can work together to create a cohesive product.
Across The Universe and Mamma Mia are two of the more recent films titled after popular songs. “Across The Universe” is a popular Beatles song; it is iconic because part of its chorus is in Sanskrit (sample lyrics: “Jai guru deva om / Nothing's gonna change my world…”). “Mamma Mia,” on the other hand, is also the title of an ABBA song (sample lyrics: “Mamma mia, here I go again / My my, how can I resist you?
Mamma mia, does it show again? / My my, just how much I’ve missed you”). Interestingly, both are musicals, and their songs are from the body of work of a particular artist—obviously, Across The Universe uses songs fby The Beatles, while Mamma Mia uses songs by ABBA. The narrative of the movies were created in such a way that the songs and their lyrics would fit together, instead of the other way around. For Mamma Mia, this isn’t so difficult; consider the lyrics of ABBA’s “Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight).
There are other films that were titled after songs. While these movies do not always incorporate themes found in the song lyrics, this tactic works best as a marketing tool for movie studios. After all, while the movie has nothing to do with the song lyrics, it can use the popularity of the song for its own purposes.

Published At: Isnare.com