Rain : Cinematographic Excellence
We recently wrote about the influence music has on the moving image being watched. Eddie Vedder’s soundtrack for Into the Wild is a perfect example of the synergy between the two mediums. Growing up I’ve studied both music and film production and probably now only realise the amount of cross discipline influence that exists in all art forms.
I’ve heard a few people compliment how great the R.E.M. video is for ‘losing my Religion’ completely unaware of the artist being visually represented and acted out. There are marks for anyone who can name the artist in the comments:)
I’ve been trying to think of soundtracks that match Vedder’s Into the Wild in terms of the value added to the film. I think the obvious film for me is the 2001 New Zealand film ‘Rain’. Directed my Christine Jeffs based on the novel by Kirsty Gunn.
Janey is on holiday with her brother, Jim, mother, Kate, and father Ed, at their beach house on the Mahurangi Peninsual in New Zealand. Ed and Kate, who are on the verge of divorce, sit around in the back yard all day drinking whiskey and Janey and Jim are left to their own devices.
Cady, a local boatee who is having an affair with Kate, catches Janey’s pubescent eye. In response to his wife’s drinking problem and recurring infidelity, Ed turns to alcohol, ignoring his children almost as much as his wife, which eventually leads to a character’s fate.
I won’t give the story away as many readers perhaps won’t have seen the film given that up to last year it was difficult to get in the UK. We were fortunate to get both on their release and listened to the music before watching the film. The music is just as utterly stunning as the film. Written by Neil Finn, Liam Finn and Lisa Germano. Finn writes the score in a retro fashion fitting to timing of the film (70s) enhancing every scene with each song.
Rain has won awards across the world for breath taking cinematography. If you can get your hands on the Rain DVD or CD I would definitely recommend them both. Prepared to be moved my both. Check here for the Rain Study Guides.
I struggled to find a copy of the trailer. Click here for film and DVD information. It comes and goes on Amazon, the Soundtrack is definitely harder to get but can be imported from NZ or AU. Official Website for Rain.
Across the board, this film is near perfect. Extraordinary .