Review soundtrack Elizabethtown

[lfish]

Hey All,

I was just browsing the internet and came across the review for the Elizabethtown soundtrack on allmusic.com.

Here it is

Overall rating is 2 and a half out of five (not so good  :( )

Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Being a former teenage rock journalist, Cameron Crowe has made no secret of his love of pop and rock music, or the inspiration he derives from it. He's one of the few film directors who places pop music at the center of his films, littering his pictures with references to rock & roll, even at times where it may not be necessary — witness how Tom Cruise and Penelope Cruz inexplicably morph into the cover of The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan in Vanilla Sky. Such a conscientious eye for detail does usually result in cohesive, interesting soundtracks, and the soundtrack for his 2005 film Elizabethtown is indeed cohesive, but it's not all that interesting. Appropriate for a film set in Kentucky, the record is heavy on sincere, introspective Americana and alt-country, peppered by a few relatively obscure tracks from classic rockers like Tom Petty and Elton John, whose Tumbleweed Connection cut "My Father's Gone" is one of the two best things here. It's languid and atmospheric but effectively epic and melancholy, and even if Bernie Taupin's lyrics don't tell a straightforward narrative, it gives the impression that it does, which makes it far more compelling than the rest of the record, which consists of songs that take the clearest, safest path to their end destination. Not that this makes for bad listening, since everything here is too tasteful to offend, but it does make for a record that is insufferably earnest, well intentioned, and, ultimately, really boring. By the time the Hombres' classic loose-limbed hippie jam "Let It Out (Let It All Hang Out)" comes along four songs before the conclusion, it sounds as lean and hard as the Sir Douglas Quintet. It's not only a breath of fresh air, it reveals how monotonous and bland the rest of the Elizabethtown soundtrack is. Nevertheless, it must be said that Crowe maintains a consistent mood for this record — more so than he did on Jerry Maguire or Vanilla Sky, even — but, for his sake, hopefully his film is livelier and more engaging than this dishwater-dull soundtrack.
 

Tracks
  
    
    
    
  Title  
  Performer  
  Time  
 
      1  60B (Etown Theme)  Nancy Wilson  1:25  
       2  It'll All Work Out  Tom Petty, Heartbreakers  3:45  
      3  My Father's Gun  Elton John  6:21  
       4  Io (This Time Around)  Helen Stellar  5:13  
       5  Come Pick Me Up  Ryan Adams  5:14  
       6  Where to Begin  My Morning Jacket  3:58  
       7  Long Ride Home  Patty Griffin  3:32  
       8  Sugar Blue  Jeff Finlin  3:44  
       9  Don't I Hold You  Wheat  3:39  
       10  Shut Us Down  Lindsey Buckingham  5:12  
      11  Let It Out (Let It All Hang Out)  Hombres  2:07  
       12  Hard Times  Eastmountainsouth  3:45  
      13  Jesus Was a Crossmaker  Hollies  3:47  
       14  Square One  Tom Petty  3:23  
       15  Same in Any Language  I Nine  3:42  
 

[peanut butter puddin surprise]

wow, I guess the soundtrack should've had Judas Priest or something.  Sounds like they haven't seen the movie, so their critique is a bit skewed as the movie doesn't call for a totally rockin' soundtrack...it's pretty mellow.

[lfish]

Did you already see the movie John? And if so, is it a masterpiece?

[peanut butter puddin surprise]

Yup, I have seen it and it's wonderful.  "masterpiece" would (in my opinion) be more like "Gone with the Wind" or "Apocolypse Now" or something like that.  

"Elizabethtown" is a great movie, don't get me wrong.  It connected with me on another level as I recently lost my father (just like the Orlando Bloom character) and the familial struggles that accompany loss.  You go through a process, and Cameron Crowe really nails that process well in his depiction.  It's ongoing, and Orlando's character expresses that well.  My only criticism of the movie might be the overall arch that goes through it that is extended pretty far, and not enough Susan Sarandon.  

Honestly, it's a great movie with a killer soundtrack.  This dude is on crack...

[lfish]

When it's out, I'll sure tune in.  

PS Sorry about your dad

[antoniostrohs]

Dude,did you get to go to the premiere here in Louisville.If so,that is so cool!

[yieldgirl]

anyone pick up the cd at ear-x-tacy that just has six songs on it with that Elvis song?

[MMJ_fanatic]

Yup, I have seen it and it's wonderful.  "masterpiece" would (in my opinion) be more like "Gone with the Wind" or "Apocolypse Now" or something like that.  

"Elizabethtown" is a great movie, don't get me wrong.  It connected with me on another level as I recently lost my father (just like the Orlando Bloom character) and the familial struggles that accompany loss.  You go through a process, and Cameron Crowe really nails that process well in his depiction.  It's ongoing, and Orlando's character expresses that well.  My only criticism of the movie might be the overall arch that goes through it that is extended pretty far, and not enough Susan Sarandon.  

Honestly, it's a great movie with a killer soundtrack.  This dude is on crack...

Alright John,
How did you get to see Elizabethtown when its not due out until 10/14  eh?   ???
Oh yeah who gives a rats ass what this reviewer thinks, listen for youself and make your own call--personally I love the disc!

[yieldgirl]

They had a screening party in E-town and Louisville a couple weeks ago.