John Mayer could have a cameo in a new black comedy thriller RevengeBut he played a key role in connecting BJ Novak, who also stars in the film and makes his feature film debut, and the composer of his first film: eight-time Grammy winner Phineas O’Connell.
A few years ago, Novak stopped by his friend Mayer’s house on the day that Mayer was doing a show on Instagram Live. current mood Visiting O’Connell. The two started talking and Novak texted his producer, Nicholas Kraft, also a huge fan of Phineas, telling him they had met. He got a quick response. He said: Ask him to dial Revenge. And I asked, “What? I won’t tag him Revenge. And, I don’t know, maybe a drink later… I said, “Have you ever thought about doing a movie?”
Turns out O’Connell wanted to make a movie. It also happens that they shared the same favorite movie: the music of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Social network.
The link flowed from there. “As someone who was really a beginner, it was great to have a director who was doing this for the first time,” says O’Connell. “I felt there were no prerequisites. It was very funny.”
“Some songwriters have already won an Oscar, so it’s a balance between someone who is overqualified, like someone who was flying blind with me, that made it even more special,” Novak says of O’Connell, who took home this year’s award. . Oscar. First for Best Original Song no time to die With her sister Billie Eilish. “It was more like two brothers getting along. … It really brings us together along this artistic journey.”
The film’s plot — a New Yorker traveling to a young woman’s hometown in West Texas accompanied by a podcast about her sudden death — immediately caught O’Connell’s attention.
“In all the reboot eras of all the franchises and so many sequels, I remember reading and thinking, ‘I can’t compare this script to another movie that follows the same model,’” he says. “It was really unique, and I thought, musically, it should be as unique as the movie.”
“The movie is really about a myth. It’s about the myths we have about other people and the myths we have about ourselves,” says Novak. “And Texas is a very mythical place.”
As Novak’s character delves deeper into the culture, his initial penchant for ridicule gives way to a genuine connection and affection. The transition is not an easy one, and as he comes and goes with new discoveries about the townspeople and himself, O’Connell’s score draws audiences deeper into their consciousness. The opening parts of the score are subtle, powered by different synth sounds. As the story progresses, the full textures bubble up and grow in a crescendo.
“The biggest thing that BJ and I talked about is that it’s a movie about a cynical person who lived a kind of life who gradually becomes more and more honest about it, saying, ‘I’m going to make fun of it. about it and make a cynical podcast out of it,” says O’Connell. “Without going too far, absolutely what we were trying to do with the score was to take this journey with this character going from a cynical, indecisive place to the other side of the river. Where, he’s wearing a cowboy hat, riding a buggy in what he thought was the desert. And it’s such a visually satisfying ride that the soundtrack goes along with it.”
“There are some scenes where the score really breaks the scene, even the way I wrote it,” Novak notes, pointing to a pivotal moment when his character and his family have a verbal dispute. Restaurant parking.
“In the script, it was a little too much of the head, not the heart. In a way, it was almost a political discussion. But when Phineas wrote the score, it became clear: it’s actually an emotional argument, and it’s actually the most emotional scene in the movie, because they don’t hide how they feel,” he says.
O’Connell wrote most of the score from scratch, a script he describes as “therapeutic” because he can fully immerse himself in the cadence, dialogue and scenes.
“The real turning point on the soundtrack was when it started to lean a little to the west. First, there’s all this digital energy going around, and then there’s the Ennio Morricone-style whistles and drums and guitars combined with synths like this podcast, and that’s when it got really cool,” says O’Connell. “I’m so glad BJ was willing to go the other way with this. I watch a lot of movies and soundtracks are the most underrated at the moment. It’s like when we were talking about The Social Network. That score plays a huge role in the movie, and if only it were beautiful. A string score, like many movies, can be good, but you just don’t remember it.”
Phineas says that even though he had some premonitions about the film’s selection process, they quickly faded. “One of the things that was really rewarding to learn was how specific the music you were creating for the project was. It’s really like any of my artists in the room,” he says. “If I’m working with an amazing hip-hop artist, that’s what we do. Or working with an amazing country artist, that’s what we do. This is super personalized. “
In addition to Novak, Focus Films stars Issa Rae, Ashton Kutcher, Boyd Holbrook, JJ Smith-Cameron and Dov Cameron. It opens in cinemas on Friday.
This story first appeared on Billboard.com.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Emily Jhon is a product and service reviewer at Gossipify, known for her honest evaluations and thorough analysis. With a background in marketing and consumer research, she offers valuable insights to readers. She has been writing for Gossipify for several years and has a degree in Marketing and Consumer Research from the University of Oxford.
