Little Manhattan, Big Soundtrack.

"Love isn't about rediculous little words. Love is about grand gestures. Love is about airplanes pulling banners over stadiums, proposals on jumbo-trons, giant words in sky writing. Love is about going that extra mile even if it hurts. Letting it all hang out there. Love is about finding courage inside of you that you didn't even know was there." - Gabe, "Little Manhattan"




It was a quiet night, so two of my cousins and I decided to rent a movie. One of them suggested we rent "Little Manhattan," a 2005 production that I had never even heard of before, so we decided to give it a shot. Usually I'm not the kind of person who will rent a movie without hearing anything about it from anyone, but I soon found out it was a risk worth taking. Mark Levin, director of "Little Manhattan," teamed up with writer Jennifer Flackett (also wrote "Wimbledon" and "Madeline") to come out with more than just a cute story about children's romance. The story takes viewers on a rollercoaster ride from the perspective of 10-year-old Gabe and his quest to break the separation between girls and boys and the dreaded cooties that girls brought. Gabe, played by Josh Hutcherson, experiences troubles in his home life, where his father continues to sleep on the couch while divorce papers are in the works, and his mother begins to date again, despite still living with her husband. These troubles only add to the heartache as Gabe is filled with love for karate partner Rosemary Telesco (Charlie Ray), a picture-perfect rich girl who has the social calendar of a celebrity.

The movie brought much more than I ever thought it could, and when I was watching it (feeling myself heartache during Gabe's trials for Rosemary) I couldn't help but realize the music it was accompanied with couldn't have been better chosen. Somehow the movie found a way to successfully incorporate songs that were perfect to suit the mood of Manhattan life, even if it was just the three-by-three block area that Gabe's parents allowed him to scooter around. These tunes included "Sleepless in Brooklyn," performed by Californian group Lazlo Bane, as well as the fitting "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" performed by Freedy Johnston.

What was most impressive to me, however, was that in the final two minutes of the movie, without giving anything away, I found myself singing along to a Matt Scannell rendition of The Beatles' "In My Life." The reason for my surprise was that I'm not even really a huge Beatles' listener, but maybe what it took was to listen to one of their songs actually reproduced WELL. The mood the song emits was perfectly chosen for the mood of the movie, and the tone of Scannell's voice is clean and pure. It is strong yet giving, which I felt more powerful than the typical either too soft or too overbearing sound that some musicians possess.
Hear it for yourself here, and non-Beatles fans, let me know if this helped you enjoy their sound more (definitely did for me): www.myspace.com/mattscannell

Also check out:
Lazlo Bane - www.myspace.com/lazlobaneofficial - "Sleepless in Brooklyn" isn't here, but you can get the taste of what their sound is like compared to...
...Freedy Johnston - www.freedyjohnston.com