I’m tempted, as I’ve been tempted too many times before, to think that I’ve come up with the shortest Last Man Standing contest ever, but you’ve proven us wrong too many times before. I’m so confident you’ll surpass my expectations that I’ll give away the one movie that recently came to mind for me that fits what I will hold according to strict criteria: non-Hollywood musical movies based on a song.
By “non-Hollywood musical movies based on a song,” I mean movies that were written outside the Hollywood musical tradition (whether actually made in Hollywood or not [ie, French musicals also don’t count]) specifically to play out the story of/capitalize on a pop song. Movies that simply use the title of a pop song (eg, High Fidelity) do not qualify. In fact, I think we long ago did a Last Man Standing on that topic. The movie has to be some (I would think in most if not all cases) misguided idea that the content of the pop song was not enough, that the pop song’s content had to be fleshed out as a feature film. Imagine, if you dare, an actual film portraying the events and evoking the moods of Don McLean‘s “American Pie” (the teen-exploitation film series of that title being a good example of movies that will NOT quality for this LMS). The screenplay, in other words, needs to be based on the song.
As I said, I am so confident that you will come up with dozens of instances of this practice, a practice I’d forgotten ever happened even once until spending a solid 45 minutes with the following 1978 gem, that I will kick things off with our first entry…after the jump!
And our first entry is…Convoy, based on the 1975 C.W. McCall hit song, “Convoy.”
Last Man Standing!
Alice’s Restaurant.
Your move.
YES!!! Perfect entry for this contest. You are presently Last Man Standing.
Beat me to Alice’s Restaurant. Dang. Does Rock and Roll Highscool count?
Yes, I think we should allow that one. Does anyone object?
Well it was a movie made to capitalize on the success of a song which is partly the spirit of this methinks …
Ode to Billy Joe, based on Bobby Gentry’s “Ode to Billie Joe”.
Talkin’ about tha “Car Wash”!
aloha
LD
Which is exactly why the Convoy movie was made, Machinery. So it qualifies.
I don’t have to be LMS on this, I just have to beat Funkola.
“Can’t Hardly Wait” http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0127723/
Frankie and Johnny
Several recorded version and several films.
“Sgt. Pepper’s Lon…”
No, wait. Sorry. I forgot you mandated a script must be involved.
aloha
LD
Same thing goes for Across The Universe. Man, I hated that one.
“White Christmas”, which isn’t any less rock and roll than some of the others mentioned so far.
Good one! Originally a song in the movie “Holiday Inn,” it spawned it’s own movie. But aren’t these Hollywood movies?
Mod, do you have a minimum time length in mind? Because I’m guessing there are plenty of student films (let alone music videos).
White Christmas defines Hollywood musicals. None of them count. Convoy is a true drama based directly in the song.
Full-length films only, like Convoy.
That counts!
Whoopi Goldberg truly inhabits the character of “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” like no-one before or since.
I was going to say this. I went to this movie based on my love of the song alone. I found the movie boring and was it really based on the song? Maybe on the spirit of the song.
Worst part was that I waited and waited for the song play within the movie thinking that it would make some sort of narrative connection but alas…it didn’t get played until the credits started.
Am I remembering this correctly? Am I missing something?
If not, then this is at least a “rock misdemeanor” if not a full “rock crime”
Will you consider the #1 Jamaican musical: “The Harder They Come”?
Duh. “Yellow Submarine.”
Harper Valley P.T.A. was turned into a movie then a TV show.
The Harder They Come was written for the movie soundtrack, which would disqualify it from consideration I think. Oddly enough, the movie was turned into a pretty good novel.
I think “Car Wash” first appeared on the Car Wash soundtrack, which would make it ineligible? I think I’m confused about the rules.
My pick is the movie “Heart Like a Wheel” about a female race car driver Shirley Muldowny Stars Bonnie Bedalia in the title role and co starring as her husband Beau Bridges.
My favorite version of the song “McGarrigle sisters.
If that’s the case you’re right and I was wrong. It does NOT count. Sorry, RaoulG.
You are correct, Historian. I grant you full rights to throw out entries that do not meet my criteria and – as you have already done – call bullshit on me when I’ve wrongly approved an entry that falls outside our rules for play. Thanks.
Major duh, indeed!
I’m surprised Convoy didn’t make it to the small screen as well.
I don’t think this qualifies, mugwort. The movie is about a real person, right? The song didn’t spawn the real person and her story, and I don’t think it’s even about the race car driver.
Mod, I’m a little confused on the whole “non-Hollywood” aspect of this challenge. Coal Miner’s Daughter is a very Hollywood film, but does it qualify since it was recorded 10 years before the movie.
Hell, I was just hoping to get to use “The Girl Can’t Help It” and “Nine to Five” and now I officially can’t.
Please consider the entire phrase: “non-Hollywood musical.” Musicals are movies that spring out of a collection of songs. The songs are often written expressively for the purpose of being strung together to support the plot of a musical, right? This is a tradition that has its roots in Hollywood. Thus, no Hollywood-style musicals are eligible – no French versions thereof, no Bollywood, etc.
Is there a song called “Coal Miner’s Daughter?” (Sorry, I saw the movie years ago, and although I liked it enough I then had no faculties for digging country music, thus I didn’t retain a single song title.) Let’s say Loretta Lynn (right?) did sing an autobiographical tune by that name and that an autobiographical movie based on her life as, I presume, is depicted in the song came next. In that case, yes, Coal Miner’s Daughter is eligible. It is a Hollywood movie that involves music, certainly, but if it’s a movie that was hatched from a specific song AND if it’s not a Hollywood musical it’s fair game.
Now, I ruled out Heart Like a Wheel if indeed the movie was based on the song, even if the song was about the woman’s life. In this case, the woman’s life existed and was larger than the song, assuming it was remotely connected to Bonnie Bedilia’s character’s life. Are you following me? Had that been the case, the movie was still based on the woman’s life above all else.
If there’s a song called “Coal Miner’s Daughter” that is Lynn’s autobiographical signature song, I’ll allow it because the song would actually encapture the subject’s life and be able to be used as the basis for a screenplay. If, however, it’s a song that only hits on one aspect of her story, like that Johnny Cash song “I Walk the Line,” it doesn’t count. The song “I Walk the Line” is not a synopsis of the film, right?
I hope this helps.
Bostonhistorian’s disappointment over not being able to use “9 to 5” (because it was written for the soundtrack, not written years earlier and then used the the “basis” of the screenplay, reminded me of a similarly themed country song that I somehow remembered WAS turned into the basis of a movie a few years later: Take This Job and Shove It.
Last Man Standing!
Darn, I was hoping to convince you that in the non-Hollywood manner that the film was created, the song begat the film, which led to reworkings of the song, which led to improvements in the movie, and so on and so on…
Besides, isn’t the whole movie really about Stagger Lee?
Again, along with “Magical Mystery Tour,” I thought a screenplay needed to be involved.
aloha
LD
I am mortified. Not that my nom has been discounted but that someone dreamed up that movie without inspiration from the song. WTF sort of world are we living in?
aloha
LD
Kenny Rogers is on NPR talking about his new memoir which reminds me that “The Gambler” was turned into a series of TV movies.
Nice! I remember that show. Country music seems to have a stranglehold on this practice.
Sarah Jessica Parker’s “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” seems to count by these standards.
My other contender, Anthony Michael Hall’s “Johnny B. Goode”, probably doesn’t.
I think you’ve got it mostly right. I can envision a low-level production assistant being told to get a teen-party movie with a sellable soundtrack ready for release. He/she is a Mats fan so start with the song title and connect the dots.
Slightly off track, I think the Keanu Reeves movie “Feeling Minnesota” gets pretty close to the feeling of that scene.
I Wanna Hold Your Hand?
No, the song isn’t about the band’s first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. They just happened to use that song title to signify the general theme of the movie.
A movie using the lyrics to “I Want to Hold Your Hand” as the basis for its screenplay would be pretty thin on plot.
Okay the song didn’t give birth to the real person and her story. How about “Purple People Eater”? 1988. A kid plays the tune and the monster appears. No rule said the movie was supposed to good.
Accepted! I will move your comment down to the bottom to make it clear you are presently LMS. Thanks.
Please note: mugwort is currently LMS with Purple People Eater, a movie inspired by the novelty song of the same name, NOT the Minnesota Vikings’ early ’70s defense:
https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/index.php/last-man-standing-non-hollywood-musical-movies-based-on-a-song/#comment-78087
A Kenny Rogers daily double: “Coward of the County” was also a TV movie. Remind me to send my local NPR station a few bucks during their next pledge drive….
A ruling, please: Coppola’s Peggy Sue Got Married.
I’m pretty sure the band first recorded the song as a tie-in with the movie – an idea which had been in development by Corman’s company for awhile, under different guises (one of which was “Disco High”) before the Ramones were settled on to be the focus of the vehicle – the single came out in June of ’79, and the sleeve featured the same cartoon artwork used in the movie poster. The movie was released in August of ’79. The title song was remixed by Crazy Phil for inclusion the soundtrack album, released shortly after the film, and also included on the “End of The Century” album, released in February of ’80. The versions of “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School” & “I Want You Around” heard in the actual movie weren’t officially released until the “Hey! Ho! Let’s Go: The Anthology” CD, in 1999. I don’t think this one counts.
Also, the single didn’t chart in the U.S. when it was released, and only made it to #67 in the U.K. charts. Not really that successful at the time of its original release.
I don’t think Buddy’s song lyrics mention anything about time travel or reconsidering one’s life choices. This one probably falls into the same category as “I Wanna Hold Your Hand”.
Yes, the song came well before the film, however upon further inspection of the lyrics the song deals with her childhood which is not the main focus of the film so I will voluntarily revoke my submission.
Crossroads (1986) –
One of my favorite little movies – I was just talking about it with some friends at lunchtime – but Bobby’s ruling is correct.
I would say that the time travel part was subtly implied rather stated outright.
Holly’s thievery of Bo Diddley was also subtly implied.
Why, oh why, is there no TV movie based on “My Condition” by the First Edition? Oh, well, what might have been. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZ8k6fVe25k
The scene featuring that song in The Big Lebowski also hints at the possibilities.
On which song? Not this one: http://youtu.be/tgA3WUFPiQk
If you mean, “Not Fade Away”, Buddy didn’t play it the way most of the people who covered it played it. His isn’t the same rhythm as the one with which Bo is normally associated. Listen: http://youtu.be/AyTtFNGzFsE
They’re close, but it isn’t the completely riff rip that The Rolling Stones and most others play.
BB, you don’t a rather close sibling relationship between that and this? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVIrTHqKm5w
I was remembering news of this movie. Did it ever come out?
https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/index.php/ap-gary-busey-in-talks-to-play-bo-diddle/
Yeah, what I said before: close, but not the exact same thing.
Thanks Moderator. My faith in my intelligence is now restored.
Valley Girl! I even have the soundtrack….
The Bonzo Dog Band’s Viv Stanshall wrote the screenplay for the movie, SIR HENRY AT RAWLINSON END (1980 – starring Trevor Howard), which was based on his old song.
Sat on it long enough, just gotta put it out here and let y’all sort this shit out
“Things To Do In Denver When You’re Dead”
aloha
LD
Concrete Cowboys did though, so same type of thing.
Love Potion No. 9
Why, oh why, is there not a movie based on “Waterloo Sunset”?
My fear would be the casting of stinking cutie-pie Carely Mulligan. If it’s to happen it must wait until she’s too old!
There was an 80s movie that I assume was terrible called Can’t Buy Me Love.