Animated Films That Rock: 10 Best Movie Trailer Songs
- Posted by Pat Pemberton
- Comments
'Kung Fu Panda'
'Kung Fu Fighting,' Carl Douglas
As the trailer for this flick begins, you just expect Carl Douglas' disco hit 'Kung Fu Fighting' to kick in at some point. Because, seriously -- how many popular songs about kung fu are there?
'Bee Movie'
'Freedom,' George Michael
Not thrilled with the prospect of being enslaved in a hive, a bee named Barry decides to get out and smell the roses. Here, George Michael's 'Freedom' conveys Barry's newfound independence. But freedom has its drawbacks, which include windshields and tennis rackets.
'Finding Nemo'
'Beyond the Sea,' Robbie Williams, and more
This trailer about a lost clown fish uses two songs by popular artists. The first, Robbie Williams' version of Bobby Darin's 'Beyond the Sea,' takes us under water, where we're introduced to Pixar's lush and brightly colored sea life. And since Nemo's dad will head to Australia to find his lost spawn, 'Down Under,' by the Aussie band Men at Work follows.
'Monsters, Inc.'
'Break On Through,' the Doors
In this movie's reality, monsters are afraid of little kids instead of the other way around. So when a young girl goes to the other side -- the monster side -- chaos ensues, as we see in this trailer that uses 'Break On Through' by the Doors. It was probably unintended, but we'll give bonus points here, as doors play a significant part in the 'Monsters, Inc.' plot.
'Despicable Me'
'Sweet Home Alabama,' Lynyrd Skynyrd, and more
As a redneck family arrives to see the pyramids in Egypt, we hear 'Sweet Home Alabama,' Lynyrd Skynyrd's redneck anthem of sorts. Later in the trailer, he hear 'Despicable Me,' written specifically for the movie and performed by Pharrell Williams and MeOh!My.
'A Bug's Life'
'Baba O'Riley,' the Who
Most people know the Who's 'Baba O'Riley' as the "teenage wasteland" song. But the lyric "Out here in the fields/I fight for my meals" works well as we scan the land where hard-working ants live, fight for meals and put on funny circuses.
'Curious George'
'Upside Down,' Jack Johnson
It seemed curious when Jack Johnson agreed to write songs for this movie about an adventurous monkey, but fans weren't scratching their heads as the soundtrack soared to No. 1. The line "There's no stopping curiosity" -- from 'Upside Down' -- works well here with a montage of George doing things sure to get him in trouble with the Man With the Yellow Hat.
'Shrek'
'Bad Reputation,' Joan Jett, and more
Since the 'Shrek' movies incorporate fairy tails, this trailer starts with 'Young at Heart,' an innocent oldie by Jimmy Durante. But then we rock out to Joan Jett's 'Bad Reputation' and then to Smash Mouth's cover of 'I'm a Believer' because we're supposed to believe -- at least in a movie kinda way -- in fairy tales. And also because every 'Shrek' movie has to have a Smash Mouth song.
'Happy Feet'
'The Message,' Grandmaster Flash, and more
Honestly, we're not totally sure how the songs thematically fit in here. But we have to give props for cramming four popular songs into one trailer. We start with Stevie Wonder's 'I Wish,' then go to penguin renditions of Grandmaster Flash's 'The Message' and Chicago's 'If You Leave Me Now,' concluding with Queen's 'Somebody to Love.'
'Madagascar 2: Escape 2 Africa'
'I Like to Move It,' Will.i.am
If you have kids, odds are they've sung (perhaps annoyingly) 'I Like to Move It,' a tune originally released in 1994 by reggae act Reel 2 Real, which appears prominently in the two 'Madagascar' movies. This Will.i.am cover allows the wild and crazy -- but mostly wild -- cast to get their happy feet on and shake their hippo booties.
- Filed under: The Hit List
4 Comments