Thumbsucker [Soundtrack]

According to the liner notes, Thumbsucker director Mike Mills was working with songwriting genius Elliott Smith on the songs for the movie when Smith passed away. Months later, while struggling with the editing of the movie and the aftermath of Smith's death, Mills attended a Polyphonic Spree concert that changed and moved him so much that he sought out Tim DeLaughter of The Spree and signed him to finish the musical score to the film. "The Spree saved Thumbsucker," says Mills.

The album has a lush score representing Tim DeLaughter and The Polyphonic Spree at their very best, from the powerful and jubilant single "Move Away and Shine" to the sublime and mellow "Acceptance" (which rolls out comfortably for thiry minutes), punctuated with several songs by the late Elliott Smith.

Usually I leave the movie theater wanting to get the soundtrack, but now it's the other way around. This score makes me want to see the movie, as I'm sure it has to be something very special.

I find it extremely irritating when a reviewer with limited knowledge of a film (or, even worse, when a reviewer hasnot watched the film) takes it upon themselves to trash a soundtrack. The qualms I have with this practice are purely due to my aesthetical opinion: certain films require certain types of soundtracks. Some films, like Almost Famous and Snatch, work best with track lists full of imposing titles and in such a circumstance the music, for a moment or two, becomes the focus of the film. In films like Lost in Translation and Thumbsucker, the music never takes a dominant role over the film itself; instead it plays the role of a constant emotional supplement, accurately and beautifully rendering the action on screen through sound. The soundtrack, to any who has watched Thumbsucker, is an amazing work of art and a case study in complementing an amazing film with amazing, yet not overbearing, music. Any viewer, any fan, and any colleague of Mike Mill's will have the same positive reaction to this soundtrack after watching the great film it supports. Reviewers who review soundtracks without watching the movies they stem from, take note: this album was intended as a complement to great film, not a compilation made at the director's whim...I sincerely challenge you to watch the movie and claim that these songs, soaking in emotion, are dry and banal!

The Polyphonic Spree and my all-time favorite, Elliott Smith, are perfect together on the soundtrack to such a great film. Worth picking up just for the cover of "Trouble." "Move Away and Shine" is another highlight.