All About Steve (2009)

Director: Phil Traill

Soundtrack released as download

Clip 1. from Track 7. Mary did this
Clip 2. from Track 11. Mary's theme

THE FILM

Sandra Bullock plays to her core audience as their favourite weird, wacky and overlooked girl about town. The plot and characters may be assembled and deployed like a machine with the cogs on the outside but it is still impossible to resist Bullock's charm and attention to detail, even when occasionally overbalancing into psychotic. Bullock's characters are not real people, they are fantasies for our entertainment, and even in a film as second class as this, the plot elements, central performance and some of the supporting characters (Thomas Haydn Church, M C Gainey, Katy Mixon and a few underused but interesting choices) ensure the final act warms the cockles.

THE MUSIC

An orchestral score is probably seen as a necessary evil in a Sandra Bullock film, where the pop soundtrack plays such an important role in keeping toes tapping and selling tie-in acts. However, necessary it certainly is, because there are times when heart-strings must be plucked without a country and western singer ruining the dialogue. So, while pop acts hog the limelight, such as the opening credits and Mary making a good second impression on her date (and incidentally this film also has quite a number of scenes without music of any kind), Beck plays an important role in bridging scenes, keeping some of the noisier action flowing, and gently enhancing more serious and emotional elements (sincere conversations; mineshaft re-evaluations).

THE SOUNDTRACK

The MP3 download album allows the listener to choose to collect Beck's 4 tracks into a short suite. The reviewer suggests that "Mary's theme" be placed somewhere in the middle as its cowboy fun style is a little too odd to balance out the style of the other tracks, but otherwise, this is a pleasant and entertaining six and a half minutes. In tracks 2, 7 and 10 Beck stresses the strummed acoustic guitar and a wordless female singer with occasional strings and unthreatening drum/bass to pitch the tone of the film as feminine, chiefly, then contemporary and whistfully romantic. The sweet but slightly bland result is mostly the fault of the placing of Beck's cues in the film, and is mostly recompensed by the cheeky contrast of "Mary's theme". Not a highlight score, this is a professional workmanlike effort with a little extra twinkle for our Sandy.

CD ALBUM TRACK LISTING

1. Stuck to you (Nikka Costa)
2. Desert sunrise (1'03") Christophe Beck
3. Sugar (Dan Wilson)
4. Everybody got their something (Nikka Costa)
5. I will follow him (Little Peggy March)
6. Do the panic (Phantom Planet)
7. Mary did this (1'55") Christophe Beck
8. Cast diva che inargenti from Norma (Helga Bullock)
9. Love is everywhere (Bob Schneider)
10. Lets finish this (2'28") Christophe Beck
11. Mary's theme (1'06") Christophe Beck
12. I want to be a cowboy's sweetheart (Patsy Montana)

Score=6'32"

(No opening or closing credit noted)

END CREDITS

Music editors: Dan PiPrima, Matt Fausak
Recorded and mixed by Casey Stone
Conducted by Nick Glennie-Smith
Orchestrated by Kevin Kliesch
Additional orchestrations by Jake Monaco
Score recorded at The Newman Stage, Twentieth Century Fox
Music coordinator: Kevin Houlihan

SONGS

"Everybody got their something"
Written by Nikka Costa and Justin M. Stanley
Performed by Nikka Costa
Courtesy of Go Funk Yourself Records Inc.

"Island moon"
Written by Charles Brotman and Elmer Lim, Jr.
Courtesy of of 5 Alarm Music

"Short skirt, long jacket"
Written by John McCrea
Performed by Cake
Courtesy of Columbia Records

"Galaxy"
Written by Peter Nigel Beaham and Bella Russell
Courtesy of of APM Music

"Love is everywhere"
Written and performed by Bob Schneider
Courtesy of Shockorama Records

"Hawaiian jam"
Traditional
Arranged by Gerard Marino
Performed by Sam Ako
Courtesy of RipTide Music, Inc.

"Stuck to you"
Written by Nikka Costa and Justin M. Stanley
Performed by Nikka Costa
Courtesy of Concord Music Group, Inc.

"Casta diva che inargenti from Norma"
Music by Vincenzo Bellina [Bellini]
Words by Felice Romani
Arranged and performed by Helga Bullock
Courtesy of Sandra Bullock

"Hit the road"
Written and performed by Jonny Lee Redmond
Courtesy of 5 Alarm Music

"I want to be a cowboy's sweetheart"
Written and performed by Patsy Montana
Courtesy of MCA Nashville (UMG)

"I will follow him"
Written by Paul Mauriat, Frank Pourcel, Jacques Plante, Arthur Altman and Norman Gimbel
Performed by Little Peggy March
Courtesy of RCA Records Label

"Waikiki sunset"
Written by Charles Brotman and Elmer Lim, Jr.
Courtesy of 5 Alarm

"Home in Tennessee"
Written by Martyn Laight and John Weekes
Courtesy of APM Music

"Newshound"
Written by Matthew Cang
Courtesy of APM Music

"Jungle love"
Written and performed by Matt Hirt
Courtesy of Fervor Records (Wild Whirled Music)

"Save the leg"
Based on "Kumbaya"
Traditional

"Bigger picture"
Written by Jimmy Kaleth, Charles Olins, Bob Mitchell, Jez Pike
Courtesy of 5 Alarm Music

"Sunshine express"
Written and performed by Sydney Dale
Courtesy of Opus 1 Music Library

"Sugar"
Written and performed by Dan Wilson
Courtesy of American Recordings

"Do the panic"
Written by Alexander Greenwald, Darren Robinson, Jacques Brautbar, Jason Schwartzman, Sam John Farrar
Performed by Phantom Planet
Courtesy of Epic Records

"The classic race"
Written by Alan Ett and Scott Liggett
Courtesy of Opus 1 Music Library

"Drops of Jupiter"
Written by Charlie Colin, Robert Hitchkiss, Patrick Monahan, Jimmy Stafford, Scott Underwood
Performed by Train
Courtesy of Columbia Records