Published on Apr 13, 1998
Cheese lovers-allow me to make an analogy. For a grilled cheese
sandwich, sometimes Velveeta is the best cheese to use. It doesn’t
harden or yellow like sharp cheddar. Yes, sharp cheddar is higher
quality and more authentic than processed cheese, but Velveeta
still does a better job.
Producers Robert Kraft (no pun intended) and Laura Ziffren took
this idea and came up with the soundtrack to
The Full Monty. The soundtrack is filled with campy, fun 70s
disco and rock songs as well as some thoughtful, jazzy instrumental
original scores. Sister Sledge, Gary Glitter and the supreme camp
king, Tom Jones make appearances on
The Full Monty.
Like the movie, the soundtrack is dominated by light-hearted
moments. The movie and the soundtrack also have poingant moments.
“The Lunchbox Has Landed” is a sad piece, arranged by Anne Dudley.
It features strings, mandolins and low brass, making it a moody
piece. Wonderfully arragned, this and the title track have elements
of classical music as well as jazz.
Like the best soundtracks, the music triggers memorable scenes
in the movie for the listener. Don’t like the Donna Summer song,
“Hot Stuff”? Try hitting the skip button after thinking of the
hilarious scene when the five mates were groovin’ to the song in a
social service line.
Lesser known acts like Hot Chocolate are featured on the
soundtrack. After listening to “You Sexy Thing”, it makes you
wonder why that song has not been sampled to death or featured in
70s homage movies.
The only flaw I see with the soundtrack is the social norms you
may violate when listening to the soundtrack. Unless you have a
neurological disorder, you will have the urge to re-enact the
clothes removing scenes if you are blaring “You Can Leave Your Hat
On” by Tom Jones or “Rock And Roll Part 2” by Gary Glitter. If you
have a house, make sure the drapes are pulled when trying this.
You’ve been warned.