Away We Go is an excellent and subtle comedy that stars Maya Rudolph & John Krasinski who play an expecting couple who are hunting the perfect location in the United States to settle down and raise their new baby. Its style and sense of humor definitely make it feel like a distant cousin to Juno, which to me is a good thing.

And while the film was fantastic, funny & touching, the main thing I took away from it was the soundtrack! An acoustic guitar would gently pluck throughout many of the scenes often times followed by a hearty crooner’s soft vocals. After the film I did some research and discovered that the man behind the movie’s music is named Alexi Murdoch, and I haven’t stopped listening to him since! I kind of wish he would compose the soundtrack to my life. Click here to check my favorite song from the movie, “All My Days“.

Next time you watch a movie, pay special attention to the use of music throughout. Sometimes, it can truly be a scene-stealer! Any of you out there reading this have a similar experience? Ever feel so moved by a film’s soundtrack that you just had to find out about the artist(s) responsible?

I’m a HUGE award show fan. Emmys, Tonys, Grammys, Golden Globes, the Oscars, People’s Choice Award etc…it’s actually an addiction. So much that I am desperately trying to see each of the 10 nominees for the Academy Award for Best Picture before the award show later this month. I am 6 going on 7 and thought it would be fun for any readers out there to share what they think will take the top prize. Here are my thoughts:

Black Swan? Saw it and LOVED it. Dark, twisted & artsy psycho-drama…yes please!

The Fighter? I was afraid it would be piggybacking off of The Wrestler but I’ve heard enough good things that I’m trying to catch it one night this week.

The Kids Are All Right? Saw it and thought the cast was incredible. Julianne Moore & Annette Benning made a convincing & deeply moving couple.

The King’s Speech? Saw it and was left speechless (haha). Colin Firth & Geoffrey Rush were sensational and Helena Bonham Carter is one of my favorite actresses, so bonus points there.

Inception? Saw it. Enjoyed it well enough. Just didn’t really get the hype around it.

127 Hours Heard it was great, albeit quite disturbing in some parts.

The Social Network? Saw it and enjoyed it. A great time-stamp on our modern day culture.

Toy Story 3? Saw it and cried for days. I wonder how many other third-part sequels have been nominated for Best Picture in the past. Not many, I’m sure.

True Grit? Haven’t yet seen it, but since I loved Fargo & No Country for Old Men, I’m sure the Coen Bros. didn’t disappoint.

Winter’s Bone? I don’t know a single person who has seen it (or even heard of it for that matter). Netflix is sending it my way as I type.

Burlesque? Saw it opening day and could not stop smiling the whole way through! Yay for Christina Aguilera!

My prediction? Based on the other award shows and general hype, I think it’s going to come down to Black Swan, The Social Network & The King’s Speech duking it out. I’d be okay with any of them winning, though I am secretly rooting for The King’s Speech to sweep all the awards it’s nominated for.

So there are my opinions…but what about yours???

Basically Disney Tickets Together is just an application that lets you buy tickets to the movie directly on Facebook, and then asks who you’d like to invite friends right at the point of purchase so that buying tickets instantly becomes a social activity.

Really Disney? You’ve socialized internet shopping. Now we can still do it from your underwear, during our favorite TV shows, and still skip all of the traffic/crowds/lines…but now we can do it with friends who are also in the comfort of their undergarments and Lazyboys. Just imagine! It could be a virtual shopping trip between you and your best friend, at any time of the day you want! Maybe even fire up the Skype video chat so you can talk and see each other’s reactions to various items? 

Okay, okay…maybe I’m getting ahead of myself here.

But something just as simple as movie tickets through Facebook would be concert tickets through Facebook. Why not? Most of us would probably agree that concerts are a much more social environment than watching a movie and going to a concert by yourself is just as lame as going to the movies by yourself. It’s a perfect fit for social online shopping, so I hope you promoters are taking interest.

You can read more about Disney’s Facebook application in the New York Times, and you can try it out on Facebook here.

And thanks to Chris Taillie for the inter office tip!

One Fast Move or I’m Gone: Kerouac’s Big Sur inspired an album by Shore Fire clients Jay Farrar And Benjamin Gibbard, who are also in it; it’s sure to make me want to get on the road again.

William S. Burroughs: A Man Within should be an intense look at the Naked Lunch author (fun fact: what legendary duo, now featuring our client, bassist “Ready” Freddie Washington, in their touring band, named themselves after an object in that novel?).

Watch the out-there trailer for a glimpse of a manic Iggy Pop:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FU8EUbJ28dc]

And last, but certainly not least, is Let Them Know: The Story of Youth Brigade and BYO Records, about the legendary SoCal punk label. Lots of great punk energy, premiering in LA September 10 and available on the 22nd in a limited-edition box set with a double-LP compliation of 31 loud-fast-rules songs and a hardcover, full-color book.

Look at this and just try not to slam dance at your desk:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLbAb7ppXgk]

I’m buying the popcorn!

The “Get Smart” TV theme was written by Irving Szathmary, who doesn’t seem to have written much else. The movie music is credited to Trevor Rabin (yes, of Yes), and what I’ve heard of the theme arrangement makes me suspicious (too many strings, not enough brass). But I will sit with my popcorn and see if anything in the film can equal this classic opening sequence:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvMj5LuT5hk]

Music plays an important part in the movie, including the accidental destruction of a Bluthner piano, which horrified me more than the subsequent pulverizing of a mint-condition Lotus (and, in a production that features blatant product placement throughout, made me wonder, why not Fazioli or Bosendorfer?).

The song choices by music supervisor Dave Jordan, also responsible for Transformers and The Fast and the Furious, were excellent, especially Suicidal Tendencies’ hardcore plaint “Institutionalized,” used perfectly to express our hero’s angst. (Yes, that is indie-film superstar Mary Woronov as the mom in the original video below.)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXK0Hjfkrgw]

Wired’s Listening Post blog has an excellent rundown of various kinds of Iron Man music, past and present. Who knew the Cardigans covered Black Sabbath?