Pop-musical Montage Moments

Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Popular songs have become very common in movies. They get played in the background of many scenes. Often, it is just for the characters to dance to, such as in 13 Going on 30, where Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo dance to Michael Jackson's "Thriller". Love stories, these days, almost always have a love song played during some romantic point in the movie. Just how many times is Bruce Springsteen's "Secret Garden" played during Jerry Maguire anyway? Hit songs can also be used for humour. The scene where Kate Hudson is getting her stomach pumped in Almost Famous as Stevie Wonder sings "My Cherie Amore" in the background is hilarious. Some uses of hit songs in movies can be quite poignant. The Prince of Tides is about a man with an emotional burden. George Michael's song "Monkey", which is about letting go of a bad habit, works brilliantly in the movie. A song in a film can do wonders for the movie and add life to the song. Here are our top ten favorite, and some of the movies most memorable pop music moments:

1. "It Had to be You" by Frank Sinatra from When Harry Met Sally (1989)
Before When Harry Met Sally you never knew what kind of music you were going to hear in a romantic comedy. But ever since then, you can pretty much guarantee that when you see one, its soundtrack will feature at least one, if not more, musical standard. By the end of the movie when Harry finally comes to his senses and realizes that the person he wants to spend the rest of his life with just happens to be his best friend Sally, what other singer but Frank Sinatra could cap the moment perfectly by crooning "It had to be you"? For taking the romance in one of the greatest romantic comedies of all time, up a notch even further, Old Blue Eyes takes our top spot in musical moments.

2. "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" by B.J. Thomas from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
This little ditty has to be one of the happiest, lighthearted songs ever recorded. Onscreen it represents a brief moment of carefree abandon for the two renegade outlaws. In a movie filled with memorable scenes the image of Paul Newman as Butch Cassidy doing tricks on a bicycle as a means of courting Katharine Ross remains one of the most indelible.

3. "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor from Rocky III (1982)
This song is all about motivation. Stallone working out, as this song is playing, is the best commercial for exercising you're ever going to see. Not as famous as the stair running scene from Rocky, but just as inspiring.

4. "Unchained Melody" by The Righteous Brothers from Ghost (1990)
Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore get hot and horny with this song more than once. The most famous scene is when they are both sitting together making the clay vase between Demi's legs.

5. "Pretty Woman" by Roy Orbinson from Pretty Woman (1989)
The scene where Julia Roberts is shown walking down the street with shopping bags in hand, as this song plays, is a star making moment. Julia's smile and joyous expression are enhanced by Roy's song.

6. "Who Wants to Live Forever" by Queen from Highlander (1986)
The movie is a cult classic, but the song is just classic. It was written by the members of Queen on the ride home after seeing a rough cut of the movie. Like most Queen songs it's theatrical and nearly over the top. It also swells with emotion, taking a fantasy moment and making it real enough to bring a tear to the eye.

7. "The Sounds of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel from The Graduate (1967)
The soundtrack that started it all. When Simon and Garfunkel composed and performed songs for this movie they changed both the recording and movie industries. From now on even nonmusical films would have soundtracks with songs featured in the movie. Who can forget the hopelessly romantic ending as Benjamin and Elaine race from the wedding chapel to a bus while the melancholy music of the most successful folk duo in history underscores the scene?

8. "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go" by Wham from Zoolander (2001)
Like a Mentos commerical gone awry, the gasoline fight in Zoolander, accompanied by this classic 80s pop ditty, is one of the funniest moments in this very silly film. No other song would quite have worked so perfectly, the beautiful mindless music, accentuates the beautiful mindless people, and shows how, when chosen correctly, a song can make a comedy even funnier.

9. "Get Into the Groove" by Madonna from Desperately Seeking Susan (1985)
This movie gave the world its first, really good, look at Madonna. The scene where she is in the club dancing to her own song is her best film moment ever. You hear her singing and see her dancing. That look! That beat! It's Madonna doing what she does best.

10. "I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Houston from The Bodyguard (1992)
This is the case of a great song stuck in a mediocre movie. Dolly Parton penned a classic, the way it slowly builds to that spine tingling moment when there is a short pause in the music, as Whitney jumps off the plane and runs into Kevin Costner's arms, followed by a drumbeat and then Whitney's soaring voice singing, 'And Ieeeeeyyyyaaaaa...!!! In a word - Anthem.