Entry for the Cinetv Special Contest - Write about the best use of a song in a movie
Intro
When I read about this contest and thought about the best use of a song in a movie, the first song that came to my mind was John Murphy's instrumental song "Don Abandons Alice" from the movie 28 Weeks Later, and the reason for this is not because this is a popular or well-known song, but because the way it was integrated into one of the scenes of this movie was spectacular, allowing us through this song to share the emotions that the characters had at that moment, helping to achieve what I consider one of the best scenes of the zombie/infected genre.
The song
I think it's interesting to know that "Don Abandosn Alice" is one of the three songs used in the movie that were rewritten and renamed by John Murphy based on the song "In the House - In a Heartbeat" that he composed for the first movie in the franchise, 28 days later.
The Movie
28 weeks later is the sequel to the movie 28 days later, both belonging to the zombie/infected genre.
I think the movie can be divided into two very different parts:
The first is the introduction of approximately 10 minutes whose events take place simultaneously with the events of the first film and where we see how Don and his wife Alice hide with other survivors in a cottage on the outskirts of London and then are attacked by the infected, Don being the only one able to escape.
The Second part takes place several months after the introductory scene after all the infected died of hunger, and where we can see how a NATO task force begins the cleaning and repatriation tasks to a safe zone in London. There we meet Don again who is reunited with his children and we see how eventually the virus is reintroduced into the population of the safe zone.
28 Weeks Later is an entertaining movie that has many interesting ideas, although in my opinion the first movie is much better. Although the most interesting and most remarkable part for me is the introductory part and it is there where we find the scene that I mentioned at the beginning of the post where we can appreciate the use of the song "Don Abandons Alice".
The Scene and The Song
Don and his wife Alice are hiding in a cabin with a group of survivors when they are attacked by a group of infected who are after a young boy, the 3 escape to the rooms upstairs and the boy hides, Alice tries unsuccessfully to find him so they can escape, Don begs Alice to escape without the boy, but Alice refuses.
At that moment is when the song by John Murphy begins to be heard, in a low volume and with a slow tempo.
The infected manage to enter the room and Don decides to abandon Alice and escape through a window. Outside the house he begins to run across the field towards a nearby boat as he is chased by a growing number of infected. He finally managing to escape on the boat after a desperate fight on the boat with another of the now infected survivors.
The intensity of the song increases with each step of Don, managing to convey the danger that is getting closer and closer, reaching maximum intensity when Don must fight on the boat with Jacob, one of the survivors now also infected, making us feel the fear and despair that the character feels at that moment.
I think the best way to understand how this song is used in the scene is to see it rather than read it in this post where surely I can't do it justice with my words.
I leave you a link of the scene I found, although the video is not mine so I hope it continues to work when you read this.
Final Words
Don Abandos Alice, is the type of song that makes us feel anxious when listening to it, the type of song that accelerates our heart rate and puts us on alert, the kind of song that is ideal for escapes and desperate fights of the kind that only a few horror movies usually show us.
And that's why I think the choice and use of “Don Abandons Alice” in this movie is perfectly done, making it in my opinion the best use of a song in a movie.
I hope you liked the song and the movie I chose, and see you in the next post!
