Thursday, March 1, 2018

Karen Mitchell is gone now, but this is her swan song, The Summer Knows, which is the song adaptation of the musical score from the 1971 movie Summer of '42. The music was written by the great French composer Michel LeGrand. 

The movie is a coming-of-age story and a period piece of World War 2. In it, a 17 year old boy, Hermie, who is spending the summer on Nantucket Island with his family, develops a crush on an older woman, Dorothy; older meaning 25, who is played by the beautiful Jennifer O'Neill. She is married, but she lives alone; her husband is off fighting in the war. Hermie finagles a way to befriend her, and she innocently accepts his friendship. And, it's really quite innocent on his part as well because he is not trying to bed her; he just enjoys her presence; being in her space. But, then the war catches up with them, and it changes everything. 

The powerful and very moving score by Michel LeGrand plays throughout, and it really carries you into the story. It is one of the most effective uses of music in cinema- ever, and it won the Academy Award for Best Musical Score in 1972. 

The song adaptation was written by the very talented husband and wife team of Alan and Marilyn Bergman. Here is Karen:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U51ypV0o2pA&t=36s



No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.