'American Teen' music getting a 2008 update

Though Sundance darling "American Teen" was filmed way back in 2005, the documentary will be infused with a bit of 2008, at least when it comes to its music.

Nanette Burstein's film, which follows four seniors at Warsaw Community High School in Indiana, is a compelling look at how teens balance the pressures of dealing with college and their parents during their graduating year. As it stands, "American Teen" has a fresh, indie-focused sound, one that keeps the film current without embellishing the inherit drama of teen life.

Credits roll to power-pop band the New Pornographers lilting "My Rights Versus Yours," while the score was composed by singer-songwriter Michael Penn, who has also worked on "Boogie Nights" and "The Last Kiss," among others. Just a few of the other artists featured in the film include Moby, indie-rockers the Unicorns and indie hip-hop duo Blackalicious.

The film's Facebook page (1,200 fans and counting) has a teaser for an upcoming soundtrack. It mentions some bands of the moment, such as peppy dance rockers the Ting Tings, and spacey buzz band MGMT. (The latter's "Time to Pretend" opened gambling flick "21.") 

But one interesting note: Neither of those bands is actually in "American Teen," at least as things stand now.

Having just caught the film, I was eager to hear a little bit of the Tings on the big screen, hoping the act would come off better than it does on the small screen. But "American Teen" came and went without any music from the acts being marketed with it, including two from Almost Gold Recordings -- the new-wavy electronics of Does It Offend You, Yeah and the retro-styled pop of the Black Kids. (Note: Reader Liv wrote in to inform me that the Black Kids are indeed in the film. See Liv's comment below, in which case I apologize for missing them.)
 

But expect that to change before the film opens for the public this summer.

A spokesperson for the film's distributor, Paramount Vantage, said such acts would most likely find their way into the movie. It's not entirely uncommon for a film's music to be altered as it works its way from Sundance to an official release date, and for a word-of-mouth film, a buzzed-about soundtrack could do wonders, as evidenced by "Juno" this past winter. Whether the addition of the Ting Tings and the Black Kids will give "American Teen" some indie cred remains to be seen, but it's yet another reason I'll look forward to seeing it a second time.

Fans of "American Teen" need not fear, as it will remain otherwise untouched from how it screened at Sundance, save for some updates on the whereabouts of the young adults featured in the film.

The film is on target for a summer break release date of July 25 in Los Angeles and New York. It will get an expanded release in August, and there will be more on the film and its soundtrack here on Extended Play closer to its release date.

Update: Music & movies blog the Playlist has followed-up with a a track listing for the "American Teen" soundtrack, which it says is due July 15.

Screen capture courtesy "American Teen's" Facebook page.

Comments

[Liv]

Actually, the Black Kids IS in the movie. "I'm not gonna teach your boyfriend how to dance with you" plays in the beginning as Hannah goes to class.