Because of Winn-Dixie: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
From AwardAnnals
| Album: | Because of Winn-Dixie: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack |
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| Artist: | Various Artists |
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| Label: | Nettwerk Records |
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Reviews
Amazon.com
Winn-Dixie is a dog, the shaggy, adopted best friend of 10-year-old Opal (AnnaSophia Robb), a lonely little girl abandoned by her mother and largely neglected by her preacher father. Though director Wayne Wang’s film also features a promising character turn by pop star Dave Matthews, its soundtrack revolves around a core of bright, Southern-inflected performances by female singer-songwriters. The folksy “Opal’s Blues” by Vancouver’s Be Good Tanyas, sprightly “I’ve Gotta See You Smile” by Sixpence None the Richer founder Leigh Nash and an inviting contribution from Alice Peacock anchor that sunny mood, while contributions from country legend Emmylou Harris and veteran Shawn Colvin (the lovely new “Fly”) eventually turn it gently bittersweet. Ex-Smashing Pumpkin James Iha and indie notable Adam Schlesinger team for a remake of Bobby Darin’s “Splish, Splash” that’s as fun as it is unlikely, while the Finn Brothers offer up a warm standout from their 2004 reunion. The underscore excerpts by English composer Rachel Portman round out the album, infusing her ever-delicate sensibilities with graceful, elegiac folk touches. —Jerry McCulley
Related works
The summer Opal and her father, the preacher, move to Naomi, Florida, Opal goes into the Winn-Dixie supermarket-and comes out with a dog. A big, ugly, suffering dog with a sterling sense of humor. A dog she dubs Winn-Dixie. Because of Winn-Dixie, the preacher tells Opal ten things about her absent mother, one for each year Opal has been alive. Winn-Dixie is better at making friends than anyone Opal has ever known, and together they meet the local librarian, Miss Franny Block, who once fought off a bear with a copy of War and Peace. They meet Gloria Dump, who is nearly blind but sees with her heart, and Otis, an ex-con who sets the animals in his pet shop loose after hours, then lulls them with his guitar.
Opal spends all that sweet summer collecting stories about her new friends, and thinking about her mother. But because of Winn-Dixie or perhaps because she has grown, Opal learns to let go, just a little, and that friendship-and forgiveness-can sneak up on you like a sudden summer storm.
Recalling the fiction of Harper Lee and Carson McCullers, here is a funny, poignant, and utterly genuine first novel from a major new talent.
