A man drifting from his dearest (dying?) ponders his legacy and asks her to remember the best of him on Linkin Park’s “Leave Out All the Rest.” Innocence takes flight on “Tremble for My Beloved” by Collective Soul. Paramore describes a girl struggling to resist the allure of an attractive man. Her self-control wins out, and she sees clearly enough to recognize that he isn’t the one for her (“I Caught Myself”). “Never Think” is a tender acoustic track by actor/musician Rob Pattinson that finds a selfless guy warning a girl infatuated with him to flee, lest she lose her soul. Deep devotion and romantic yearning avoid turning sexual on The Black Ghosts’ ethereal “Full Moon.”
Even morally neutral songs often bear the weight of a haunting tone and people’s willingness to die or surrender their souls for love. On “Eyes on Fire” Blue Foundation’s female vocalist rails against an enemy, threatening violence (“I’ll seek you out, flay you alive … I won’t soothe your pain/I won’t ease your strain”). Perry Farrell seems to use “twilight” as a euphemism for sex, inviting a woman to ravage him on “Go All the Way (Into the Twilight).” There’s a mild profanity (“Never Think”) and a vulgar term for urination (“Flightless Bird, American Mouth”).
Brooding melancholy captures the tragedy, temptation and unfulfilled yearnings of the film’s teen romance between a disenfranchised girl and a vexed vampire. A few bright spots, but rather grim.
After serving as an associate editor at NavPress’ Discipleship Journal and consulting editor for Current Thoughts and Trends, Adam now oversees the editing and publishing of Plugged In’s reviews as the site’s director. He and his wife, Jennifer, have three children. In their free time, the Holzes enjoy playing games, a variety of musical instruments, swimming and … watching movies.
