Dexter Fletcher is quickly becoming one of my favorite filmmakers. While it is no secret that Rocketman is one of my favorite movies, I just think the way he uses music within his movies is fascinating. And the latest to bring his musical taste to the big screen is Ghosted. The Apple TV+ film brings us Ana de Armas and Chris Evans as potential lovers who embark on an action packed mess of a ride after Sadie (de Armas) ghosts Cole (Evans).
Within the movie, the “bad guys” are working to try and steal the password from the Taxman. The Taxman in question is revealed to be Sadie but it does lead to us waiting for the moment when the Beatles song “Taxman” will play in the film. But that’s far from the first time that music is used to give life to a scene.
So when I spoke with Dexter Fletcher for Ghosted, I asked about using music in something like this versus a musical take like his work in Rocketman (and his previous film Sunshine on Leith which uses the songs of the Proclaimers). It did come with me praising his work in Rocketman as well though.
“I think now something like Rocketman, you have an incredible canon of music to choose from. And you and you dive into a real deep dive on the lyrics and the phrasing and stuff like that. And how does that inform where we are at in the storytelling process and how do I make “I Want Love” become a story about a family sitting around a table 30 years before it was ever written, that song,” Fletcher said. “But in reference to Ghosted, there’s certain songs and certain tracks I just knew straight away, like “My Sharona” was a great old track on the bus chase. I just knew that had this pumping driving rhythm. It was about some guy who was seeing this woman who was just blowing him away and just wanted to be with her.”
Fletcher went on to talk about more of the songs that spoke to him for Ghosted. “And so that track spoke to me very much about that moment. Cause for me, that moment’s not about just the action of the bus chase, but how he’s feeling more and more attached to her as this revelation about how brilliant and accomplished she is,” she said. “And how she can protect him in a way that he never expect. So, I dunno, with something like Ghosted, it’s a bit of trial and error that goes on but music and images together is like one of the oldest form of filmmaking. When films were silent, they’d project them on a sheet and someone would play a piano and there would be music and images and people would gather around and watch that. So, music and image together is a really strong motivator and a great storytelling device. I just, I lean into my instinct to be quite honest.”
You can see our full conversation here!
Ghosted is available on Apple TV+ now!
(Featured image: Apple TV+)
