Watch: Creating The Unconventional Music Of 'Becky', The Indie Thriller Starring Kevin James As A Villain
Becky, the new indie thriller from directors Cary Murnion and Jonathan Milott (Bushwick, Cooties), earned lots of attention for casting the frequently goofy Kevin James (Paul Blart: Mall Cop, Kevin Can Wait) as a straight-faced, menacing neo-Nazi villain who's willing to murder a child to get what he wants. But that's not the only compelling aspect of this film: the score, from composer Nima Fakhrara (Detroit: Become Human, Crypto), uses several unconventional instruments, including children's toys, to bring its music to life.
/Film is debuting an exclusive behind the scenes featurette about the movie's score, in which Fakhrara takes viewers on a tour of his home recording studio and shows off his methods for creating the movie's aural soundscape. Check it out below.
Behind the Becky Movie Score
I've seen composer Michael Giacchino conduct an orchestra a handful of times for special Lost Live events, and during those events, he's spoken about how he used actual pieces from a plane to create some of the sounds that went into his Lost score for that ABC mega-hit series. Fakhrara is taking that same approach here, using thematically appropriate materials to create sounds and then distorting them to fit his musical needs.
"With this score, I took everything to its limits using children's musical toys, vocal screams, and deep vocal breathings to create the signature sounds you can hear throughout," the composer explained in a press release. "I wanted Becky to feel like a superhero origin story, and for the audience to experience the emotions Becky feels throughout her journey. Directors Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion kept pushing me to go wilder, and the score is the result of that."
You can watch a red-band trailer for the film here, and read its official synopsis below:
Spunky and rebellious, Becky (Lulu Wilson) is brought to a weekend getaway at a lake house by her father Jeff (Joel McHale) in an effort to try to reconnect. The trip immediately takes a turn for the worse when a group of convicts on the run, led by the merciless Dominick (Kevin James), suddenly invade the lake house.
Music.Film Recordings and Varèse Sarabande Records will digitally release the film's official soundtrack tomorrow, June 12, 2020. Becky is currently available On Demand, but it's also playing in some theaters and drive-ins. Additionally, it's about to expand to the following locations: