Best Use of a Song in a Movie
#10 – I’m Shipping Up To Boston by the Dropkick Murphy’s – The Departed
The Song
There are three key cities in the USA
with strong Irish populations; New York,
Chicago and Boston.
The latter is probably the most well known thanks to several movies that
features Irish characters on that backdrop. For a small city, Boston
packs a mighty punch with a rich history, a prominent University scene, a
thriving baseball following and a cool, trendy attitude. It’s only fitting that
American band “The Dropkick Murphy’s” are based there. From the city’s host
state of Massachusetts, they are
a Celtic Punk band known for their loud and energetic style. You’ve probably never heard of them until now, but you will recognise the song you’re about to read about,
as it was used in a little crime caper film set in Boston that took out Best
Picture at the 2006 Oscars…
The Movie
“The Departed” was the film that finally got Martin Scorsese
his long overdue Academy Award for Best Director. It was a cool, kick-ass crime
film about the Boston underworld
scene. An undercover cop posing as a criminal infiltrates the local crime syndicate,
while one of their members (a real criminal) poses as a cop to infiltrate the
Boston Police Department. Each of them move silently around each other while
working against their chosen targets from the inside out. With a stellar cast
including Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg and Alec
Baldwin, The Departed was hip, harsh an hellish good. It leaps off the screen
with brute force attack, holding nothing back as it’s dynamic characters go
through hell and back. And the film leaves you in shock and awe at how suddenly and recklessly it finishes the lives of its
characters. What a movie!
When the song and movie meet…
Given Boston’s
strong Irish roots, most of the films characters hail from the Emerald Isle in
some respect. And what better song to accompany many of the films scenes than
“I’m Shipping Up to Boston”. Even though
it’s about a sailor who lost a leg climbing the topsail of his ship – then shipping
back up to Boston to find his wooden leg – it sounds and feels
more like the song that characterises every criminal, thug, hooligan and
scumbag to walk the streets. And so the song compliments The Departed
perfectly. As things heat up towards the end of the film, every character is
feeling the pressure from those around him. The raw energy of the song, driven
by the thrashing of accordions, and the lead singer screaming passionate
lyrics, it heightens the movies tension so much, you can’t help but get worked
up yourself.
What the movie did for the song
Unless you were from Massachusetts
and into Celtic Punk music, you probably never heard of the Dropkick Murphy’s
until now (I knew nothing about them until I did a little research to write
this review). And although they had a fair sized following on their home
ground, the use of their song in this movie took them to the world. It’s no mistaking that The Departed’s
use of “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” is what lead this song to sell over one
million copies and be the small bands only Platinum-selling single ever. It has
since gone on to be used in multiple movies, trailers, TV shows, commercials
and has even become the unofficial anthem for many sports teams. Listening to
it just gets you worked up! It’s a ripper track.
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