"Ive Seen That Movie Too" is one of a handful of songs on the 1973 double-LP Goodbye Yellow Brick Road that reference classic Hollywood, which was another fad of the mid-70s as Bogart, Astaire and Cagney and the likes found appreciative new audiences- especially among the Glam Rock crowd, which was going strong in 1972-73.
"Movie", unsurprisingly, literally uses movie cliches and jargon to tell its story, that of a love gone bad and the singer's determination to move on.
It's a habit I have, I don't get pushed around
Stop twinkling your star like you do
I'm not the blue print for all of your B films
Because I've seen that movie too
Taupin does a nice job this time out. Unfortunately, Elton doesn't, constructing a melody which, while memorable enough, is set at a funereal tempo and plods along for about a minute and a half too long. Apropos for suggesting forlorn resignation, I guess, but not exactly fun to listen to. Accompaniment is mostly Elton's piano, played late-night jazz style, and Del Newman's strings along with some crashing Olsson percussion and a backwards-looped Johnstone solo about halfway through.
It's not terrible, just a little wan, and over the years I find myself recalling the melody and words upon occasion.
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"I find myself recalling the melody and words upon occasion."
I find that whenever I hear the expression "I've seen that movie" from someone, that melody and chorus immediately pops in my head.
It also tends to happen to me whenever I use a phrase similar to "I know what you mean...". I often want to go, "Yeah, I've seen that movie too."
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe it was Del Newman who did the orchestrations for this album.
You are correct, sir. Duly noted and corrected.
I"ve been trying to keep my credits list close at hand, but this one got by.
Elton's credit list can be tough to keep straight. Although it tends to fall into distinct periods, there's a great deal of crossover.
By the way, there seems to have been a tendency to unfavorably compare Del Newman to his predecessor. But he's really quite brilliant, and should be acknowledged.
Don't you agree?
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