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Before Matt Damon was The Talented Mr. Ripley, there was Alain Delon #book2movies

Still Alice: Listen to a song from the score


I heard it through the grapevine ... okay, make that twitter. Check out this tweet from singer/songwriter Haroula Rose:
Naturally, being Still Alice obsessed at the moment, I tweeted Haroula to see if she knew where Brand New Start played in the context of the film; here's her response.

Cool Haroula — speaking of cool, what a cool name!— Julianne Moore's character goes into a yogurt place —the Pinkberry's near Columbia University where her character is a linguistics professor — a couple of times during the course of the movie; blame my brain for not recalling which scene exactly but maybe that's better so I don't spoil it for you? I have a feeling it's the second time around though, and if any of my fellow Still Alice fans know, don't hesitate to give a holler.

The Pinkberry near the Columbia University School of the Arts. Photo courtesy of Mihika Barua.


The song is lovely, and haunting.  I'm new to Haroula Rose's music but the song A Brand New Start isn't new. It came out in 2011 on her second album These Open Roads.

Have a listen and read the lyrics below. While I'm not sure which section of the song is used in the movie, for me the key lines are :
You gotta walk so far
Lose who you are
Fall apart
To get that brand new start



                    BRAND NEW START
In the evening when the storefronts close
I watch as everybody walks away 
But I want to stay 
I stare down the empty streets aglow 
Wonder at the windows and homes 
Alone 
In the morning kids are off to school 
Yellow buses, all the rules remain the same 
Stay in line, be kind 
Wait your turn but try to win 
Be good, like you should 
You gotta walk so far 
Lose who you are 
Fall apart 
To get that brand new start 
When you meet a stranger down the road 
Say hello, but all the same 
Don't get too close 
That's a lesson we've all been taught 
To protect what you've got 
And so you stay away 
These roads are open and wide 
There's room for everyone to move side by side 
So it's a shame, it's a pity 
In every town or city 
That we learn to walk in single file 
You gotta walk so far 
Lose who you are 
Fall apart 
To get that brand new start 
No one tells you how to grow 
They teach you everything but what you need to know



Based on the book by Lisa Genova Still Alice stars Julianne Moore, Kristen Stewart, Alec Baldwin and Kate Bosworth and is set for release January 16th after a short Oscar qualifying run December 5th in Los Angeles and New York.