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Eighth Gradeis a film permeated by anxiety.
And Burnham gives the scene its own, similarly indelible soundtrack.
How can we feel the internet not in a way thats tongue in cheek and funny, but genuine?
That song is Enyas New Age pop hit, Orinoco Flow.
I dont love that its always been used as a joke, he says.
Bland, bloodless music ideal for elevators, as theLos AngelesTimessneered upon release.
Also like Kokomo, people sure did love to hate it.
After all, in its nearly two-dozen movie and TV appearances, Orinoco Flow is usually a joke.
We werent trying to attach ourselves to a history of making fun of it.
The joke was just that its 100 percent the wrong music to play.
Its supposed to be this triumphant, badass moment, and instead were playing that song.
And after decades of winking musical cues, its difficult for anyone to take it seriously.
That changed with the previously most famous use of Orinoco Flow.
And it also gave it unexpected cachet, sending Orinoco Flow back to No.
1 on the New Age charts (where it replaced, yep, Only Time).
South African provocateursDie Antwoordhave rapped over it, as has some dude namedSkankdaddy.
Its been mashed up with TheProdigyandDr.
(Except forthis, maybe.)
Maybe we could all stand to sail away for a while.
As Burnham puts it, Enya just sounds like the internet to me.
Its like she knew what it would sound like before it happened.
Like Kayla, Orinoco Flow might never be accepted by the eye-rolling cool kids.
But as the film makes plain, thats not what really matters.
InEighth Grade, Orinoco Flow finally gets to be itself.
