Jean-Marc Vallee, 'Wild' Director, on Choosing Music for Film and Remembering His Mother

"And here's a story about being free..."



That's the opening lyric to DJ Shadow's "You Can't Go Home Again," which is the theme music to Jean-Marc Vallée's " Wild." Any fan of Vallée knows how highly he prizes his movies' musical selection, and for this film, about a woman (Cheryl) who leaves her life behind and ventures out into the wilderness, it's incredibly apt.



The Canadian director is very emotionally connected to "Wild," which is based on the book of the same name. Sometimes desolate and often featuring picturesque landscapes, the music is essential in tying the film together.



Moviefone Canada caught up with Vallée at the Toronto Film Festival, where we chatted about why he chose the music he did, and how he related to Reese Witherspoon's journey in the movie.



Vallée played the opening to "You Can't Go Home Again" to start the interview ...



Jean-Marc Vallée: This song is there seven times in the film. It's like a tease: are they going to play the whole thing? Or just this opening? The song is there, accompanying her on her journey, sometimes as a ghost, sometimes she's humming it, sometimes she doesn't want to remember this f**king song. It makes her think of her mother. I like this instrumental intro that has a mystical quality. It became the main theme of the film.



Moviefone Canada: It's beautiful. Always been a fan of DJ Shadow. I know that music is integral to all your films. Why did you choose the songs you chose for "Wild"?

In the book, Cheryl mentions a lot of songs and music by name. I tried to respect that, to give her a playlist where it was based on her taste, but at the same time I like to spin and become a director/DJ. I want to define characters with music, I want to use music in their realities. I don't use scores. Ninety-five percent of the time, in "Wild," in "Dallas Buyers Club," in "Cafe de Flore," there is music playing.



This movie takes place in 1995, so I was making references as well. She was young, and contaminated by her mother's tastes. Simon and Garfunkel, Leonard Cohen ... a blend of music from the '70s and the '90s. I tried to have Led Zeppelin in there -- "Going to California" in the car. Cheryl was very into Portishead, "Glory Box" in particular.



Why did you choose not to include the line from the DJ Shadow song "And here's a story about being free," at least at the very end? Was it too literal?

Yeah! Her words were the best way to end the film. How wild it was to let it be. If you think about it, this film is about a woman who has no man, who's not defining herself through the eyes of a man, or his position. No relationships, no money, no job, no home, doesn't know what to do ... and it's a beautiful ending.



Reese Witherspoon's character goes on a journey to redeem herself with her mother and connect again. How did you relate to this story, personally?

Yeah, I'm not a woman and I made a chick flick! [Laughs] Two strong female characters! Who is this guy? What an amazing book, what an amazing script. I lost my mom to cancer three years ago, and it was a way of paying tribute to strong women -- and one of them made me. I wanted to be a part of it, and tell the story. I've made father-son movies before, so it was a theme I was close to. Cheryl's mother was just like my mother, so I identified; so positive, "You can do it," "Don't worry, it's going to work out," "Trust life." I'd be like, "Oh, Mom, shut up!" but here I am, happy and proud of this film.



Do you feel any pressure telling someone else's story?

That's a tough one, that's a tough one. Nick [Hornby] had the pressure, he did the first draft. It happened so quickly, this whole project. What a job -- a 120-page script out of this book, so powerful, such rich material, so emotional. We focused on all the mother-daughter relationship stuff in the book, and on-set, when I was waiting for Reese or during breaks, I was shooting some footage with Laura Dern to get more of a presence of the mother. It's so nice to be creative on the spot. So while we did have a structure and a plan, we still had some ad-lib scenes.



"Wild" opens in theatres on December 5.







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