My friends and I have been talking about this very thing the last couple of months. I, for one, am ready for the resurgence of the unironic plot song. However, I think most people will see it as another of the film’s jokes (I mean, it’s Huey Lewis, right?) , if they even appreciate it at all. What would be truly gutsy and a logical extension of this great film tradition would be to use a musician with considerable “indie” cache to create a true throwback plot song that doesn’t include the requisite wink and a nod to safely place it in the “yeah, we know, but isn’t it funny” zone. But is that even possible anymore? There was a certain incongruous innocence that permeated that era that I don’t think exists today. In fact, I happened to watch “The Running Man” last night and got into quite an interesting discussion with friends about how a potential remake would be doomed from the start (remember “Rollerball”?) because the original was so firmly lodged in that era’s cultural moment (while also being quite ahead of its time). I think this may also serve as an apt analogy for the potential resurgence of the plot song. It’s so entrenched in that period that our generation will view it as an ironic joke while people of younger generations will simply assess it on its merits as a song. So unless Huey Lewis writes one amazing song about the Pineapple Express, the resurgence of the plot song may be doomed to failure. On the other hand, if Kenny Loggins…