Watchmen: Music from the Motion Picture | |
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Soundtrack album by Various artists | |
Released | March 3, 2009 |
Genre | |
Length | 51:13 |
Label | Reprise |
Producer | Various artists |
Singles from Watchmen: Music from the Motion Picture | |
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Empire | [1] |
Watchmen: Music from the Motion Picture is the film soundtrack album for the 2009 film Watchmen . The soundtrack features three songs written by Bob Dylan: "Desolation Row", "The Times They Are a-Changin'", and "All Along the Watchtower".
The film uses some of the songs mentioned in the comic, including "The Times They Are a-Changin'", Jimi Hendrix's cover of "All Along the Watchtower"; Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence"; Nena's "99 Luftballons"; a muzak version of Tears For Fears' "Everybody Wants to Rule the World"; and Nat King Cole's "Unforgettable". [2] Many of the period songs were up-mixed to 5.1 surround for the film using the Penteo process. [3] Tyler Bates, who wrote the film's original score, said the challenge was composing music that would transition effectively into these famous songs. [4] Director Zack Snyder and Bates received Dylan's permission to use the stems from "The Times They Are a-Changin'" so the three-minute song could play over the six-minute opening. [5] The story of how Dr. Manhattan came to be is accompanied by a montage of the pieces "Prophecies" and "Pruit Igoe" by Philip Glass, originally composed for the 1982 cult film Koyaanisqatsi . Nite Owl II and Silk Spectre II's sex scene aboard the Owl Ship is set to the tune of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah". Originally Zack Snyder used a recording of the song by Allison Crowe for the scene, but decided Crowe's version was "too romantic" and "too sexy" for a scene that is intended to come across as ironic and "ridiculous". Snyder ended up placing the original Cohen studio recording in this scene. [6] My Chemical Romance, whose members are fans of the comic, covered Dylan's "Desolation Row" for the first half of the closing credits. [7] The second half is followed by "First We Take Manhattan" sung by Leonard Cohen.
The song "The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning", composed by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins for the soundtrack of Batman & Robin , although used in a promotional trailer, was not included on the soundtrack of Watchmen. Also used in trailers but left off of the soundtrack is the track "Take A Bow" by English alternative rock band, Muse, from their 2006 album, Black Holes and Revelations . Also in the ads are "Angel" by Massive Attack.
No. | Title | Artist | Length |
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1. | "Desolation Row" | My Chemical Romance | 3:01 |
2. | "Unforgettable" | Nat King Cole | 3:28 |
3. | "The Times They Are a-Changin'" | Bob Dylan | 3:14 |
4. | "The Sound of Silence" | Simon & Garfunkel | 3:07 |
5. | "Me and Bobby McGee" | Janis Joplin | 4:31 |
6. | "I'm Your Boogie Man" | KC and the Sunshine Band | 4:03 |
7. | "You're My Thrill" | Billie Holiday | 3:24 |
8. | "Pruit Igoe" and "Prophecies" | Philip Glass | 8:37 |
9. | "Hallelujah" | Leonard Cohen | 4:37 |
10. | "All Along the Watchtower" | The Jimi Hendrix Experience | 4:01 |
11. | "Ride of the Valkyries" | Budapest Symphony Orchestra | 5:22 |
12. | "Pirate Jenny" | Nina Simone | 6:39 |
Chart (2009) | Peak position |
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Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [8] | 58 |
Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico) [9] | 82 |
"Desolation Row" is a 1965 song by the American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. It was recorded on August 4, 1965, and released as the closing track of Dylan's sixth studio album, Highway 61 Revisited. The song has been noted for its length (11:21) and surreal lyrics in which Dylan weaves characters into a series of vignettes that suggest entropy and urban chaos.
"All Along the Watchtower" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan from his eighth studio album, John Wesley Harding (1967). The song was written by Dylan and produced by Bob Johnston. The song's lyrics, which in its original version contain twelve lines, feature a conversation between a joker and a thief. The song has been subject to various interpretations; some reviewers have noted that it echoes lines in the Book of Isaiah, Chapter 21, verses 5–9. Dylan has released several different live performances, and versions of the song are included on some of his subsequent greatest hits compilations.
Singles is a 1992 American romantic comedy film written, co-produced, and directed by Cameron Crowe, and starring Bridget Fonda, Campbell Scott, Kyra Sedgwick, and Matt Dillon. It features appearances from several musicians prominent in the early 1990s grunge movement in Seattle.
Singles is the soundtrack album of the 1992 film Singles, released on June 30, 1992, almost three months before the film. It is primarily focused on the ascendant Seattle grunge scene of the early 1990s, but also features contributions from past Seattle artists Jimi Hendrix and The Lovemongers, Chicago's The Smashing Pumpkins, and the first solo material from Minneapolis' Paul Westerberg after the breakup of The Replacements.
Allison Louise Crowe is a Canadian singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist born in Nanaimo, British Columbia, whose home is Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador.
"The End Is the Beginning Is the End" is a song by the American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. Originally released as a single from the soundtrack to the film Batman & Robin (1997), it was their first release with drummer Matt Walker, who would go on to contribute percussion to several tracks of Adore and all of James Iha's Let It Come Down. The song reached the top 10 in eight countries and won the Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance.
Zachary Edward Snyder is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He made his feature film debut in 2004 with Dawn of the Dead, a remake of the 1978 horror film of the same name. Since then, he has directed or produced a number of comic book and superhero films, including 300 (2006) and Watchmen (2009), as well as the Superman film that started the DC Extended Universe, Man of Steel (2013), and its follow-ups, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) and Justice League (2017), as well as the director's cut of Justice League that was later released in 2021. He also directed the animated film Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (2010), the psychological action film Sucker Punch (2011), the zombie heist film Army of the Dead (2021), and the two-parter space opera films Rebel Moon (2023) and Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver (2024), with the R-rated director's cuts to be released in mid-2024.
Watchmen is a 2009 American superhero film based on the 1986–1987 DC Comics limited series of the same name co-created and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. Directed by Zack Snyder from a screenplay by David Hayter and Alex Tse, the film features Malin Åkerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Carla Gugino, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Patrick Wilson. A dark and dystopian deconstruction of the superhero genre, the film is set in an alternate history in the year 1985 at the height of the Cold War, as a group of mostly retired American superheroes investigate the murder of one of their own before uncovering an elaborate and deadly conspiracy, while their moral limitations are challenged by the complex nature of the circumstances.
Lost Highway is the soundtrack album for the 1997 David Lynch film of the same name. It was produced by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, and includes original music from the film recorded by Reznor, Angelo Badalamenti and Barry Adamson, as well as songs by other artists used in the film. The album reached No. 7 on the Billboard 200 and reached Gold status in the United States and Platinum in Canada. The album was re-released on vinyl in November 2016 by Dutch label Music On Vinyl.
Tidings is the third studio album by Allison Crowe, released in 2003 in EP form and expanded to full-album length in 2004. Recorded live-off-the-floor, it is primarily an album of traditional songs of the season and Christmas carols alongside cover versions of some of Crowe's favourite songs of spirituality and redemption.
Cruel Intentions is the compilation soundtrack to the 1999 film of the same name. The film's soundtrack peaked at #60 on the Billboard 200.
Batman & Robin: Music from and Inspired by the "Batman & Robin" Motion Picture is the soundtrack album to the motion picture Batman & Robin (1997).
Sucker Punch is a 2011 American fantasy action film directed by Zack Snyder and co-written by Snyder and Steve Shibuya. It is Snyder's first film based on an original concept. The film stars Emily Browning as "Babydoll", a young woman who is committed to a mental institution. As she collects items she needs to escape, she enters a series of fantasy worlds where she and her fellow inmates are strong, experienced warriors. Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone, Vanessa Hudgens, Jamie Chung, Carla Gugino, and Oscar Isaac also star.
Watchmen is a 2009 film based on the twelve-issue graphic novel series of the same name created by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colorist John Higgins, published by DC Comics between 1986 and 1987. The graphic novel's film rights were acquired by producer Lawrence Gordon in 1986. Many problems halted the adaptation's development, with four different studios and various directors and screenwriters being attached to the project through twenty years. In 2006, Zack Snyder, who at the time was filming another comic book adaptation, was hired by Warner Bros. to helm Watchmen. Filming started in 2007, and following deals with two of the previous companies involved in the development—Paramount Pictures was responsible for international distribution rights after budgetary issues in 2004, resulting in a lawsuit by 20th Century Fox. Fox, which was already contacted by Gordon in 1987, received $1 million of the gross—the Watchmen adaptation was finally released in March 2009.
Deborah Snyder is an American producer of feature films and television commercials. She is married to filmmaker Zack Snyder, and has worked as his frequent producing partner on films such as Watchmen and 300. She is the co-founder of the production company The Stone Quarry.
Sucker Punch: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album for the film of the same name. It was released on March 22, 2011 by WaterTower Music. The album consists of covered songs, mainly by the film's stars. Emily Browning sings on three songs, while Carla Gugino and Oscar Isaac perform a cover of Roxy Music's "Love Is the Drug" as a duet. Recording artists Björk, Skunk Anansie, Emilíana Torrini, Queen, Carla Azar, Alison Mosshart and Yoav also have songs on the soundtrack.
Light FM are an American indie rock band based in Los Angeles, CA. The band has released four full-length albums and one EP. Their most recent album, Buzz Kill City, was released on October 4, 2011.
Zack Snyder's Justice League (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the film of the same name, itself a director's cut of the 2017 theatrical film which had its own soundtrack. Tom Holkenborg, also known as Junkie XL, composed the film's score; he had previously worked on a score for the theatrical version of Justice League, before being replaced by Danny Elfman following original director Zack Snyder's departure and Joss Whedon's arrival. Upon Snyder getting the chance to finish and release his version of the film, Holkenberg was brought back and decided to rescore the film from scratch. The album was released via WaterTower Music on March 18, 2021, the same day as the film's release, and was later released as a limited-edition 7-disc vinyl set on April 14. The film's score is notable as the longest in film history at nearly four hours long.
Army of the Dead (Music From the Netflix Film) is the soundtrack album to the 2021 American film Army of the Dead, directed by Zack Snyder. The soundtrack was released by Milan Records on May 21, 2021, coinciding the day with its global release on Netflix. It features 12 tracks from the original score composed by Tom Holkenborg, also known as Junkie XL, and the Elvis Presley song "Viva Las Vegas" (performed by Richard Cheese and Allison Crowe). In addition, a limited edition 2-disc vinyl set of the soundtrack was released on September 10.
Dawn of the Dead (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2004 film of the same name directed by Zack Snyder in his directorial debut. The score for the film was composed by Tyler Bates, marking the beginning of a collaboration between the director and musician for Snyder's 300 (2006), Watchmen (2009) and Sucker Punch (2011).