Customer Reviews

A Home at the End of the World

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

For two of Laura Nyro's songs, that play such a big part of the overall soundscape of "A Home at the End of the World" NOT to be on the soundtrack CD is utterly ridiculous. "Desiree" and "Gonna Take A Miracle" are Bobby's (Colin Farrell) favorite songs and they are prominently featured in two long scenes in this movie.
Duncan Sheik is fine but Laura Nyro has withstood the test of time: if she were alive today she would be beaming that two of her songs from the early 1970's are included in a film made this year. But for those of us who are fans, this is as it should be, for her music is timeless.
As Bobby says: "She (Laura Nyro) is a goddess." Amen brotha, Amen.
(both "Desiree" and "Gonna Take a Miracle" are on Nyro's CD, "Gonna Take a Miracle")

I bought this soundtrack yesterday hoping it would serve as the perfect companion to this beautiful and unforgettable film. It comes pretty close. Though like others have mentioned, it's missing some key songs like 'It's Gonna Take A Mirale' or 'Desiree', it still captures the essence of the film quite beautifully. After listening to the half-dozen Duncan Sheik compositions, it made me re-discover his breathtaking music and realize how truly underrated he is. I can't remember the last time a movie and the soundtrack have effected me the way this one has. Dissapointiingly,this didn't fair well at the box office but I hope that more people, straight, gay, whatever, will watch this film,and perhaps like it so much that they will pick up this wonderful soundtrack. It will definitely have a long shelf-life.

No matter who's to blame for the absence of the tracks by Leonard Cohen, Laura Nyro and Paul Simon, amongst others - it's just unforgivable. This is the first movie I've ever watched to feature 'Suzanne' performed by the song's author Leonard Cohen. Moreover, in the scene just before the song plays, Jonathan (Dallas Roberts) enters the room and hands Bobby (Collin Farrel) an original vinyl recording of Leonard Cohen's 'Songs Of Leonard Cohen' album (which contains 'Suzanne') he had just bought. Being a huge Leonard Cohen fan, of course I have all of his albums, so my disappointment stems from the fact that the inclusion of his song in the soundtrack album might have helped to introduce his music to a new generation of listeners. So here's to everybody who watched the movie and wants some more of that late sixties/early seventies feeling: go get the 'Songs Of Leonard Cohen' album, and the albums by the other artists who were left out, and leave this soundtrack album on the shelf, where it deserves to be.

Ok, ok, yes the soundtrack is missing some music which was integral to the movie-but taken on its own merits this is a gem of a collection. A few timeless classic (Patti Smith, Jefferson Airplane, and Yaz) mixed with some lovely new stuff from Duncan Sheik (an oft-unnoticed talent) combine to provide the best soundtrack cd, actually the best overall cd I have purchased in a while.

With its flavorful mix of new and original music (but sadly lacking the poignant Laura Nyro songs that made the movie so emotionally resonant), this disc is absolutely worth listening to -- and it has a power all its own. Recalling the sweetly, deceptively simple movie, it has a folky, sublime, melancholy quality.

Laura's music gave the film so much in the way of soul, hard to believe it's missing here. Hmmm...anyway, I'd still recommend the film and soundtrack!

i just don't get it. how do various wonderful songs don't make it to a soundtrac cd? what a disappointment! paul simon, laura nyro don't get included. what rubbish.

A Home at the End of the World the movie achieves far greater success creating moods than it does creating character, story or dialogue. This is due in large part to its strong soundtrack, a collection of score/originals by Duncan Sheik interwoven with classic rock tracks by the likes of Patti Smith, Jefferson Airplane and The Band. The film's soundtrack is more than background music; it plays a primary role in shaping the bittersweet emotional terrain the characters traverse on their passage to (and through) adulthood. Michael Cunningham's liner notes expound on the crucial role music played in the writing of the novel on which the film is based: "[Rock music] insists that our loneliness and confusion, our wild nights and out love affairs gone wrong, are significant subjects, worthy of guitar riffs and drum solos. As a writer, I've tried to put a measure of that reckless generosity onto the printed page."

Unfortunately, two of the film soundtrack's finer moments --Laura Nyro's covers of Desiree and Gonna Take a Miracle and Leonard Cohen's Suzanne -- are missing here, ostensibly because the rights to these songs proved unattainable or overly-costly. It feels a bit like submitting a really good playlist to the iTunes Music Store, only to discover that your three favorite songs aren't available on iTunes.

So in the absence of Laura and Leonard (and in the presence of already over-compiled songs like Dusty Springfield's Wishin' and Hopin' and Jefferson Airplane's Somebody to Love), Duncan Sheik's evocative score is the real star here. It's a star that shines brightly. I'd love to hear an entire recording of his Home work, assuming there were compositions discluded from this recording. Barring that, I could totally see him self-releasing a suite of these songs combined with selections from his also-wonderful score for the 2002 Shakespeare in the Park production of Twelfth Night.

Michael Cunningham's liner notes are striking. Too bad his script wasn't.

(To be fair, I must acknowledge that I have not yet read the understood-to-be-far superior novel, and look forward to doing so.)

HUH? Laura Nyro is clearly a part of the film's dialogue and sets the mood for integral scenes. I'm glad I knew that her songs had not been included--it saved me some hard earned bucks!

The previous review couldn't be more correct, Laura Nyro's "Desiree"
and "It's Gonna Take A Miracle" should be on the soundtrack [a contractual problem, no doubt] Do what I did and download the
songs on itunes for 99 cents each. While you're at it, download
Yaz's early 80's electronic gem, "Only You" too [background music
when Jonathan was cruising the village] I also resequinced the songs
in order that they appeared in the film. Problem solved!