Customer Reviews

Until The End Of The World: Music From The Motion Picture Soundtrack

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It definitely has to be among the top 5 soundtracks of all times. This outstanding work to go along with the road movie of all times, "Until The End Of The World," by wunder director, Wim Wenders, went beyond where most soundtracks had gone before it came out (1991) and set the pace for great soundtracks to come later on (The Insider, Traffic and others).

Simply put the soundtrack gathered the cream of the music scene: opening and closing tracks in charge of Graeme Revell/David Darling; mood swings in charge of Talking Heads, Depeche Mode, Elvis Costello, Lou Reed, REM, Nick Cave, Patti Smith, Daniel Lanois and U2, among others; and one of the most beautiful songs of all times, "Calling All Angels" by Canadian Jane Siberry, topping it all.

The one big missing song from this album is the very special version of "Blood Of Eden" that Peter Gabriel rearranged for this movie, in one of its most beautiful moments: when Solveig Dommartin and William Hurt's plane peacefully lands after all electronic devices fail to operate due to a nuclear explosion. Otherwise, it's one of those perfect soundtracks.

I first heard this soundtrack being played at a friend's place back around 1992-93(?). I bought it a couple years later, having been completely impressed by what I heard and not being able to forget it. All the songs are great. Someone else titled their review "The greatest soundtrack ever". You'd be hard-pressed to find an argument against this claim.

This soundtrack holds a particularly special place in my musical memory, because it was the "soundtrack" of my life while living at one of my first apartments. I had loads of incredible times in this place, and it seemed this CD was alwyas in my CD player. I was hooked on it. It was playing during a particularly memorable time for me... while I was getting to know a young lady who had just moved in across the hall from me. It was late Summer... warm nights but comfortable enough for the windows to be flung open. This CD was PERFECT in every way! The music seemed to lend itself to the moment and to that time of the year. A great mood-creating soundtrack. I can say no more!

Lou Reed, K.D. Lang, Elvis Costello, Depeche Mode, U2...... one great song after another. This COULD very well be the greatest soundtrack ever.

This has to be one of the most ignored soundtracks of the decade, and the sad part of that is it is one of the best soundtracks of the century. Graeme Revell has established himself as a great film score composer with movies like "The Crow," and "Strange Days," so his music here is no less poignant and ethereal. Very fitting and beautiful. U2's "Until the End of the World" was already a great song on "Achtung Baby," so merely a different version can't hurt too much. If anything, it is the title song so how can it be bad? Depeche Mode's "Death's Door" is a peaceful little song from the "Songs of Faith and Devotion" outtakes and it fits the mood of the film and the soundtrack very well. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, the Talking Heads, and Lou Reed, all dark in their own unique ways, but essentially the best at what they do, provocative emotional music. Same with Elvis Costello and Patti Smith, and REM make for a good addition. Julee Cruise's voice astounded me when she sang for "Blue Velvet" and "Twin Peaks," so to hear it again on this album was a beautiful experience. To put it simply, this album is bursting with great music that speaks to the soul, and it complements the film appropriately. The only complaint I have is "how can you do a soundtrack album without Peter Gabriel if his song was in the movie?" Yes they got Gabriel's pseudo-partner Daniel Lanois, but where's Peter? His song in the film made it all the more visceral. Other than that, this is one of the best soundtrack albums of all time.

A case where the soundtrack is much better than the movie! This album has been a favorite for years, as it contains great songs by some well-known artists and some (to me)unknowns. Very cohesive in mood and theme, it offers some really outstanding tracks like The Adversary (Crime & The City Solution), Thank You For The Days (Elvis Costello), I'll Love You Till The End Of The World (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds), Until The End Of The World (U2), Sleeping In The Devil's Bed (Daniel Lanois), and the shimmering jewel that is Calling All Angels, by Jane Siberry and k.d. lang. These tracks alone earn the album 5 stars, while the rest isn't bad either.

"Details" Magazine recently released a list of thier top cd's in 50 different, offbeat, unique catagories. One of the catagories was "Most Underrated Soundtrack Album" and the winner was this outstanding cd. When I saw this it totally made my day...I had forgotten how great this cd is and I applaud Details for reminding me about this hidden gem. The songs here are marvelous, some of my favorites include the Lou Reed song ("What good is Sanskrit read to a pony?") and the U2 song (which is slightly different than the Achtung Baby version). The only thing that was in the movie that never made it to the cd is the epiphanously beautiful "Blood of Eden" by Peter Gabriel, which is played right at the film's climax. This song is an early version of the song that appeared in his album "US". It features Peter Gabriel only (not the duet with Sinead O'Connor) and is stripped down to its most poignant essence. The only place this song was ever made available was as a B-Side from Gabriel's import cd-single Steam (I think), released around 1993-94. If they rerelease this cd they would be wise to include this obscure but unforgettable gem.

I echo the sentiments of the other reviews here -- this soundtrack is rich with color, imagination, and emotion, surpassing that of the film, I think, because it is so concentrated, so deep, and so textured. I bought this CD immediately after seeing the movie in 1991 and it has remained in my personal top 5. Most astonishing are the cuts by Nick Cave ATBS, Lou Reed (from his devastating "Magic and Loss"), R.E.M., Jane Siberry and kd lang, and Sonic and Patti Smith; but all of the pieces are extraordinary and woven together so beautifully, you can feel the flow and integrity of the whole. Each cut is like a book chapter, bound together by the haunting instrumental pieces of Graeme Revell. OK, so I'm gushing, but gushing with cause. This is a phenomenal piece of work and I *highly* recommend it.

Many soundtracks are popular because of how well the music fits in with the movie and it bring back images from the movie thus their popularity. This one, however, stands on its own.

I saw the movie a long time ago and bought this soundtrack primarily for the music interludes containing pygmies singing. These clips are beautiful and haunting. But they make up a very small part of the album.

Then I listened to the rest of the album! Some of the best songs (in my opinion) from various artists such as R.E.M., Julee Cruise, Jane Siberry and Talking Heads are contained herein. The only popular song is the U2 song which is also the name of the movie.

I have listened to this album so much (and have seen the movie so infrequently) that I can not even remember where most of the songs occur in the movie.

If you are looking for a great slice of some different tracks from various artists and music that is moving and unique, don't miss out on this one. It is chock full of marvelous treasures.

No other soundtrack or album can compare. It embodies a mix of feelings: pain, remorse, bliss, euphoria. Best listened to on a crisp,cold January day when the sun is setting.

I first would like to echo the positive views of the other reviewers here--I don't like soundtrack albums as a rule, and I have never seen this movie, but this album is simply wonderful. It has the last released track by Talking Heads (the terrific "Sax and Violins"), and top-notch cuts by U2, Daniel Lanois, Depeche Mode, and the others. There is not a bad song on this album, it is beautiful, cohesive, and atmospheric. But for appreciaters of the seminal German band Can (who did soundtracks in the '60s and '70s for Wenders earlier films) this soundtrack is most notable for the inclusion of the last track I know of by that band--the sumptuous "Last Night Sleep." The track was presumably recorded during the sessions for the "Rite Time" reunion album, but IMHO is better than any track on that album. Even if you're not a Can fan (as most aren't), this album is great.

Somehow, over the years I've become something of an aficionado of movie soundtracks - they're a great way to find overlooked musical gems. Like virtually everybody else here, I'll give this one a big thumbs-up. Definitely one of the best, if not the best soundtrack I've ever come across.

If you're also a fan of this CD, I'll assume you have great taste in music (which, of course, really means your taste is similar to mine). For what it's worth, some of the other, perhaps more obscure, soundtracks that I feel are also well worth owning are: "Flirting With Disaster," "So I Married An Axe Murderer," "Blue In The Face," "The Royal Tenenbaums" and "Starstruck" (good luck finding that one).