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Blitz (Soundtrack from the Apple Original Film) is the soundtrack to the 2024 film Blitz directed by Steve McQueen. The musical score is composed by Hans Zimmer, whose soundtrack featured 18 songs; it also included few original musical numbers scored by Nicholas Britell, who provided additional music. The album was released through Milan Records on 1 November 2024.

Development

In July 2024, it was announced that Zimmer would score music for Blitz, collaborating with McQueen for the third time after 12 Years a Slave (2013) and Widows (2018). Though Zimmer had scored Pearl Harbor (2001) and Dunkirk (2017), both films were set during the World War II, he opined that the story of Blitz personally connected with him, recalling about his mother sheltered as a German Jewish refugee in England during the war, and with McQueen insisted him that he would understand his mother better, after watching this film, when he was involved in the project, adding "And I knew all the stories, and as I was working on the film. I started to feel her stories. So, he was absolutely correct."

This eventually allowed him to create a score that reflected the terror and confusion of how an adult and child would feel, resulting in a dissonant, atonal score that was "very difficult to put pieces together". To achieve that, Zimmer thought of writing music that would be brutal and violent and feel uneasy towards the audience. He primarily used a treble recorder, which was "one of the most tortuous instruments in the world", according to Zimmer, who recalled on the instrument being played in his school days where "everybody’s out of tune and everybody’s blowing really hard into them – and it’s the sound of hell".

The score starts with an orchestra of children's recorders and gradually move towards a complex orchestration as the story progresses. Zimmer tuned the score, when he was returning from the orchestra tour and formed a close relationship with the performing band, adding "They've spent their whole life learning how to make their instruments sound beautiful. And it takes a certain amount of courage to go and then turn all that upside down and me saying, here are the notes, but what I want from you is I want them to be, like, you know, razors running down a piano wire."

Nicholas Britell was brought for the film to compose original songs and produce additional music; he previously did the same for 12 Years a Slave. An original song "Winter Coat" was performed by Saoirse Ronan and Britell, which was recorded on 7 November 2024, at the Studio A located at Power Station at BerkleeNYC in New York City. The video of the performance was released through Deadline Hollywood on 27 November. The album was released through Milan Records on 1 November.

Critical reception

Filmtracks.com wrote "The soundtrack altogether is the kind of souvenir-oriented experience that requires an admiration of the film to appreciate." Fionnuala Halligan of Screen International noted that Zimmer's score "occasionally threatens to overwhelm but keeps a respectful and impactful distance." Monica Castillo of RogerEbert.com wrote "Hans Zimmer scores these events with discordant and jarring notes that sound vaguely electronic and metallic as if the sounds were ricocheting off trains and bombs." Justin Chang in his review for The New Yorker, summarized "Hans Zimmer’s dread-infused score at times evokes the drone of planes and the scream of sirens, but McQueen practically cues up an orchestra in jubilant response." Clarisse Loughrey of The Independent stated "Hans Zimmer’s thunderous, relentless score transforms itself into the machine of war, the crunch of metal against metal, or the whistle-whir of death falling from the sky." Leslie Felperin of The Hollywood Reporter called it as a "percussive, thrumming score". Rogan Graham of Little White Lies deciphered it as both "tense and dynamic".

Track listing

Accolades

As Zimmer's score for Dune: Part Two deemed ineligible for the Best Original Score category at the 97th Academy Awards, due to the major themes being borrowed from the first film, the score for Blitz was instead considered as a contender for the possible category. It was shortlisted as one among the 146 other film scores on 2 December 2024.

References

1. "Hans Zimmer Scoring Steve McQueen's 'Blitz'". Film Music Reporter. 1 July 2024. Archived from the original on 5 July 2024. Retrieved 12 December 2024.
2. ^ Rascoe, Ayesha; Tworek, Eleana (10 November 2024). Hans Zimmer discusses his music 'Blitz', a film set in World War II (Radio broadcast). National Public Radio. Archived from the original on 11 November 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
3. Sgammato, Greg (26 November 2024). "Blitz with Hans Zimmer". Society of Composers and Lyricists. Archived from the original on 13 December 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
4. ^ Tangcay, Jazz (28 November 2024). "Hans Zimmer Addresses 'Dune' Score Ineligibility, Why 'Blitz' Is Personal to Him and Being Happiest on Tour". Variety. Archived from the original on 30 November 2024. Retrieved 12 December 2024.
5. ^ Huver, Scott (2 November 2024). "Hans Zimmer's "Horrendous" Dissonant Score For 'Blitz' Helped Him Understand His Mother's WWII Experience – Sound & Screen Film". Deadline. Archived from the original on 11 December 2024. Retrieved 12 December 2024.
6. Thompson, Anne (20 November 2024). "Steve McQueen Is 'Going to Do It My Way': The Director on 'Blitz,' Hans Zimmer, and Apple's Theatrical Window". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 25 November 2024. Retrieved 12 December 2024.
7. Ritman, Alex (8 October 2024). "Steve McQueen on How WWII Drama 'Blitz' Became 'More Urgent' in Face of Escalating Global Violence: 'What the Hell Are We Doing?'". Variety. Archived from the original on 10 October 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
8. ^ Ntim, Zac (27 November 2024). "Watch Saoirse Ronan And Nicholas Britell Perform Live Version Of 'Blitz' Original Song 'Winter Coat'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 10 December 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
9. Fritz, Arielle (1 November 2024). "NEW RELEASE: Blitz (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". Milan Records. Archived from the original on 13 December 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
10. "Blitz (Hans Zimmer/Nicholas Britell)". Filmtracks. Archived from the original on 3 December 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
11. Halligan, Fionnuala (9 October 2024). "'Blitz': London Review". Screen. Archived from the original on 10 October 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
12. Castillo, Monica (9 October 2024). "Blitz movie review & film summary (2024)". RogerEbert.com. Archived from the original on 13 December 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
13. Chang, Justin (25 October 2024). ""Blitz" Uses Classical Storytelling to Advance a Radical Vision of War". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Archived from the original on 31 October 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
14. Loughrey, Clarisse (10 October 2024). "Blitz review: Steve McQueen's wartime drama is a monumental achievement in British cinema". The Independent. Archived from the original on 10 October 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
15. Felperin, Leslie (9 October 2024). "'Blitz' Review: Saoirse Ronan in Steve McQueen's Admirably Crafted but Overly Clichéd Tribute to London's Survival in World War II". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 23 November 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
16. Graham, Rogan (10 October 2024). "Blitz – A vital fragment of the Steve McQueen saga". Little White Lies. Archived from the original on 13 December 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
17. Davis, Clayton (22 October 2024). "Hans Zimmer's 'Dune 2' Score Fails to Meet Eligibility Requirements for Oscars (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 21 November 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
18. Rudoy, Matthew (28 November 2024). ""Don't Tell Me That Makes Me Ineligible": Why Excluding Hans Zimmer's Dune 2 Score From The Oscars Could Be Harmful". ScreenRant. Archived from the original on 29 November 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
19. Desowitz, Bill (9 September 2024). "2025 Oscars: Best Original Score Predictions". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
20. Davis, Clayton (26 September 2024). "Oscar Predictions: Best Original Score — Will 'Blitz' Bring Hans Zimmer Another Nomination?". Variety. Archived from the original on 27 September 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
21. Pond, Steve (2 December 2024). "Oscars Song Race Contains 89 Songs, But Nothing From 'Wicked' - Complete List". TheWrap. Archived from the original on 8 December 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
22. Pedersen, Erik (7 November 2024). "'Emilia Pérez' & 'Blitz' Top Hollywood Music in Media Awards Nominations". Deadline. Archived from the original on 18 November 2024. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
23. Willman, Chris (7 November 2024). "Hollywood Music in Media Awards Noms Led by 'Emilia Pérez' and 'Blitz,' With Elton John, Hans Zimmer and Scores More Among the Nominees". Variety. Archived from the original on 3 December 2024. Retrieved 8 November 2024.

• 2024 soundtrack albums
• Hans Zimmer soundtracks
• Milan Records soundtracks
• War film soundtracks
• Drama film soundtracks