Yeah, yeah, the memes about the terrifying carousel horse on the poster are really funny, but We Live In Time is a whole movie that you can actually go see too. Today, A24 announced that the upcoming Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield-led romance film is being scored by Bryce Dessner, the Grammy Award-winning composer and founding member, guitarist, arranger, and co-principal songwriter of indie rock band The National.
Many of The National's songs explore the (often degenerative) effects of time and distance on romantic and familial relationships, so Dessner didn't have to stray too far from his roots to craft this delicate and emotional score. The film's logline reads: "Almut (Florence Pugh) and Tobias (Andrew Garfield) are brought together in a surprise encounter that changes their lives. As they embark on a path challenged by the limits of time, they learn to cherish each moment of the unconventional route their love story has taken, in filmmaker John Crowley's decade-spanning, deeply moving romance."
Dessner long ago joined the ranks of rock-musicians-turned-sought-after-film-composers alongside artists like Radiohead's Johnny Greenwood (Phantom Thread, The Power Of The Dog) and Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (The Social Network, Challengers). Dessner's other score credits include The Two Popes, Cyrano, and C'mon C'mon (which he worked on with his brother, Aaron Dessner), and A24's Sing Sing. In 2015, he also collaborated with Ryuichi Sakamoto and Alva Noto on the score for The Revenant, for which the group earned both a Grammy and Golden Globe nomination. Dessner has also composed for orchestras around the world and released a solo classical album this year.
You can listen to the score's final track, "Closing," now. The full album (which does include a song called "Carousel" if you were wondering) will be available October 17. We Live In Time premieres in select theaters October 11, before opening nationwide on the 18th.
