A song that plays over a movie’s closing credits is given pride of place in the audience’s immediate response. 

As the text scrolls, I find myself considering why the lyrics were chosen as a fitting final note for the movie. And when the song is seemingly anachronistic with the established tone, this dissonance draws even more interpretative attention on how the tune relates to the rest.

A recent example: “One for You, One for Me” in The Brutalist.

Most of the song simply repeats the titular sentiment, leaving ample room to mull all of the ways that this refrain connects to as many aspects of The Brutalist as possible. 

Adding to the provocation is the fact that the movie hard-cuts into it seconds after the challenge of, “It is the destination, not the journey,” constituting a one-two punch of jarringly unexpected resolutions