Film/Album sync-ups

The Wizard of Oz/Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon is the classic film/album sync-up that most people are aware of. As a fan of this artform, I have taken it upon myself to search for some others. Here are ones I've found. Try them out for yourself, or even better, find some of your own.

Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life with The Fountain

Too perfect. Start the album the moment the film begins; after the production intros. My head is still spinning from this one. It's all too poetic to put into words. You'll have to see for yourself how unbelievable it is.

Excluding the last two tracks, (which are 2 of the 4 bonus tracks), they are the same length to the exact second. But seriously, this syncs up in phenomenal ways.

(also interesting that Brad Pitt was originally cast to play the lead role in The Fountain, but he did play the lead role in The Tree of Life).

MK Ultrasound has this to say about it: "This is the best kind of album-sync, it stays applicable all the way through and allows the deeper expression to blossom the further along it goes."

Kenneth Anger's Lucifer Rising with The Beatles Revolver

I started the album the moment the film begins, at the "Puck Films" title. However, fellow sync-head MK Ultrasound tried it by starting the album as the "Lucifer Rising" film title rises. Both seem to work quite well. The film can be seen on Youtube.
The film was finished in 1970, but filming began in 1966, also the year Revolver was produced. Interesting that George sings the line, "There's 1 for  you, 19 for me" at the 0:19 point of the album. One of the great things about starting the album at the beginning of the film, is that the 0:19 points of each coincide.
Spoiler Alert: If you want to discover the syncs for yourself and don't want to be influenced by my findings, skip this paragraph. But continue reading if you're wondering why I find this mash-up significant, or simply want to see some of the syncs I've found.
The 1st song plays through the entirety of the first scene, and the 2nd track, Eleanor Rigby, begins as the 2nd scene begins. I'm Only Sleeping is playing when the scene comes on of the main character sleeping in bed. To name a few.

MK Ultrasound has discovered several great sync-ups. Including the likes of Rosemary's Baby/White Album, Holy Mountain/Holy Wood, Melancholia/Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and more. Check out his work here http://beingthere723.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-secret-silent-film-society-of-sync.html

Beetlejuice with The Beatles White Album

I started the album as the "A Tim Burton Film" title begins to fade out and the "Beetlejuice" title begins to fade in. The airplane sound should go over the title, and the music should kick in when the film begins. Lots of great timings and syncs. Never a dull moment.

Spoiler Alert: A few major syncs - besides all of the great transition syncs... The car falls in the creek right as John sings "The walrus was Paul." Interesting considering some of the pid legends. Obla-Di Obla-Da plays as they are finding out they're dead - "Life goes on". In fact, the line "As he takes her by the hand" is sung as the cover for The Book for the Recently Deceased is shown, which features a couple holding hands. Lydia first sees the ghosts while outside shooting pictures with her camera "Bang, bang, shoot shoot". The song Blackbird begins the very moment the dad looks out the window and sees a blackbird. The first half of the album ends right as Beetlegeuse rises from his grave and we see him for the first time. Why Don't We Do It in the Road is playing while Lydia thinks she hears her parents getting it on in their room. Then proceeds to go into the hall and takes photos of what she thinks is her parents engaged in kinky behavior
The line "I've got blisters on my fingers!" is shouted the very second Adam puts eyeballs on all of his fingers.

Beetlejuice with The Beatles Sgt. Pepper's

Start the album at the "A Time Burton Film" title so that the orchestra plays over that and the "Beetlejuice" title and the guitar intro comes in when the film starts.
Spoiler Alert: a few major syncs - John sings, "...to a bridge by a fountain" as they drive over a bridge and pass a fountain, then he sings, "Rocking horse people" the moment they drive by a rocking horse. Barbara is dusting the ceiling the moment Fixing a Hole begins.


With the vast amounts of influence Lewis Carroll had on The Beatles in their 1967 work, it was a given to try these:

Alice in Wonderland with Magical Mystery Tour followed by Sgt. Pepper's

Start the album as the film begins. Then start Sgt. Pepper's the moment after MMT finishes. It all syncs up so well, I thought I was watching a 75 minute music video. I could list some spoilers, but you'll just have to try it yourself! Unbelievable.

Here's some film chapter/song sync videos from this that I made:

I Am the Walrus comes in during the Walrus and the Carpenter scene
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nB7lu5q23EQ

A Day in the Life coinciding with the final scene
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8442g2a25RE

Flying falls in right as Alice begins descending down the rabbit hole

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muYofTsuoBo

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds begins the moment Alice approaches the mad tea party -
(Also, not included in the video, but the next song is Getting Better, followed by Fixing A Hole, which begins precisely at the moment the Mad Hatter begins fixing the rabbit's clock. Followed by She's Leaving Home, which begins the very moment Alice leaves the tea party).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdTMUDqviS8

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds aligning with the mad tea party is quite significant when taking into account the 10/6 on the Mad Hatter's hat is a reference to English currency; pounds, shilling and pennies - which is abbreviated l/s/d.
Plus his use of all the sugar cubes.

Alice in Wonderland with Sgt. Pepper's followed by Magical Mystery Tour

Start Sgt. Pepper's when the film begins, then start MMT when Sgt. Pepper's finishes. There's a nice handful of juicy syncs, but the MMT followed by Sgt. Pepper set-up is so unbelievable, I have to advocate that method over this one, if I had to choose.

Interesting that Jane Asher played the role of Alice as a youngster

And Ringo starrs as the Mock Turtle in a 1985 tv adaptation

Black Swan with Bjork's Vespertine

I don't remember exactly where I started the album, but it's safe to assume it was the same moment the film starts, after the production credits. Every song had at least one stunning sync, and the lyrics were astoundingly applicable throughout. A few particular spine-tinglers in there.

Return of the Jedi with V is for Vendetta

Start V is for Vendetta so that Evey says "Remember, remember..." the moment the Death Star appears on screen. Too many beautiful syncs to list.

Recommended listening: Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd.



Black Swan with Revenge of the Sith

Start Black Swan the moment Padme first appears on screen. It ends with Nina dying the same moment Padme dies.

And that's not the only syncnificant moment. It's loaded with 'em. Not to mention the over-arching premise of Nina going to the dark side. It's all too "perfect".

The Monkees Head with The Beatles White Album

I started the album a few seconds after the film started, the airplane sound on the album should start just after the airplane sound on the film begins.
Both were released in 1968.
Spoiler Alert: A few major syncs - Mickey jumps off the bridge the very moment Dear Prudence begins.  The refrain to Happiness is a Warm Gun begins the moment Mickey shoots the tank cannon at the Coke machine and grins satisfactorily. The "Can you take me back?" vignette is sung right as Mickey jumps off the bridge again towards the end of the film. It's also interesting that the album has the song Birthday, and Michael has a birthday in the film.

James Bond: The Spy Who Loved Me with The Grand Illusion by Styx

This one was inadvertently inspired by me, but first synced up by MK Ultrasound. I had mentioned that both came out on 7/7/77 and he went right to work on it.
Interestingly, the film starrs Barbara Bach, the wife of Ringo Starr who was born on 7/7/40. The Roswell UFO incident occurred on 7/7/47. ("It was 20 years ago, today")
In '66 Ringo sings Yellow Submarine and Beatles friend Tara Browne dies in his Lotus automobile. On 7/7/77, Ringo's birthday, his wife rides in a Lotus Submarine in a 007 film. Her character's name is Agent XXX.
X = 2+4 = 6
McCartney also wrote "Live and Let Die" for the James Bond film of the same name.

The image on the cover of The Grand Illusion is a painting by Rene Magritte. Of course, he also painted Le Jeu De Mourre, which was given to Paul McCartney in 1966 and allegedly inspired the name & logo for Apple Records. And we all know Ringo means Apple in Japanese.

Le Jeu De Mourre

McCartney with Magritte painting on wall


horizontally sliced apple with pentagram starr of seeds.
Ringo is Japanese for Apple.

Rango with Rubber Soul

While the name Rango immediately made me think of Ringo, I wasn't sure if there were gonna be any significant Beatle syncs in the film, but watched it anyway. It's a great film to watch for esoteric purposes for sure, and the whole time viewing it, I kept getting Rubber Soul resonances, especially near the end when Rango realizes he's "a nobody" and decides to go to the "other side" of the road to find "The Man with No Name", who tells Rango that "No man can walk out on his own story." which of course made me think of Nowhere Man.

As a lark, thought I'd try watching it w/Rubber Soul and loop it to see if that song falls at all anywhere near that scene.

Well, sure enough, Nowhere Man beautifully lands precisely on the beginning of the chapter in which he begins his trek from the town of Dirt, and plays through all the way to the moment he cross the road. It plays out like a painstakingly orchestrated music video.

Not to mention all the other many juicy thematic syncs with impeccable timing. So many to go into I'm not sure where to start... One thing I will add is that every time Rango and his love interest Beans interact, Rubber Soul is either playing The Word (love) or Michelle, or both (those two songs are back-to-back). Lots of uncanny stuff here.

Watch the Nowhere Man sync-up here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CRfEg4muoA

Martha Marcy May Marlene with The Beatles White Album

I know what you're thinking, "You sync everything with the White Album!" Believe it or not, I do use discretion when playing the White Album with films. This film in particular was a no-brainer when it came to such a sync-up.

The film is about a girl who joins a commune led by a murderous psychopath. Saturated with Charles Manson themes. Definitely lots of big pings. Highly recommended for Beatles/Manson researchers.

Anyways, start the album at the 2:38 mark (1 second from 2:37) the moment we first see the cult leader appears on screen. This will have the album play out until the very last moment we see the cult leader in the film. The film is 4 minutes longer than the album, and this is the alignment that makes everything pop extraordinarily.

Spoiler Alert: A couple of the crazy, major syncs. Martha gets raped by the cult leader on her initiation night the second Martha My Dear begins playing. The cult kills a man during Sexy Sadie.