Philadelphia (1993) - Ending / Wake (Neil Young) scene

(Moderate Spoiler) Sometimes a song can have just as much emotional impact as original score, and in 1993 director Jonathan Demme chose to end his acclaimed drama about AIDS with a heartbreaking song that Neil Young wrote for the film. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Song, but lost out to Bruce Springsteen’s song for the same film. Young’s familiar high vocals and his beautiful piano are a perfect fit for the ending scene, and although Tom Hanks is nowhere to be seen, his presence is strongly felt at the wake, ending the film on a poignant note, full of humanity. Starring Tom Hanks in an Oscar-winning role, with Denzel Washington and Antonio Banderas, in a film directed by Jonathan Demme. The film had a classy but sombre original score by Howard Shore, but much of the attention fell onto the two original songs which played just as important a role.