Bruce Springsteen pens tune for Darren Aronofsky

While Requiem for a Dream director Darren Aronofsky preps for the premiere of his latest opus The Wrestler at the Venice Film Festival this Friday, news has emerged that none other than Bruce Springsteen will contribute an original song to the Mickey Rourke-starring vehicle.

Springsteen's song will also be titled "The Wrestler" and will play over the film's closing credits. "It is a wonderful acoustic piece," Aronofsky wrote on his blog. "Makes me choke up every time I hear it. He really captured the spirit of the film and Mickey's character in the piece."

Aronofsky fans were a bit perplexed by the seemingly pedestrian concept of The Wrestler, where Rourke plays a retired wrestler looking to get back into the ring for one last match against his longtime rival. The movie also stars Marisa Tomei as Rourke's girlfriend, who just so happens to moonlight as a stripper, and Evan Rachel Wood as his estranged daughter. Early word of the script has been positive, and the Internet drumbeat for a Rourke Oscar nomination has quietly begun.

Springsteen, who just wrapped his exhaustive 2008 tour in Milwaukee this weekend, is no stranger to Oscar buzz himself—his "Streets of Philadelphia" song for the Tom Hanks drama Philadelphia won him the statuette back in 1994. His "Wrestler" song is likely to garner some Academy attention once the film hits theaters this fall (its exact date is still unknown).

Related links:
Review: Bruce Springsteen - Magic
The Wrestler on IMDB
Bruce Springsteen.com

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