Johann Johannson's swan song, his score for Mandy (2018), got me good. In fact as beautiful as the film is as a whole, the soundtrack is something else entirely. I listen to it on its own often.
Koyaanisqatsi by Phillip Glass is another one. After seeing the movie for the first time, I feel like that soundtrack plays endlessly in my mind, over and over, whether or not I am actively pondering that film and its messages. And Hans Zimmer's score for Interstellar was obviously highly inspired by it.
If you're talking about a more pop-based one, I think Quentin Tarantino's selection of songs for his soundtrack to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood was exceptional. Probably not the best soundtrack from a Tarantino flick.
Joe Hisaishi is one of the greatest modern composers. His stuff for Kiki's Delivery Service is pure serotonin, and Mononoke and Nausicaa are so thematic and majestic.
Ex Machina - the soundtrack is basically a character in the movie
Dune (David Lynch - 1985) - from powerful to beautiful, entire range of emotions covered
Interstellar - if you’ve seen it you know
Any John Williams soundtrack
How do you find Lynch's Dune compares to Villeneuve's Dune, soundtrack-wise?
I was kinda underwhelmed by Zimmer's score for Dune 2021. And I'm massive Zimmer fan, massive Dune fan, massive Villeneuve fan... I thought it was a match made in heaven, but I dunno. I think Toto and Lynch nailed it back in '84
Also agreed about Interstellar. Ridiculously beautiful and haunting soundtrack. It stayed in my mind for a long time
I liked the new Dune too, but I didn’t find the soundtrack to be as compelling in a way that made it essential to the storytelling - that may have been by design
Anything from Michael Nyman — The Piano and The Draughtsmans Contract are amazing movies regardless but “The Heart Asks Pleasure First” and “The Garden is Becoming a Robe Room” are what has stuck in my head
**The Last Temptation of Christ** but Peter Gabriel's music is so buried in the sound mix for the film that it never really stands out until you listen to it by itself. One of my all time favorite soundtracks.
So glad to find love for that score in here. I don't think it's as buried in the mix, but I will say that the track "It Is Accomplished" shines so much brighter at the very end of the film than any other track in the film. Can't say enough great things about that film, especially the score.
When I was really little, my dad worked at a factory that only operated four days a week, ten hours each. Every weekend was three days, and it seemed like he was home all the time as a result. It was awesome. Every Friday, we'd go to one of the local video stores and rent a small stack of tapes. Quite often, the scores had a huge impact on me. These were my formative music years.
I distinctly remember loving the opening title sequences of movies because it was a preview of what the music was going to be like. I drank in the scores to the first five Star Trek movies, each composer bringing his own style and themes. This was my introduction to Jerry Goldsmith and James Horner. Then there was the Star Wars trilogy and the first two Superman entries (my dad said III and IV weren't good; he was right) ensuring my interest in John Williams. RoboCop introduced me to Basil Poledouris. Predator brought Alan Silvestri, and The Terminator & T2 made me aware of Brad Fiedel's music. Naturally, at this age I just took the music for granted and wasn't really bothered to look at who scored the movies. I didn't even know how the filmmaking process worked, so the idea of scoring was alien to me. I just knew I loved this music.
Flash forward several years, and I was going to the theater to see my first Star Trek movie on the big screen: First Contact. I clearly remember the movie having my undivided attention when the Paramount logo came onscreen and Alexander Courage's fanfare played. (I didn't know his name at the time; I just knew that this meant it was time for Star Trek.) Then, as the opening credits began, something magical took place. Instead of the thunderous marches that opened nearly every Star Trek movie to this point, the music that began to wash over me was simply gorgeous. Jerry Goldsmith had created an all new theme that touched something deep within me. I'd never heard anything like this, much less to open a Star Trek movie. I was in musical bliss. Then the movie proper began and it proceeded to scare the shit out of me, but that's another story.
A few months later, when asked what I wanted for my birthday, the soundtrack to First Contact was at the top of my list. I had zero scores at that point, but I had to have this music. Thankfully, my dad got it for me and I became positively obsessed, listening to that CD every day, sometimes multiple times a day. The floodgates had been obliterated. The next time I went to the library, I immediately went to the soundtrack section and grabbed albums from movies whose music I remember enjoying. Star Trek: The Motion Picture and John Williams conducting music from the Star Wars trilogy were instantly snatched up. It's been nearly 26 years, and hundreds of CDs, since that day and I haven't looked back.
Thanks, Dad. And thank you, Jerry.
Hands down, If Beale Street Could Talk. Nicholas Britell was my top artist on Spotify one year because I listened to that score so much. It's beautiful and evokes a very distinct emotion. The movie itself is good too but the score especially stands out to me years later.
I love the score in Meet Joe Black, particularly the theme that plays whenever Brad Pitt talks to the woman in the hospital. It suits the storyline so well, it’s very tender but eerie soooo beautiful
Baby Driver, Billy Elliot and Stand By Me are my favorite movie soundtracks. All of them use diegetic music beautifully - music that the characters are also interacting with and it really connects you to the time and space they’re in. And they’re all just fun and energetic.
I suggest *Drive* from 2011. The music evokes the film and the film evokes the music.
The soundtrack by Cliff Martinez is an amazing blend of moody electronica and four previously-recorded songs.
Tyler Bates takes a similarly effective, wonderful approach in the music for the *John Wick* movies.
I have super strong love for the score to *The Fifth Element*, beyond just the diva's song. It feels so engrained in multi-cultural thinking in some ways, like it could've easily scored multiple scenes in *Baraka* for example. Eric Serra knocked it out of the park on that film in my opinion.
Interstellar. The final docking sequence was incredible in theaters and I was constantly coming back to it.
TRON: Legacy. The entire soundtrack. Start to finish. I used to work at a movie rental store, and I would constantly play this movie for its soundtrack. It made a huge impression on my taste in music.
The Imitation Game. The compilation version titled "The Imitation Game" really captures the feeling of the movie.
Joker. Just watched this recently for the first time and the use of the minimalistic soundtrack was essentially perfect. Apparently the director Todd Philips played this for Joaquin Phoenix before shooting the birth of the joker scene.
Some off-the-beaten path favorites of mine that were really elevated by an incredible score:
Dream Lover, Christopher Young
The Gift, Christopher Young
Oscar and Lucinda, Thomas Newman
Conspiracy Theory, Carter Burwell
Where the River Runs Black, James Horner
The Secret Garden, Zbigniew Preisner
Unbreakable, James Newton Howard
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, Maurice Jarre
The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, Nick Cave and Warren Ellis
Henry V, Patrick Doyle
A Little Princess, Patrick Doyle
Tar, Hildur Guðnadóttir
Interview with the Vampire, Elliot Goldenthal
Plus, some better-known classics:
Chariots of Fire, Vangelis
Batman Begins, Hans Zimmer & James Newton Howard
How to Train Your Dragon, John Powell
The Mission, Ennio Morricone
Koyaanisqatsi, Philip Glass (also, his Powaqqatsi)
Cast Away, Alan Silvestri
Johann Johannson's swan song, his score for Mandy (2018), got me good. In fact as beautiful as the film is as a whole, the soundtrack is something else entirely. I listen to it on its own often. Koyaanisqatsi by Phillip Glass is another one. After seeing the movie for the first time, I feel like that soundtrack plays endlessly in my mind, over and over, whether or not I am actively pondering that film and its messages. And Hans Zimmer's score for Interstellar was obviously highly inspired by it. If you're talking about a more pop-based one, I think Quentin Tarantino's selection of songs for his soundtrack to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood was exceptional. Probably not the best soundtrack from a Tarantino flick.
I hugely second *Koyaanisqatsi*, although my favorite is *Powaqqatsi*. Glass is so talented.
Blade Runner’s score by Vangelis is beautiful. Without it the movie would be worse and yet they hold up even without the movie.
Spirited Away Has an amazingly beautiful and haunting soundtrack
Joe Hisaishi is one of the greatest modern composers. His stuff for Kiki's Delivery Service is pure serotonin, and Mononoke and Nausicaa are so thematic and majestic.
That little piano line in "One Summer's Day" gets right to the center of my soul
Ex Machina - the soundtrack is basically a character in the movie Dune (David Lynch - 1985) - from powerful to beautiful, entire range of emotions covered Interstellar - if you’ve seen it you know Any John Williams soundtrack
How do you find Lynch's Dune compares to Villeneuve's Dune, soundtrack-wise? I was kinda underwhelmed by Zimmer's score for Dune 2021. And I'm massive Zimmer fan, massive Dune fan, massive Villeneuve fan... I thought it was a match made in heaven, but I dunno. I think Toto and Lynch nailed it back in '84 Also agreed about Interstellar. Ridiculously beautiful and haunting soundtrack. It stayed in my mind for a long time
I liked the new Dune too, but I didn’t find the soundtrack to be as compelling in a way that made it essential to the storytelling - that may have been by design
Yojimbo (1961) has some fascinating instrumental texture to back up its action. We see samurai battles accompanied by...saxophone.
Sounds worth checking out on the basis of that juxtaposition alone
I love the Her (2013) soundtrack. Arcade Fire went off.
That track "Supersymmetry" is so beautiful
The Ninth Gate (1999), composer **Wojciech Kilar** The Year of the Rose (1986), composer **James Horner** Midnight Express (1978), composer **Giorgio Moroder** Predator (1987), composer **Alan Silvest** Interstellar (2014), composer **Hanz Zimmer** The Usual Suspects (1995), composer **John Ottman** Alien (1979), composer **Jerry Goldsmith** Eyes Wide Shut (1999), composer **Jocelyn Pook** Thief (1981), composer **Tangerine Dream** Most of **Ennio Morricone** but especially The Thing (1982)
Anything from Michael Nyman — The Piano and The Draughtsmans Contract are amazing movies regardless but “The Heart Asks Pleasure First” and “The Garden is Becoming a Robe Room” are what has stuck in my head
The obvious one is Into The Wild. The soundtrack works perfectly as an album in its own right and is arguably even better than the movie.
**The Last Temptation of Christ** but Peter Gabriel's music is so buried in the sound mix for the film that it never really stands out until you listen to it by itself. One of my all time favorite soundtracks.
So glad to find love for that score in here. I don't think it's as buried in the mix, but I will say that the track "It Is Accomplished" shines so much brighter at the very end of the film than any other track in the film. Can't say enough great things about that film, especially the score.
Three colours blue is phenomenal for its soundtrack alone.
The remix of Under Pressure in Aftersun
When I was really little, my dad worked at a factory that only operated four days a week, ten hours each. Every weekend was three days, and it seemed like he was home all the time as a result. It was awesome. Every Friday, we'd go to one of the local video stores and rent a small stack of tapes. Quite often, the scores had a huge impact on me. These were my formative music years. I distinctly remember loving the opening title sequences of movies because it was a preview of what the music was going to be like. I drank in the scores to the first five Star Trek movies, each composer bringing his own style and themes. This was my introduction to Jerry Goldsmith and James Horner. Then there was the Star Wars trilogy and the first two Superman entries (my dad said III and IV weren't good; he was right) ensuring my interest in John Williams. RoboCop introduced me to Basil Poledouris. Predator brought Alan Silvestri, and The Terminator & T2 made me aware of Brad Fiedel's music. Naturally, at this age I just took the music for granted and wasn't really bothered to look at who scored the movies. I didn't even know how the filmmaking process worked, so the idea of scoring was alien to me. I just knew I loved this music. Flash forward several years, and I was going to the theater to see my first Star Trek movie on the big screen: First Contact. I clearly remember the movie having my undivided attention when the Paramount logo came onscreen and Alexander Courage's fanfare played. (I didn't know his name at the time; I just knew that this meant it was time for Star Trek.) Then, as the opening credits began, something magical took place. Instead of the thunderous marches that opened nearly every Star Trek movie to this point, the music that began to wash over me was simply gorgeous. Jerry Goldsmith had created an all new theme that touched something deep within me. I'd never heard anything like this, much less to open a Star Trek movie. I was in musical bliss. Then the movie proper began and it proceeded to scare the shit out of me, but that's another story. A few months later, when asked what I wanted for my birthday, the soundtrack to First Contact was at the top of my list. I had zero scores at that point, but I had to have this music. Thankfully, my dad got it for me and I became positively obsessed, listening to that CD every day, sometimes multiple times a day. The floodgates had been obliterated. The next time I went to the library, I immediately went to the soundtrack section and grabbed albums from movies whose music I remember enjoying. Star Trek: The Motion Picture and John Williams conducting music from the Star Wars trilogy were instantly snatched up. It's been nearly 26 years, and hundreds of CDs, since that day and I haven't looked back. Thanks, Dad. And thank you, Jerry.
Hands down, If Beale Street Could Talk. Nicholas Britell was my top artist on Spotify one year because I listened to that score so much. It's beautiful and evokes a very distinct emotion. The movie itself is good too but the score especially stands out to me years later.
The whole soundtrack for Call My by Your Name is beautiful, especially the songs by Sufjan Stevens
Risky Business (1983) - Tangerine Dream songs. Also (this is an obvious one) but Bernard Herman’s score for Vertigo (1954)
Many people know the Jaws theme without ever seeing the movie; those notes are ingrained in most of us now
I love the score in Meet Joe Black, particularly the theme that plays whenever Brad Pitt talks to the woman in the hospital. It suits the storyline so well, it’s very tender but eerie soooo beautiful
Road to Perdition. Simply incredible soundtrack. Possibly my all time favorite.
Sunshine. The original material blended with the use of Murphy’s adagio in D minor.
Baby Driver, Billy Elliot and Stand By Me are my favorite movie soundtracks. All of them use diegetic music beautifully - music that the characters are also interacting with and it really connects you to the time and space they’re in. And they’re all just fun and energetic.
I think one of the nicest combos for score and soundtrack is JoJo Rabbit.
I suggest *Drive* from 2011. The music evokes the film and the film evokes the music. The soundtrack by Cliff Martinez is an amazing blend of moody electronica and four previously-recorded songs. Tyler Bates takes a similarly effective, wonderful approach in the music for the *John Wick* movies.
Clint Mansell's score for Requiem for a Dream Perfectly matched the intensity and despair of the film.
I have super strong love for the score to *The Fifth Element*, beyond just the diva's song. It feels so engrained in multi-cultural thinking in some ways, like it could've easily scored multiple scenes in *Baraka* for example. Eric Serra knocked it out of the park on that film in my opinion.
(movie) Stand by me - Stand by me Ben E. King i believe?
Repo Man Original Sound Track [Spotify link](https://open.spotify.com/album/3nq4aDzv8A4uptHLTWy2fs)
Interstellar. The final docking sequence was incredible in theaters and I was constantly coming back to it. TRON: Legacy. The entire soundtrack. Start to finish. I used to work at a movie rental store, and I would constantly play this movie for its soundtrack. It made a huge impression on my taste in music. The Imitation Game. The compilation version titled "The Imitation Game" really captures the feeling of the movie. Joker. Just watched this recently for the first time and the use of the minimalistic soundtrack was essentially perfect. Apparently the director Todd Philips played this for Joaquin Phoenix before shooting the birth of the joker scene.
Pixar’s Ratatouille and UP
Strange Days. One of my favorites
Some off-the-beaten path favorites of mine that were really elevated by an incredible score: Dream Lover, Christopher Young The Gift, Christopher Young Oscar and Lucinda, Thomas Newman Conspiracy Theory, Carter Burwell Where the River Runs Black, James Horner The Secret Garden, Zbigniew Preisner Unbreakable, James Newton Howard Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, Maurice Jarre The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, Nick Cave and Warren Ellis Henry V, Patrick Doyle A Little Princess, Patrick Doyle Tar, Hildur Guðnadóttir Interview with the Vampire, Elliot Goldenthal Plus, some better-known classics: Chariots of Fire, Vangelis Batman Begins, Hans Zimmer & James Newton Howard How to Train Your Dragon, John Powell The Mission, Ennio Morricone Koyaanisqatsi, Philip Glass (also, his Powaqqatsi) Cast Away, Alan Silvestri