Anyone love movie music? What are your favorite film scores?

ComposerRyan · Joined: Mar 09, 2004 Posts: 4 Location: USA

I just LOVE movie music and, someday, I would love to have the opportunity to compose for a movie. I realize that it is a HUGE dream, but I have a huge passion for all types of music, specifically movie music. In fact, my brothers and I want to make a movie someday (which would be a miracle) and I would love to compose the music to it. We always dream about making a movie and we have a huge passion for entertainment.

So, what are your favorite soundtracks/film scores from the movies?

The following soundtracks contain my favorite film scores and compositions from the movies...you will see the movie title as well as the composer's name:

-The Last of the Mohicans (Trevor Jones/Randy Edelman)
-The Mummy Returns (Alan Silvestri)
-Lord of the Rings (Howard Shore)
-The Truman Show (Burkhard Dallwitz)
-Dances with Wolves (John Barry)
-Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Tan Dun)
-Crimson Tide (Hans Zimmer)
-Gladiator (Hans Zimmer)
-The Lion King (Hans Zimmer)
-The Rock (Hans Zimmer/Nick Glennie-Smith/Harry Gregson-Williams)
-Conspiracy Theory (Carter Burwell)
-Star Wars: Episode 1 (John Williams)
-Saving Private Ryan (John Williams)
-Home Alone (John Williams)
-Jurrasic Park (John Williams)
-The Saint (Graeme Revell)
-Ice Age (David Newman)
-The Fifth Element (Eric Serra)
-007: GoldenEye (Eric Serra)
-Batman (Danny Elfman)
-Edward Scissorhands (Danny Elfman)
-StarGate (David Arnold)
-Children of Dune (Brian Tyler)
-A Beautiful Mind (James Horner)
-Sneakers (James Horner)
-Apollo 13 (James Horner)
-The ShawShank Redemption (Thomas Newman)
-The 13th Warrior (Jerry Goldsmith)
-Speed
-Twister
-The Matrix
-The Matrix: Reloaded

seraph · Posted: Tue Mar 09, 2004 4:33 pm Post subject:

what about Bernard Herrmann Question

mosc · Posted: Tue Mar 09, 2004 8:37 pm Post subject:

Yes, Bernard Herman wrote many great scores. I don't have a favorite, but he did the score to The Day the Earth Stood Still, certainly one of my favorites.

The best score for me would be Forbidden Planet by Louis & Bebe Barron.
Posted Image, might have been reduced in size. Click Image to view fullscreen.

Posted Image, might have been reduced in size. Click Image to view fullscreen.

seraph · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2004 2:01 am Post subject:

what about Italian composers Ennio Morricone and Nino Rota Question

mosc · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2004 7:34 am Post subject:

elektro80 · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2004 11:09 am Post subject:

One of my big favorites is "Alexander Nevsky" directed by Eisenstein and good old Prokofiev wrote the music. the same music has been adapted to an orchestral suite.

Alexander Nevsky is a treasure trove of striking elements. The score is considered by many film music buffs to be one of the greatest ever composed for a movie. Written in close collaboration with Eisenstein by Sergei Prokofiev, one of the 20th century’s most important composers, the music is so intimately entangled with the film that it is impossible to imagine one without the other. Composers frequently borrow its themes, most notably John Williams, who lifted the shark theme for Jaws from the throbbing baselines of Nevsky’s battle scenes. Eisenstein’s famous editing is matched to some amazing shot composition. The wide gray skies threatening on the battlefield are given almost 90% of the frame, and several deep focus shots show the influence of Hollywood. The famous battle on the ice sequence, with its fast cuts and heroic poses, continues to influence battle scenes today, right up to Braveheart. There are moments that shock and delight even today: the grisly and effective scene showing a massacre of children, the corrupt priest trying to sneak away in full regalia, and the shots of Knights slipping to their death on the crumbling ice.

Other?... That new movie.. Solaris.. based on a story by Stansislaw Lem.. has a GREAT score! And I really like the music for "The Andromeda Strain"

seraph · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2004 11:30 am Post subject:

mosc · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2004 11:43 am Post subject:

James Horner did Titanic which was dramatic but kind of sappy. His score for A Beautiful Mind was fabulous. That's on Ryan's list too.

themoors · Joined: Dec 15, 2003 Posts: 148 Location: northern england

One of my favourite scores is the one for night of the hunter, delightful stuff, great film too... I like all the music from the 80's feelgood films too... GHOSTBUSTERS! and so on....

play · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2004 5:32 pm Post subject:

Eric Serra is a fav. He's done the music for most of the Luc Besson films: Fifth element, The Big Blue, La Femme Nikita, et al. Heres his imdb record
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0785385/

I also like the audio stylings of Chu Ishikawa who did sound for 'Tetsuo Iron Man', among others. That movie is the single most abrasiive spectacle I've ever witnessed.

Cyxeris · Joined: Oct 30, 2003 Posts: 1125 Location: Louisville, KY

cloudscapes · Joined: Feb 09, 2004 Posts: 100 Location: Montreal

The OST for "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind" is probably my favorite score, as well as the one that influenced most my music. You guys might want to check a few of the songs out, if you can: Kaze No Tani No Nausicaa, Kushana No Shinryaku, Kusare-Umi Ni Te, Pejitei No Zenmetsu, Tori No Hito, Kusare-Umi.

Another good one is the Blade Runner soundtrack.

paul e. · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2004 7:28 pm Post subject:

while not a movie soundtrack/score, i really love the sound patterns that are
part of the OldTime Radio show 'X MINUS 1'

i tried to find the individual's name who composed these excellent pieces and a link, but no luck

Cyxeris · Joined: Oct 30, 2003 Posts: 1125 Location: Louisville, KY

Yes, Blade Runners' was delicious. Vangelis, also responsible for Chariots of Fire and 1492. Several of his pieces were also featured in Sagan's Cosmos.

Cyxeris · Joined: Oct 30, 2003 Posts: 1125 Location: Louisville, KY

Another piece which really stunned me when it came out as I had never heard anything like it before (and as a child, probably did more to shape my musical sensabilities than anything else) was Harold Faltermeyer's "Axel F" from Beverly Hills Cop. I remember being shocked by the cool futuristic nature of it, and thereafter, I was a synthesizer man.

Incidentally, H. Faltermeyer (with Stevie Stevens on guitar) was responsible for the memorable intro theme to Top Gun and for the music in Fletch.

I think Vangelis was at least partially responsible for the proliferation of synthesizer "scores" in the 80's, some good some bad. You had H. Faltermeyer of course, you had Vince DiCola (Rocky IV and The Transformers Movie), you had Tangerine Dream's score in the States' release of Legend, you had Vision Quest, Alan Silvestri's oh so Synclavier score from Flight of the Navigator, and so on. I think the sound of these were more influential to me than I tend to give them credit for.

mosc · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2004 8:11 pm Post subject:

Pi The Movie http://www.pithemovie.com/ had a great score by many electro-musicians. If you haven't seen this one, I highly recommend you rent or buy this. This is a brilliant work.

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cloudscapes · Joined: Feb 09, 2004 Posts: 100 Location: Montreal

I know which BHC song you're talking about Cyxeris. I haven't heard it in years, but when you mentioned it just now it immidiatelly popped back in mind! And once it's there, it's easy to have it stuck on your brain for the rest of the day. Razz

Pi has an excellent soundtrack I agree! Isn't Aphex Twin's Come To Daddy tracks in there somewhere? (I don't have the soundtrack, just the movie, and it's been a while). Love that track! Pi is a brilliant brilliant film, far better than the more "mainstream" Requiem For a Dream (by the same director) in my humble opinion. But this one also had a great soundtrack.

Cyxeris · Joined: Oct 30, 2003 Posts: 1125 Location: Louisville, KY

It's funny you mention Pi, as my copy has been making the rounds at my workplace for a month now. I think it is now in the hands of either the 9th or 10th borrower. It's amazing how few "movie buffs" have seen it.

"The number is nothing. It's the meaning, the syntax. It's what's between the numbers."

When I get this CD done and realize how pointless and disappointing the whole thing will have turned out to be, I'm going to drill the side of my brain out too!

Another film with an interesting electronic music score was "Lightyears." Have any of you seen that?

themoors · Joined: Dec 15, 2003 Posts: 148 Location: northern england

ill have to look out for that one bucephalus boncing ball is one of my favourite tracks of all time, at the moment.... going off topic for a second... on the smartelctronix site there is a plugin designed specifically to recreate that boncing ball delay effect....

play · Posted: Thu Mar 11, 2004 2:30 pm Post subject:

I started another thread about that particular effect:
http://electro-music.com/forum/topic-1596.html

Kruge · Posted: Sat Mar 13, 2004 3:40 pm Post subject:

Aaaah - movie Soundtracks!

That's just the subject for a couch potato like me! Ok, some of my favourites (in no order):

Babylon 5 - Christopher Franke *THE* best TV soundtrack.

PI-Clint Mansell and others

Mononoke Hime - One of th best Animees out there up to now

Ghost in the Shell - Ditto

Lord of the Rings - just beautifull

Lexx the Dark Zone - Another fine piece of TV entertainment & music

Macross Plus - And another fine Anime.

themoors · Joined: Dec 15, 2003 Posts: 148 Location: northern england

Twin peaks had a wonderful theme song, though i cant remeber who it was by, I love david lynch's films...lost highway was another one with a great score...

themoors · Joined: Dec 15, 2003 Posts: 148 Location: northern england

oh, and escape from new york...another great synth based score and a lot of the early david cronenberg films were all very synthy..

Kruge · Posted: Sun Mar 14, 2004 1:38 am Post subject:

Escape from New York - Aaaah, the old Carpenter Soundtracks.... Smile

Even though he himself claims that he doesn't know too much about music at all I belivee that John Carpenter's minimalistic electronic soundtracks (The FOG, Halloween, The Thing and others) are amongst the best.

Maybe the reason for this IS the fact that he isn't a great musician but simply someone who wants great atmospheric music with his horror movies... Smile

He doesn't think about it or plan it but simply DOES it. Wink

play · Posted: Sun Mar 14, 2004 3:15 am Post subject:

don't forget the amazing soundtracks of the Dario Argento films, particularly suspiria which has got be the most beautiful horror film ever made, imo.