Your ability to explore the emotional impact of film scores shines brilliantly in this piece. The description of Zimmer’s Dunkirk as “a ticking timebomb of a score” captures how deeply we all connect to movie music. An excellent piece this.
Nice picks! I always think of the commercial best sellers of pop culture soundtracks (Grease, Saturday Night Fever, Pulp Fiction). But I tend forget the instrumentals, one being Star Wars. Talk about music that defined a genre and a generation and many more to come. And then there is the darker side of cinema with the Boogie Nights soundtrack. My husband and I rattle off quotes every time we hear a song from that flick. Fun read!!
This was fantastic Matt! I’ve gone back and read the first film score article and the soundtrack article and thoroughly enjoyed both. Sometimes it’s easy to take for granted just how good a film score can be, and how important it can be to the film. Such an art, not just musically (of course), but also in tying in with the visuals alongside what’s happening in the film.
A couple other beautiful scores that come to mind:
- Alan Silvestri - Forrest Gump
- Alberto Iglesias - The Constant Gardener
I also thought Dario Marianelli’s score for V For Vendetta was brilliant. And having the Julie London and Cat Power tracks on the soundtrack didn’t hurt either!
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the fine work done on the Harry Potter scores by John Williams, Patrick Doyle, Nicholas Hooper and Alexandre Desplat.
Atonement and any of Marionelli’s work, really, I come back to often! His use of practical sounds (typewriters) shows up often especially in my favorite of his “Anna Karenina”
Your ability to explore the emotional impact of film scores shines brilliantly in this piece. The description of Zimmer’s Dunkirk as “a ticking timebomb of a score” captures how deeply we all connect to movie music. An excellent piece this.
Thanks Jon!
Nice picks! I always think of the commercial best sellers of pop culture soundtracks (Grease, Saturday Night Fever, Pulp Fiction). But I tend forget the instrumentals, one being Star Wars. Talk about music that defined a genre and a generation and many more to come. And then there is the darker side of cinema with the Boogie Nights soundtrack. My husband and I rattle off quotes every time we hear a song from that flick. Fun read!!
Thanks for reading and commenting Thea! Man, Boogie Nights is so good. It’s been forever since I’ve seen it.
This was fantastic Matt! I’ve gone back and read the first film score article and the soundtrack article and thoroughly enjoyed both. Sometimes it’s easy to take for granted just how good a film score can be, and how important it can be to the film. Such an art, not just musically (of course), but also in tying in with the visuals alongside what’s happening in the film.
A couple other beautiful scores that come to mind:
- Alan Silvestri - Forrest Gump
- Alberto Iglesias - The Constant Gardener
I also thought Dario Marianelli’s score for V For Vendetta was brilliant. And having the Julie London and Cat Power tracks on the soundtrack didn’t hurt either!
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the fine work done on the Harry Potter scores by John Williams, Patrick Doyle, Nicholas Hooper and Alexandre Desplat.
Great recommendations Mark! Thanks for reading :) We may be halfway to a Part III post already haha
Atonement and any of Marionelli’s work, really, I come back to often! His use of practical sounds (typewriters) shows up often especially in my favorite of his “Anna Karenina”