By soundtrack, I mean both score and song. I’m excluding musicals for obvious reasons. John Williams is overrated crap. Enjoy. L’Atalante (1934) – The greatest score of French composer Maurice Jaubert. Covers only around five minutes of screen time, but perfect. Casablanca (1943) – Famous for it’s use of songs, like “As Time Goes By” and “La Marseillaise,” but the score is Max Steiner’s best. Vertigo (1957) – Bernard Herrmann’s masterpiece. Casino (1995) – Scorsese mixes period rock and blues with bits of scores from French new wave films and classical composers. A masterpiece of fusion. The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1987) – The entire score was culled from the works of Leos Janacek. You would swear Janacek scored the film himself if he hadn’t died 60 years earlier. Jules et Jim (1961) – Georges Delerue’s masterpiece. And the French hippy folk songs mixed in actually work. Happy Together (1997) – Maybe the oddest score ever; a Hong Kong film that mixes Piazolla tangos with Zappa guitar rifts and, of course, The Turtles. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) – It was the first movie to use a jazz score, and it’s still the best. 3:10 to Yuma (1957) – One the Western’s most underrated entries also contains its best score.
Conan the Barbarian -- People rip on this score because it is so reminiscent of other, more legitimate classical/choral music, but I don't care. I love this CD, and I evangalize every chance I get.
Touch of Evil -- Mancini at his finest. In the Mood for Love -- yet another Wong Kar-Wai. Beautiful, simple string score with great Nat Cole songs intermixed. Ocean's Eleven -- Master mixer and dj David Holmes uses some of his best grooves for this film and also creates some new ones. He also uses great gems from Percy Faith, Perry Como and Elvis Presley (remember that World Cup Nike commercial? Guess who picked up on that Elvis song first?)
She's Gotta Have It - Bill Lee (film d. Spike Lee) Spectacular in and of itself. Lucious jazz, covering ground from club jazz rave up to gospel style piano exit with the only downside being the one vocal track (which to be honest I've gotten used to. "A Thought" is one of my favorite tunes ever. Repo Man - various (d. Alex Cox) C'mon man, what a great collection of classic American punk. This movie should be "the Big Chill" for my peer group. Ainda - Madredeus (d. Wim Wenders) This was the soundtrack to Wenders "Lisbon Story". While I'll accept a lot of criticism about the movie (though I do like it), the ethreal and Fado inspired music from the Portuguese luminaries is undeniably beautiful. Be warned some of the later Madredeus recordings are not nearly as good (basically when the Violoncello player leaves the band).
--My absolute favorite score and soundtrack would have to be what Zbigniew Preisner did for Kieslowski’s Red. The whole trilogy has lovely Preisner music, but Red is just really haunting and beautiful. I have actually dreamt of this soundtrack. --I also have to add Purple Rain. I’m sorry but classic Prince. I love the whole album, start to finish. --As for new soundtracks, fully digging Lost in Translation. Kevin Shields! --And, in the cheese category: classic Queen. Flash Gordon. I have the LP. It rocks.
For recent stuff, I love Fight Club (1999) score by Dust Brothers and that Pixies song at the end The Virgin Suicides (2000) score by Air and the 70's-ish soundtrack And no love for Superfly?
Preisner is almost as good as Van Budenmayer Yes, I was definitely going to put this one up there (along with Blue and White, as well - the scores are SO important to each of the movies of the trilogy). A Polish friend of mine had a CD of a Preisner concert that took place in some underground salt mine/concert hall, which also included music from La Double Vie... that was pretty spectacular. I'll have to hunt it down, now that I'm thinking about it. And while it's great that Preisner probably got a fat royalty check, I guess it's a bit sad those most people will think of the music from Red as music from an airline commercial. The score from The Last Of The Mohicans is as good as it gets for me, as far as 90's Hollywood blockbusters go. The soundtrack from Velvet Goldmine has simply got to be the greatest glam rock album never made. As I said before, Placebo (who I really wasn't much of a fan of) rocks 20th Century Boy harder than Marc Bolan going into a tree on Barnes Common. That said, the soundtrack from Wim Wenders' Until The End Of The World is, for my money, the hippest soundtrack ever made.
> John Williams is overrated crap. That doesn't mean the soundtrack to Star Wars wasn't perfect for the movie, and a big reason for it's success.
reservoir dogs had a nice soundrack. can only think of stuck in the middle with you and little green bag that were on it, but those two are cool songs, gotta love it.
Wong Kar Wai certainly does good soundtracks. Then there's music which has become identified with a movie, such as 2001 or Apocalypse Now. Speaking of John Williams, that triplet heralding the entry of Darth Vader is very effective. Overused: Carmina Burana
Give some love to: Grosse Point Blank - Clash, Violent Femmes, fun! Say Anything - Yeah, I know, In Your Eyes, blah, blah, blah. Tons of better songs on this soundtrack - "Skankin' To The Beat" by Fishbone, "Taste The Pain" by RHCP, live version of "Stripped" by Depeche Mode. Athens Ga Inside Out - So who cares that it's a soundtrack for a documentary about the Athens music scene in the 80s. High Fidelity - Good mix of sad bastard music with other juicy stuff. "Who Loves The Sun"? I do, Lou!
For an Honorable mention might I suggest "Committed". I enjoyed the movie. Also did with the soundtrack, which features the music of Calexico.
The soundtrack to "Club Paradise" is good. That cheesy island comedy with Robin Williams, Jimmy Cliff and the cast of SCTV. Has a Jimmy Cliff duet with Elvis Costello and lots of fun reggae tunes.
I'm a big fan of the Requiem for a Dream score, but I, admittedly, don't know anything about that topic really. Which makes this a perfect Bigsoccer post if you think about it.
Two Terrence Malick entries -- Days of HEaven, the the piano-lullaby score of which has a habit of showing up in everything, and Thin Red Line, because teh music is so integrated into the film. I once watched the film on commercial television with the commercial breaks. It was awful to watch on the small screen not only because of the usual smallness of the picture but also because it ruined the flow of the music. Pi has a Massive Attack score if I remember correctly. Bottle ROcket, because the integration of the song when Luke WIlson charges back to the hotel is so vivid and perfectly fitted to the scene. If yoiu've seen it on a big screen, you know what I mean.The Rolling Stones "2000 Man" is perfect for the close, too. Rushmore is pretty darn good, too. One of the best scores of late was frequent Soderbergh collaborator Cliff Martinez's score for Solaris. Terrific. Hypnotic. The Thin Blue Line, scored by Philip Glass.
I agree 100 percent. The rest of the music isn't bad either -- though that song is perfectly suited for its spot in the film -- I bought the soundtrack even though the Stones tune isn't on the CD. They do something very similar in "Royal Tenanbaums" with "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" as well. I think the music in "Donnie Darko" is great...but they don't take all those songs by Tears for Fears, Echo, etc. and put them on the CD either. The only thing that's there is the cover of "Mad World" that's heard at the end of the movie/closing credits. Others that are very good: "Crooklyn" -- 2 Cds full of great late 60s/early 70s stuff. "City of God" -- fantastic Brazilian music and the stuff they use in the movie and leave off the CD might be better. "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" -- if only for that one hit wonder, The Ravens, with "Raised on Radio", even though there's also some very good and appropriate uses of Jackson Browne, Joe Jackson and Stevie Nicks in there.
How in the world could I forget the soundtrack to Pretty In Pink?? Forget the fact that it has quality early REM and Smiths, it's also got one of my favorite 80's tunes, period - that's OMD's 'If You Leave', of course.
"Rude Boy" - The Clash. Kind of a concert movie/documentary/drama rolled into one. A cool concept with some great live Clash performances. "Trainspotting" soundtrack.
I don't buy many "scored" soundtracks, but two do own and listen to are Henry V and The Man From Snowy River. I also recently saw Smoke Signals again, and it reminded me I wanted to pick up that soundtrack. Anyone have it? Or how bout Monsoon Wedding? I remember liking the music during the film.
Gladiator fit the movie really well I personally really like the soundtracks to the latest two Wes Anderson Movies both done by Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo. 2001 kicked with a tasty grove. Williams is good at borrowing themes from other classical composers.
The Pi score was done by Clint Mansell, formerly of Pop Will Eat Itself. And I can't stand John Williams. Although it is remarkable how the man could make an entire career out of writing variations on Holst themes.