Favorite Movie Soundtrack / Score?

[Mannahnin]

Oh, on the subject of movie soundtracks, the one that stands above them all for me is High Fidelity.

That soundtrack had to nail the characterization of a group of kinda snobbish / eclectic music fans while still being filled with fantastic songs that fit the tone of the movie, and it delivered in spades.

Gordon and Cusack did a nice job with that.

Anne and Nancy Wilson have done amazing work for Cameron Crowe's soundtracks.

Randall Poster does awesome work finding perfect music for Wes Anderson's movies. I have repeatedly remarked on how a lot of the songs aren't ones I find all that compelling out of context, but they're so frequently PERFECT for the scene.

 

[payn]

Bladerunner - Vangelis

 

[billd91]

Oh, on the subject of movie soundtracks, the one that stands above them all for me is High Fidelity.

That soundtrack had to nail the characterization of a group of kinda snobbish / eclectic music fans while still being filled with fantastic songs that fit the tone of the movie, and it delivered in spades.

Grosse Pointe Blank is also an excellent movie soundtrack.
But my favorite soundtrack, as far as being evocative without being a movie score, is probably from The Crow.

 

[Mannahnin]

Grosse Pointe Blank is also an excellent movie soundtrack.
But my favorite soundtrack, as far as being evocative without being a movie score, is probably from The Crow.

Yup. The Crow is right up there with Singles among the greatest movie soundtracks of all time, and Grosse Pointe Blank is very, very good.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

Conan the Barbarian
Blade Runner
Fellowship of the Ring
The Crow

Probably in that order. No surprise that there's massive crossover between my favorite movies and favorite soundtracks. I think part of it is that if you were to remove all dialog (and in Conan's case, there's not much to excise) and rely solely on the music and visuals for these movies, you'd be able to understand the emotions and story using just that.

 

[Theory of Games]

Everything by John Williams. He's the master of motion-picture music

 

[VashVet]

Everything by John Williams. He's the master of motion-picture music

The guy really is kind of a cheat code when it comes to these lists. He’s such a foregone conclusion.

“Oh, I like John Williams.”

“Well OBVIOUSLY John Williams’ stuff!”

 

[agrayday]

So many i think are great:

0) The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) Composed by Ennio Morricone.
1) Elevator to the Gallows: (1958) Composed and entirely improvised live over film loops by Miles Davis.
2) Sorcerer: (1977) Tangerine Dream.
3) Naked Lunch: (1991): A collaboration between Howard Shore and Ornette Coleman.
4) Cowboy Bebop: (1998) Yoko Kanno.
5) Blade Runner: (1982): Composed, arranged, and performed by Vangelis.
6) Twin Peaks Fire Walk with Me (1992): Angelo Badalamenti.
7) Angel Heart (1987): Trevor Jones / Courtney Pine.
8) Repo Man (1984): Alex Cox and Sanford Santacroce, Iggy Pop.
9) Ghost in the Shell (1995): by Kenji Kawai

Fun factoid: The best-selling and most popular movie soundtrack in cinema history is The Bodyguard (1992). Driven by the towering star power of Whitney Houston, the album has sold between 45 million and 50 million copies worldwide, earning a permanent spot in the Guinness Book of World Records.

 

[MarkB]

One I haven't seen mentioned yet, but which is iconic and transformative to the movie itself is Queen's soundtrack for Flash Gordon. I'm not sure it ranks up there as one of the best, but as a big Queen fan it's always been a favourite of mine.

 

[Vael]

TRON: Legacy by Daft Punk, and it's not particularly close. "Derezzed" is a staple of my workout / get pumped up playlist, it's a soundtrack I'll just listen to.