The next five film scores on my Top 50 countdown were all in a three-year period, except one from the 1980s. Ranging from depressing to inspiring, these beautiful scores complement their respective movies and are equally enjoyable as easy listening. Again, these are background scores composed for each film, not collected soundtracks of individual songs. That’s another list and shall be told another time. Enjoy!

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#40:  Backdraft (1991), no nomination – Hans Zimmer

To accompany Ron Howard’s action film about heroic firemen, Hans Zimmer delivered a score that just screams heroism. With military-ish background drums and an occasional soothing choir, the music for Backdraft might have been equally at home in a war movie. Here it was another early step on Zimmer’s rise to film music stardom. Even the cooking competition Iron Chef recognized the score’s noble presence and appropriated its theme for the Japanese show.

#39:  Schindler’s List (1993), Oscar winner – John Williams

I’ll be honest here: I haven’t yet been able to bring myself to watch Schindler’s List. My VC saw the first part of it and couldn’t continue because she found it too disturbing, which is exactly what the Holocaust was. John Williams’ score, though, has a heartrending power whether you’ve seen it or not. Itzhak Perlman’s violin is as stark as a raw nerve, drawing praising adjectives like “haunting,” “sublime,” and above all profoundly “sad.” Even without the film’s images, that violin makes me want to cry.

Warning for some violence and disturbing images (not the worst of it, though):

#38:  The Terminator (1984), no nomination – Brad Fiedel

Foreboding yet subtly action-oriented, Brad Fiedel’s synthesized score really sets the tone for this classic sci-fi thriller. It’s a repetitive, slowly swelling score akin to John Carpenter’s music, and it’s hard to imagine the Terminator films without it. Evoking both the desolation of the future and the mechanical danger of the present, the first film’s soundtrack is simple but hard to top, so good luck to Lorne Balfe, who will be scoring next month’s Terminator Genisys.

Warning for one bloody slide:

#37:  Rudy (1993), no nomination – Jerry Goldsmith

After succeeding with the Oscar-nominated score for Hoosiers, Jerry Goldsmith re-teamed with the same director and writer for Rudy, one of the greatest and most satisfying underdog stories ever, whether you like football or not. While this one didn’t get a nomination, the music became another favorite for movie trailers. Ebullient as Rudy’s gridiron aspirations, this score is as uplifting as they come. Yes, hobbits can play football too.

#36:  The Last of the Mohicans (1992), no nomination – Trevor Jones/Randy Edelman

While I can’t say I enjoyed the overall film, the music for this adaptation of James Fenimore Cooper’s most famous work is surprisingly exceptional, considering the headaches that apparently plagued the score’s production. “Promontory” is my favorite track, even though it accompanies the most tragic scene. Properly grand and intrepid, this Celtic-infused musical beauty might have won an Oscar, but its dual composers supposedly made it ineligible. Those darn Academy rules!

To continue counting down my top 50 musical scores, here are the next five, some of which might not show up on other people’s lists of favorites since none were even nominated for Best Score. Again, these are exceptional soundtracks that I enjoy listening to. I love pop, classical, country, electronic, alternative rock, and even a little hard rock every now and then, but for magnificent background music, nothing beats movie music, whether it’s the background for some mundane activity or a favorite film. Enjoy!

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#45:  Glory (1989), no Oscar nomination – James Horner

Befitting the film’s title, the score combines military-style drums with the Boys Choir of Harlem to evoke the heroism and the sad eminence of soldiers marching into deadly battle. One section of the music sounds suspiciously like Horner’s later theme for The Pagemaster, but it’s so lovely that it’s hard to fault him. The 54^th Massachusetts Regiment deserved a moving tribute, and both the film and its music delivered just that.

#44:  Requiem for a Dream (2000), no nomination – Clint Mansell

From what I’ve heard and seen, I have no desire to see Darren Aronofsky’s acclaimed study of addiction, which has been labelled the most depressing film ever made. Yet, despite its subject matter, its slow-burn score with those grating violins is surprisingly…um… addictive. Its centerpiece “Lux Aeterna” has been used in multiple movie trailers and with good reason. You could set any film’s best scenes to this song and make it look positively epic. Even more awesome is the remix created for a trailer for The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, known as “Requiem for a Tower,” which illustrates my point in the following video. Can you handle the epicness? (Yes, that’s a word…now.)

Mild violence warning, though nothing graphic:

#43:  Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007), no nomination – Craig Armstrong and A.R. Rahman

I can’t speak to the quality of this sequel to 1998’s Elizabeth since I have yet to see it, though it’s reportedly poorly written and anti-Catholic, but I was easily impressed by the grandeur of its music. You might recognize the best track, “Storm,” from one of the trailers for Man of Steel. It’s another one of those spectacular songs that adds awe to imagery like spice to chili. As you can tell, I’m drawn to music that creates a sense of wonder and majesty… oh, and I like chili too.

#42: Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993), no nomination – Bruce Broughton

This is one soundtrack that is near and dear to my heart, since this film was a memorable piece of my childhood. To provide the score for Disney’s remake of 1963’s The Incredible Journey, Bruce Broughton was brought on and gave Shadow, Chance, and Sassy some inspiring travel music. Lighthearted but motivational, the music spurs the listener to explore what might be over the next hill.

The video shows the film’s ending, so spoiler warning for some and nostalgia warning for others:

#41: Ruby Sparks (2012), no nomination – Nick Urata

This was somewhat of a last-minute entry, and as such, I must apologize to my VC for the elimination of one of her favorite scores (The Horse Whisperer). When I saw this film just recently, the charming score immediately grabbed my attention and never left my mind. It may not fit into the epic mold that many of my other choices do, but I’ve found some quite inspiring writing music, thanks to Nick Urata of the quartet DeVotchKa, who provided the score for the directors’ previous film Little Miss Sunshine. The track “She’s Real” (the last in the video) is my favorite, one of those lovely, repetitive songs that easily gets stuck in my head, like The Verve’s “Bitter Sweet Symphony.” For me, it was the best part of the movie.

From the very beginning of this blog, I stated my love for both films and lists, but I’ve only compiled one list, the list. I thought it was time I expand with some others, so I compulsively compiled a compilation of my favorite film scores. A great score can add so much to a movie, increasing tension or emotion or just sheer enjoyment of the overall product. There’s no shortage of excellent scores from many talented composers. Heck, even recent movie trailers have produced some awesome music, thanks to groups like Two Steps from Hell. As a movie music enthusiast, I found culling my favorites to even fifty far from easy.
At first, I thought I would just post the full list, but for anyone who wants to actually listen to my choices, that might be daunting, since my example videos range between two and twenty minutes. Thus, to add some mystery, I’ll be breaking up the list into weekly posts of five at a time. You could settle down for some listening pleasure with the slideshows and clips (where I could find them), or do what I do and absorb them as inspiring background music, such as for writing.
I should be clear that these are my personal favorites, the scores I enjoy listening to even by themselves. There are many iconic ones that complement their respective films well but aren’t quite as enjoyable on their own (Psycho, The Godfather, Jaws, etc.). Also, I’m excluding movie musicals, since their scores often draw from the songs, so sorry to Les Miserables, Evita, and most of the Disney classics (though I was tempted to allow an exception for The Lion King). Also disqualified are scores built around previously created music, so favorites like The Right Stuff, Somewhere in Time, Babe, and 2001: A Space Odyssey are no-goes. Thus, here is part 1 of my top 50 movie scores. Let me know what you think of the choices.

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#50: Batman (1989), no Oscar nomination – Danny Elfman / The Dark Knight trilogy, no nominations – Hans Zimmer/James Newton Howard (just Zimmer for the third)
For my first film of my top 50, I’ve decided to cheat and combine two scores from similar films that are just too close in my appreciation. Danny Elfman’s perfect Batman music for Tim Burton’s first film of the franchise captured the allure of a dark comic book and continued to live on in the opening theme of Batman: The Animated Series. On the other hand, Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy required a bigger, brassier score to match the higher stakes of each film. Hans Zimmer (and Howard) combined brooding violins with a breakneck beat to provide thrilling background music. Batman Begins probably has the best score of the three, IMO.

#49: Sunshine (2007), no nomination – John Murphy
To load pathos to a doomed mission to the sun, John Murphy collaborated with electronic band Underworld. The score for Danny Boyle’s Sunshine is hit-and-miss as far as aural beauty, but “Adagio in D Minor” is the standout piece. It might remind you of Hans Zimmer’s work, such as for Interstellar, but this track reaches for deep emotions and gets them every time.

#48: Hoosiers (1986), Oscar nominee – Jerry Goldsmith
To accompany Gene Hackman’s no-nonsense training of a rural Indiana basketball team, musical master Jerry Goldsmith created this winning soundtrack. At times, it basks in pastoral tranquility, but when the film hits the court, the music gains a zeal to match. I’m not partial to basketball, but the energy of the score is more than enough to get even non-fans like me excited. Go, Hickory!

#47: Gladiator (2000), Oscar nominee – Hans Zimmer/Lisa Gerrard
While some of the music doesn’t really complement gladiatorial games and fights to the death, the score for Ridley Scott’s Oscar-winning epic is properly epic in its own right. Being a fan of Enya, my favorite tracks feature the soothing vocals of similar artist Lisa Gerrard. “Now We Are Free” in particular carries an effective ethnic beauty, sung in some truly elegant gibberish. Slight violence warning for this video:

#46: Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), Oscar nominee – Jerry Goldsmith / Star Trek (2009), no nomination – Michael Giacchino
That’s right, I’m cheating again, but it’s my list. I couldn’t pick between these Trek favorites. The first Star Trek film was certainly a letdown for both fans and critics, with glacial pacing and a serious lack of story, but its score is hailed as one of Jerry Goldsmith’s finest works. Recycled as the theme for Star Trek: The Next Generation, Goldsmith’s music took full advantage of the brass and string sections to deliver space opera chills that the movie could not. Much more recently, Michael Giacchino did the same with J.J. Abrams’ bold reboot, just with much more bombast and grandeur to match the new film. Listen to both and tell me that’s not a hard choice.