Comments on: Unce unce bleep - "say what again"

Question: Unce unce bleep - "say what again"

rocco — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:34:35 -0800

Which movies have an electronic music soundtrack?

I get the impression that electronic music doesn't sit too well in movies. With the exception of actual club scenes (Babel, IAG Pete Tong) techno, breaks, drum & bass don't often get a look in.

So, which movies use electronic music extensively or appropriately?

THANKS for any suggestions....

By: jeb

jeb — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:39:49 -0800

Run lola run

By: MagicalHypotenuse

MagicalHypotenuse — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:47:43 -0800

Giorgio Moroder did a few, including Midnight Express and Cat People.

Thomas Bangalter (of Daft Punk) did the soundtrack for Irreversible.

Trainspotting features quite a bit of electronica.

By: Fiasco da Gama

Fiasco da Gama — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:49:50 -0800

Early electronic music: Chariots of Fire.

By: UnnotciedTypo

UnnotciedTypo — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:50:41 -0800

Kontroll.
A really unique Hungarian film with an excellent electronic soundtrack. Definitely worth checking out if you haven't seen it.

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:52:17 -0800

Blade Runner, and any other Vangelis-tracked film.
Aronofsky's Pi.

By: carsonb

carsonb — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:52:23 -0800

Pi

Clint Mansell has had a lot of work since 1998.

By: Chocolate Pickle

Chocolate Pickle — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:53:57 -0800

Tron

Logan's Run

By: spiderskull

spiderskull — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:55:16 -0800

The Matrix had a predominantly electronic soundtrack.

By: MagicalHypotenuse

MagicalHypotenuse — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:55:46 -0800

A bunch of the John Carpenter movies prominently feature electronic music too.

Tangerine Dream.

By: Salvor Hardin

Salvor Hardin — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:56:59 -0800

The Matrix (& sequels).

I think a lot of action (especially sci fi action) movies feature techno/electronica in their soundtracks.

By: spiderskull

spiderskull — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:01:57 -0800

The movie London was done by the Crystal Method. Which also reminds me, The Replacement Killers' soundtrack also had a lot of big beat stuff (including Crystal Method).

By: Mr Mister

Mr Mister — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:02:46 -0800

Memento features a nice synth score.

By: plasticbugs

plasticbugs — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:03:40 -0800

Not quite electronic (as the instrument used analog tapes), but Walter/Wendy Carlos used the Moog Synthesiser to create all the music in A Clockwork Orange.

By: Rash

Rash — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:04:29 -0800

A Clockwork Orange, of course. Also, from the same period, the Andromeda Strain. And from the 1950s, Forbidden Planet.

By: csimpkins

csimpkins — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:06:27 -0800

Sean of the Dead... maybe.

By: cowbellemoo

cowbellemoo — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:07:15 -0800

Danny the Dog (Unleashed) - Scored by Massive Attack

"electronic" is a pretty broad term, too. The old Dawn of the Dead and other horror movies were scored with ~~spooky~~ cheesy synth work. Or movies with soft ambient soundtracks like Lost in Translation might also be called 'electronic.'

By: cimbrog

cimbrog — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:08:44 -0800

Forbidden Planet was the first movie to have an electronic soundtrack, though it may not be the kind of electronic you are looking for...

By: cowbellemoo

cowbellemoo — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:10:03 -0800

oh, and Hackers

By: box

box — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:13:09 -0800

Plenty of electronic music on the soundtrack to Go (and in some crappier rave-ish movies from the same era, but I can't think of their titles), and in documentaries like Modulations and Better Living Through Circuitry. DJ Shadow did the score to Dark Days, and sometime-MF-Doom-associate Ray Davis did On the Ropes--those two aren't about music, though.

By: UnnotciedTypo

UnnotciedTypo — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:13:20 -0800

Also, Monster has a great score by BT.

And if more ambient electronic stuff is admissible, the following are great:
Solaris (2002)
Donnie Darko
Me, You, and Everyone We Know
Sunshine

By: sonic meat machine

sonic meat machine — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:14:34 -0800

Tarkovsky's Stalker. An example. Another. (This is one of my favorite movies.)

By: aubilenon

aubilenon — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:16:39 -0800

Fight Club
Traffic has some electronic music too.

By: jeb

jeb — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:24:42 -0800

IIRC most of the soundtrack to the movie Risky Business is electronic...sounds like Tangerine Dream. But maybe that's just the train scene? Haven't seen it in a while.

By: Xere

Xere — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:25:51 -0800

The French soundtrack to March of the Penguins.

By: pompomtom

pompomtom — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:27:48 -0800

Human Traffic

By: dbiedny

dbiedny — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:35:45 -0800

plasticbugs, the Moog Modular synthesizer used by Carlos didn't have any kind of tape component, it's analog electronic circuitry through and through. And while most of the original scored music in Clockwork Orange, there is also a good amount of non-electronic music as well.

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:36:28 -0800

The Exorcist, in the sense that much of it is the synthesized "Tubular Bells," but that's electronic music, not electronica.

By: cowbellemoo

cowbellemoo — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:39:12 -0800

Oooh! I love you Xere, I had no idea a separate score existed, let alone by Emile Simon!

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:41:42 -0800

Oh, wait. It turns out the original Tubular Bells apparently isn't synthesized. Dipshit ROU is dipshit.

By: SNACKeR

SNACKeR — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:50:03 -0800

The Legend Of Hell House (1973), soundtrack by Delia Derbyshire and Brian Hodgson.

By: burntflowers

burntflowers — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 20:03:06 -0800

Ladyhawke uses electronic music extensively, but it's hardly appropriate.

You probably wouldn't want to listen to it. It's terrible mid-80's synth music.

By: piratebowling

piratebowling — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 20:07:19 -0800

The Warriors uses it for the score. Actual songs showing up are a mix of disco and pop.

By: kepano

kepano — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 20:19:09 -0800

Off the top of my head:

The Virgin Suicides soundtrack by Air.
Steak by Mr Oizo, Sébastien Tellier, SebastiAn and Kavinsky.
Snatch also featured a few (e.g. Mirwais)

By: awfurby

awfurby — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 21:18:36 -0800

2010 - it was quite good too.

Escape From New York - I only know the opening track, which is great.

By: elendil71

elendil71 — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 21:28:29 -0800

Electric Dreams - neat little flick and lots of electronic music, which is kind of the focus.

By: plasticbugs

plasticbugs — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 21:54:58 -0800

I stand corrected. Thanks for the additional info, @dbiedny. I'm also going to throw Godfrey Reggio's Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqatsi and Naqoyqatsi all scored by Philip Glass into the mix. They all included traditional instruments, but synthesized music was a dominating part of all three.

By: cinemafiend

cinemafiend — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 22:48:11 -0800

Sorcerer has a bumping soundtrack by Tangerine Dream. The film is a remake of the classicWAGES OF FEAR and is set in the mountains and jungles of South America.

Also, Goblin's score for the supernatural horror film SUSPIRIA is almost entirely electronic...

By: rocco

rocco — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 22:56:29 -0800

WOW That's a lot of replies. You guys rock. Thank you.

By: scose

scose — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 23:03:05 -0800

Scarface!

By: shadow vector

shadow vector — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 23:52:27 -0800

Any of the stuff scored by Harold Faltermeyer.

By: BAKERSFIELD!

BAKERSFIELD! — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 01:15:46 -0800

Boards of Canada in Morvern Callar
Dust Brothers in Fight Club

Very pop driven but The Saint and The Beach had electonica tracks

The Diva soundtrack also had some early electronica.

By: shortfuse

shortfuse — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 02:37:46 -0800

Plaid worked on Tekkon Kinkreet. There's a remix compilation of the soundtrack album too.

Orbital worked on Event Horizon.

It might not fit what you're looking for, but I remember Michael Mann's Heat had some scenes with an electronic music backing - such as the last robbery / street battle scene, I think.

By: hnnrs

hnnrs — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 03:31:24 -0800

Both Collateral and The Bourne Identity use Paul Oakenfold's Ready Steady Go on their soundtracks.

And the film Go has a great electronic soundtrack by BT.

And if you're into Daft Punk, it's worth checking out Electroma, the film they made in 2006. It doesn't feature any of their music, but it's pretty much a silent film scored with music from artists they like.

By: tiny crocodile

tiny crocodile — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 04:23:57 -0800

Phillip Glass' score for Candyman has a strong electronic element too, albeit mixed with choirs and other organic stuff.

By: Dr. Wu

Dr. Wu — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 05:50:41 -0800

Don't forget Tangerine Dream's score for the underappreciated Michael Mann film THIEF.

By: spamguy

spamguy — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 06:28:07 -0800

Gallipoli. And it didn't improve the movie any; laser sound effects during Mel Gibson's running scenes made the 20th Century History class I was in burst into laughter.

By: opsin

opsin — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 08:08:13 -0800

No one seems to have mentioned The Thing, for which Ennio Morricone did an entirely electronic score. The other I was going to mention was Suspiria, but I was beaten to it.

By: elmono

elmono — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 08:41:08 -0800

Tangerine Dream scored Risky Business. It's a classic!

By: media_itoku

media_itoku — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 09:46:02 -0800

Air did the soundtracks for Code 46 and The Virgin Suicides.

By: xbonesgt

xbonesgt — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 12:07:18 -0800

It wasn't a very good movie, but One Perfect Day had a lot of excellent electronic music in it.

By: Gor-ella

Gor-ella — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 12:29:44 -0800

Hackers

By: Rash

Rash — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 14:25:16 -0800

Tangerine Dream scored "Risky Business"

as well as the underappreciated Miracle Mile.

as well as any other Vangelis-tracked film.

You can add his Bounty to the list of films with inappropriately electronic music soundtracks.

And how about Buckaroo Banzai? No soundtrack ever released, but count me among those who've dubbed the closing credits theme onto an archival cassette tape.

By: kalapierson

kalapierson — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 12:13:57 -0800

Strong second for Run Lola Run, which is almost like an extended music video for a long, graceful album's worth of electronica (and the music is by the director, for an extra bonus of interest there).

Weird to see the multiple mentions of the Matrix movies. They have very traditional orchestral scores. As far as I recall, the only pure electronica in them is (just as the OP mentions) in the club scenes and in the underground dance party in the second movie. Some of the fight scenes (especially the first fight among Neo and all the Agent Smiths in the second movie) interestingly mix electronic beats with the more typical early-20th-century orchestral language that makes up most of the rest of their scores.