Comments on: Instrumetal Breakdown

Question: Instrumetal Breakdown

Christ, what an asshole — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:26:19 -0800

What are the best cinematic movie soundtracks you've ever heard?

Specifically, cinematic soundscapes that are woven into the fiber of a film to capture the atmosphere, tension, and emotion of the scenes. Movies like Crash, Special, or 28 Weeks Later are prime examples of what I'm looking for.

Rushmore, Juno, Garden State, etc. is exactly what I'm NOT looking for here. Thanks.

By: MaryDellamorte

MaryDellamorte — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:28:07 -0800

I really like the soundtracks to Legends of the Fall, Princess Mononoke, and The Gladiator.

By: vacapinta

vacapinta — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:30:35 -0800

Many Almodovar film soundtracks including Hable con Ella.

By: Large Marge

Large Marge — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:31:00 -0800

once upon a time in the west and the good, the bad, the ugly By Ennio Morricone
the fountain and Requiem for a Dream by Clint Mansell
the day the earth stood still by Bernard Hermann (maybe more classic than integral)

By: saeculorum

saeculorum — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:31:01 -0800

I've always been partial to Gattaca for the music.

By: typewriter

typewriter — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:33:12 -0800

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

By: nomisxid

nomisxid — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:34:26 -0800

The Buddha of Suburbia has a great soundtrack, done by Bowie no less.
Peter Gabriel did an amazing job on The Last Temptation of Christ, though I prefer the 'sources' project he released, that documents the inspirations for his final product.

By: Admiral Haddock

Admiral Haddock — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:35:36 -0800

It's funny, but I was watching Blade Runner over the weekend, and the Vangelis soundtrack really just works in that film. I am NOT a Vangelis fan.

Hermann's Taxi Driver score is great.

I am not an anime person, but the score to Akira is really great too--a lot of gamelan and weird choruses.

By: Blacksun

Blacksun — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:36:07 -0800

2001: A Space Odyssey

Walt Disney's Fantasia

Any Hitchcock film scored by Bernard Herrman

By: The World Famous

The World Famous — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:37:44 -0800

North By Northwest

(props to Blacksun . . .)

By: Christ, what an asshole

Christ, what an asshole — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:37:44 -0800

Hmm, let me narrow my query a bit further....

I'm looking for a soundtrack that almost ...channels the direction of a movie. Not necessarily something that makes for pleasant background fodder, but soundscapes that drive the intensity almost in lieu of dialog.

If anybody can make sense of that. :)

By: Blacksun

Blacksun — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:38:30 -0800

I do, of course, mean Bernard Herrmann. Two n's.

By: oneirodynia

oneirodynia — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:39:14 -0800

once upon a time in the west and the good, the bad, the ugly By Ennio Morricone

Yes, yes.

By: legotech

legotech — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:39:28 -0800

There Will Be Blood

By: drezdn

drezdn — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:40:53 -0800

Fight Club

By: bondgirl53001

bondgirl53001 — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:41:11 -0800

Last of the Mohicans, Dances with Wolves and Pirates of the Caribbean

By: fuzzbean

fuzzbean — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:42:22 -0800

All three of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Ring films.

The Last of the Mohicans.

By: dios

dios — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:42:51 -0800

Yeah, Last of the Mohicans for sure. That was an amazing score.

By: fuzzbean

fuzzbean — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:43:01 -0800

Damn you bondgirl!

By: rjacobs

rjacobs — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:44:01 -0800

Koyaanisqatsi comes to mind. Or the more conventional Philip Glass score, The Truman Show. Some might argue Garden State.

By: wallaby

wallaby — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:44:23 -0800

The Firm--just listening to the soundtrack gets my heart racing.

By: BrotherFeldspar

BrotherFeldspar — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:44:41 -0800

I'd suggest the David Lean & Maurice Jarre combo in Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago. Both soundtracks were Oscar winners IIRC.

By: null terminated

null terminated — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:45:04 -0800

Gettysburg.

By: Item

Item — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:45:19 -0800

Flash Gordon
Dead Man
28 Days Later
Blade Runner

By: Tixylix

Tixylix — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:47:57 -0800

Uh, Star Wars. Sorry.
I love Morricone's spaghetti western music as well.
Brazil
Team America

By: xil

xil — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:49:11 -0800

Eraserhead! The film wouldn't be nearly as excruciating with any sort of normal soundtrack; the sound design is integral to the film.

By: Christ, what an asshole

Christ, what an asshole — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:50:50 -0800

Yes, some great suggestions so far, but I'm now seeing how I could have tailored the original question a little bit better, so bear with me. :)

The final scene of Last of the Mohicans is the ultimate example of what I'm looking for (extra points because the cliff-diving chick resembles my ex a whole lot).

Now, just that, except 90-120 minutes long. And the more underground, independent, or foreign, the better (as I've pretty much watched everything already mentioned).

By: BrotherFeldspar

BrotherFeldspar — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:51:05 -0800

Anton Karas's score for The Third Man is pretty iconic as well.

By: sneakin

sneakin — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:58:29 -0800

Almost anything Danny Elfman has composed, most notably Batman and Edward Scissorhands.

By: clarkstonian

clarkstonian — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:58:42 -0800

Triplets of Belleville
Rocky (the original)
Edward Scissorhands
The Natural
and seconding - Lawrence of Arabia & Once Upon a Time in the West

By: dobbs

dobbs — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:00:13 -0800

Nthing Koyaanisqatsi, The Fountain.

Adding The Hours, and most things done by Michael Nyman.

By: dios

dios — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:00:18 -0800

Question for the poster: are you looking for scores or soundtracks? Maybe I'm making a distinction that doesn't exist. But I've always understood a soundtrack as conventional songs that play at movies and over the credits, whereas a musical score is the basic background music of a scene that is just instrumental. So, for instance, the soundtrack to Garden State is filled with pop songs from Coldplay and the Shins. But that isn't what I would call a score. Some movies have both. Like, for example, the movie the Crow has both a score and a soundtrack. The score being the instrumental parts that play during dramatic scenes (what I take the OP to be looking for with the term "cinematic soundscapes") and the soundtrack being the heavy metal songs that play during scene transitions and the credits.

By: ignignokt

ignignokt — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:01:48 -0800

Conan the Barbarian. Epic! The soundtrack is at least three times better than the movie itself.

Heh, and yeah, Star Wars soundtracks are great and worked perfectly for those movies, even though it's already been said a million times.

By: gnutron

gnutron — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:02:27 -0800

I particularly liked Lalo Schifrin's soundtrack to Enter the Dragon.

By: mediareport

mediareport — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:03:29 -0800

Nick Cave's score for the brilliant, tense, creepy western The Proposition (which he also wrote) was great, and won a bunch of awards.

By: Blacksun

Blacksun — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:04:31 -0800

Seconding Triplets of Belleville, that's an amazing score - and hits the nail right on the head as far as the question concerned.

By: cinemafiend

cinemafiend — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:06:59 -0800

Popul Vuh's score for Werner Herzog's AGUIRRE: THE WRATH OF GOD and several other Herzog films...

Also, Goblin's scores for Dario Argento's SUSPIRIA and George Romero's DAWN OF THE DEAD

By: LionIndex

LionIndex — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:07:00 -0800

To follow up on dios' question re: score vs. soundtrack, I'm wondering if you're confusing the score in 28 Days Later with the Godspeed You! Black Emperor tracks, and thinking they were specifically written for the movie?

By: LionIndex

LionIndex — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:08:02 -0800

Crap. You said *Weeks* not Days. Never mind.

By: infinitewindow

infinitewindow — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:08:52 -0800

One Hour Photo. I had no idea it was done by the Run Lola Run guys. The score for the final ten minutes or so in particular.

By: sarahsynonymous

sarahsynonymous — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:09:24 -0800

I second Fight Club, the music gave the movie a literal and figurative pulse that kept up a really great tension.

While not a "score," I thought the music in Kill Bill: Vol. 1 was fantastically placed; it paid homage to its predecessors, and kept the plot speeding along when it could have so easily sagged. In particular, the song that plays during the animated segment is pitch-perfect.

Oh, and The Piano. I have mixed feelings about the actual movie, but the soundtrack captures the stormy emotions perfectly; it's especially apt because the main character is mute.

By: robocop is bleeding

robocop is bleeding — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:10:23 -0800

Needful Things. I know it sounds cheesy, but this is one of the best movie soundtracks I have ever bought (several times, in fact). Check out the rest of Patrick Doyle's work (Hamlet, etc) as you browse for soundtracks!

By: rooftop secrets

rooftop secrets — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:10:42 -0800

There Will Be Blood
(nthing) Requiem for a Dream

Those two come to mind immediately as movies where the music was as important as anything else in the film.

By: lalochezia

lalochezia — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:13:09 -0800

Waking Life by Tosca Tango Orchestra

By: muscat

muscat — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:13:20 -0800

obviously not a movie, but the music in LOST is really good and can pretty much make you cry.

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:14:03 -0800

8MM had a fantastic soundtrack.

By: dilettante

dilettante — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:14:03 -0800

A Clockwork Orange

By: sandra_s

sandra_s — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:15:42 -0800

Popularly Appreciated:
The entire score (not the album version) to Superman the Movie (John Williams)
Robocop (Basil Poledouris)

Not so Popularly Appreciated:
The Witches of Eastwick (John Williams)
Hot Shots Part Deux (Basil Poledouris) <>
I would recommend almost anything by Poledouris:
Conan the Barbarian
Red Dawn
Hunt for Red October
Starship Troopers <- (ooh, definitely this one)

By: rhizome

rhizome — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:18:14 -0800

Paris, Texas
Clean, Shaven
The Conversation

By: Christ, what an asshole

Christ, what an asshole — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:23:13 -0800

By: Cyrano

Cyrano — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:25:32 -0800

Since Battlestar Galactica: Razor, was billed as a movie, I'm going to cheat and recommend BSG. Seriously, I've rarely seen sound used better to enhance mood. You'd be hard pressed to find a better example of atmosphere, tension, and emotion than when the music kicks in that tells you Baltar is about to talk to the Six only he can see.

Not cheating: I always liked the Terminator 2 soundtrack.

By: Christ, what an asshole

Christ, what an asshole — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:26:09 -0800

By: numinous

numinous — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:28:11 -0800

Terrible Film, but the the soundtrack to The Mission is really beautiful, and seems to fit within your criteria.

I am also partial to the following soundtracks:
• Control (Being that the film is an Ian Curtis biopic, I think the music is apropos to the emotional atmosphere of his life. However, I am a huge Joy Division fan, so YMMV.).

• The Apocalypse Now soundtrack. Incidentally, this is also my favorite film, so again, I may be biased. The majority of the tracks used are composed "soundscapes," instead of pre-recorded songs (i.e. Wagner's Flight of the Bumblebee, or The Doors' "This is the End").

• The Blade Runner soundtrack also achieves that which you've stipulated.

• The Life is Beautiful soundtrack does this beautifully (pun unintentional).

By: Ambrosia Voyeur

Ambrosia Voyeur — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:30:53 -0800

Who Framed Roger Rabbit

By: jamaro

jamaro — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:33:39 -0800

The scores to Run Lola Run, Sneakers, Les Triplettes De Belleville, Adaptation, The Fifth Element, and Pee Wee's Big Adventure.

By: findango

findango — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:34:23 -0800

Seconding The Mission and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

By: General Zubon

General Zubon — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:35:45 -0800

I'm extremely partial to Lalo Shrifrin, and his haunting soundtrack to THX-1138 underscores the film in just the way you describe.

In more recent film, I'm a big fan of the subtle yet effective soundtrack work of Cliff Martinez, especially his work on Steven Soderbergh films like Traffic, Solaris, and The Limey. In my opinion, Martinez has the enviable talent of creating soundtracks that you only really notice if you're paying attention, but the film would totally lack something without them. Martinez also played drums with Lydia Lunch, Captain Beefheart, and The Red Hot Clili Peppers (among others) so his path into moody and quiet soundtracks is a fascinating one.

By: Ambrosia Voyeur

Ambrosia Voyeur — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:38:02 -0800

Amelie

By: seawallrunner

seawallrunner — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:39:28 -0800

I am so very partial to Craig Armstrong his work is cinematic, even when not associated with a movie. His movie credits include Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge, The Quiet American, Ray, Love Actually, Plunkett & Macleane and World Trade Center.

I'm also a big fan of Ennio Morricone, mentioned a few times already above.

Finally, you should also look into the work of one of the Davids in David+David (remember "Welcome to the Boomtown"?) look up David Baerwald here, there's surprisingly little about him on the internet. Again, an enigmatic, cinematic artist - who incidentally also has a track on Moulin Rouge.

By: Ambrosia Voyeur

Ambrosia Voyeur — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:39:35 -0800

Schindler's List

By: JujuB

JujuB — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:42:24 -0800

Midnight Express...(Movie) I still love listening to it.

By: landedjentry

landedjentry — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:54:59 -0800

Donnie Darko

By: trigger

trigger — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:58:20 -0800

The Last Temptation of Christ. Soundtrack's by Peter Gabriel.

By: twistofrhyme

twistofrhyme — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:59:16 -0800

i love the scores for jeunet's amelie and darabont's the shawshank redemption.

By: Maxwell_Smart

Maxwell_Smart — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:59:42 -0800

The score to The Age of Innocence (Youtube link) was fantastic.

By: twistofrhyme

twistofrhyme — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:07:25 -0800

oh, i just saw your clarification above about seeking films where the score propels the movie. i think that the scores in all three of the paul thomas anderson films i've seen (magnolia, punch drunk love, and there will be blood), are reeeally prominent, and push the stories into more intense territory. in all three cases, some really mundane scenes suddenly seem insanely portentious because of the music.

By: roomwithaview

roomwithaview — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:08:07 -0800

Seconding Cliff Martinez's scores, especially Solaris.

Also like Gattaca, which I believe was mentioned up there.

Some scores that I have liked:

The Constant Gardener
The Door In The Floor
Casino Royale
Brick
The Illusionist
Notes on a Scandal
Hero
Meet Joe Black
Master and Commander

By: gaiamark

gaiamark — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:15:21 -0800

The Fountain

By: boots77

boots77 — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:16:32 -0800

Interested in some rather tasty Jazz soundtracks?

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (vocals and instumentals are a quick romantic wind to blow though your heart) Sets a great tone for a dinner party.

Sideways. Watch the movie first to get the tone that the composer (Rolfe Kent) aimed for. Then listen use it anytime you want to recreate that feeling in your life. I listen to it when I need to get some serious work done.

By: adamrice

adamrice — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:21:27 -0800

You'd have to include Oh Brother, Where Art Thou in this list. It's structured around the music. And Magnolia was inspired by Aimee Mann's music, who returned the favor by doing the score.

By: Rumple

Rumple — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:22:31 -0800

nthing:
The Piano
The Mission
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Triplets of Beleville

+

Jaws

By: steef

steef — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:31:05 -0800

Conan the Barbarian is a really good suggestion. I might add Morricone's score for The Untouchables, as well. (Did you know Morricone did the music for John Carpenter's The Thing? How did I not know that?)

By: artdrectr

artdrectr — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 18:53:34 -0800

'Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence.'
Riuchi Sakamoto

By: jcruelty

jcruelty — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:15:18 -0800

5 movie soundtracks that don't suck

By: bjgeiger

bjgeiger — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:20:22 -0800

Exodus has my favorite movie score written by Ernest Gold.

By: rottytooth

rottytooth — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:38:19 -0800

I'm shocked no one has mentioned Badlands yet. Some of the music (the stuff from Carl Orff) was re-used to much lesser effect in True Romance, but it is so powerful and moving in Badlands, and not in a showy way.

By: QueSeraSera

QueSeraSera — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:43:54 -0800

Nthing Amelie.

By: Optimus Chyme

Optimus Chyme — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:46:20 -0800

The About a Boy soundtrack by Badly Drawn Boy. It would have been a very different movie without Gough's talents. Best example here at 5:50.

By: Jahaza

Jahaza — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:02:39 -0800

The score from "Blackhawk Down" is incredible. Mixing rock/African sounds.

Nthing "The Mission"

By: maggieb

maggieb — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:04:49 -0800

The Red Violin and Immortal Beloved

By: Durin's Bane

Durin's Bane — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:15:48 -0800

Empire of the Sun

By: NoraCharles

NoraCharles — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:18:42 -0800

Memphis Belle (George Fenton)

Pretty inspired, imho.

Oh and no, it doesn't have the version of Danny Boy that Harry Connick Jr. does in the film, sadly the version on the cd is awful. But the rest of it, good stuff.

By: fuse theorem

fuse theorem — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:19:40 -0800

Prince's soundtrack to Purple Rain. I'd also say his soundtrack for Batman but Prince's music was minimally used in the film and pretty much overshadowed by Danny Elfman's music. However, if you listen to the soundtrack it pretty much follows the story of the movie and still holds up nearly 20 years later.

By: bruce

bruce — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:19:58 -0800

the jimmy cliff music in the harder they come.

By: twirlypen

twirlypen — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:23:33 -0800

Miles Davis wrote the score to 'Ascenseur pour l'echafaud'. I, er, haven't actually seen the movie but the score is haunting enough on its own. Slow, brooding, dangerous jazz for dark streets and cigarettes.

By: ALongDecember

ALongDecember — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:25:59 -0800

Kingpin. Seriously. Contrast Roy's Rise... with his Fall (Bald, drunk, hitting an alarm clock with his hook, with It's A Beautiful Morning playing). Couldn't find a clip for that last one, but all those scenes are driven by those songs.

By: NGnerd

NGnerd — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:41:56 -0800

My personal favorite: Blues brothers...i was raised on it and love to speed with it in the car

I'd argue most musicals would fit, just because the music is integral to the story

The piano also has a great soundtrack which is important to the story without telling it directly. I also just saw Juno and thought the soundtrack was fantastic

By: merocet

merocet — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:58:54 -0800

88 comments in and no-one's mentioned the mighty Angelo Badalamenti purveyor of fine soundtracks to most of David Lynch's films and of course Twin Peaks? Bad Mefites!

By: AwkwardPause

AwkwardPause — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:23:25 -0800

Seconding "Dead Man." Niel Young's soundtrack to that movie is so amazing that I ran out and bought it after having seen the flick, but... it absolutely doesn't work without the visual. I think I've listened to it once since then. It's very simple guitar reverby stuff, but 100% integral to the movie (IMHO, YMMV).

By: KokuRyu

KokuRyu — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:23:35 -0800

It was said earlier in this thread, but

Solaris, by Cliff Martinez
Bladerunner, by Vangelis

are great

Mishima, by Philip Glass

is super awesome (This American Life uses it all the time)

By: KokuRyu

KokuRyu — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:24:26 -0800

The first Sopranos 'soundtrack' also has some neat songs on it

By: hototogisu

hototogisu — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:45:44 -0800

Andrew Dickson's soundtrack for Naked (directed by Mike Leigh) comes to mind.

By: neuron

neuron — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:51:23 -0800

The Mission.

By: doncoyote

doncoyote — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 22:29:11 -0800

Ry Cooder's score for 'Paris, Texas,'

Jack Nitzche's singing saw in 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest,'
his assembly-line beat beneath Captain Beefheart's growl in the opening of 'Blue Collar,'
his work with Randy Newman, The Last Poets, Buffy St. Marie, Mick Jagger, and, well, Ry Cooder in 'Performance."

Philip Glass's 'Koyaanisqutsi'

By: spiderskull

spiderskull — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 23:13:55 -0800

n^th'ing Koyaanisqatsi.

Also, I can't believe no one has mentioned Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (done by Jon Brion). I think it matches your criteria (although it's not as action-oriented as you may be looking for).

By: turbodog

turbodog — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 23:45:18 -0800

Fourthing Cliff Martinez. I listen to the soundtrack from Solaris relatively frequently and was suprised to hear a chunk of it used in the new Lebron James commercial.

By: Joakim Ziegler

Joakim Ziegler — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:11:58 -0800

Ghost in the Shell?

By: thesiameseffect

thesiameseffect — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:14:04 -0800

harold and maude?

By: Civil_Disobedient

Civil_Disobedient — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:22:12 -0800

Wow, almost 100 comments and no one's mentioned The Rocketeer? Shit, man. Disney's recycled the theme song in a million different places after the movie fell short at the box office.

By: misteraitch

misteraitch — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:29:21 -0800

A soundtrack I particularly enjoyed (more so than the movie itself) was Wojciech Kilar's score to Polanski's The Ninth Gate.

By: galactain

galactain — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 01:30:28 -0800

Seeing as you kind of allowed the last ten minutes of "last of the mohicans"...

as someone else said, but especially, the last ten minutes of the last episode of season 3 battlestar galactica. The music is very much a part of the plot, which i can't say more about without ruining it for people, but if you've seen it, you'll agree. sorry its only a ten minute part. It's completely what you're looking for though.

By: quarsan

quarsan — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:33:37 -0800

Get Carter and The IPCRESS File provide a great score.

By: pjern

pjern — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:41:45 -0800

99 answers and no one has mentioned Amadeus?

By: Deathalicious

Deathalicious — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:57:04 -0800

You might like the work of Emir Kusturika.

All of his films are heavily influenced by Balkan music and gypsy culture and permeate much of the film. Not all of the action is moved by the music but a fair amount of it is.

I liked Underground and Black Cat, White Cat a lot.

These do not have the traditional soaring music score you might be looking for. Instead, you have a movie in which the soundtrack is more attuned for dancing or marching or festivals and as a result his films tend to have a carnival feel about them. His characters don't move through the scene, they dance through it.

The advantage being, unlike Star Wars, you probably haven't seen these.

If you watched and enjoyed Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and haven't seen Iron Monkey I highly recommend it. I can't remember if the score for that was any good but it definitely had a nice energy to it.

I believe the first film Danny Elfman ever scored was Pee Wee's Big Adventure. I thought it was pretty good (Breakfast Machine is a personal favorite of mine).

By: RavinDave

RavinDave — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 04:12:13 -0800

"Amadeus" ... obviously great stand-alone music, but it's insidiously woven into the film; providing more than a few inside jokes and striking the exact right chord (as it were) for many sequences.

By: Scoo

Scoo — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 07:04:18 -0800

The score for Planet of the Apes (the Heston version, of course) is eerie and a perfect fit for it.

By: Scoo

Scoo — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 07:05:40 -0800

Can I add No Country for Old Men? NO music in it at all. I think this fits the OP criteria....

By: paulfreeman

paulfreeman — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 07:14:16 -0800

Baraka sounds like exactly what you are looking for - it's an amazing film that contains only a montage of expertly shot scenes from around the world woven together with a stunning sound track. It contains no script, no voice overs just a glimpse into contrasting environments across the earth. It's non-vocal aspect means that the driving force of the emotion behind each scene comes directly from the music.

You have to be in the right mood to watch it, but it remains one of the most profound films I have ever watched.

By: natabat

natabat — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 08:26:59 -0800

I always thought the music of Firefly was particularly good at setting the mood. Serenity, not so much, but I still listen to the Firefly soundtrack.

Also, I think "Hush" (episode 4.10 of Buffy) has to be mentioned. 28 minutes (over half the episode) of no dialog, so of course the sound track has extra...oomph.

As for the reverse, "The Body" (5.16) has no music other than the theme song, a wind chime, and quiet Christmas music in a flashback.

By: DevilsAdvocate

DevilsAdvocate — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 09:14:24 -0800

Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqatsi, Naqoyqatsi. All three of these have incredible soundtracks, and there really is no movie without the soundtracks. While I agree wholeheartedly with all the previous mentions of Koyaanisqatsi, it is a disservice to ignore the other two movies in the series. While some may object that Naqoyqatsi is a weaker movie overall than the other two, and I wouldn't disagree with that, it's not because of the soundtrack. In fact, I go back and forth as to which of the three soundtracks is my favorite. On long road trips I sometimes listen to all three, back-to-back and in order, and they seem to make almost a single unified work, with Powaqqatsi being the lighter scherzo movement bookended by the darker Koyaanisqatsi and Naqoyqatsi pieces.

Also:
Edward Scissorhands
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover (first mention in this thread? really?)

By: Iamtherealme

Iamtherealme — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 11:12:07 -0800

A Bronx Tale was the first movie that made me say "wow" at the soundtrack. I was blown away, and still get chills when I hear "The Ten Commandments of Love" because of the way it was used in the film. When I first saw the movie, each and every time a song played I had to express amazement at the perfect songchoice for that point of the movie. I know there have been 2 other movies like that, but can't think of them off the top of my head...

By: Dr.Pill

Dr.Pill — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 11:19:44 -0800

I'm looking for a soundtrack that almost ...channels the direction of a movie.

Nthing Once Upon a Time in the West. Morricone's score was written and recorded before filming began and apparently Leone filmed scenes with the score playing on the set.

By: sluggo

sluggo — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:09:35 -0800

The Taking of Pelham One, Two, Three - my favorite soundtrack of all time, I think.

By: samsara

samsara — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:43:04 -0800

Braveheart. (right up there with Last of the Mohicans for a fitting score)
Escaflowne series (even though its anime, it's an excellent soundtrack that fits the series)
Never Ending Story.
'nthing Koyanqatsi, and Poyanaqatsi (sp?)
American Beauty
Shawshank Redemption (the escape scene still gives me chills along with the soundtrack)
Meet Joe Black (slower paced movie...but great score to go with the scenes)

I just noticed that the last three were Thomas Newman scores..hrmm, might as well throw Road to Perdition in the mix...although I've never seen the movie

2nding Apocalypse Now

By: samsara

samsara — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:44:52 -0800

Oh and Awakenings

By: slimepuppy

slimepuppy — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 09:34:48 -0800

Lost Highway and Twin Peaks. Without a doubt.

Same goes for The Proposition.

By: stopgap

stopgap — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 15:20:20 -0800

Stargate (the movie) actually has a pretty good soundtrack. I never saw the TV show.