# best film scores **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 2, 2003, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570 "2003-03-02T11:31:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aaaaaarrgg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@aaaaaarrgg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aaaaaarrgg)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/1 "2003-03-02T11:31:28Z")
what, do the dopers believe, are the best themes from movie soundtracks? i’m talking about classical style, with an orchestra, composed for the film. among my favorites: the godfather star wars the hobbit theme from lord of the rings the overture from dancer in the dark rudy austin powers rocky closing credits to moulin rouge james bond mission impossible ---
**Author:** ![II\_Gyan\_II](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bbe5ce/32.png) [@II\_Gyan\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/II_Gyan_II)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/2 "2003-03-02T13:38:47Z")
Not sure if these qualify : Crimson Tide Jurassic Park Where Eagles Dare ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/3 "2003-03-02T14:15:27Z")
Titanic Glory ---
**Author:** ![h.sapiens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e0b2c6/32.png) [@h.sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/h.sapiens)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/4 "2003-03-02T16:18:30Z")
_The Adventures of Robin Hood_ by Korngold _The Ten Commandments_ by Elmer Bernstein _North by Northwest_ by Bernard Herman _Pee Wee’s Big Adventure_ by Danny Elfman ---
**Author:** ![plankter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ba0ec/32.png) [@plankter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plankter)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/5 "2003-03-02T16:19:43Z")
“Raiders of the Lost Ark” is my favorite John Williams score. Every track on the album is strong, and the sweet woodwind on “Marion’s Theme” still gives me chills. John Barry’s music for “Out of Africa” and “Dances With Wolves” is terrific, if often melancholy. John Dunbar’s theme (in “Dances”) is especially haunting, with its clarion solo horn. Just about my favorite “classical” soundtrack is “The Black Stallion” by Carmine Coppala. Unfortunately it’s damned hard to find, which stinks because my cassette copy is worn out. ---
**Author:** ![plankter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ba0ec/32.png) [@plankter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plankter)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/6 "2003-03-02T16:30:35Z")
I was just reminded of “Beetlejuice” by Danny Elfman (thanks, **h.sapiens** ). It’s alternately humorous and shivery, with the added bonus of two Harry Belafonte songs. ---
**Author:** ![boo\_boo\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a88e4f/32.png) [@boo\_boo\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boo_boo_bear)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/7 "2003-03-02T16:43:47Z")
Contemporary compositions? Just about anything by Angelo Badalamenti… Quite a few by Danny Elfman… Just about anything by Patrick Doyle (though Henry V (1989) is my fave)… -bbb- ---
**Author:** ![jovan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/0ea827/32.png) [@jovan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jovan)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/8 "2003-03-02T17:16:51Z")
In no particular order: **Psycho** by Bernard Herrmann **Mad Max** by Brian Mays **Yojimbo** by Masaru Sato **Les parapluies de Cherbourg** by Michel Legrand **Beetlejuice** by Danny Elfman was pretty good too. I could think of more, but those are the ones that spring to mind. ---
**Author:** ![GloriaMundi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ee59a6/32.png) [@GloriaMundi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GloriaMundi)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/9 "2003-03-02T17:24:42Z")
**Maurice** by Richard Robbins ---
**Author:** ![Zap\_Rowsdower](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3da27b/32.png) [@Zap\_Rowsdower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zap_Rowsdower)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/10 "2003-03-02T17:28:04Z")
**Star Trek: the Motion Picture** I haven’t seen this movie in ages, but a couple of weeks ago, the local PBS radio station played it on there “Music of the Movies” show. I found it quite enjoyable and rank it at the top of my list now. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/11 "2003-03-02T17:31:27Z")
Dracula (the Frank Langella movie version) by John Williams ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/12 "2003-03-02T17:41:26Z")
Jurassic Park Star Trek II ---
**Author:** ![Yumblie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/76d3ee/32.png) [@Yumblie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yumblie)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/13 "2003-03-02T18:19:59Z")
**The Nightmare Before Christmas** by Danny Elfman and **Back to the Future** by Alan Silvestri. ---
**Author:** ![ECJones29](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c77e96/32.png) [@ECJones29](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ECJones29)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/14 "2003-03-02T18:42:02Z")
**b\_b\_b** is right – Patrick Doyle’s **Henry V** is outstanding. Also on my list: **Chinatown** by Jerry Goldsmith; **Body Heat** and **Somewhere in Time,** both by John Barry; **Citizen Kane** and **Taxi Driver,** both by Bernard Herrmann; **To Kill a Mockingbird** by Elmer Bernstein; **Three Days of the Condor** by Dave Grusin; **A Place in the Sun** by Franz Waxman; **Dr. Zhivago** by Maurice Jarre; **A Life of Her Own** by Bronislaw Kaper; **Field of Dreams** by James Horner. I love movie music. It’s always fun to hear a piece of it out of context somewhere, and if it’s a movie you really like to have some of the thrill of watching it in the theater come back to you. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/15 "2003-03-02T19:02:56Z")
I’ll second the _Dances With Wolves_ music, especially “John Dunbar’s Theme,” as mentioned by **plankter** above. _The Last of the Mohicans_ has an awesome score–maybe my favorite as a whole soundtrack. ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/16 "2003-03-02T19:06:23Z")
**DAS BOOT** **Jaws** ---
**Author:** ![Hodge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Hodge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hodge)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/17 "2003-03-02T20:16:49Z")
Bernard Herrmann is God:[ul][li] **Vertigo** (possibly my all time favourite film score)[/li][li] **Psycho** [/li][li] **North by Northwest** [/li][li] **Taxi Driver** [/ul]Other favourites:[ul][_] **Fargo** by Carter Burwell[/li][li] **8 1/2** by Nino Rota[/li][li] **Godfather** also by Nino Rota[/li][li] **the sweet hereafter** by Michael Danna[/li][li] **LOTR** by Howard Shore[/li][li] **Lawrence of Arabia** by Maurice Jarre[/li][li]a whole bunch of stuff by Ennio Morricone, including **The Good, The Bad, The Ugly** [/li][_]a whole bunch of stuff by Jerry Goldsmith, including **Alien** [/ul] ---
**Author:** ![big\_alex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e56c9b/32.png) [@big\_alex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/big_alex)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/18 "2003-03-02T21:49:05Z")
The Great Escape Watership Down ---
**Author:** ![Estilicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/848f3c/32.png) [@Estilicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Estilicon)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/19 "2003-03-02T21:49:12Z")
Cinema Paradiso, Helen’s love theme is one of the greatest pieces of music ever written. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2003, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570/20 "2003-03-02T21:56:18Z")
That guy who wrote the music for Amadeus sounds like he knows what he’s doing. 😉 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-film-scores/158570.md?page=2)