CRAIG'S 100 FILM SCORES - THE TOP 10

Once again, we come to yet another Top 10 at the end of these fascinating film lists which have been worked on very hard by me and hopefully you're all enjoying them. Having given my perspective on why music is important in film, here is my Top 10 Film Scores of all time....

#10 - JAWS - JOHN WILLIAMS - 1975

 

 

 The reason why this is slightly low on the list is that, like Psycho, its musical score stands out through one piece of music, duh da, duh da. Though amazing as that music is, the rest of the film's score lacks anyway near the thrill or excitement as that one did, but John Williams's legendary reputation came up thanks to this film, and he has gone strong ever since....

 

 

 

#9. ROCKY - BILL CONTI - 1976

From Going the Distance to the legendary Gonna Fly Now, this booming musical score illustrated the ambition that die hard sports fans needed some musical inspiration and this film provided that thanks to the hard work of Bill Conti. Though there are better sports films than this, none of their scores can match the determination displayed through Rocky's theme.

 

#8. BEN-HUR - MIKLOS ROZSA - 1959

Haunting and beautifully composed by the divine work of Miklos Rozsa, Ben-Hur's epic production was made even more warranted with the score which from beginning to end, highlights the troubles that Judah goes through before its cheerful climax, with the music from the video above sounding as heroic and uplifting as the film itself.

#7. BACK TO THE FUTURE - ALAN SILVESTRI - 1985

Like the Rocky films, the Back to the Future series featured a memorable theme tune as well as other notable pieces of music which became an added factor to its success. Silvestri proved his credentials as an underrated composer with the thumping score that helped this become one of the most popular films in recent years.

#6. THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY - ENNIO MORRICONE - 1966

Another haunting musical score, made immaculately by the legendary Morricone whose association with Sergio Leone was one of the great director/composers combinations in film. Any other western doesn't come close to a wonderful piece of music as the spaghetti westerns do and this was no exception. Ecstasy of Gold is simply stunning.

#5. THE GODFATHER - NINO ROTA - 1972

Chilling is one word to describe the marvelous score which Nino Rota composed for this acclaimed masterpiece. Though the score was controversial through Rota's copying of music from another film, it left a mark on those who watched and heard it. Rota's film music career after that never came anyway near the phenomenal success he had with this film.

#4 - INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM - JOHN WILLIAMS - 1984

 Yes most people prefer Raiders, but Temple of Doom has always been my favourite of the Indiana Jones series, the music being one of them. Mr Williams's genius proved crucial with the popularity of the franchise, and the music here is solid. Once the heroes get to the Temple itself, the music really kicks in and from then on, adds to the dark intensity of the film's story.

#3. E.T: THE EXTRA TERRESTRIAL - JOHN WILLIAMS - 1982

 Yet again John Williams features on this exceptional list with the heartbreaking score of another acclaimed Spielberg classic. The music touches us as much as the story does, showcasing the relationship between E.T and Elliot to the point of making a grown man cry. Adventurous, tragic, hopeful, the choice of words to describe it goes on.

 

#2. LORD OF THE RINGS: RETURN OF THE KING - HOWARD SHORE - 2003

Epic and Lord of the Rings go hand in hand, with Howard Shore achieving a lot of great things through the hard work he gave in creating one of cinema's most memorable scores. There are too many great pieces of music here to pick out though the Minas Tirith theme and Lightening of the Beacons are easily the contenders. Without doubt though, my favourite musical moment of the trilogy is Aragorn's charge towards Sauron's army outside the Black Gate with the rest of the heroes charging too. A cheerful and touching moment to one of my favourite trilogies.

#1. STAR WARS: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK - JOHN WILLIAMS - 1980

 

 After having all those other films make the list, there was no denying John Williams his chance to top this list with the spectacular, hard work he gave to the great Star Wars saga. Empire Strikes Back is the film I chose to represent the franchise as a whole though Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope were very close. Empire though is the darkest yet acclaimed film of the franchise with the music standing out on various occasions from the Dagobah theme to Luke's duel with Darth Vader and the booming credits music. Never has a composer gained such a valuable reputation and discography as Williams has!

Thanks for reading again folks, the next list will be the 100 Cheers!