FPA 386
film music
video list by composer page
s u g g e s t e d __ f i l m s __ b y __ c o m p o s e r

Please note: This list represents only a few of the many composers one might suggest.
As a rule of thumb, films generally have scores commensurate with the quality of the rest of the project: Look for excellence in directing and you'll likely find a score worth listening to.
The following list was chosen on the basis of availability in Vancouver, though sadly there are so few video stores left that this may not be true by the time you read this.
I've annotated the videos and will continue to do so in the future; as well as add titles as time permits.
There are a fair number of films available in the SFU library, the Videomatic collection at UBC, other public libraries and of course on-line through countless sites as well as sellers such as iTunes, Amazon, etc., etc. Also note that Netflix.ca is a fairly inexpense way to legally stream films as well.

 

Elmer Bernstein
Title Director Date Comments
Desire under the Elms 58
God's Little Acre 58
Great Santini 80
Grifters, the 90
Hud 63
Magnificent Seven 60 One of the greatest themes of all time
Man with the Golden Arm 55
My Left Foot 89
To Kill a Mockingbird 62 Hauntingly beautiful score
 
 
Carter Burwell
No Country for Old Men  Coen Brothers 2007 Excellent score & film
Barton Fink  Coen Brothers 91
Raising Arizona  Coen Brothers (Joel & Ethan) 87 Wonderfully quirky
Three Kings David O. Russel 99  
(any Coen brother film)

 

Ry Cooder
Title Director Date Comments
Paris, Texas
Wim Wenders
 83
The Border 82
The Long Riders 80
Dead Man Walking 96
 
 
Stewart Copeland
Rumblefish  Coppolla 83
Wall Street 86
 
 
Mychael Danna
Moonsoon Wedding [3] Mira Nair 01
Exotica [2] Atom Egoyan
Ice Storm [2] 97 Note: use of the Indonesian Gamelan
any Egoyan film
 
 
Georges Delerue
Title Director Date Comments
Black Robe [3] 91
Conformist [3] 71
Day for Night [3] 73
Hiroshima, Mon Amour [3]  Alain Resnais 59
Jules et jim [3] 62
King of Hearts [2] 66
True Confessions [2] 81
 
 
Anne Dudley
The Crying Game Neil Jordan 92
Pushing Tin Mike Newelle 99  
The Walker Paul Schrader 07  
 
 
Danny Elfman
Edward Scissorhands 90
The Nightmare Before Christmas 93
 
 
Peter Gabriel
The Last Temptation of Christ Scorcese 88
Birdy Alan Parker 84
Rabbit Proof Fence Phillip Noyce 02
 
 
Philip Glass
Title Director Date Comments
Kundin [2] Scorcese 98
Koyaanisqatsi [5] Godfrey Reggio  83 Films set to music - a fairly unique occurence
Powaqqatsi [5] Godfrey Reggio  88
Thin Blue Line [5] Errol Morris 88 Fascinating documentary
The Illusionist [2] Neil Burger 06 drama
 
 
Elliot Goldenthal
Alien 3 David Fincher 92
Drugstore Cowboy Gus Van Sant 89 Very quirky score
Heat Michael Mann 97
Titus Julie Taymor 99 Brilliant work
Across the Universe Julie Taymor 07 If you love the Beatles...
 
 
Jerry Goldsmith
Title Director Date Comments
Alien Ridley Scott 79
Chinatown 74
Culpepper Cattle Co. 72
Hoosiers 86
Lonely are the Brave 62
Planet of the Apes 68
Seven Days in May 64

 

Johnny Greenwood
There Will be Blood Paul Thomas Anderson 2007 Highly innovative score, very interesting composer

 

 
Dave Grusin
The Firm 93
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter 68
 
Bernard Herrmann
Title Director Date Comments
Cape Fear 68
Citizen Kane [1]  Orson Welles 41
The Day the Earth Stood Still [1] 51
Psycho  Alfred Hitchcock 60
Vertigo  Alfred Hitchcock 58
Taxi Driver  Scorcese 76
 
 
Mark Isham
The Beast 88
Never Cry Wolf 83
 
 
Maurice Jarre
Title Director Date Comments
The Collector 65
Fearless 93
Jacob's Ladder 90
Lawrence of Arabia 62
The Professionals  66
 
 
Quincy Jones
The Pawnbroker 65
In the Heat of the Night 67
 
 
Trevor Jones
Title Director Date Comments
Angel Heart 87
Dominick & Eugene 88
In the Name of the Father 93
Mississippi Burning 88
Sea of Love 89
 
 
Eleni Karaindrou
Landscape in the Mist [3] Theo Angelopoulos 85
any Angelopolis film [3]
Ulysses' Gaze [3] Angelopoulos 97
 
 
Jurgen Knieper
Wings of Desire [3]  Wim Wenders 89
 
 
Mark Knopfler
Title Director Date Comments
Cal 84
Comfort and Joy 84
Local Hero 83
Princess Bride 87
 
 
Henri Mancini
Breakfast at Tiffany's 61
Days of Wine and Roses 62
Pink Panther 64
Soldier in the Rain 63
Touch of Evil 58
White Dawn 75
 
 
Cliff Martinez
Contagion Soderbergh 2011
Wonderland James Cox 2003
Solaris Soderbergh 2002
Traffic Soderbergh 2000
The Limey Soderbergh 99

 

Ennio Morricone
Title Director Date Comments
Battle of Algiers [3]  Costa Gravas 66
Burn! 70
Cinema Paradisio [3] 88
Fistful of Dollars [3]  Sergio Leone 64
For a Few Dollars More [3]  Sergio Leone 65
The Good, the Bad and the ugly [3]  Sergio Leone 67
The Mission 86
Once Upon a Time in the West  Sergio Leone 68
State of Grace 90
 
 
Randy Newman
Avalon  Barry Levinson 90
Ragtime 81
A Bug's Life   98  
Toy Story 1/2   95/
98		  
Awakenings Penny Marshall 90  
 
 
Jack Nitzche
Title Director Date Comments
One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest   75  
Performance   70  
Cutter's Way   81  

 

Alex North
Children's Hour   61  
I'll Cry Tomorrow [1]   55  
The Long Hot Summer [1]   58  
The Misfits   61  
Prizzi's Honor   85  
The Rainmaker [1]   56  
A Streetcar named Desire [1]   51  
Wise Blood   79  

 

Rachel Portman
Title Director Date Comments
Antonia and Jane Beeban Kidron 91
Benny and Joon Jeremiah S. Chechik 93
Ratcatcher Lynne Ramsay 99
Smoke Wayne Wang 95
Manchurian Candidate   04  
The Human Stain   05  
Never Let Me Go   10  

 

Zbigniew Preisner
White [3] Krzysztof Kieslowski 89  
Blue [3] Krzysztof Kieslowski
Red [3] Krzysztof Kieslowski 94
Damage [2] Louis Malle 92
Decalog [3] Krzysztof Kieslowski 88

 

Andre Previn
Title Director Date Comments
Elmer Gantry   60  
Irma la Douce   63  

 

Trent Reznor
The Social Network Fincher 74  
Man on Fire Tony Scott 2004 (Songs)

 

 

Nina Rota
8 & 1/2 [3] Fellini 63  
The Godfather [2] Coppolla 72  
La Dolce Vita [3] Fellini 60  
Any Fellini Film [3]      

 

Ann Ronell
One Touch of Venus [1] William A Seiter 48 I haven't seen this film. Ronell was an excellent songwriter who scored films at a time when very few women were credited as composers, though they worked in studios as composers.

 

Miklos Rozsa
Title Director Date Comments
Asphalt Jungle 50  
Double Indemnity 44  
The Lost Weekend 45  
Spellbound  Alfred Hitchcock 45  
Providence  Alain Resnais 77  

 

Ravi Shankar
Pather Panchali [3]  S. Ray 54  
The World of Apu [3]  S. Ray 59  
Ghandi [2] Richard Attenborough 82

 

David Shire
The Conversation  Coppolla 74  
Norma Rae   79  

 

Tôn-Thât Tiêt
Scent of Green Papaya [3] Anh Hung Tran 93

 

John Williams
Title Director Date Comments
Harry Potter Various 01-12 The Theme!
Empire of the Sun Spielberg 87
Jaws Spielberg 75 Dum dum, dum dum
The Long Goodbye Altman 73 Brilliant film. Score is just one song.
Missouri Breaks Arthur Penn 76 Worth watching for Marlon Brando's performance
Schindler's List Spielberg 93
Star Wars (any of the 5) Spielberg 76+

 

Hans Zimmer (& team)
Black Rain Ridley Scott 89 Classic all synth score
Rain Man Levinson 88
Thelma and Louise Ridley Scott 91
Gladiator Ridley Scott 00
Smilla's Sense of Snow Bille August 97
Driving Miss Daisy Bruce Beresford 89 Compare style & subject to Black Rain...
Black Hawk Down Riddley Scott 02  
Dark Knight Rises Christopher Nolan 2012  
Inception Christopher Nolan 2010