There are many things that make a movie what it is. It all starts with a story (according to what every How-To book on screenwriting tells us), there is the director and his crew, there are the actors, who bust their asses to bring a vision to life. Then comes the wonderful world of post-production. What is one result of that? The music. Soundtracks enhance the movie going experience. They can make us cry, they can pump us up, they can make us remember the 80’s. Whether it be a musical band or a composer, soundtracks help our favorite movies stay etched in our mind forever.
Part of the magic of a film score is that it can take a movie that just isn’t working and improve it with its presence. These soundtracks below and so many others are proof that there is so much more to a film that what you see on screen, love can be made to your ears as well. Because of the less than stellar films they accompany many of them don’t get the love they deserve, hopefully todays article can open your eyes to a few of them.
1. QUEEN OF THE DAMNED BY VARIOUS ARTISTS
I wanted to love this movie when I first saw it. I love the Anne Rice novels, and I loved the adaption of Interview with the Vampire as many do. The casting of Stuart Townsend was the first nail in the coffin (pun intended), I have nothing against the guy but he just didn’t work as Lestat for me and most of the supporting cast left a lot to be desired. The late Aaliyah however, was mesmerizing in her small role, her scene at the bar mixed with this films stellar rock soundtrack and Jonathan Davis’ score made this film a bit more tolerable. Queen of the Damned had a lot of potential, as far as the music went it delivered. Purchase the soundtrack here
2. THE LAST AIRBENDER BY JAMES NEWTON HOWARD
I hadn’t seen a single episode of Avatar before seeing this film, but I didn’t need to know something was off with The Last Airbender and my brothers (who is a fan of the show) groans of displeasure affirmed that M Nights latest effort was indeed shit. NOTE: I’ve since seen episodes of Avatar to justify this opinion; I felt it was called for. That said, just like Shyamalan films before this James Newton Howard came along and made sitting through The Last Airbender a bit of an easier task to accomplish, a testament to his talent. Purchase the soundtrack here
3. MAN IN THE IRON MASK BY NICK GLENNIE-SMITH
Man in the Iron Mask as a film has some redeeming qualities, some of the casting was inspired but the casting of Leo DiCaprio to capitalize on his star power at the time was pretty lazy if you ask me. Maybe nitpicking on the lack of an accent coming from a couple of the characters is a bit ridiculous to have an issue with, but it bothered me. Some things are distracting and can take away from the experience. But the wonderful score by Nick Glennie-Smith made me feel a range of emotions nonetheless, I dug the love theme and other emotional tracks like “Kissy Kissie” and the track “Surrounded” pumped me up and made me want to become a musketeer. All for one, and one for all. Purchase the soundtrack here
4. PATCH ADAMS BY MARK SHAIMAN
It’s funny how people’s tastes can change as the years go along. For instance, these days I like drama in film to be a bit more understated and the melodrama not thrown in your damn face as it was with films like this and John Q. Too much of said melodrama can make a film lean more towards an uncomfortably corny side, which is what I think Patch Adams suffered from. However, I’m a sucker for an emotional piece of music (talk about contradictions) and Mark Shaiman came along and provided that for me in spades. One of the few scores that can still move me to tears these days, and I like to be made to cry now and again to remind myself I still have it in me. Purchase the soundtrack here
5. K-19: THE WIDOWMAKER BY KLAUS BADELT
Klaus Badelt provided an amazing score for this film that drowned out Harrison Ford’s laughable Russian accent a few times and made up for the bits of a miserably slow pace. I guess when it came down to it, there just wasn’t enough going on in K-19 to keep me fully engaged. But tracks like “Heroes” and “Reunion” rocked my world. Badelt, mentored by the great Hans Zimmer, teamed up with Kirov Orchestra to really capture the pride of Russia theme this film carried. Klaus also contributed to the Gladiator and Pearl Harbor soundtracks. Purchase the soundtrack here
HONORABLE MENTION: PEARL HARBOR BY HANS ZIMMER