I started playing the piano when I was five years old and I loved making up my own little compositions. As I got older, I also started to love movies and my first dream job was to become a film composer. While that is no longer what I wish to do, my love for film scores has never faded and I doubt it ever will. With that being said, I wanted to share my favorite film scores that either greatly enhance the movie experience or I have on repeat even when the film ends.
- Dario Marianelli
Dario Marianelli is by far my favorite composer. He is most known for his often collaboration with filmmaker Joe Wright and has created some of my absolute favorite scores including Pride and Prejudice, Atonement, and (my personal favorite) Anna Karenina. He perfectly encapsulates every emotion that is not only portrayed in the films, but also in the books each of these films have been based on. He always ends up on my Spotify wrapped at the end of the year and “Curtain” from Anna Karenina was one of my top songs last year after listening to it on repeat for 3 hours straight as I finished the final chapters of Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy.
- Little Women by Alexandre Desplat
Another score that I also believe captured not only the film perfectly, but also the book, is the Little Women score by French composer Alexandre Desplat. The thing that I most appreciate from Desplat’s composition is the gradual change between the childlike wonder of the beginning of the score to the maturity at the end, the same journey the characters go on as they grow from girls into women.
- The Wizarding World Film Franchises
Harry Potter is such a staple in most people’s lives and I think the film scores are beloved for a reason. My personal favorites have to be Prisoner of Azkaban and both Deathly Hallows scores but I think the most underrated ones are actually the Fantastic Beasts scores. Just like Little Women, I think the Harry Potter composers did a great job maturing the pieces as the films progressed.
- King Arthur: Legend of the Sword by Daniel Pemberton
This is definitely my most listened to score, despite the fact that I have never actually seen the movie. Something about this music is so addictive and I find it to be the perfect background to reading fantasy novels or even just doing my homework. I feel kind of ashamed that I have never seen the movie but I still adore the score despite having no idea if it fits the actual film at all.
- Succession by Nicholas Britell
Succession is actually a TV show but I had to include it. I just started watching it, but I am already immensely impressed with the score. I think it captures the dramatics of this show perfectly and the main title theme is one of the best TV themes I have ever heard.