Your favourite film composers?

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 19 Apr 2005, 14:44

Who are your favourite film composers?

Mine:-
Ennio Morricone - For his awesome scores on Sergio Leone films. Especially Once Upon a Time in the West, Once Upon a Time in America (A highly underrated film by the looks of it. Shits all over Godfather 1&2 IMO.) and tGtB&tU.

Danny Elfman - Has composed some of the most memorable music to Hollywood films in recent years IMO. Particularly Batman ('89), Simpsons Theme, Spider-Man, Hulk.

Kenji Kawai - Particularly for his work on Mamoru Oshii films. Especially Ghost in the Shell and Patlabor 1. Making of a Cyborg (from GitS) is one of my all time fave film themes.

Brad Fiedel - For his highly memorable, heart-pounding scores to Terminator 1&2.

Tan Dun - For his haunting score to CTHD.

Thomas Newman - For American Beauty and Six Feet Under.

EDIT:
Oh yeah forgot a couple:
John Williams - For his highly memorable themes (Eg Star Wars, Imperial March, Jaws, Indy Jones, etc).

Bernard Herrmann - For Psycho and Vertigo.

Gerry Goldsmith - For Alien, his Star Trek: TPM theme (which shits all over Alexander Courage's TOS theme IMO). I'm sure there's a few other good ones that escape me at the mo.

John Carpenter - For his highly memorable catchy main themes to some of his earlier film. Particularly Halloween, Assault on Precinct 13, Escape from NY. Otherwise, he's a pretty pedestrian composer.

ICE-angel · Post by **ICE-angel** » 19 Apr 2005, 17:07

the68monkey · Post by **the68monkey** » 19 Apr 2005, 19:50

Joe Hisaishi

Markgway · Post by **Markgway** » 19 Apr 2005, 22:48

Good topic...

Some composers I like and examples of their scores:

Ennio Morricone (Once Upon a Time in the West)
Danny Elfman (Edward Scissorhands)
John Barry (On Her Majesty's Secret Service)
Pino Donaggio (Dressed to Kill)
Bernard Herrmann (Vertigo)
Randy Edelman (Dragon)
Patrick Doyle (Dead Again)

And not so keen on...?

John Williams? Good central themes... but to paraphrase Gary Oldman in Leon: "I tend to find him a little fucking boring."

Brad Fiedel is a bit crap in my opinion... sorry!!

Thomas Newman. American Beauty score was K-rap. Seems to repeat himself.

James Horner. Lazy sod turned in the same score/cues at least four times for different films. And was co-responsible for that fucking Celine Dion dirge from Titanic.

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 20 Apr 2005, 02:23

Markgway wrote: James Horner. Lazy sod turned in the same score/cues at least four times for different films. And was co-responsible for that fucking Celine Dion dirge from Titanic.

I 100% agree. Did you have the misfortune of hearing his god-awful score for Troy?

Markgway · Post by **Markgway** » 20 Apr 2005, 03:30

EvaUnit02 wrote:I 100% agree. Did you have the misfortune of hearing his god-awful score for Troy?

I haven't seen Troy, but that doesn't mean I haven't heard the score before... geddit??

Not a fan of swords and sandals.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 20 Apr 2005, 08:13

The Troy score was terrible. All it was (to me) was unmemorable Middle Eastern wailing. The style does have the excuse that Troy is, in a way in ancient Turkey, but it doesnt excuse the badness of the score. Han Zimmer's score for Gladiator pisses all over it for example.

Tan Dun is good, but weren't scores for CTHD/Hero similar?

That said I preferred the music for them to the HOFD music.

Markgway · Post by **Markgway** » 20 Apr 2005, 15:02

Talking of Hanz Zimmer... Crimson Tide is a good score.

Mordib · Post by **Mordib** » 20 Apr 2005, 16:34

my two faves -

1. the one and only, Danny Elfman. with a staggering 119 films as composer under his belt including many of the biggest films to come out of hollywood in the last 10 years.
2. Clint Mansell, not only a great composer behind such films as requiem for a dream, man on fire the hole, sahara and the upcoming doom film but also the frontman of the totally awesome music group Pop Will Eat Itself!!

m.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 21 Apr 2005, 09:12

Romero hates him (Elfman) AFAIK

Maybe its because he did the theme to The Simpsons, and we know how he loves The Simpsons! :mrgreen: