Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon – Tan Dun (2000)

A year after Chinese wire-fighting first made it to American big screens in a big way (in The Matrix), the Western cinema viewing world was wowed with something it hadn't really encountered before. Familiar martial arts movies had been the kind that starred Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan, high on the action and testosterone, with …

Bram Stoker’s Dracula – Wojciech Kilar

In 1992, Frances Ford Coppola gave us a new take on the Dracula myth, low on the "I vant to suck your blud" and high on seductive romance and gothic tragedy. It was well received, winning awards, and presenting the viewer with a feast for eyes and ears both. Returning from war to discover his …

Blade Runner – Vangelis

If you're talking about film scores, the name Vangelis really should come up eventually, and nowhere better than his ground-breaking work for Ridley Scott's sci-fi classic, Blade Runner. The movie has *the* sci-fi noir (practically-invented-the-genre) feel going on, and the score captures and enhances that perfectly. It includes dialog from the movie, heavy use of synthesizers …

Avatar – James Horner

James Cameron's Avatar (2009) received mixed reviews. 3D had never been used so well, it all looked amazing, but was the story a cliche - or worse? Whatever your opinion on the film, the score fits perfectly - in my opinion - with the look and feel of the piece, becoming a regular in my listening …