Hi, everyone! Due to the amount of viewership that my first movie soundtracks list got back in March, I decided I would make a second one! It's no surprise how much I've gushed about film this year, as seen on bazzcasts and on the blog. Many of you will also know how important I think music in film is, but I don't think anyone has said it better than legendary Swedish director, Ingmar Bergman:
“When we experience a film, we consciously prime ourselves for illusion... The sequence of pictures plays directly on our feelings. Music works in the same fashion; I would say that there is no art form that has so much in common with film as music. Both affect our emotions directly, not via the intellect. And film is mainly rhythm; it is inhalation and exhalation in continuous sequence. Ever since childhood, music has been my great source of recreation and stimulation, and I often experience a film or play musically.”
Take a minute to think about that quote. Once you're done, here's my list of some killer compilations of movie music. Enjoy!
CLARITY: I will only be including movies that use other music, not albums that are composed directly for the movie (i.e. music from John Williams, Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, etc.).
Mean Streets- Martin Scorsese (1973)
I actually watched this film recently- and that’s why “Be My Baby” by the Ronettes made my July list for songs of the month. Hearing an older song that I liked, but in a new context, made for a new appreciation of the music at hand. Even though it’s not my favorite film by Martin Scorsese, I don’t think I’ve seen a film from so long ago use music as well as he did. The Ronettes were one of many other bands from the Phil Spector/Wall of Sound era that got featured in this film. You also heard snippets of songs from the Rolling Stones (the incredible “Jumpin’ Jack Flash) and various Eric Clapton bands like Cream or Derek and the Dominoes.
Dope- Rick Famuyiwa (2015)
I think Dope is a pretty underrated feature in the grand scheme of things, so I’d definitely recommend checking it out whenever you can. It’s weird, because this movie does a brilliant job at making it feel like you’re in the 1990s, yet you’re actually in the present time. Getting a present face A$AP Rocky to have a brief supporting role in this movie is pretty legendary on its own- but the soundtrack? There are some absolute bangers from the “Golden Era.” Songs like “The World is Yours” by Nas, “Rebirth of Slick” by Digable Planets, and “Hip Hop Hooray” from Naughty By Nature are some of the most memorable from this list.
2001: A Space Odyssey- Stanley Kubrick (1968)
Well… let’s just say 2001 is a little overrated, but I still liked it nonetheless. It’s weird why I’m even put this on a list of soundtracks, but it counts that Kubrick did use a lot of famous classical compositions within the film. It’s funny because the guy who actually wrote the intended score for the film did not know that Kubrick cut his compositions for other pieces that were somewhat well-known. This includes something like “The Blue Danube.” However, there’s one piece you can’t overlook when talking about the movie: The de-facto theme song, Richard Strauss’ “Also sprach Zarathrustra.” It was a relatively small composition from the late nineteenth century, but its use in the movie made it become a cultural phenomenon in the last fifty years.
The Last Dance- ESPN/Netflix (2020)
This is another recent piece of media that I found to be a little overhyped… Yes, it’s cool, but the way ESPN marketed this docuseries was like Hard Knocks in the sense that this camera crew was following the Chicago Bulls for the ‘97/’98 campaign alone. Anyways, I digress. Like Dope, The Last Dance uses a significant amount of music that came out over the course of Michael Jordan’s playing career, and I think it’s arguably the strongest mix out of the bunch on this list. Don’t believe me? Well, Spotify had to capitalize on the widespread success and create this insane compilation of all the songs used. Leave a comment if you dig some of the songs!
Drive-Nicolas Winding Refn (2011)
I’ve got five words, and five words only, to sum up how much I love this movie and its soundtrack: “Nightcall” and “A Real Hero.” ‘Nuff said.
Blue Velvet- David Lynch (1986)
One of the best pieces of film I’ve seen in 2020, and it’s slowly becoming one of my favorite films of all time. It, like Drive, has two killer songs that make this movie so much better: The title track, “Blue Velvet” by Bobby Vinton, and the wickedly catchy, “In Dreams” by Roy Orbison. That’s all I’ve got to say without gushing for a couple of pages about how awesome this movie is.
Uncut Gems- Josh & Benny Safdie (2019)
Hey, it’s on Netflix! Watch it already, okay? In all seriousness, Uncut Gems is pretty damn stressful, but I think Good Time beats it out by just a hair. However, instead of just using a powerful score from Daniel Lopatin (aka Oneohtrix Point Never), the Safdie brothers incorporated some outstanding outside music into this film. “Amen” by Meek Mill, “Swimming Pools” by Kendrick Lamar, the end credits song “L’Amour Toujours,” and arguably the most meta music moment in cinematic history, Adam Sandler punches The Weeknd. Made my night when I first watched it.
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas- Terry Gilliam (1998)
One of the absolute trippiest movies I’ve ever seen, but damn it, it’s amazing. Not only that, but there are so many classic rock jams used in this movie to name. If a soundtrack with Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin, the Dead Kennedys, The Yardbirds, Tom Jones, and countless more acts from the late 60s and early 70s isn’t calling your name, then I don’t know what would. Terry Gilliam, if you’re reading this, well done, lad.
Interstella 5555: The Story of the Secret Star System- Daft Punk & Kazuhisa Takenouchi (2003)
Once again, kind of a concept soundtrack here. Interstella was one of the first “visual albums” of sorts that I’ve checked out, and the reason why it’s so special to me, personally, is due to the fact that it utilizes the music from Discovery by Daft Punk. I had no choice but to include it on this list, as many of you know it’s one of my favorite records of all time. The film is a little weird for my taste, but if you’re into cool-looking anime and you like Daft Punk, it’s definitely up your alley.
So, do you agree with my takes? What are some of your favorite movie soundtracks? Is there one you'd like me to have included? Leave a comment below or message me on Instagram if that is the case. I hope you guys found a lot of new music and movies to discover! Thanks again for checking this out, and I hope to see you back here checking out more content on the blog!
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