My Top 5 Favorite Movie Soundtracks

I felt up to doing something different today. However I still wanted it to be movie related. Thus, I decided to do a count down list of my top 5 movies soundtracks. The soundtrack to a movie is so integral to a film. I've always found that the best ones are soundtracks that are just as lovely to listen to without watching the movie as they are when your watching it. By the way I didn't include soundtracks on this list that are from movie musicals that would probably be a whole new countdown list.

#5 Garden State

What I think is lovely about the Garden State soundtrack is that it reflects the story of the film perfectly. This fun collection of indie-rock, rock, folk, and the occasional trip-hop artists has a wonderful auditory flow from one song to the other. It always makes me feel like I'm listening to a really nice playlist. Which I suppose is the point since writer/director Zach Braff hand picked each song stating that he was essentially making a mix CD of all the songs that were scoring his life when he was writing the screen play. Apparently I'm not the only person who loves this soundtrack since it won a Grammy for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Motion Pictures.

#4 Pride and Prejudice

This soundtrack composed by Dario Marinelli and performed by french pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet always knocks my socks off. The love how the music is composed to sound exactly like the track titles and the scenes in which the songs are placed. It communicates the exact feelings of the scenes. Thus I feel like when I listen to it the songs carry a great deal of emotion. This soundtrack just puts me in a good mood. I might also be partial to this soundtrack because it is my go music to use for creating ballet choreography and for reading.

#3 The Piano

This soundtrack composed by Michael Nyman is in my top three because the composition sounds exactly like the imagery in the film. It sounds like dark rolling waves. It's the kind of music that makes your heart ache in a good way. There is a since of longing in the music. Plus the quality of the musicianship is so on point as Nyman plays all the piano parts backed by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra and the Michael Nyman band. The song The Heart Asks Pleasure first is probably one of my favorite instrumental songs ever.

#2 The Graduate

The soundtrack is just awesome. It is the compilation of songs written and arranged by Simon and Garfunkel as well as instrumental piece composed by Dave Grusin. The result is something magical that fits the movie without trying to be too literal about it. The fact that the soundtrack isn't too literal makes it very easy to just listen to on its own and enjoy it. There is something groovy about the music as well as bitter sweet. It's a pleasant mix for the ears.



#1 The Hours

The Hours features as my number one favorite because I love music composed by the composer Philip Glass in general. Since he is my favorite instrumental composer why wouldn't I love a soundtrack for and excellent movie featuring his music? Yet again this a soundtrack that gives my heart a good kind of ache. It has a wonderful mood and flow that just makes you feel. This is yet again a soundtrack where the music reflects the track titles as well as their placement in the movie. Which is amusing since not all of the tracks were composed specifically for the movie, but were songs that existed before the movie. However, I guess that isn't that odd because the author of the novel The Hours, Michael Cunningham, claims that he listens to Philip Glass a great deal while writing his novels. Which is probably why I find this soundtrack fabulous to listen to while reading.

Those were my top five movie soundtrack. I think perhaps for tomorrow's music related post I might post some excerpts from these soundtracks. Yay! See you all tomorrow.