“Music and cinema fit together naturally. Because there’s a kind of intrinsic musicality to the way moving images work when they’re put together. It’s been said that cinema and music are very close as art forms, and I think that’s true,” Martin Scorsese once said. Indeed, the right piece of music — whether it’s an original score or a carefully selected song — can do wonders for a sequence, and today we’re looking at the 25 films which best expressed this notion.
From accomplished musicians such as Bradford Cox, Jonny Greenwood, Trent Reznor, Stuart Murdoch, Dev Hynes, Alex Ebert and Mark Mothersbaugh to Hans Zimmer, Alexandre Desplat, and more seasoned composers, as well as soundtracks including Mommy, The Guest, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Boyhood, each musical example perfectly transported us to the world of the film.
As a note, we loved the music from A Girl Who Walks Home Alone at Night and The Tale of Princess Kaguya, but unfortunately they aren’t currently available to stream in an official capacity. Check out our rundown of the top 25, which includes streams to each soundtrack in full, and let us know your favorites in the comments below.
25. The LEGO Movie (Mark Mothersbaugh)
24. The Boxtrolls (Dario Marianelli)
23. Cold in July (Jeff Grace)
22. A Most Violent Year (Alex Ebert)
21. The Better Angels (Hanan Townshend)
20. Boyhood – Soundtrack
19. Grand Piano (Victor Reyes)
18. Guardians of the Galaxy – Soundtrack
17. God Help the Girl (Stuart Murdoch)
16. Listen Up Philip (Keegan DeWitt)
15. Mommy – Soundtrack
14. Enemy (Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans)
13. Palo Alto (Dev Hynes)
12. The Double (Andrew Hewitt)
11. Teenage (Bradford Cox)
10. Gone Girl (Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross)
9. Birdman (Antonio Sanchez)
8. Frank (Stephen Rennicks)
7. The Guest – Soundtrack
6. Whiplash (Justin Hurwitz)
5. Interstellar (Hans Zimmer)
4. Only Lovers Left Alive (Jozef Van Wissem)
3. Under the Skin (Mica Levi)
2. Inherent Vice (Jonny Greenwood)
1. The Grand Budapest Hotel (Alexandre Desplat)
What’s your favorite score or soundtrack this year?