Music that gives you the chills

[Panthera 0]

The End from United 93. I think you'd need to see the movie first in order for the chills sensation to take place.

[BurgaFlippinMan 7]

Zimmer's King of Pride Rock gets me every single time. Even more so during the movie

[indy4 155]

Big Fish and Charlotte's Web are certainly cousins, with that country feel. But Charlie is pretty distinct, especially with that synthesizer, Family Man has a unique, bustling Christmas feel, and Corpse Bride is a more stately, Victorian sounding piece. All definitely have that recognizable Elfman stamp, but I think they show a nice variety.Ray Barnsbury

They show variety in the Elfman category, but they don't venture out of it. Elfman is known for making, for lack of a better description, weird, off-tune music (that wasn't an insult AT ALL!). That's really all he knows how to write, apart from his great songs. So yes, they are varied slightly, but they still all fall under typical Elfman music.

Zimmer's King of Pride Rock gets me every single time. Even more so during the movie

Yes indeed!

[Miguel Andrade 1,263]

Romão, who misses movies with main titles.

I can relate to that, but main title can be kind of, well, anti-climatic.

Miguel, who actually believes that the thing that never fails to give me goosebumps is the final movement to John Williams' Cello Concerto, the beautiful, lyrical and sweet "Song".

Dare I say, the most beautiful thing John Williams ever wrote.

[Delorean90 42]

I actually preferred Young's score to Elfman's. I think it only really comes down to orchestration to be honest, but even with the complete scores to Spidey 1 and 2 around, I still listen to what's available of Spidey 3 a heck of a lot more. Plus, the film version of the 3rd Main Titles is currently my favourite. Also, the Deborah Lurie reworking of Elfman's themes I find a lot more enjoyable than Elfman's originals for some reason. Call that blasphemous if you want, but that's how I feel.

Which reminds me - if anyone wants to hear the film mix of the Main Titles and Birth of Sandman (same as the promo but a different recording for the final brass section) plus a few other rips, in great sound quality, PM me.

... Wow. Young's orchestrations are good, but his music is incredibly campy.

It's really missing a lot of the musical personality, too. I mean, it's good to hear an active, orchestral score like that, but it doesn't have that sound to it--it really makes a difference. I don't notice as many standout moments in what's available of 3, either. Oh, well. IMO, if Raimi and crew come back for 4, the best thing he can do is patch things up with Elfman and get over the whole temp track love--the studio should relent as well. Let these people work.

All this, of course, is not to say that richuk is not going to get a PM.

The main tracks I listen to on 3 are the Main Titles, The Birth of Sandman (which, I think, has a slight touch of vintage Elfman to it), and Transformations to Black-Suited Spider-Man. It would be nice to have the second Harry/Peter fight, though.

BTW, did it stick out to anyone else that they used the "Theater Montage" motif towards the beginning of 3, when it was left unused for some pop song in 2? I mean, come on--insult to injury here?

Agreed. Danny Elfman is indeed a master of main titles cues: Beetlejuice, Batman, Edward Scissorhands, Batman Returns, Spider-Man 1 and 2...

Indeed, he always seems to throw in a Main Title...a great staple of Elfman's work. I'd add to that list Big Fish, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Family Man, Corpse Bride, and Charlotte's Web. All great, varied, yet very Elfmanesque tracks. I think that the opening from Batman Returns ("Birth of a Penguin," part 1) is probably the most quintessentially Elfman piece ever, though. Such a treat!

Ray Barnsbury

I still haven't heard a lot of those scores yet, unfortunately, but yeah, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is good too, as is the Mars Attacks! opening titles, which someone mentioned. And I agree, Birth of a Penguin is classic, wondrous Elfman!

Big Fish and Charlotte's Web are certainly cousins, with that country feel. But Charlie is pretty distinct, especially with that synthesizer, Family Man has a unique, bustling Christmas feel, and Corpse Bride is a more stately, Victorian sounding piece. All definitely have that recognizable Elfman stamp, but I think they show a nice variety.Ray Barnsbury

They show variety in the Elfman category, but they don't venture out of it. Elfman is known for making, for lack of a better description, weird, off-tune music (that wasn't an insult AT ALL!). That's really all he knows how to write, apart from his great songs. So yes, they are varied slightly, but they still all fall under typical Elfman music.

That kinda seems like saying, "Yeah, these Williams scores are all varied slightly, but they still all fall under typical Williams music." My reply would be, "So?" It's the composer's voice. Elfman doesn't only write quirky, weird stuff. There is a lot of beautiful music in the two Batman scores and Edward Scissorhands, to start with. I need to hear more of Elfman's recent work, but I mean, c'mon, generalizing a bit much, are we?

[Richard Penna 3,690]

It's really missing a lot of the personality, too. I mean, it's good to hear an active, orchestral score like that, but it doesn't have that flavor and punch like Elfman's had. The main tracks I listen to on 3 are the Main Titles, The Birth of Sandman (which, I think, has a slight touch of vintage Elfman to it), and Transformations to Black-Suited Spider-Man. It would be nice to have the second Harry/Peter fight, though.

Those are the exact same 3 tracks I listen to a lot as well. Plus I like Young's love theme, even if it probably wasn't right for the tone of the film.

I must be one of the few around here who hopes that Young will be back for Spidey 4. I just preferred his score - that's it.

[Delorean90 42]

If they don't bring back Elfman, I say bring back Young. For me, not only did I prefer Elfman's score, but it's the continuity, as well. I wanted Elfman to be able to work with the material more. But if they're not gonna go back to him, I say stick with what you've got. No need to screw around with it anymore than it has been. What would be cool, though, is if they do bring Young back, and get Bartek to do the orchestrations this time. I wish they'd done that in 3--it might have helped the transitions in sound to be a little smoother.

[indy4 155]

That kinda seems like saying, "Yeah, these Williams scores are all varied slightly, but they still all fall under typical Williams music." My reply would be, "So?" It's the composer's voice. Elfman doesn't only write quirky, weird stuff. There is a lot of beautiful music in the two Batman scores and Edward Scissorhands, to start with. I need to hear more of Elfman's recent work, but I mean, c'mon, generalizing a bit much, are we?

The reason JW is so great is because he can adapt to almost any style music! I mean, can you really hear the same sound from Star Wars in the Terminal, or Home Alone? JW doesn't have one sound, he has between 50 and 100. Danny Elfman has about 2 or 3. Who else could be capable of writing Westerns, Asians, comedies, sci-fi's, fantasies, adventures, Christmas movies, love themes, evil themes, thrillers, jazz, and many more.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I feel the need to post what my brother and I discussed about Elfman recently. I told him I couldn't wait for The Kingdom, from which he replied, Elfman's bad at trying to be serious, he's a goofy composer. I was LMAO, and ultimately realized it was true.

[Ray Barnsbury 8]

Err...I know part of his trademark style is the "goofy" sound of Pee Wee and Beetlejuice, but let's give credit where credit is due. Sommersby, Black Beauty, and Dolores Claiborne, for example, are all beautiful scores which showcase a more dramatic, serious side to Elfman that's anything but "goofy." The same goes for a good portion of Big Fish, The Family Man, and Edward Scissorhands too. So I'd hardly call him bad trying to be serious. On the contrary, his "serious" music is often more interesting than a lot of the more typical dramatic scoring by other composers.

Ray Barnsbury

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Usually his more serious scores are very subtle and themeless, but I guess that's because I'm used to such great Main Titles from Elfman. I enjoyed Proof Of Life, and I think The Kingdom will be something along those lines.

[Red 75]

"Star of Bethlehem" from Home Alone.

[Delorean90 42]

That kinda seems like saying, "Yeah, these Williams scores are all varied slightly, but they still all fall under typical Williams music." My reply would be, "So?" It's the composer's voice. Elfman doesn't only write quirky, weird stuff. There is a lot of beautiful music in the two Batman scores and Edward Scissorhands, to start with. I need to hear more of Elfman's recent work, but I mean, c'mon, generalizing a bit much, are we?

The reason JW is so great is because he can adapt to almost any style music! I mean, can you really hear the same sound from Star Wars in the Terminal, or Home Alone? JW doesn't have one sound, he has between 50 and 100. Danny Elfman has about 2 or 3. Who else could be capable of writing Westerns, Asians, comedies, sci-fi's, fantasies, adventures, Christmas movies, love themes, evil themes, thrillers, jazz, and many more.

Elfman can adapt too. And, yes, there are certain Williams-isms that show up in a lot of his scores. Both of these composers have unique sounds, and different sound periods. No, Star Wars doesn't necessarily sound as much like Home Alone, but there are similarities between Superman and Star Wars, and E.T. and ESB, and Raiders and ROTJ, and Home Alone and Hook...and there are certain compositional elements that he just likes to use period, and they show up throughout.

Let me ask you something: Does Edward Scissorhands really sound that much like Spider-Man? Or Pee-Wee's Big Adventure like Hulk?

I feel the need to post what my brother and I discussed about Elfman recently. I told him I couldn't wait for The Kingdom, from which he replied, Elfman's bad at trying to be serious, he's a goofy composer. I was LMAO, and ultimately realized it was true.

Usually his more serious scores are very subtle and themeless, but I guess that's because I'm used to such great Main Titles from Elfman. I enjoyed Proof Of Life, and I think The Kingdom will be something along those lines.

Unfortunately, I haven't obtained as much of the recent Elfman scores, so I can't really judge as much on scores that are for less fantastical or fun in tone/subject matter. But, what about "Selina Transforms, Pt. 2"? What about "The Grand Finale" from Edward Scissorhands? Goofy composer? C'mon. As Ray said, his usual scores tend to be more fanciful and at times, yes, goofy (c'mon, the guy is Tim Burton's collaborator), but there's a lot more to him than that.

[indy4 155]

Let me ask you something: Does Edward Scissorhands really sound that much like Spider-Man? Or Pee-Wee's Big Adventure like Hulk?

I admit he has SOME variation, but all of those are still labeled with the Elfman stamp. If I had heard every score by Elfman except Scissorhands, Spider-man, Pee Wee, and Hulk, and someone played those scores, I would know right away who was scored them.

[Ray Barnsbury 8]

In any case, I don't see what you're saying as a bad thing anyway (not sure if you're meaning it in a good or bad way). There are just times when I want to listen to an Elfman score, and I can count on that classic Elfman sound in most of his scores, though the style of music varies. This is true for most composers (Williams' mark is clearly on scores as different as Home Alone and Close Encounters), but I think Elfman has created a more distinct sound than most.

Ray Barnsbury

[indy4 155]

there are certain Williams-isms that show up in a lot of his scores. Both of these composers have unique sounds, and different sound periods. No, Star Wars doesn't necessarily sound as much like Home Alone, but there are similarities between Superman and Star Wars, and E.T. and ESB, and Raiders and ROTJ, and Home Alone and Hook

But that's because those are similiar-type movies. I mean, would JW played The Tale of Viktor Navorski during Superman JUST so it wouldn't too much like Star Wars? He scored Star Wars, directors saw he had a talent for big bold marches, so they hired him for Superman. Same for the rest. I'm not saying EVERY JW score is a totally different style and everything, but when he wants to score a different type of movie, score style isn't a limit for him. Perhaps it isn't Elfman's fault--maybe he can't get directors to hire him for different types of movies--maybe he's been composer type-casted, but the fact still stand that Elfman has not shown as much variety as JW.

In any case, I don't see what you're saying as a bad thing anyway (not sure if you're meaning it in a good or bad way). There are just times when I want to listen to an Elfman score, and I can count on that classic Elfman sound in most of his scores, though the style of music varies. This is true for most composers (Williams' mark is clearly on scores as different as Home Alone and Close Encounters), but I think Elfman has created a more distinct sound than most.Ray Barnsbury

I'm not saying it's a bad thing at all--I love Elfman's music, he's ranks just below JW IMO. I'm just saying that as a film composer, he isn't as talented and creative as JW, because all his music sounds similiar. His scores are as enjoyable as they would ever be, but if he wants a shot at being THE best composer, he needs variety. He's still great at composing the music he does, but he could use some different stuff.

[Ray Barnsbury 8]

I agree that he's not up to Williams' level, but he is certainly near the top. As I see it, Elfman and JNH are the two best these days, after Williams. And actually, I've been enjoying a lot of their recent work more than JW's.

Ray Barnsbury

[indy4 155]

Yes, for me, Elfman, Zimmer, Giacchino, and Silvestri are IMO the best composers of today behind JW. I wouldn't say I've been enjoying there work more than JW, however.

[Carnifex 5]

Yes, for me, Elfman, Zimmer, Giacchino, and Silvestri are IMO the best composers of today behind JW. I wouldn't say I've been enjoying there work more than JW, however.

Silvestri represents to me a composer who cannot give anything excellent. He is not a bad composer, he gives safe and mediocre scores. Zemeckis likes him, I am not sure why. He is one of the best amongst mediocre composers though.

[indy4 155]

But like JW, it's his variety that makes him great. And I think he does make excellent scores--Mousehunt, Forrest Gump, Back to the Future Trilogy, and the Polar Express are all examples of excellent scores, IMO.