Top 5: Film Scores Of 2020
With each new year’s wave of films comes an array of new cinematic soundscapes, and even though this year has been a dumpster fire, it’s given us no shortage of new sounds. Whether it marries perfectly with the visuals or can be cranked up on its own, a film’s score is integral to its atmosphere and overall aesthetic. At its very best, it enriches the film’s power by providing a layer of aural information that can inform the viewer on its characters and plot just as much as a the visuals.
2020 brought along a slew of fantastic scores and soundtracks, and while many captured our ear and heart, only a handful are held dear. Here’s our picks for the best film scores from last year!
5: Ludwig Goransson, Tenet
Tenet may have been an impressive looking, yet convoluted mess, but Ludwig Goransson’s score makes the overly long experience go down much smoother. Providing a pulsing heartbeat for the film, Goransson loads his soundscapes full of anxious, jittery arpeggiated synths, droning tones, and orchestration (some of which is played backwards). The score is lush, dynamic, and teeming with enough deep bass BRRRRMMMs and WWWOOOMMPPs to get you proper hyped. It’s like a cleaner, more commercially minded Good Time score by Oneohtrix Point Never, which we’re all about. Goransson’s kinetic score gives Nolan’s film more energy and pizazz, while also obscuring some of the expositional dialogue, because, let’s face it, we didn’t wanna hear that anyways…
Best cut: “RAINY NIGHT IN TALLINN”x
4: Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, Mank
Since winning an Oscar for their phenomenal score to David Fincher’s Social Network, which won them an Oscar, Trent Reznor and his collaborating partner Atticus Ross have become more entrenched in film scores. The pair’s unique sound, full of dark, synth-driven soundscapes, make them easily identifiable both within the world of rock n’ roll and film, but with Mank, the duo’s fourth collaboration with David Fincher, we saw them step outside their norm with superb effect. Eschewing their usual synth-heavy style, Reznor and Ross used period-authentic instrumentation from the 1940s to accompany the film, and to us, it’s one of the best qualities of the film.
Best cuts: “Welcome to Victorville” and “A Fool’s Paradise”
3: Colin Stetson, Color Out of Space
Colin Stetson’s mix of circular-breathing woodwinds, droning synths, and mystical strings give Richard Stanley’s Color Out of Space a beautiful, otherworldly feel, which completely enhance the experience. At times blistering noise, and other times blissfully melodic, Colin Stetson takes the sounds he explored in Ari Aster’s Hereditary to new heights here. The lush atmospherics of Stetson’s compositions amp up the film’s mood and spiritual feeling, while also giving it a menacing wail and rhythmic drive that play into its cosmic terrors. Much like the horror that befalls the family in the film, everything about Stetson’s score is all-consuming.
Best Cuts: “The Gardners” and “West of Arkham”
2: Emile Mosseri, Kajillionaire
Emile Mosseri fills Miranda July’s Kajillionaire full of lush romantic melodies that perfectly capture the film’s idiosyncratic spirit. Loaded with rich orchestral strings, playful piano, oddly quirky chants, and fluttering synths, Mosseri’s arrangements find the perfect, graceful balance between the film’s eccentric comedy and its slow-burning romance. The score oozes with whimsy. Sonically, it sounds like it feels like to fall in love; its giddy nervousness and a heartfelt swoons that swell up into exultant triumph. Familiar, yet odd and alien, Mosseri finds clever ways to capture Kajillionaire’s essence and give its protagonist new dimension through its musical arrangements.
Best cuts: “Mr. Lonely” (with Angel Olsen), “Darker Than This”, and “Infinite Love”
Before we get to our #1 pick, here's a few that just missed the cut:
Jim Williams, POSSESSOR
Terence Blanchard, Da 5 Bloods
Benjamin Wallfisch, The Invisible Man
And now, our pick for the best film score of 2020 goes to...
1: Jon Batiste, Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, Soul
We never thought we’d see Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross attached to a children’s film, so their unlikely team up with Jon Batiste for Pixar’s Soul came as a delightful surprise to us. Both Batiste’s jazz and Reznor and Ross’ electronics perfectly marry the worlds they represent in the film. For the world of the living, Batiste’s swinging arrangements give the film a nice upbeat pulse, while also correlating wholeheartedly to the protagonists interior world; for The Great Beyond, Reznor and Ross’ ethereal and breathy ambient with melodic flourishes gives the otherworldly realm a feeling of calmness and awe. While they still operate within a primarily electronic palette, Reznor and Ross stretch out their sound and lean into the more subdued and serene. As different as the arrangements on Soul are, they share common ground in their contemplative and heartfelt roots. For our money, it’s the most versatile and deeply felt scores from last year.
Best cuts: “Born to Play", “The Great Beyond”, and “Epiphany”
That's our list! Did we leave off your favorite score?! We want to know. Share your thoughts and feelings in the comments section below, and as always remember to viddy well!