Settling the Score

As God is our witness, #2 on the AFI’s list is Max Steiner’s score for 1939’s Gone with the Wind. Will Jon and Andy butt heads over stair-climbing music, again? Will they see eye to eye about the correct way to use a highlighter? And, how well were they each able to get into a … Continue reading "#25 – Gone with the Wind"

We’ve arrived at the Top Three on the AFI’s list, with Maurice Jarre’s score for the 1962 sweeping historical epic Lawrence of Arabia – so it is written! How does Jarre’s big main theme make such a compelling case for the romance of the desert? What far-fetched scheme did the producer originally have in mind … Continue reading "#24 – Lawrence of Arabia"

Find out how much praise we shower on the AFI’s #4 – Bernard Herrmann’s score for 1960’s Psycho! How did arguably the most famous of all film score cues result from ignoring Hitchcock’s specific instructions? What did Herrmann see in this film beyond even what Hitchcock perhaps intended? And, how would you spell the Psycho … Continue reading "#23 – Psycho"

We’ve made you a podcast you’d be hard-pressed to turn down! We finally cracked the AFI’s top five, with Nino Rota’s score for 1972’s The Godfather. What far-reaching historical traditions does the main theme come from? What somewhat nearer reaching did Rota do for some of the other music? And, how would this list look different … Continue reading "#22 – The Godfather"

You’re not gonna need a bigger podcast – this one’s about John Williams’ 1975 score for Jaws, the #6 score on the AFI’s list! How did Williams change Spielberg’s conception of his own movie? In a score often remembered for its simplicity, how many different complex flavors does he actually bring? And, what one weird … Continue reading "#21 – Jaws"

Not only is it the face in the misty light, but Laura – and its 1944 score by David Raksin – is the #7 on the AFI’s list! What in Raksin’s personal life helped inspire the famous theme melody? Why was it so bewitching for so many performers, for so many years? And, is it … Continue reading "#20 – Laura"

Thumbing their nose at the chance for some numerical serendipity, the AFI put Elmer Bernstein’s score for the 1960 epic Western The Magnificent Seven at #8 on their list. What makes this theme such an all-time great? Does this movie deserve it? And, Jon didn’t dare to write more parody lyrics, did he?

What’s the AFI’s #9 score, by Jerry Goldsmith – did you forget it? It’s Chinatown. What behind-the-scenes intrigue brought Goldsmith to work on this picture? Why is his main theme such a perfect fit for this story? And, what eye-opening scoop did our crack research staff (Andy) uncover?

Don’t worry, we won’t forsake you – we’ve finally cracked the AFI’s top ten, with Dmitri Tiomkin’s score for the classic 1952 western High Noon. How did this movie inadvertently change the whole landscape of the entertainment industry? How successful was Tiomkin at becoming an eccentric fixture on 1950s television? And, to what depth of … Continue reading "#17 – High Noon"

What ho! – #11 on the AFI’s list is Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s score for the 1938 Technicolor romp The Adventures of Robin Hood. Why did Korngold at first think he was the wrong man for the job? What does the score sound like both before and after it’s orchestrated? And, would you dare to take … Continue reading "#16 – The Adventures of Robin Hood"

We won’t keep you hanging – #12 on the AFI’s list turns out to be Bernard Herrmann’s score for the 1958 Hitchcock psychological thriller Vertigo! How do Herrmann’s musical suspensions perfectly serve the Master of Suspense? Why was this story of obsession such fertile ground for his distinctive compositional style? And, between Jon and Andy, … Continue reading "#15 – Vertigo"

Rampaging onto the AFI’s list at #13 is Max Steiner’s score for the 1933 fantasy adventure classic King Kong. Did Steiner invent film music in the first place? Does this music have more in common with modern scores or silent film accompaniment? And, whatever became of King Kong’s acting career?

John Williams makes his first appearance on the AFI’s list at #14, with his 1982 score for E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Why does this movie ask so much of its music? What’s the relationship between a composer and a temp score? And, how loud are your keys?

In this special super-sized episode, Jon and Andy take a break from their countdown of the AFI’s list, and examine the five films and composers nominated for this year’s Best Original Score Oscar. These wide-ranging scores come at the question of what to do with film music from some very different directions. Who will win? … Continue reading "#12 – 2018 Oscars Special"

Look, up in the sky, it’s John Barry’s score for 1985’s Out of Africa! In the #15 score on the AFI’s list, does the melody for the famous airplane scene get enough use through the movie? When should the music connect one scene to the next, and when shouldn’t it? And, was Sydney Pollack right … Continue reading "#11 – Out of Africa"