Any opinions on the Oscars?
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It’s a pleasant enough score, but a bit boring to me – it really doesn’t go anywhere. I haven’t seen the film, but I’ve heard the score fits quite well. I guess this helped it earn the Oscar.
I have to say that this year’s nominees weren’t much to write home about either. Didn’t like any of them, although I suppose THE WILD ROBOT was the least uninteresting.
The Oscars short list is here. As usual with what’s hot on the Oscar radar, it’s a list of things I either dislike outright or am largely indifferent to. Few of these will feature anywhere near my own top 10 of the year, with one notable exception:
AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH (Simon Franglen)
As I said in the AVATAR thread, a step down from 2 and a big step down from 1. But possible to whittle oneself to about an hour of decent music. But nowhere near a favourite of the year.
BUGONIA (Jerskin Fendrix)
Fendrix’s best score to date, but still not something that will feature high up. I wrote a couple of comments here.
CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD (Laura Karpman)
Meh.
DIANE WARREN: RELENTLESS (Lesley Barber)
Haven’t heard, and have no intention to. Although I did like Barber’s work on MANCHESTER BY THE SEA a few years ago.
F1 (Hans Zimmer)
Some really cool and funky highlights amidst some rather non-descript cues. A few comments here.
FRANKENSTEIN (Alexandre Desplat)
Meh.
HAMNET (Max Richter)
Meh. And I’m a big Richter fan.
HEDDA (Hildur Guðnadóttir)
A little more outrovert than some of her other work, but still rather stale stuff.
A HOUSE OF DYNAMITE (Volker Bertelmann)
Loved the film, and the score is at least a BIT more musical than Bertelmann usually is. But still a long way to go to feature in any ‘best of’ list for me.
JAY KELLY (Nicholas Britell)
Meh. Britell has done so much better.
MARTY SUPREME (Daniel Lopatin)
Now here’s a FANTASTIC score that will no doubt feature in my own top 10. Saw the film earlier today, and posted a few comments in the “Do you like synth scores?” thread that I post in all by myself.
NUREMBERG (Brian Tyler)
Nah. He’s too overt and heavyhanded, as he often is with more serious material.
ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER (Jonny Greenwood)
The film was okay, but not the Second Coming like some made it out to be. I found the score supremely annoying.
SINNERS (Ludwig Göransson)
Meh.
SIRAT (Kangding Ray)
I think I sampled this, but have no memory of it at this time.
TRAIN DREAMS (Bryce Dessner)
Rather boring, but the film looks interesting.
TRON: ARES (Nine Inch Nails)
I’ve whittled this down to an album that is okay, but it’s a long way from Daft Punk in quality. A couple of highlight tracks.
TRUTH AND TREASON (Aaron Zigman)
Haven’t heard it.
WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY (Nathan Johnson)
Meh.
WICKED: FOR GOOD (John Powell & Stephen Schwartz)
No. Just no.
I don’t have a horse in this race. While I do even have some of the mentioned scores in my collection (Like F1, TRON:ARES, ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, AVATAR:FIRE AND ASH), I have not yet managed to listen to even one of them.
So, what does everyone think about this year’s Oscar film music nominees, and Desplat’s victory?
That would be kind of ironic if just in the year where John Williams doesn’t have a score in the race a more classical oriented score by Desplat would win, which is not half as good as all of JW’s recent efforts.
I have virtually not seen any of the movies so I cannot judge the scores. Despite not having listened to them although there are some FYC available online to do so… But actually I don’t pay that much atention the Oscars in general…
But actually I don’t pay that much atention the Oscars in general…
Many don’t. I’ve never used the Oscars as any kind of measurement for filmic quality, really. There are other, better award bodies for that (Cannes, Berlin, Venice etc.). The only reason I’ve tuned in to the award show in the past is because I have this weird fascination for big world stars coming together and interacting.
But there’s no denying the fact that it remains the biggest-profile film award on the planet, and it can kick off or cement (or re-cement) a film worker’s career more than anything else, perhaps make their dream projects come true in the aftermath. So I always make sure to at the very least recognize who gets nominated and who wins. Even if I disagree with the choices until I’m blue in the face.
Yes, true, I am certainly not totally immunized here. What keeps me from actually watching the show is that time zone shift 😉
Crazy day for Norwegian film! SENTIMENTAL VALUE is nominated in no less than NINE categories (including “Best Film”), while THE UGLY STEPSISTER is nominated for best make-up. Hard to wrap my head around this. In all of Oscar’s history, we’ve only been nominated six other times, and won two.
As for the score category, which is what most of you care about, the selections are predictably boring:
BUGONIA – it’s rather curious, but by far the best of the bunch. I hope this wins.
FRANKENSTEIN – Meh. Boring, as usual with Desplat.
HAMNET – Meh. I’m a huge Richter fan, but this is among his weaker efforts ever. Nothing against the overused “On the Nature of Daylight”, which is used here yet again, but that’s not an original piece for this film.
ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER – Annoying.
SINNERS – Men. Boring, as usual with Göransson.
None of these were anywhere near my own top 25. BUGONIA was perhaps top 50.
Sadly, MARTY SUPREME – the best score of the year – was overlooked.
Still haven’t listened to any of these so cannot judge anything. Interessting that you find ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER annoying. I know Greenwood is tough to listen to but at least is a bit daring and for sure not sound design type of composer. Do you “hate” him in general or just this score?
I like some Desplats but he often also doesn’t really click with me. Still ahve to watch the concert on arte he conducted. Maybe in suites things work better…
Still haven’t listened to any of these so cannot judge anything. Interessting that you find ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER annoying. I know Greenwood is tough to listen to but at least is a bit daring and for sure not sound design type of composer. Do you “hate” him in general or just this score?
He’s never wowed me with anything (I’ve never really liked Radiohead either, yes, shocking, I know), but I appreciate that he tries something a bit different, with all his difficult clusters of sound. But in this case, that aggravating piano motif just went on my nerves. A bit like in EYES WIDE SHUT, but it was at the very least more carefully used there. And yes, I know that’s what it’s supposed to do, but I find it to be a cheap gimmick. Nope, this was too “pling plong” for me.
While I thought ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER was a good film (that made it to my top 20 films of 2025), that was one aspect that drove me insane.
(I’ve never really liked Radiohead either, yes, shocking, I know)
Not at all, I was never into them and right now cannot even name an song by them (although I surely know some) 😉
But in this case, that aggravating piano motif just went on my nerves.
I am in the “benefit of the doubt” camp and just put the blame on the director to overuse such things 😉
So, anyone staying up for the Oscars on Sunday?
I really should, given my profession and the fact that Norway has so many chances this year (9 for SENTIMENTAL VALUE, 1 for THE UGLY STEPSISTER). But I can no longer stay up to 4 or 5 in the morning. “I’m too old for this shit.”
Haven’t watched it in years. I simply don’t care anymore..
Same here but I never stayed up for that at all… I just read the summaries the next day and if watch segments via Youtube indivually.
I don’t even remember right now what the score nomination finally are…
I will not be watching – the score category for years always seems to be the wrong choices.
Fantastic Four: The First Steps was score of the year for me. I predict SINNERS will win, the Academy adores Goransson.
Rarely any film composers makes it to the public news but of course being born in Germany and currently oscar nominated Max Richter of course just got one:
https://www.tagesschau.de/kultur/max-richter-oscar-nominierung-hamnet-100.htmlOne more reason to ignore it.
LOL! You took the words out of my mouth.
I don’t have any particular feelings about the Oscars this way or that way. I usually watch these things for the show and the stars coming together, the awards themselves mean less than the awards in Cannes, Berlin or Venice, for example. But you can’t get around the fact that these are the “most visible” film awards in the world, even if they aren’t the most prestigious or meaningful, so it’s always interesting to see which filmmakers get a career boost from this, or which established ones get the recognition etc.
Rarely any film composers makes it to the public news but of course being born in Germany and currently oscar nominated Max Richter of course just got one:
He’s a fantastic composer that deserves the profile, but HAMNET is one of the most boring things he’s ever written. I simply don’t understand the fuss.
I watched TENET, Thor. I’m a bit surprised you hate Goransson so much. That score was full of analogue synths and stuff.
Can’t stand TENET, I’m afraid. But there were some decent bits in OPPENHEIMER. I have a 32-minute playlist of that.
I think, if TENET had been the first movie I ever watched, I would hate film music and movies probably as well.
What an annoying mess!
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