An integral part to any story on celluloid is its aural sensation. The highs and lows of a narrative can be accentuated to a crescendo if accompanied by the right melody at the right time. It has been often written that great cinema always contain exceptional soundtracks and we can’t help to wonder how the opposite is equally true: exceptional soundtracks often make great cinematic experiences.
Depending upon its reference, a soundtrack of a movie may refer to multitude of meanings. It ranges from sound mixing to sound effects in the movie. Soundtrack may also refer to the entirety of the music in the film, encompassing scores as well as songs that were either licensed or written solely for the film.
Take a look at the Top 10 Film Soundtracks of 2016 and let us know what you think in the comments below:
10. Kubo and the Two Strings
Quite possibly the most dreamy and enigmatic soundtrack of the year, Dario Marianelli assemble instruments inspiring adventure and thrill while complementing the surreal of the magical realm of Kubo and the Two Strings. It concludes with Regina Spektor’s breathtaking rendition of The Beatles’ classic, “While my Guitar Gently Weeps”, which is heart melting and rousing in equal measures, just like its central character, Kubo’s journey.
Also Read: Kubo and the Two Strings [2016]: Of Memories and Magic
9. The Witch
It’s as if we have heard something that was not meant for us, as if Satan himself is whispering and crooning in the dead of night. Its as if all the dread of this world has been bottled up inside a vessel and has been injected inside our ears. Mark Korven’s hauntingly tragic score for The Witch is a bug that creeps under your skin and eats you from inside. It’s ungodly, unholy and disturbingly creepy. Pick of the lot, “Caleb’s Seduction”.
Must-Read: Terror Trinity 2016: The Wailing, Under The Shadow, The Witch
8. The Neon Demon
So much disquiet, so much restlessness and so much unease. It’s like walking over stardust, all bright and brilliant, yet, sadly dying. Cleff Martinez has augmented the visual galore of The Neon Demon with a maddeningly bizarre background score. Haunting, nerve wrecking and electric to a hilt, enter into “The Demon Dance” and tell me you walked out unscathed.
Also Read: Neon Demon [2016]: Beauty is the only thing that Matters
7. Sing Street
John Carney has a knack of intermingling evocative music along with his narratives. He merged them successfully in massively underrated Once, then again with an all star cast of Begin Again. Sing Street carries the infectious spells of soundtracks forward with feverishly dreamy tunes which is innocently wild in its creativity and a fresh blast of raw youth. From gibberish dazzle of “Riddle of the Model” to soulfully uplifting Adam Levine’s “Go Now”, the entire feel is insanely groovy, heartfelt and has a lust to conquer skies with all its effervescent charm.
Recommended: Sing Street [2016]: Fractured Lives, Broken Dreams
6. The Handmaiden
Rich orchestration splattered over an expansive canvas, The Handmaiden’s score gives wings to your thoughts. It produces images of blue leaved trees, black ink spilled over white floor and grave battles with internal angst almost in a single hear. Jo’s score is complex, evocative and seductive, just like Park’s creation which is subversive and royal simultaneously. Pick of the lot, “My Tamako, My Sookee”.
Must-Read: The Handmaiden [2016]: A Perverted Tale of Love and Deceit
5. Arrival
With a script so thunderously original and the odds so stupendously elevated high on a pedestal, Arrival needed a moving score to match the audacity of its narrative. Icelandic composer, Johann Johansson pulls up one of the most layered soundtrack from his hat, having emotional depth and thematic resonance to Dennis Villeneuve’s vision. It was also accompanied by an old German composer Max Richter’s “On the Nature of Daylight”, an astonishing violin piece with a capacity to reduce you to a pool of tears.
Must-Read: Arrival [2016]: Alice In No Man’s Land
4. Everybody Wants Some!
Queens. The Knack. Van Halen. Pink Floyd. Linklater’s spiritual sequel to Dazed and Confused upped the ante when it comes to sheer raunchy vibe of its soundtrack. Classic Rock N’ Roll and its intoxicating flow, Everybody Wants Some feels like a rainbow loosely tethered to the horizon. Heavy riffs, signature tracks and addictive choruses makes sure that nostalgia waves of 80’s crash hard on the shores of our conscience.
3. American Honey
Remember the moment of heady rush when summer air brushes past your hair as you pull your head out of a fast moving car on a freeway. The feelings of breaking shackles, flying away into warm skies with nobody but yourself at the helm of life. Andrea Arnold decides to inject American Honey with a soundtrack that is foaming with freedom, wildness, glitters of sunlit landscapes and marvels of star struck nights. Ranging from quirky radio pop to full blown country and spanning from Raury’s “God’s Whisper” to Bruce Springsteen’s “Dream Baby Dream”, it transcends conventions, open our hearts and settles deep inside it.
Recommended: American Honey [2016]: Spider-Woman of the Dumpster
2. Swiss Army Man
Andy Hull and Robert McDowell’s brilliantly layered soundtrack to this oddly existential gem has such major feels to it, that hits you down at the core, lighting insides with sparkly fireworks. Feral and untamed in its approach it is like a rattle under your skin that never ceases to amaze. With original compositions such as “A Better Way” and “Montage”, Swiss Army Man is blessed with a soulfully enriching score that is as melancholic as it is free spirited and exquisite in all its measures.
Must Read: 10 Weirdest Films of 2016
1. La La Land
This is it. This is where the world stops spinning and comes to a rhythmic halt. A blizzard of life soaked jazz and enchanting blues coupled with some heart wrenching minimalist piano pieces, Justin Hurwitz has balanced the entire world of pains and pleasures on his artistic feathers. “Epilogue” sets a bar for stitching multitude of emotions in a single melody whereas “City of Stars” is a magical sensory bliss through and through. La La Land’s soundtrack is nothing short of a revelation. It’s freshly comforting, oddly swooning and has the primal power to melt you into nothingness.