Ooh, this is interesting. Without looking back and quantifying it, I felt like there were a number of scores in your first 40-ish that overlapped nicely with my tastes, then since then it's felt like very little overlap, and now suddenly as we near the top you have 5 that would be in my top 100, including a couple that would be near the top. Don't know what accounts for that.

> #18 - Cinderella Man by Thomas Newman

> This Tommy. When people say Thomas Newman isn’t all that great, THIS Tommy
> is the one I keep referring to, the T. New’s that was a constant, glorious
> presence in the 90’s but still dipped into this gorgeous, orchestral well
> frequently in the 00’s with stuff like Road to Perdition (coming up still)
> and Cinderella Man. The album is short but very, very sweet, clocking in
> at under 35 minutes of actual score but containing some of the composer’s
> most uplifting, gorgeous work, especially when we’re talking about the
> final two cues (one of which is Shawshan-y goodness to the max, and the
> other a delightful Celtic romp). I’ve loved this sucker ever since finding
> it at a Future Shop (remember those?) way back in high school.

> Best Cue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdO9zYBoqJI

After I binged Newman over the past year I'm totally unsure which scores I liked more or less, let alone which were my favorites. I only listened to this one attentively for the first time this year, and I have no idea what I thought of it because all the scores just blended together in a sea of sameness. The thought of going back and listening to everything again to pull out my favorites is daunting.

> #16 - The New World by James Horner

> When his Romeo and Juliet score finally saw the (illegal) light of day,
> some complained about how much of the score ripped off themes from New
> World in particular. Part of the reason I loved that R&J album was
> specifically because of that reason – any time I can hear something even
> remotely like The New World, my day is a better one. A gorgeous, sweeping,
> and highly romantic work that even mixes sound effects of nature and birds
> to a surprisingly good effect, New World is among my very favourites of
> Horner’s career. The “Winter Battle” cue is the only time the relaxing,
> beautiful atmosphere is interrupted – otherwise, this is just stellar
> “snuggle music” from beginning to end.

> Best Cue:
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ6VmiI5ylc&list=PLF58BABF8997A9930&index=1

I don't think I can go so far as to call this my favorite Horner score, but it very well might be my favorite to listen to outside of the film.

> #15 - The Fountain by Clint Mansell

> An exquisite score that might be one of the three most disagreed-with in
> my top 20, because for some reason I still can’t quite fathom, many do not
> hear the genius in The Fountain. Frankly, most still don’t see it in the
> film, either, which was one of the highlights of my theatrical moviegoing
> life (never before or since have I sat through the entire end credits in a
> theatre; not because I was waiting for an easter egg or final scene, but
> because my motor controls could barely function). It’s a beautiful,
> ambitious, wonderfully messy flick, and Mansell’s collaboration with
> Aronofsky has never resulted in a better pairing. The primary themes,
> played out on piano, cello’s, and sometimes synths, are memorable and
> heart-breaking, leading towards the two finale cues that stun my ass right
> back into the stone age. If you’ve avoided the score because of some bad
> reviews (dang it Clem!), please rectify that and checker out.

> Best Cue:
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADI7AQhj1U8&list=PL46CAACA317EB76FC&index=10

Pretty sure I've shared this exact theater-going experience on the board previously...did you copy-paste from my post?

It's in contention for my favorite film ever, as well as one of the most moving experiences I've had with a work of art, period. The music is essential and perfectly matched to the story and visuals. I don't think either score or film will ever get its due.

> #14 - Gladiator by Hans Zimmer

> One of the rare times a super popular album (of, like, any genre) hit me
> right in the belly immediately on first listen and never wavered from
> being an all-time favourite. It’s most famous for the Lisa Gerrard-led
> tracks like Now We Are Free (one of Zimmer’s career best) or the epic,
> awesome action music that sounds like it could be for a modern thriller
> set in Russia like The Battle and Barbarian Horde. On repeat listens,
> though, everything else about the music sings loudly as well; the subtle
> stuff co-composed by Klaus Badelt is exquisite, and the overall mix of
> mournful and heroism is outstanding. The “More Music” album is just about
> the only one of its kind I bought as a kid, and even with stupid dialogue
> ruining some of the cues, it’s damn great as well. Maybe too “synthy” or
> rebellious for some people, but I love it.

> Best Cue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghxzLw2wRis

I love 'Now We Are Free,' but the two cues that lead up to it deserve more love. I usually listen to them as a trio.

> #12 - The Time Machine by Klaus Badelt

> Recently (by writing this – by the time its posted this might’ve happened
> 23 months ago), I made Ahn listen to this sucker for being so very very
> wrong on a Matrix 4 bet. And I was pleasantly surprised by the outpouring
> of positive responses; apparently I’m not the only one who holds this
> sucker in high esteem, which is a big change of pace since the last damn
> score mentioned. Time Machine is a huge mishmash of tones; whimsical
> Christmasy music, tragic drama, ethereal Adieum-esque choral chanting,
> epic action, fun adventure, and a whole bunch of other weirdness. It
> shouldn’t work, but dang does it ever. This was among my most expensive CD
> purchases ever; found it at a Quebec store back in 2002 for 26 bucks,
> which was literally more than I had at the time and had to borrow some
> cash from my folks for the rest. So glad I did.

> Best Cue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVJCXVx-J98

It might not be better than The Promise, but I like it more.

> #11 - Avatar by James Horner

> As with the movie itself, Avatar got plagued with a lot of criticisms of
> unoriginality. Boo freakin hoo. If a score sounds this majestic and epic
> and wonderful and gorgeous and exciting and balls deep awesome then I
> frankly don’t care if the composer copy and pasted every single note from
> a long-lost Nintendo game from 1984 – I just want more of it. Avatar is a
> sweeping achievement, and yes, essentially a Greatest Hits of James Horner
> Compilation. So what? Our greatest ever composer writing in his favourite
> wheelhouses, and all on one album!!! Fuck YES, and God do I wish we had
> more of them. The only ding on the original score album is that it
> inexplicably left off one of Horner’s career-best action cues (Quaritch
> Down), but otherwise, I give it no dings. Zero dings. Negative dings. Love
> it.

> Best Cue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kOBwBhuMQg

Agree!