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Top Films from Selected Film Composers (M-Z)

The lists below include only films for which the composers contributed original music regardless of whether they were credited.

Henry Mancini

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 Touch of Evil 1958 Orson Welles 87
2 Breakfast at Tiffany's 1961 Blake Edwards 326
3 Imitation of Life 1959 Douglas Sirk 571
4 Charade 1963 Stanley Donen 1009
5 The Pink Panther 1963 Blake Edwards 1206
6 The Party 1968 Blake Edwards 1414
7 A Shot in the Dark 1964 Blake Edwards 1525
8 Victor/Victoria 1982 Blake Edwards 1636
9 Wait until Dark 1967 Terence Young 1737
10 Creature from the Black Lagoon 1954 Jack Arnold 1859
11 Days of Wine and Roses 1962 Blake Edwards 2493
12 Mommie Dearest 1981 Frank Perry 2608
13 The Great Mouse Detective 1986 Ron Clements, Burny Mattinson, David Michener, and John Musker 2626
14 It Came from Outer Space 1953 Jack Arnold 2861
15 This Island Earth 1955 Joseph M. Newman 2899

Ennio Morricone

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 The Good, the Bad and the Ugly 1966 Sergio Leone 48
2 The Thing 1982 John Carpenter 63
3 Once Upon a Time in the West 1968 Sergio Leone 76
4 Once Upon a Time in America 1984 Sergio Leone 157
5 The Battle of Algiers 1966 Gillo Pontecorvo 158
6 Days of Heaven 1978 Terrence Malick 243
7 Cinema Paradiso 1988 Giuseppe Tornatore 275
8 A Fistful of Dollars 1964 Sergio Leone 429
9 For a Few Dollars More 1965 Sergio Leone 476
10 The Untouchables 1987 Brian De Palma 533
11 The Hateful Eight 2015 Quentin Tarantino 1357
12 The Great Silence 1968 Sergio Corbucci 1366
13 Investigation of a Citizen above Suspicion 1970 Elio Petri 1829
14 Casualties of War 1989 Brian De Palma 1940
15 1900 1976 Bernardo Bertolucci 2059
16 The Mission 1986 Roland Joffé 2060
17 Duck, You Sucker 1971 Sergio Leone 2234
18 Teorema 1968 Pier Paolo Pasolini 2292
19 In the Line of Fire 1993 Wolfgang Petersen 2442
20 The Bird with the Crystal Plumage 1970 Dario Argento 2531

Alfred Newman

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 All about Eve 1950 Joseph L. Mankiewicz 64
2 The Grapes of Wrath 1940 John Ford 273
3 How Green Was My Valley 1941 John Ford 895
4 Twelve O'Clock High 1949 Henry King 1094
5 Wuthering Heights 1939 William Wyler 1163
6 The Gunfighter 1950 Henry King 1178
7 The King and I 1956 Walter Lang 1315
8 The Seven Year Itch 1955 Billy Wilder 1317
9 Young Mr. Lincoln 1939 John Ford 1332
10 How the West Was Won 1962 John Ford, Henry Hathaway, and George Marshall 1519
11 Gunga Din 1939 George Stevens 1598
12 Dodsworth 1936 William Wyler 1669
13 Foreign Correspondent 1940 Alfred Hitchcock 1813
14 The Hunchback of Notre Dame 1939 William Dieterle 1846
15 Leave Her to Heaven 1945 John M. Stahl 1954
16 Ball of Fire 1941 Howard Hawks 1960
17 Stella Dallas 1937 King Vidor 2022
18 Heaven Can Wait 1943 Ernst Lubitsch 2538
19 A Letter to Three Wives 1949 Joseph L. Mankiewicz 2602
20 A Tree Grows in Brooklyn 1945 Elia Kazan 2787
21 The Robe 1953 Henry Koster 2811
22 How to Marry a Millionaire 1953 Jean Negulesco 2937
23 The Westerner 1940 William Wyler 3005
24 You Only Live Once 1937 Fritz Lang 3016

Randy Newman

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 Toy Story 1995 John Lasseter 38
2 Toy Story 3 2010 Lee Unkrich 169
3 Toy Story 2 1999 John Lasseter 256
4 Monsters, Inc. 2001 Pete Docter 327
5 The Natural 1984 Barry Levinson 920
6 Toy Story 4 2019 Josh Cooley 1448
7 Meet the Parents 2000 Jay Roach 1513
8 The Princess and the Frog 2009 Ron Clements and John Musker 1520
9 Marriage Story 2019 Noah Baumbach 1539
10 Seabiscuit 2003 Gary Ross 1639
11 Pleasantville 1998 Gary Ross 1694
12 A Bug's Life 1998 John Lasseter 1841
13 James and the Giant Peach 1996 Henry Selick 1955
14 Cars 2006 John Lasseter 2239
15 Awakenings 1990 Penny Marshall 2297

Thomas Newman

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 The Shawshank Redemption 1994 Frank Darabont 45
2 WALL•E 2008 Andrew Stanton 55
3 Finding Nemo 2003 Andrew Stanton 163
4 American Beauty 1999 Sam Mendes 218
5 The Green Mile 1999 Frank Darabont 296
6 Skyfall 2012 Sam Mendes 703
7 The Player 1992 Robert Altman 770
8 The Help 2011 Tate Taylor 969
9 The Lost Boys 1987 Joel Schumacher 1059
10 1917 2019 Sam Mendes 1110
11 Erin Brockovich 2000 Steven Soderbergh 1187
12 Road to Perdition 2002 Sam Mendes 1328
13 Little Women 1994 Gillian Armstrong 1377
14 Cinderella Man 2005 Ron Howard 1423
15 Desperately Seeking Susan 1985 Susan Seidelman 1526
16 Scent of a Woman 1992 Martin Brest 1572
17 Fried Green Tomatoes 1991 Jon Avnet 1824
18 Bridge of Spies 2015 Steven Spielberg 2216
19 Revolutionary Road 2008 Sam Mendes 2401
20 Little Children 2006 Todd Field 2407
21 In the Bedroom 2001 Todd Field 2443
22 The People vs. Larry Flynt 1996 Milos Forman 2732
23 Finding Dory 2016 Andrew Stanton 2959
24 Jarhead 2005 Sam Mendes 3058

Miklós Rózsa

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 Double Indemnity 1944 Billy Wilder 51
2 Ben-Hur 1959 William Wyler 188
3 The Asphalt Jungle 1950 John Huston 641
4 Adam's Rib 1949 George Cukor 880
5 The Lost Weekend 1945 Billy Wilder 892
6 The Killers 1946 Robert Siodmak 1207
7 The Thief of Bagdad 1940 Ludwig Berger, Michael Powell, and Tim Whelan 1359
8 Spellbound 1945 Alfred Hitchcock 2099
9 The Naked City 1948 Jules Dassin 2542
10 Lust for Life 1956 Vincente Minnelli 2818
11 El Cid 1961 Anthony Mann 2872
12 Quo Vadis 1951 Mervyn LeRoy 2936

Howard Shore

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 The Silence of the Lambs 1991 Jonathan Demme 20
2 The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring 2001 Peter Jackson 35
3 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King 2003 Peter Jackson 52
4 The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 2002 Peter Jackson 58
5 Seven 1995 David Fincher 90
6 The Fly 1986 David Cronenberg 147
7 The Departed 2006 Martin Scorsese 153
8 Videodrome 1983 David Cronenberg 421
9 Big 1988 Penny Marshall 515
10 Ed Wood 1994 Tim Burton 674
11 Dead Ringers 1988 David Cronenberg 725
12 A History of Violence 2005 David Cronenberg 769
13 Spotlight 2015 Tom McCarthy 783
14 Philadelphia 1993 Jonathan Demme 792
15 Hugo 2011 Martin Scorsese 919
16 Crash 1996 David Cronenberg 948
17 The Brood 1979 David Cronenberg 1015
18 After Hours 1985 Martin Scorsese 1021
19 High Fidelity 2000 Stephen Frears 1027
20 The Game 1997 David Fincher 1099
21 Mrs. Doubtfire 1993 Chris Columbus 1138
22 Eastern Promises 2007 David Cronenberg 1266
23 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey 2012 Peter Jackson 1281
24 Gangs of New York 2002 Martin Scorsese 1532
25 The Aviator 2004 Martin Scorsese 1704
26 The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug 2013 Peter Jackson 1850
27 Scanners 1981 David Cronenberg 2024
28 Doubt 2008 John Patrick Shanley 2176
29 Naked Lunch 1991 David Cronenberg 2227
30 Dogma 1999 Kevin Smith 2558
31 eXistenZ 1999 David Cronenberg 2564
32 That Thing You Do! 1996 Tom Hanks 2931
33 The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies 2014 Peter Jackson 2961

Alan Silvestri

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 Back to the Future 1985 Robert Zemeckis 30
2 Forrest Gump 1994 Robert Zemeckis 72
3 Who Framed Roger Rabbit 1988 Robert Zemeckis 225
4 The Avengers 2012 Joss Whedon 313
5 Avengers: Endgame 2019 Anthony and Joe Russo 373
6 Predator 1987 John McTiernan 374
7 Avengers: Infinity War 2018 Anthony and Joe Russo 436
8 The Abyss 1989 James Cameron 1045
9 Back to the Future Part II 1989 Robert Zemeckis 1133
10 Contact 1997 Robert Zemeckis 1262
11 Cast Away 2000 Robert Zemeckis 1387
12 Captain America: The First Avenger 2011 Joe Johnston 1473
13 Back to the Future Part III 1990 Robert Zemeckis 1502
14 The Parent Trap 1998 Nancy Meyers 1715
15 Lilo & Stitch 2002 Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders 1869
16 Romancing the Stone 1984 Robert Zemeckis 1899
17 The Long Kiss Goodnight 1996 Renny Harlin 2557
18 Serendipity 2001 Peter Chelsom 2641
19 Overboard 1987 Garry Marshall 2887

Max Steiner

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 Casablanca 1942 Michael Curtiz 5
2 Gone with the Wind 1939 Victor Fleming 31
3 The Searchers 1956 John Ford 53
4 King Kong 1933 Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack 68
5 The Treasure of the Sierra Madre 1948 John Huston 142
6 The Big Sleep 1946 Howard Hawks 215
7 White Heat 1949 Raoul Walsh 447
8 Mildred Pierce 1945 Michael Curtiz 454
9 Arsenic and Old Lace 1944 Frank Capra 656
10 Now, Voyager 1942 Irving Rapper 1012
11 Sergeant York 1941 Howard Hawks 1056
12 The Caine Mutiny 1954 Edward Dmytryk 1451
13 Key Largo 1948 John Huston 1486
14 Angels with Dirty Faces 1938 Michael Curtiz 1586
15 The Informer 1935 John Ford 2294
16 Jezebel 1938 William Wyler 2445
17 The Letter 1940 William Wyler 2543
18 The Life of Emile Zola 1937 William Dieterle 2575
19 Little Women 1933 George Cukor 2581
20 Dodge City 1939 Michael Curtiz 2761
21 The Gay Divorcee 1934 Mark Sandrich 2916
22 Dark Victory 1939 Edmund Goulding 2942

Dimitri Tiomkin

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 It's a Wonderful Life 1946 Frank Capra 46
2 Rio Bravo 1959 Howard Hawks 202
3 High Noon 1952 Fred Zinnemann 206
4 Strangers on a Train 1951 Alfred Hitchcock 286
5 Red River 1948 Howard Hawks 319
6 Mr. Smith Goes to Washington 1939 Frank Capra 362
7 Shadow of a Doubt 1943 Alfred Hitchcock 425
8 Giant 1956 George Stevens 829
9 The Thing from Another World 1951 Christian Nyby 843
10 Dial M for Murder 1954 Alfred Hitchcock 1101
11 The Guns of Navarone 1961 J. Lee Thompson 1399
12 Only Angels Have Wings 1939 Howard Hawks 1482
13 Lost Horizon 1937 Frank Capra 1500
14 Duel in the Sun 1946 King Vidor 1564
15 You Can't Take It with You 1938 Frank Capra 1995
16 Gunfight at the O.K. Corral 1957 John Sturges 2403
17 D.O.A. 1949 Rudolph Maté 2822
18 The Westerner 1940 William Wyler 3005

John Williams

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 Star Wars 1977 George Lucas 4
2 Jaws 1975 Steven Spielberg 13
3 Schindler's List 1993 Steven Spielberg 21
4 E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial 1982 Steven Spielberg 27
5 Raiders of the Lost Ark 1981 Steven Spielberg 28
6 The Empire Strikes Back 1980 Irvin Kershner 29
7 Saving Private Ryan 1998 Steven Spielberg 60
8 Jurassic Park 1993 Steven Spielberg 83
9 Close Encounters of the Third Kind 1977 Steven Spielberg 110
10 Return of the Jedi 1983 Richard Marquand 219
11 Superman 1978 Richard Donner 238
12 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 2004 Alfonso Cuarón 305
13 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone 2001 Chris Columbus 333
14 Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 1989 Steven Spielberg 370
15 Minority Report 2002 Steven Spielberg 413
16 The Long Goodbye 1973 Robert Altman 538
17 Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens 2015 J.J. Abrams 565
18 Home Alone 1990 Chris Columbus 618
19 A.I.: Artificial Intelligence 2001 Steven Spielberg 655
20 Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom 1984 Steven Spielberg 722
21 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets 2002 Chris Columbus 731
22 Catch Me If You Can 2002 Steven Spielberg 733
23 JFK 1991 Oliver Stone 745
24 Empire of the Sun 1987 Steven Spielberg 876
25 Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith 2005 George Lucas 887
26 Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi 2017 Rian Johnson 938
27 Lincoln 2012 Steven Spielberg 1122
28 Born on the Fourth of July 1989 Oliver Stone 1295
29 War of the Worlds 2005 Steven Spielberg 1623
30 Munich 2005 Steven Spielberg 1883
31 Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace 1999 George Lucas 2013
32 Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones 2002 George Lucas 2335
33 The Towering Inferno 1974 John Guillermin 2336
34 The Patriot 2000 Roland Emmerich 2496
35 The Poseidon Adventure 1972 Ronald Neame 2636
36 Hook 1991 Steven Spielberg 2708
37 Stepmom 1998 Chris Columbus 2794
38 Nixon 1995 Oliver Stone 2803
39 Sleepers 1996 Barry Levinson 2982

Hans Zimmer

Rank Title Year Director(s) Overall
Rank
1 The Dark Knight 2008 Christopher Nolan 18
2 Inception 2010 Christopher Nolan 74
3 The Lion King 1994 Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff 92
4 Gladiator 2000 Ridley Scott 137
5 12 Years a Slave 2013 Steve McQueen 235
6 Interstellar 2014 Christopher Nolan 266
7 The Thin Red Line 1998 Terrence Malick 380
8 Batman Begins 2005 Christopher Nolan 384
9 Thelma & Louise 1991 Ridley Scott 402
10 A League of Their Own 1992 Penny Marshall 417
11 The Dark Knight Rises 2012 Christopher Nolan 438
12 Dunkirk 2017 Christopher Nolan 460
13 Blade Runner 2049 2017 Denis Villeneuve 472
14 Rain Man 1988 Barry Levinson 667
15 Hidden Figures 2016 Theodore Melfi 771
16 Black Hawk Down 2001 Ridley Scott 837
17 True Romance 1993 Tony Scott 925
18 The Rock 1996 Michael Bay 978
19 My Beautiful Laundrette 1985 Stephen Frears 997
20 The Ring 2002 Gore Verbinski 1046
21 Dune 2021 Denis Villeneuve 1062
22 Rush 2013 Ron Howard 1125
23 Cool Runnings 1993 Jon Turteltaub 1144
24 As Good as It Gets 1997 James L. Brooks 1150
25 Kung Fu Panda 2008 Mark Osborne and John Stevenson 1321
26 Top Gun: Maverick 2022 Joseph Kosinski 1339
27 Something's Gotta Give 2003 Nancy Meyers 1470
28 Dune: Part Two 2024 Denis Villeneuve 1629
29 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest 2006 Gore Verbinski 1867
30 The Last Samurai 2003 Edward Zwick 1949
31 Rango 2011 Gore Verbinski 1964
32 Man of Steel 2013 Zack Snyder 2125
33 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End 2007 Gore Verbinski 2156
34 The Holiday 2006 Nancy Meyers 2238
35 Frost/Nixon 2008 Ron Howard 2402
36 The Prince of Egypt 1998 Brenda Chapman, Steve Hickner, and Simon Wells 2446
37 Driving Miss Daisy 1989 Bruce Beresford 2527
38 The Simpsons Movie 2007 David Silverman 2884
39 Widows 2018 Steve McQueen 3011
40 Sherlock Holmes 2009 Guy Ritchie 3012
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This page was last modified on February 2, 2025