Who is Your Favorite Film Composer? (VOTE NOW)

[SlowPokemon]

Alright, I'm not sure how many other film score fanatics there are out there, but I'm interested to know who your favorite film composer is. You can choose two.

NOMINEES

John Williams is who I expect to come out on top, because he's the most iconic. He really understands how to make music work for a film as well as WITH it. The Star Wars, Jaws, Jurassic Park, and Harry Potter franchises (among MANY MANY more) would not be the same without this brilliant man.

Danny Elfman is an obvious nominee, with his quirky, often achingly beautiful, and occasionally even badass themes. Check out "Edward Scissorhands," "Big Fish," and maybe even "Men in Black" to get a feel for his wonderful scores.

Hans Zimmer manages to remain as one of the most popular because....well, I'm not totally sure why, to be honest. He has great themes for Pirates of the Caribbean, and won an Oscar for his score to the Lion King. His earth-shattering score for Inception is instantly recognizable, and the murky, dank score for the Dark Knight as well as the lopsided, quirky theme for Sherlock Holmes are also iconic. Not much of it stands as OMG AMAZING music, but he has quite a following. I'm a fan of most of Zimmer's work, but he isn't a genius by my standards. I'm including him anyway, though, because I think he's noteworthy.

Howard Shore, while not as fantastic a musician as other composers, has quite a large following due largely to his phenomenal Lord of the Rings music, which won him two oscars. He is an interesting fellow and his recent score for Hugo also shows that he is capable of centering around several main themes in equal parts.

Joe Hisaishi is my personal favorite simply due to his amazing consistency for greatness. If you haven't heard any of his wonderful music for Hayao Miyazaki films yet, I suggest you slap yourself and then go listen to one of them. Whether he opts for a tone that is brooding and breathtaking (Spirited Away), simplistically beautiful (Castle in the Sky), grand and extravagant (Howl's Moving Castle), or overwhelmingly heartwarming (Kiki's Delivery Service), rest assured it will work out brilliantly.

Michael Giacchino is a rising-to-fame composer, two time oscar nominee (Rataouille, Up) and one time winner (Up). You may have heard his music for Lost (a television show), Star Trek, or the recent John Carter.

Alexandre Desplat is known for subtle, moody, and breathtaking melodies woven throughout his scores. Known for the final two Harry Potter scores, and several oscar-nominated scores such as "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and "The King's Speech." He's an acquired taste but I think once you get to know his music you'll find yourself immersed in it.
I know I left out a lot, but I don't expect many to vote and I can't include everyone! Vote for your top two. My votes are for Joe Hisaishi and Danny Elfman.

[fabbemannen]

Whenever I look for a moviesong I've heard and thought sounded epic, it always ends up being Hans Zimmer. He's my favorite by far

[SuperFireKirby]

Howard Shore is definitely my favorite with Joe Hisaishi being a close second.

[The Deku Trombonist]

Thomas Newman is my fave but he's not on the list. So I'll stick with Joe Hisaishi and John Williams.

[SlowPokemon]

You know, I almost included Thomas Newman but I wasn't sure if anyone else knew who he was.

[starrgrl24]

John Williams is the man. I also choose Giacchino due to personal taste. It's nice to see a rising to fame film composing star. :>

[SlowPokemon]

I looove Giacchino's Ratatouille score. Also, John Williams is good but I didn't choose him because most of his best themes are so overused and whatnot. His Harry Potter 3 score is my favorite, but if you haven't already I'd take a look at War Horse. The "Remembering Emilie, and Finale" track is a gorgeous piano-driven piece.

[EFitTrainr]

lol murray gold FTW

[The Deku Trombonist]

You know, I almost included Thomas Newman but I wasn't sure if anyone else knew who he was.

American Beauty and Shawshank Redemption