December takes us to the end of the year, bringing not just the last of the awards season hopefuls but also a number of my favorite scores of 2021, like La Panthere des Neiges and The Novice. As a result, this might be the most stacked month of the year as far as great film scores go, meaning there are a ton I wasn’t able to cover! As always, if you think I’ve missed any scores from this month (or any past months), leave a comment or get in touch and I’ll check them out!
As has been the trend for this year, there have simply been too many excellent scores for me to do even these brief writeups on (not to mention the difficulty it trying to keep track of them all!). The upside, of course, is there’s a ton of great music! Make sure to scroll to the end of this article for a list of even more December scores to check out!
Have a quick read about each of these excellent scores below then be sure to give them a listen. Be sure to see what other scores you may have missed by reading past editions of this column or listen to me talk about some of these releases:
Nightmare Alley – Nathan Johnson (Interview)
Alexandre Desplat was initially set to re-team with Guillermo del Toro in Nightmare Alley, but scheduling conflicts forced him to drop out. Nathan Johnson came in as a last second replacement. Somehow, despite this quick turnaround, Johnson has delivered arguably his best score. At times he leans into the obvious circus sounds of the film’s setting, fortunately doing so with restraint. But the bulk of his score is focused more on evoking a gloomy noir feel, of darkness, selfish beguiling, and inevitable doom. It’s a great listen, after which you can’t help but feel a little grimy.
Don’t Look Up – Nicholas Britell
Nicholas Britell must have one of the highest hit rates of any modern film composer: seemingly every score of his is good. His latest, Don’t Look Up, is no exception. Britell mixes big band jazz, orchestral work, and some electronic flourishes to accompany Adam McKay’s social satire. The biggest challenge Britell faced is managing the delicate balance between serious and comedy; lean too far to the former and it threatens to override the jokes, too far to the latter and the film becomes a parody of itself. Between this, The Underground Railroad, and Cruella, it’s actually incredible how strong his 2021 was.
Being the Ricardos – Daniel Pemberton (Interview)
Like Desplat and Britell, I always eagerly anticipate every Daniel Pemberton score. Not only is he incredibly consistent in the quality of his writing, but he (like Britell) is only in his early 40s, so we will hopefully have decades of new scores to look forward to. With Being the Ricardos, Pemberton creates a dream world, a picturesque romance of lush strings, wistful piano, and other orchestral elements (with occasional Cubano influences) that slowly collapses. But, like all dreams, it’s fleeting.
The Lost Daughter – Dickon Hinchliffe
While Stuart Staples is known for founding the English rock band Tindersticks and a subsequent prolific film scoring career (including numerous collaborations with Claire Denis, such as the excellent High Life), he isn’t the only Tindersticks founder to do so. One of the band’s other founders, Dickon Hinchliffe, has also flourished in film scoring, with his recent work on The Lost Daughter being his career best. It’s a jazzy, almost sultry work fitting for the film’s setting of a carefree holiday in the islands of Greece. But the feeling juxtaposes what’s on screen, until both music and picture are drenched in melancholy and somber nostalgia.
A Few More Scores
As often happens, there were simply too many great scores released in December to cover, so here are a few more:
- Flee – Uno Helmersson
- Introducing, Selma Blair – Raphaelle Thibaut (Interview)
- Les choses humaines – Mathieu Lamboley
- Le pièce rapportée – Mathieu Lamboley
- Rose – Aurelie Saada
- Asakusa Kid – Takashi Ohmama
- The Claus Family 2 – Anne-Kathrin Dern (Interview)
- Cyrano – Aaron Dessner and Bryce Dessner
- Monte Verita – Volker Bertelmann (Interview)
- Private Desert (Deserto Particular) – Felipe Ayres
- Silent Night – Lorne Balfe
- This Game’s Called Murder – Bear McCreary
- A Journal for Jordan – Marcelo Zarvos (Interview)
- La Panthere des Neiges – Nick Cave and Warren Ellis
- The Novice – Alex Weston
- Rumble – Lorne Balfe
- Spider-Man: No Way Home – Michael Giacchino
- Swan Song – Jay Wadley (Interview)
- The King’s Man – Dominic Lewis and Matthew Margeson (Interview)
Do these sound interesting? Here’s a little playlist of some choice selections:
