Composing Greatness: #4. James Horner - "Apollo 13" (1995)

Scene from Apollo 13

Welcome to Composing Greatness: a column dedicated to exploring the work of film composers. This will specifically focus on the films that earned them Oscar nominations while exploring what makes it so special. This will be broken down into a look at the overall style, interesting moments within the composition, and what made the score worth nominating in the first place. This will also include various subcategories where I will rank the themes of each film along with any time that the composer actually wins. This is a column meant to explore a side of film that doesn't get enough credit while hopefully introducing audiences to an enriched view of more prolific composers' work. This will only cover scores/songs that are compiled in an easily accessible format (so no extended scores will be considered). Join me every Sunday as I cover these talents that if you don't know by name, you recognize by sound.

Composing Greatness' Next Subject Is... James Horner!

Scene from Titanic

After a longer than expected hiatus, it's time for the return of Composing Greatness. The column recognizes the best in movie music composition by analyzing the work of greats through their Oscar-nominated work. Past subjects have included such figures as John Williams, Rachel Portman, and Thomas Newman. In the latest installment, I thought that I would shift focus to someone whose work holds a significant place in pop culture in a different way. This Oscar-nominated composer not only received nominations for three Best Picture winners but also worked on two of the highest grossing movies in box office history. Who is this amazing talent? Read on to find out!

Nothing But the Best: "Braveheart" (1995)

Mel Gibson

Welcome to the series Nothing But the Best in which I chronicle all of the Academy Award Best Picture winners as they celebrate their anniversaries. Instead of going in chronological order, this series will be presented on each film's anniversary and will feature personal opinions as well as facts regarding its legacy and behind the scenes information. The goal is to create an in depth essay for each film while looking not only how the medium progressed, but how the film is integral to pop culture. In some cases, it will be easy. Others not so much. Without further ado, let's start the show.

Top 10 Favorite Tom Hanks Performances

Tom Hanks in Captain Phillips

Today marks the birthday for the two-time Academy Award winning actor Tom Hanks. Over the course of his career, he has gone from playing comedic roles in films such as Turner & Hooch to a more respected actor with dramatic roles like Saving Private Ryan and Cast Away. In honor of this occasion, it feels as good of a time as any to share a personal list of my Top 10 favorite Hanks performances spanning over his film career. If for no other reason, it will help to show the range and give you a better understanding as to why I consider him one of the best and charismatic actors of his generation.

Why "Apollo 13" Remains One of the Best Space Films 20 Years Later

On July 16, 1969, Apollo 11 known as Neil Armstrong landed on the moon. It was a historic moment in American history and one that has come to epitomize the dreamers in all of us. It is likely why outer space has always been an intriguing place for fiction to visit, whether it be Star Trek or more recently with last year's Interstellar. Yet despite the real world success, outer space remains a largely fictional place on screen where even the best films like Gravity are nitpicked by scientists like Neil Degrasse Tyson for its numerous inaccuracies. It is with this general dissent that makes it harder to argue against director Ron Howard's Apollo 13, which turns 20 today and still features one of the most accurate depictions of space and remains one of the few true stories to tackle a realm beyond our atmosphere. For that reason, and so much more, it deserves far more recognition than it gets.

R.I.P. James Horner (1953-2015)

On Monday, June 22, film composer James Horner died in a plane crash around Los Padres National Forest in California. He was an advocate for aviation and was one of many who owned personal planes. In a way, it was like the music that he composed for various epics with their soaring, enchanting beauty that took us someplace unexpected. His prolific output made him a household name and his collaborations with director James Cameron meant that he scored the two highest grossing films in history: Titanic and Avatar. What the legendary composer leaves behind is an impressive body of work that redefined how music was used in film and how it could impact our emotional responses. 

Review: "Rush" is Stuck in Second Gear

Left to right: Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Bruhl

It is an exciting time in movies, largely because we are officially in Oscar Buzz season. While we had some early trails in August, director Ron Howard's Rush kicks off endless weeks of new contenders and some that are still to surprise us. None would seem more surprising to be in the race than a Formula One Racing film that pits two rivals against each other and turns the tale of the need for speed into becoming competitive soul mates. While the automotives may make this seem like just an average racing movie, it has more going for it. 

Is "Rush" Capable of Putting Race Cars Into the Best Picture Category?

Daniel Bruhl

While I initially claimed that Oscar season began with The Butler back in August, it has seemed like a long, pointless gap between that film and the current stream of traffic. While I feel that Lee Daniel's look at American history will benefit from the earlier release, we are officially in the time when week-to-week, I will attempt to cover a lot more work than I normally do. As my predictions would imply the next few months starting this Friday will be a nonstop quest to catch them all and then speculate who will come out on top. It does seem poignant then that we begin season two of The Oscar Buzz properly with a Formula One racing movie: director Ron Howard's Rush.