Music can be a huge part of a cinematic experience. It can be such an integral component of the movie that the score can sometimes make or break an entire production.
Music is used by filmmakers for a variety of reasons. They use it to intensify a mood, add to suspense, play with our emotions, or even pump us up for a good action sequence.
You’ve probably seen clips on YouTube where they switch the score of an iconic piece of film and entirely change the genre just by changing the music! With the right musical alterations, you can turn The Muppets Take Manhattan into Jason Takes Manhattan!
Music and movies are pretty much inseparable, and I’m not even talking about musicals or movies about music. That’s a totally different animal altogether. And a different blog post.
What I’m talking about today is the score of a movie, or lack thereof. Before we get into it, a quick reminder of the difference between a movie’s soundtrack and a movie’s score:
Soundtrack: Simply put, a movie’s soundtrack is ALL of the sound found in the movie. This would include not only unbelievably expensive popular music used to aid storytelling, but also the dialogue (recorded on set and overdubbed), as well as all sound effects, AND the movie’s score! A soundtrack is not just the collection of music used in the film, it’s ALL of the sound!
Score: Music tailor made for the film usually written by a composer who has been specifically contracted for the production. Think John Williams, for one. Or Bernard Herrmann. Or Max Steiner, Hans Zimmer, Dimitri Tiomkin, Ennio Morricone…
Movies with classic scores include The Magnificent Seven, Star Wars, Blade Runner, The Last of the Mohicans, Lawrence of Arabia, The Godfather, Sunset Blvd., and JAWS. Hard to imagine any of these films without their now famous scores.
Equally hard to imagine is any movie being great (or even remotely interesting) without a good score, but that’s exactly why we’re here today.
Today’s blog will take a look at ten tremendous movies that are “scoreless.” Here are ten instances when filmmakers eschewed adding music to their films for one reason or another, and the results are incredible.
Without using music, a director needs to go elsewhere for its important sounds. Directors will rely on natural sounds such as a car horn, sirens, footsteps, “nature” sounds (animal/weather), screams, or even a ticking clock to accomplish what other directors make happen with the music of a movie’s score.
Since the clock is ticking, let’s get started. These ten scoreless movies will be presented in chronological order. We’ll begin back in 1931, right around the time when the silent era was ending, and “talkies” were all the rage.
Frankenstein (1931)
Director James Whale’s classic film starring Boris Karloff as “The Monster” remains one of cinema’s greatest horror films. Dozens of adaptations of Mary Shelley’s novel have been done over the years, but very few come close to this early entry in Frankenstein’s cinematic life.
The movie features a song over the opening and closing credits, but the film itself has no score. Whale expertly uses sound effects in place of music to build suspense and add to our level of fright. Whether it’s a storm raging outside the laboratory (itself crackling with sounds!), or the heavy footsteps of the Monster himself, sound is extremely important in this scoreless film.
You would think a gothic horror film would need music in order to fully immerse the viewer in the, you know, goth of it all. But it’s amazing that this movie stands the test of time without the benefit of a score. Well done, director James Whale, well done. Also worth a look is the 1998 film about Whale titled Gods and Monsters. Highly recommended, especially if you’re still not convinced Brendan Fraser can act. He actually can.
M (1931)
Fritz Lang directed this suspense thriller starring the great Peter Lorre as a child-murderer. While researching movies for this blog, I ran across M and was surprised to see it listed. I had seen it a couple of times and I would have sworn it had a score. In the name of research, I watched it again. I misremembered that Lorre’s character whistles “In the Hall of the Mountain King” several times during the movie.
Music? Yes. Score? No. Creepy as hell? Hells yes!
How does Lang spin this compelling web of a suspense thriller with only creepy whistling as musical accompaniment? This seems like an impossible task! And yet he does it. Just like Peter Lorre in M.
Rope (1948)
Since I’m pretty much claiming it’s extremely difficult to make an amazing film without a score, it’s certainly no surprise that the movies on this list were directed by some of cinema’s all-time greats. James Whale, Fritz Lang, and the next two movies were directed by the “King of Suspense” himself, Alfred Hitchcock.
Still to come on this list are films directed by Luis Bunuel, two by Sidney Lumet, and a Coen Brothers film. Like I said…some heavy hitters on this list. But that’s later on…let’s talk about Rope.
Rope is in my Top 10 Alfred Hitchcock films, and I’m always recommending it to anyone who will listen. It was once part of a monthly theme of “Claustrophobic Movies” since the entire film takes place in one room. Murder, dinner party, and all.
The suspense Hitchcock creates is impressive, even by Hitchcockian standards! From IMDb: “Two men attempt to prove they committed the perfect crime by hosting a dinner party after strangling their former classmate to death.” Who is in attendance at this dinner party? How about the victim’s parents? How about the victim’s girlfriend?
The victim is in the room for the entire movie. He has been hidden in a chest on which dinner is served. This heart pounding, claustrophobic film is as tense as you can get.
Jimmy Stewart is the “name” on the marquee, but the real stars of this movie are Farley Granger and John Dall as the killers Phillip and Brandon. The tension Hitchcock creates is edge of your seat stuff. Since you witnessed the murder during the opening scene, it’s like you’re an accomplice to the crime. This is one of the best suspense/thrillers I have ever seen, and Hitchcock does it all without a score.
Just like he does in our next movie…
The Birds (1963)
The quote by Hitchcock on the movie’s poster, “It could be the most terrifying motion picture I have ever made,” is saying a LOT! And he may be right. What does he add to the recipe that amps up the terror? Well…birds. Lots and lots of birds.
And in lieu of a musical score, we are treated to the squawks of scores and scores of birds who are out to end humans for some unknown reason. Maybe Hitch would have used music from the death metal band out of Baltimore called “Hatebeak” had they been around in 1963. The lead singer of “Hatebeak” is an African grey parrot named Waldo, and he is tremendous. But I digress…
One of the main reasons The Birds works so well without a score is Hitchcock’s use of all the natural sounds including wind, the ocean, and, of course, those avian marauders.
An excellent thriller that will have you looking sideways at any gathering of over three birds! And rightfully so. They can’t be trusted.
The Exterminating Angel (1967)
Here comes the father of cinematic surrealism, Luis Bunuel, with a fantasy/horror story about a group of socialites who gather for a dinner party and, for the life of them, just can’t leave.
The Exterminating Angel would also be a very appropriate inclusion for a “Claustrophobia Film Festival” since a vast majority of it takes place in the room these people cannot escape. They also cannot explain why they cannot escape.
One of the critics featured on the movie’s poster uses the word ferocities in his blurb. Well done! That pretty much explains this gem about the rich and the etiquette they follow. Bunuel once said that if he made this movie in France, he would have included cannibalism.
The ending takes place in a church and it’s tremendous. Bunuel makes statements about class and religion, and he does it without music. He also does it without slicing open anyone’s eye with a straight razor or having a character with ants crawling out of a hole in his hand. Been there. Done that.
Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
The first of back-to-back films on this list directed by longtime friend of Cinema Wellman Sidney Lumet.
Let’s take a moment to officially thank Sidney Lumet for giving us 12 Angry Men, The Pawnbroker, Fail Safe, The Anderson Tapes, Serpico, Prince of the City, Deathtrap, The Verdict, and the next two “scoreless” films on our list Dog Day Afternoon and Network which Lumet made back-to-back in 1975 and 1976.
Thank you, Sid. Just thank you.
Like Frankenstein, Dog Day Afternoon features a song over the opening credits. The rest of the sound is all natural, and in Dog Day Afternoon, there’s a lot of it. New York City and its sounds should be given top billing.
I’ve already mentioned this film in an earlier piece, so I won’t rehash what’s already been said.
This may be a film that not only wouldn’t work with a score, it couldn’t work with a score. Perfection from Sidney Lumet.
Network (1976)
Here’s more Lumet with Paddy Chayefsky’s Oscar winning and eerily prescient story of where television was heading and what people really wanted to watch.
The cast is amazing. Network took home three acting Oscars (Faye Dunaway, Beatrice Straight, and Peter Finch). Finch won his Oscar posthumously, and Straight’s performance was given as if she was double parked. Only 5 minutes and 40 seconds of screen time, and she won an Academy Award!
In any event, Sidney Lumet pulls all of this off without the benefit of a score. There honestly wasn’t any room for it with the media making so much noise during the entire movie. They never know when to shut up.
Cache (2005)
This French film directed by German director Michael Haneke is a wild ride exploring privacy, surveillance, and creepiness.
Juliette Binoche and Daniel Auteuil star as a “Married couple who is terrorized by a series of surveillance tapes left on their front porch.” Thank you, IMDb for that synopsis, as always.
I did not have time to watch this again before this post because of the job thing. I forgot how much time working took out of my everyday life. I will be screening this again soon and will pass along any added insights, if any pop up. In the meantime, it’s well worth a look.
No Country for Old Men (2007)
The Coen Brothers film No Country for Old Men is actually the inspiration for this entire piece. When I saw this film, I was so impressed with the natural sound the Coens used to help further their story. I think the shot that stuck with me was the sound a candy wrapper made on a store counter as it unwrapped itself after being crumpled up. Sounds simple, but it was quite magical.
This film is listed as a crime/drama/thriller on IMDb, but I consider it a classic western told in modern times. The lack of a musical score only intensifies the starkness of the setting and the despair of the characters.
I’d really like to watch this movie again soon, but I have to be honest, Javier Bardem is terrifying in this and I’m afraid if I watch it again, he’ll know where I am.
“There are no clean getaways.”
The Tribe (2014)
If you have ever met me and had a conversation about movies for any amount of time, chances are you’ve heard me rave about this film.
The least remarkable thing about this film is that it doesn’t have a musical score. I saw this Ukrainian film four years ago and I honestly think about it at least once a month. At least. This movie was mind blowing.
Let’s start with IMDb: “A deaf boy joins a boarding school for similar children. Confronted by the violent and criminal antics of some of the other boys and girls, he struggles to conform and join ‘the tribe’”
Not only does this film lack a musical score, all of the actors in it are deaf. The film makes no use of any vocal language. The actors communicate using sign language. Ukrainian sign language. There are no subtitles of any kind. The viewer is left on the outside of a silent world in more ways than one.
This is one of the most unique film experiences I have ever had. Hearing the actors sign their lines with the changes in their breathing and the sounds of them creating the signs themselves was amazing.
The end was so harrowing and disturbing that it left an indelible mark upon my soul.
I am not exaggerating. If you think I’m exaggerating, contact me, and I’ll describe the ending to you. It’s some wild, wild stuff.
On that note, it’s a wrap here at Cinema Wellman for “Ten Scoreless Movies,” or “Music, we don’t need no stinking music!”
Thanks for joining us! We hope you’ll be back next week when we make a wager on some of the best gambling movies of all time.
Until then…take care.
