The Best Original Songs Written For Movies

Paul Schrader directs a lurid remake of the Jacques Tourneur 1942 horror film "Cat People" featuring a hypnotic new wave score by Giorgio Moroder to compliment the psychosexual themes of a beautiful woman's transformation into a lethal black panther. David Bowie's "Cat People (Putting Out Fire)" adds to its transgressive stylings. In the final shots, the song overlays a close-up of the alert Irena in her panther form. The soaring octave change "with gasolineeee" kicks in as soon as she opens her fearsome jaws. 

When interviewed about the song for the book "Ashes to Ashes: The Songs of David Bowie 1976–2016," Bowie said: "It works on a dream state, it feels like the kind of thing you go through at night. That's the way I look at it lyrically." The words do have an ethereal eroticism that matches the film's tone. Bowie's seductive baritone references the deadly feline's piercing green eyes and the idea of "putting out fire with gasoline" hints towards the werecats' incestuous attraction in order to continue their ancestral line. Quentin Tarantino notably repurposed this song for his triumphant Nazi-killing preparation scene in "Inglourious Basterds." 

Like the majority of Lars Von Trier films, "Dancer in the Dark" is a grueling cinematic experience. Von Trier manipulates the genre conventions of the classic Hollywood MGM musical for the bleak tale of an immigrant (Björk) with failing eyesight. "I've Seen it All" starts out slowly with the driving rhythm matching the train tracks, and builds to grand orchestrations as Selma insists that she will not despair over her blindness because she has already seen both positive and negative things throughout her life. 

Selma refuses to dwell on what she hasn't seen because it will make her feel worse about her deteriorating vision. Bjork's sweet and gentle voice accentuates the character's altruism, and also twists a knife your heart. Her open-hearted spunk accompanied by the bright surroundings of a crystal-clear river and blue sky, moving train, and dancing townspeople makes Selma's ultimate fate even more devastating. 

Millennials have a strong nostalgic affection for the emo rocker "Vindicated" at the end of "Spider-Man 2" by Dashboard Confessional. Thrillist details the origins of lead singer Chris Carrabba's composition of the song. In the half-whispered opening and passionate chorus, Carrabba expresses Peter Parker's turbulent emotions as he struggles to balance his dual human and superhero identities, longs for romance with Mary Jane, and deals with self-doubt. He yearns to be "vindicated" of these problems. The lyrics reference Mary Jane's engagement and Peter's hope dangling on a string that he will be able to honor his promise to Uncle Ben and face his responsibilities. "Vindicated" is the perfect song to accompany Sam Raimi's superhero melodrama, which deftly balances eye-popping visuals with high emotions.

One of "Breakfast at Tiffany's" most memorable scenes is in the opening in which the lithe Holly Golightly, dressed in a gorgeous black dress and oversized sunglasses, looks longingly in the Tiffany's window, munches on an oversized Danish, and sips coffee while Henry Mancini's instrumental version of "Moon River" plays. Later in the film, Audrey Hepburn performs the song with Johnny Mercer's lyrics. Paul "Fred" Varjak, the object of Holly's affection, overhears her on the fire escape accompanying herself on the quiet guitar, barely audible over the swirling strings. 

With tight close-ups of her beautiful, longing face, Audrey Hepburn's gentle voice carries the song's dulcet tones and the soft words evoke her melancholic loneliness. The nostalgic lyrics of rainbows and huckleberries were inspired by Johnny Mercer's carefree childhood in Savannah, Georgia. In the wavering harmonica, we hear the tenderness of summertime.

"Come What May" was originally written for Baz Luhrmann's modern retelling of Shakespeare's "Romeo + Juliet" (and the title is lifted from another Shakespeare play, "Macbeth"). Instead, it ended up being used for another pair of star-crossed lovers: Christian and Satine in Luhrmann's dazzling jukebox musical "Moulin Rouge!" 

The stirring love proclamation of "Come What May" plays an important role in the film. Christian writes it for his musical that Satine is performing in, but it also serves as a secret reminder that their forbidden love is deep and true — even as Satine must pretend to love The Duke for money. The simple lyrics are dripping with sentimental romance, thanks to Ewan McGregor's soaring voice and Kidman's dainty warmth. Christian and Satine pledge their love to one another across the changing of seasons, until their dying day — which tragically comes sooner rather than later for one of them. 

The Irish post-punk band U2 was the perfect choice to underscore the finale of Martin Scorsese's sprawling epic "Gangs of New York," the story of a 19th century Irish settler named Amsterdam who returns from jail to seek revenge on his father's killer, the anti-immigrant gang leader Bill "the Butcher" Cutting. U2 salutes all of the hands that built America: "Russian, Sioux, Dutch, Hindu, Polish, Irish, German, Italian," and "The Irish, the Blacks, the Chinese, the Jews, Korean, Hispanic, Muslim, Indian." They are the backbone of this country and the reason we are standing tall today. Many of these immigrants crafted the mammoth steel that soars into the city skies. 

Scorsese displays their incredible contribution in the breathtaking ending where Amsterdam buries Bill in a Brooklyn cemetery next to his father. Against the moving strings of "The Hands That Built America," images of the New York City skyline evolving over the next century fade into and out of one another. We see the Brooklyn Bridge and the World Trade Center rise as the cemetery watches on, eventually becoming a forgotten patch of weeds. It's a pitch-perfect ending that honors those who came before us and their historical contribution to the incredible, thriving metropolis of New York City and the rest of America.

There were two original songs, "May It Be" and "Gollum's Song," that built on the themes of the first two "Lord of the Rings" films, but "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" needed a song to conclude the epic series overall. At first, composer Howard Shore was going to include a lament from the "The Grey Havens" chapter, but it wasn't as grand in scope. Inspired by the untimely passing of a 16-year-old Māori New Zealand filmmaker named Cameron Duncan, Howard Shore, screenwriter Fran Walsh, and singer Annie Lennox composed "Into the West" (via the Extended Edition Appendices, Part 6, "Music for Middle-earth" and "Cameron Duncan: The Inspiration for 'Into the West'"). The melody incorporates musical themes used throughout the trilogy, including the triumphant "Black Gate Opens" as Sam carries Frodo up to Mount Doom.

The somber yet peaceful lyrics detail the Undying Lands where Frodo and Bilbo go to rest after suffering with the ring for so long, and reference Gandalf's monologue to Pippin about the beauty of the afterlife: "The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass. ... White shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise." Annie Lennox's soulful voice, the simple guitar, and floating flute not only encapsulates the tearful farewell between the hobbits but the total end of an arduous journey. 

The tranquil "Into the West' plays over the end credits of "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," which include beautiful illustrated portraits of the cast. The battle for Middle-Earth is over, and we feel both relief for the fellowship and sadness that this incredible fantasy series has come to an end. 

Thrillist details the fascinating history behind "(I've Had) The Time of My Life," the Academy Award-winning original song for the exhilarating "Dirty Dancing" finale. Despite taking place in the 1960s, "Dirty Dancing" uses 1980s songs such as Eric Carmen's sexy "Hungry Eyes" to connect contemporary stylings with nostalgia for a bygone era. 

Bill Medley and Jennifer Warne's love duet is the song Johnny chooses to end the talent show with his own unique creative vision. Johnny thrusts Baby out of the corner and puts her onstage where they dance together. The lyrics summarize their relationship: a fleeting but perfect time in their lives where they fell madly in love. The upbeat song builds to an aspirational crescendo where Baby nails the long-anticipated lift. "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" is the perfect song to capture the end of this sweet, feminist coming of age film about summer romance. It's about a first love that may not last forever, but at this moment means everything. 

Ava DuVernay's "Selma" is a searing examination of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s public and private lives, anchored by David Oyelowo's gripping performance. The end credits feature the Academy Award-winning original song "Glory," written by John Legend, Common, and Rhymefest. "Glory" is a heady mix of John Legend's silky vocals and Common's forceful delivery that illustrates the struggles of the Black community across the decades. It's an inspiring call for social justice. NPR's pop critic Ann Powers writes on the soul influences of "Glory": 

The song is structured sort of like a bridge between the gospel music that was so crucial to the civil rights movement and contemporary R&B and rap. So John Legend's part is very stirring, very uplifting, taken right out of gospel. And then you have Common, who also plays a preacher in the film, rapping in a very preacherly style and even bringing in references to contemporary politics, like Michael Brown's shooting and the protests that happened in Ferguson this past year.

Legend and Common's powerful voices and the stirring strings epitomize all of the hope, rage, and effort in the fight for racial equality. "Glory" is a pivotal work that brings the past and present together in an urgent demand for change.

For the opening montage of "Philadelphia," director Jonathan Demme originally envisioned a hard rocking song. He specifically chose Bruce Springsteen to write it because, much like star Tom Hanks, Springsteen was an American everyman who could help make a film about a gay man with AIDS more palatable for conservative audience members during the 1990s. This was part of Jonathan Demme's goal to have the film change minds by reaching mainstream viewers (via Rolling Stone). 

Springsteen composed a mournful ballad with a simple drum machine beat and layered synths, lending it a reverent quality. His use of first person narration puts the listener in the shoes of the countless men and women whose lives were tragically taken by AIDS. The simple poetics of the main character's physical and emotional despair — wasting away until he is unrecognizable, left alone to hear the voices of those left behind  —  are devastating and intensely relatable to anyone who is dealing with pain. This kind of intimate and universal perspective was especially important during a time period when HIV-positive people were feared and castigated by society. 

Through a contemporary lens, "Philadelphia" has questionable queer politics, but there is no denying that Springsteen's poignant contribution to the film was essential in garnering empathy to mainstream audiences for HIV-positive people, especially those within the LGBTQ+ community.