Movie themes

Bob's two cents on opening theme music. 

A lot of the best movies out there begin with an opening sequence, credits or otherwise, set to a highly recognizable musical number.  To me, this is like the first paragraph of a book.  It can serve to set the tone of the film and draw the audience into the picture.  Here are some of my favorites.

Star Wars: The obvious choice, but who can argue?
James Bond: Could there be a Bond movie without the opening spy music? (I haven't seen every single bond movie, so if there is one, that's just a shame.)
Conan the Barbarian: The original, not the remake.  
The Terminator: 80's synthesizer at it's best. 
Brick: Short, but full of emotion and very powerful. 
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan: It starts with the opening from the tv show, then launches into a great piece of orchestration. (I reference this movie a lot, by the way.)
Jaws: The fluidity of the Bass serves as a great metaphor for the ocean, and it just says, "You're about to become shark food."
Halloween: Creepy piano goodness. 
Napoleon Dynamite: "We're Going to be Friends" the by The White Stripes was the perfect way to start this film. 


James' thoughts :


Halloween - also one my favorites
Kids - Folk Implosions' "Daddy Never Understood" really sets up that whole movie
Psycho - just something about the instrumentation, it sticks with you.  Busta Rhymes also sampled this for "Gimme Some More"
Apocalypse Now - opens with the Doors' "The End", very fitting
Nightmare on Elm St - excellent 80's synthesizer, low budget, but great