THE TOP FORTY COUNTDOWN 2003: PART TWO

By Scott Bettencourt

In last Thursday's column, we presented the first part of our yearly unofficial (and in all likelihood, highly inaccurate) ranking of the most employable film composers in the American film industry. For those readers who are curious about the list so far but are too lazy to click on the link, here's what you missed:

31. Craig Armstrong
32. Patrick Doyle
33. John Barry
34. Trevor Rabin
35. George Fenton
36. Randy Edelman
37. Klaus Badelt
38. Terence Blanchard
39. John Ottman
40. John Frizzell

And now, on with the show--

2002 RANKING: 38
AGE: 34
REPRESENTATION: Greenspan Artist Management
ONGOING FILMMAKER RELATIONSHIPS:Wes Craven, Bob Weinstein, Guillermo Del Toro
FAN FAVORITE: Mimic
TYPECAST IN: Horror
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. Scream--103 (U.S. gross in millions)
2. Scream 2--101
3. Scream 3--89
4. Blade 2--81
5. The Faculty--40
6. Resident Evil--39
7. Dracula 2000--33
8. The Watcher--28
9. Mimic--25
10. Angel Eyes--24

On the small screen, Beltrami has managed to score a number of intimate "people movies" -- what you might call "Emmy bait" (Tuesdays With Morrie, David and Lisa) -- but in features he's still typecast as a thriller composer. While the action genre is only marginally more prestigious than horror -- at least the budgets are higher -- Beltrami may be in for a career boost when he scores one of the highest profile action movies of the year, the long awaited Terminator 3. (On the other hand, being a Terminator composer hasn't seemed to do much for Brad Fiedel, who's been mysteriously absent from big screen scoring of late)

WHAT'S NEXT: Terminator 3: The Rise of the Machines, Cursed, Hellboy

2002 RANKING: 33
AGE: 53
REP: Blue Focus
1 OSCAR, 2 NOMINATIONS
RELATIONSHIPS: Anthony Minghella, Jean-Jacques Beneix, Jean-Jacques Annaud
FAN FAVORITE: The Talented Mr. Ripley
TYPECAST IN: Romance
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. The Talented Mr. Ripley--81
2. The English Patient--78
3. City of Angels--78
4. Message in a Bottle--52
5. Autumn in New York--37
6. Wings of Courage--15
7. Possession--10
8. Clean and Sober--8
9. The Lover--4
10. Betty Blue--2

Despite an Oscar for The English Patient and a nomination for The Talented Mr. Ripley, Yared has reduced his Hollywood profile of late -- maybe he got sick of scoring only tragic romances -- and has been focusing more on European cinema. But just as The Hours was the surefire Oscar bait of 2002, this year we have Cold Mountain, with a historical setting (the Civil War), best selling source material, an Oscar winning director, and an absurdly impressive cast -- Law, Kidman, Zellweger, Natalie Portman, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Donald Sutherland, and more -- as well another high profile scoring gig for Yared.

WHAT'S NEXT: Cold Mountain, Two Brothers

2002 RANKING: 27
AGE: Unavailable
REP: Soundtrack Music Associates
1 OSCAR
RELATIONSHIPS: John Madden
FAN FAVORITE: Quills
TYPECAST IN: Period drama
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. Shakespeare in Love--100
2. Mystery Men--29
3. Captain Corelli's Mandolin--25
4. Billy Elliot--21
5. Mrs. Brown--9
6. Quills--7
7. Birthday Girl--4

Though he followed up his score Oscar for Best Picture winner Shakespeare in Love with the acclaimed Billy Elliot, Warbeck's profile in American cinema has been surprisingly low. The disappointing Charlotte Gray came and went with little notice, and he was replaced as composer on The Hours (which had reunited him with Billy Elliot director Stephen Daldry) by Philip Glass, whose controversial score (critics loved it or hated it) was considered a strong contender for the Oscar.
 

2002 RANKING: 30
AGE: 43
REP: Blue Focus
5 OSCAR NOMINATIONS
RELATIONSHIPS: Rob Reiner, Billy Crystal, Scott Rudin, Sam Weisman, Paul Rudnick
FAN FAVORITE: South Park
TYPECAST IN: Comedy
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. A Few Good Men--141
2. Sister Act--139
3. Patch Adams--135
4. Sleepless in Seattle--126
5. City Slickers--124
6. The Addams Family--113
7. The First Wives Club--105
8. George of the Jungle--105
9. When Harry Met Sally--92
10. Disney's The Kid--69

Shaiman took a little time away from the big screen to work on his Broadway version of John Waters' Hairspray, and the smash success and critical acclaim (as well as likely Tony Awards) for that show have given the composer a whole new level of prestige, as well as a fresh lineup of movies including the songs and score for the bigscreen feature version of The Cat in the Hat.

WHAT'S NEXT: Down With Love, The Cat in the Hat

2002 RANKING: 18
AGE: 45
REP: Blue Focus
RELATIONSHIPS: Jon Amiel
FAN FAVORITE: Hellraiser
TYPECAST IN: Horror, thrillers
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. Entrapment--87
2. Swordfish--69
3. Species--60
4. The Hurricane--50
5. Bandits--41
6. Urban Legend--38
7. Set It Off--36
8. The Core--30 (as of 4/27/03)
9. Sweet November--25
10. Murder at 1600--25

After a remarkably prolific 2001, Young had only one feature released in 2002, but though his score for The Country Bears was a charming change of pace, it's likely to do little for his resume besides demonstrate his versatility. His latest big film, the underground-Armageddon The Core, was postponed from last fall and had disappointing box office despite being a lively (if cheesy) entertainment. With luck, Young will get another project with the cachet (but not the low box-office) of The Shipping News.

WHAT'S NEXT: Scenes of the Crime, Shade, The Runaway Jury, The Devil and Daniel Webster

2002 RANKING: 22
AGE: 36
REP: Gorfaine/Schwartz
RELATIONSHIPS: Neal Moritz, Iain Softley, Roger Kumble
FAN FAVORITE: Count of Monte Cristo
TYPECAST IN: Female action comedy
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. Charlie's Angels--125
2. Miss Congeniality--105
3. Blue Streak--68
4. The Count of Monte Cristo--54
5. K-PAX--50
6. Reign of Fire--43
7. Cruel Intentions--38
8. The Sweetest Thing--24
9. Species 2--19
10. The Wings of the Dove--13

This talented young composer has had a puzzling career -- his biggest hit movies (Charlie's Angels, Miss Congeniality) have had forgettable scores, while his best music was written for his least seen films. Last year, he wrote a serious, intelligent score for the modestly successful Count of Monte Cristo, an effective if familiar score for the entertaining flop Reign of Fire, and a negligible hack job (and who can blame him?) for the year's worst film, The Sweetest Thing. The upcoming Charlie's Angels sequel probably won't offer much of a creative challenge, but with luck it will lead to better jobs.

WHAT'S NEXT: Johnny English, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle

2002 RANKING: 40
AGE: 80
REP: Gorfaine/Schwartz
1 OSCAR, 14 NOMINATIONS
RELATIONSHIPS: Martha Coolidge, Bill Duke
FAN FAVORITES: Magnificent Seven, To Kill a Mockingbird, Heavy Metal, Animal House
TYPECAST IN: Drama
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. Ghostbusters--238
2. National Lampoon's Animal House--141
3. Wild Wild West--113
4. Trading Places--90
5. The Ten Commandments--85
6. Stripes--85
7. Airplane!--83
8. Cape Fear--79
9. Spies Like Us--60
10. Legal Eagles--47

Bernstein has had his greatest critical success in decades with his pitch perfect, 50s-style score for the acclaimed drama Far From Heaven, which brings his career nearly full circle. His work for that film is so specialized that it may not bring him the kind of jobs that would come to a rising composer, and the controversial rejection of his Gangs of New York score doesn't bode well for any future collaborations with Martin Scorsese, but Heaven has given Bernstein the kind of (much-deserved) attention any composer would envy.

2002 RANKING: 26
AGE: 47
REP: Blue Focus
RELATIONSHIPS: Philip Noyce, David Twohy, Carl Franklin
FAN FAVORITE: Dead Calm
TYPECAST IN: Thrillers, superheroes
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. Lara Croft: Tomb Raider--131
2. Daredevil--100 (as of 4/27/03)
3. The Hand That Rocks the Cradle--87
4. The Saint--61
5. Spawn--54
6. Blow--52
7. The Crow--50
8. The Negotiator--44
9. High Crimes--41
10. The Siege--40

Though his score for the little seen Human Nature showed an appealingly quirky side, Revell continues to be hired largely for thrillers and action films. He tends to be among the coldest of film composers, but that may be partly due to the kind of assignments he receives. With enough projects like Daredevil and Spawn, Revell might become a B-list Danny Elfman (after all, Elfman can't score EVERY superhero film), and the upcoming megabudget Pitch Black sequel, The Chronicles of Riddick, should give him a more expansive than usual canvas to work on.

WHAT'S NEXT: Out of Time, The Chronicles of Riddick

2002 RANKING: 21
AGE: 39
REP: Ingenuity Entertainment
RELATIONSHIPS: Alexander Payne, Mark Waters
FAN FAVORITE: Election
TYPECAST IN: Comedy
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. Legally Blonde--90
2. About Schmidt--64
3. Kate & Leopold--46
4. 40 Days and 40 Nights--37
5. Someone Like You--27
6. Nurse Betty--25
7. Election--14
8. Town and Country--6
9. Gun Shy--1

The composer's collaboration with director Alexander Payne produced yet another first-rate score for About Schmidt, which managed to deftly toe the film's narrow line between mirth and melancholy. Apart from that critically acclaimed triumph, Kent hasn't been heard from all that much lately, and even the surprisingly charming Meg Ryan comedy Kate & Leopold was a boxoffice disappointment.

WHAT'S NEXT: Freaky Friday, Legally Blonde 2: Red, White and Blonde

2002 RANKING: 28
AGE: Unavailable
REP: Blue Focus
RELATIONSHIPS: Dreamworks, Ron Underwood, Sandra Bullock
FAN FAVORITE: Chicken Run
TYPECAST IN: Action, animation
TOP GROSSING FILMS:
1. Shrek--263
2. The Bourne Identity--121
3. Face/Off--112
4. Chicken Run--106
5. Two Weeks Notice--93
6. Antz--90
7. Drumline--56
8. Forces of Nature--52
9. Road to El Dorado--50
10. Agent Cody Banks--46 (as of 4/27/03)

Despite scoring one of the all-time biggest boxoffice disasters (The Adventures of Pluto Nash, for which he provided a catchy main theme) and a big-star vehicle that went straight to video (Stallone's Eye See You), Powell has had his most successful year yet as a solo composer, with his energetic score for the surprise smash The Bourne Identity and a hit romantic comedy, Two Weeks Notice. The marching band pic Drumline was pushed ahead to a Christmas release and also did well, though his score for it is only available on an impossible-to-find Oscar promo. With these hits under his belt, Powell has managed to move far past his animation scoring partner, Harry Gregson-Williams.

WHAT'S NEXT: The Italian Job, Stealing Sinatra

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