Thursday Token Themes

Welcome a weekly feature here at Movies With Abe. I’m a hugely enthusiastic fan of film scores, and music is far too often an element of cinema that goes unrecognized. Therefore I present a platform for a look – or rather, a listen – to some fantastic film scores. I’ll be selecting a composer and one or more of their film scores for your listening pleasure, embedded from YouTube.

This week’s featured composer is Michael Giacchino, a New Jersey native whose most famous collaborations are with J.J. Abrams and Pixar directors. Giacchino replaces Randy Newman for tomorrow’s sequel to “Cars,” where he contributes an energetic, smooth score for the international adventures of these cars, well exemplified by “Towkyo Takeout.” His composition for “Up” won him the Oscar two years ago, and “Married Life” is the best representation of that. Probably the most exciting and invigorating of his Pixar themes is that to “Ratatouille,” and “End Creditouilles” is nothing short of a delight. His dramatic underscores for “Alias” and “Lost” are fantastic, and it’s fun to see him follow the shows’ creator to film. The scores sound entertainingly similar, but as with someone like Hans Zimmer, they’re diverse enough to work wonders in their respective projects. Two of our entries below are from Abrams-directed films. Check out a compilation of some of the best tracks from the 2009 “Star Trek” reboot, as well as “Bridge Battle” from “Mission Impossible III,” both equally thrilling action accompaniment.

Cars 2 (2011)



Up (2009)



Star Trek (2009)



Ratatouille (2007)



Mission Impossible III (2006)