Iconic Film Soundtracks and What Made Them Great

More often than not, a great film is always accompanied by an iconic soundtrack—the type of music that has you singing it long after the film has finished and whenever you hear it, takes you right back to that story.

But how are some film soundtracks so good? Let’s dive in and take a look at a handful of iconic soundtracks, uncovering exactly what makes them perfect for their respective films.

Pulp Fiction (1994)

It’s no secret that Quentin Tarantino has mastered the use of music. In the booklet accompanying his soundtrack collection “The Tarantino Connection,” Quentin opens up about the process of scoring:

“I go through my record collection and just start playing songs, trying to find the personality of the movie, find the spirit of the movie . . . then, ‘boom,’ eventually I’ll hit one, two, or three songs, or one song in particular, ‘Oh, this will be a great opening credit song.’”

This process comes to life in the opening credits of Pulp Fiction, with a radio station “fuzz effect” switching from the energetic guitar riff of Dick Dale’s 1962 cover “Misirlou” into Kool & the Gang’s “Jungle Boogie”—almost as if Tarantino were listening himself. It foreshadows what’s to come with the film’s somewhat scrapbook nature that jumps from narrative to narrative. 

Superhit Movie "Pulp Fiction" Opening Credits

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 1 (2014)

Nowadays, it’s not uncommon to see large production studios such as Marvel and Disney partnering with iconic artists like Kendrick Lamar, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, and Beyonce, to both curate and create their own movie soundtracks from scratch (A Star is Born, Black Panther, and Wakanda Forever are all great examples of this). With the first Guardians, they let director James Gunn utilize pre-existing tracks. It turned out to be a genius move.

With diegetic editing, we hear what Peter Quill (Star-Lord) hears every time he presses play on the old Walkman, giving us an idea of who he is and why this playlist matters. Star-Lord listens exclusively to 1970s power pop because that’s the playlist his mom created for him. It connects Peter to her. And, as the only human in a very sci-fi film, the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack tethered the audience to Earth, reminding them that this was still a human story, despite the host of new alien creatures being introduced to Marvel’s universe for the first time.

Star-Lord Dance - Opening Credits Scene - Come and Get Your Love - Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

The Breakfast Club (1985)

The Breakfast Club is a classic 80s high school film, often credited with influencing many teen movies that followed it. Part of its success lies in its brilliant soundtrack—the choice of songs really tuned in to the culture of the time. 

The standout hit was of course, “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” by Simple Minds. This song wasn’t just a big hit in the film, but one of the biggest songs of the entire decade (and that’s quite a feat, given this is the '80s). The track booms out over the opening credits, as well as the ending scenes, while the instrumental is utilized throughout. It’s a movie soundtrack that perfectly captures the feel of the film and its time—this was what it meant to grow up as a teenager in '80s America. To this day, it evokes powerful feelings of nostalgia for viewers.

The Breakfast Club Opening Scene

The Graduate (1967)

The Graduate was one of the earliest films to use its soundtrack to such great effect. Director Mike Nichols played with the music of New York folk-rock duo Simon & Garfunkel, using their tracks to underscore and comment on the emotional tone of various scenes throughout. In the opening title sequence, the iconic “Sound of Silence” gives us a real sense of how the protagonist, Benjamin, is drifting on a conveyor belt, without much meaning or sense of purpose. The melancholy song encapsulates his feeling of dejection. 

The Graduate (1967) title sequence

The film also gave birth to an iconic song in “Mrs. Robinson” (named after one of the main characters). The catchy chorus and acoustic guitar chords that soundtrack the film’s headlong, frenetic final act were an instant hit. The soundtrack album spent nine weeks at the top of the charts, selling two million copies and even collecting a Grammy Award as best original score in 1969.

Head over to the Musicbed blog to see the other soundtracks that made our shortlist!