10 Greatest Songs Written For Movies
4. Exit Music for a Film - Radiohead (Romeo + Juliet)
When looking at their career trajectory, the idea of Radiohead writing tracks for movies seems a bit odd. Ever since their surge of popularity in the '90s, Thom Yorke and co. have always moved against the grain to build upon their sound regardless of what the public may want. Though they may have stand-alone album experiences to their name, they also have some amazing chops at writing for films.
Coming off of the Bends in 1995, the band were asked to contribute a song to Baz Luhrmann's retelling of Romeo and Juliet. Rather than just pump out a lush ballad, "Exit Music" is one of the most disquieting songs the band has ever made.
Starting off in the vein of the teenage runaway aesthetic, the song grows from just Thom on an acoustic guitar to an emotional experience being played out in real time, as Jonny Greenwood pushes his effects library to the absolute brink.
By the time the line "we hope that you choke" comes through, you've been sent on a dark roller coaster that you won't soon recover from. This not only set up a great contribution for the film, but also became the cornerstone of the band's masterpiece Ok Computer.
Radiohead would have a lot of great movie contributions later on like the James Bond song "Spectre," but "Exit Music" is one of the rawest displays of angst and terror in 4 minutes.