10 Grisly Horror Movies With Surprisingly Beautiful Music Scores
9. Maniac (2012 Remake)
Composer: Rob
Listen To: "Haunted Piano"
In 1979, director William Lustig unleashed one of the most truthfully grimy depictions of New York on the world with Maniac. The movie, starring an always unkempt Joe Spinell (the very definition of "schlump"), followed a psychopath with mommy issues as he traversed the sordid streets of The Big Apple in search of women to scalp for his menagerie of mannequins.
Understandably, many didn't take too well to such a sick slice of grindhouse and its uncomfortably grisly violence (that shotgun to the head for one), unsavory tone and irredeemable protagonist earned it the dreaded X rating... until it was filed down to a version that the powers-that-be found to be more... "savory"
Jay Chattaway, the original film's composer, utilized a combination of ominous and foreboding sounds to reinforce the voyeuristic qualities of Frank Zito as he wandered the streets for victims. While several songs maintain a dream-like quality to them (due in part to Frank's fractured psyche), rarely are such tracks connected by actual harmonies (though Cry For Mother is a standout).
For the 2012 remake however, French composer Robin Coudert (who simply goes by "Rob") took the filthy soundscape estalbished by Chattaway and added a welcome dose of blissful euphony.
As the film is told entirely from Frank's POV (now played by a wide-eyed Elijah Wood), the music better conveys the breakage of Frank's sinister mind as it fluctuates between calm surreality (like Chattaway's original theme) and violent rage.
While the content is as uncomfortable as ever (thanks in large part to the gruesome practical effects and a literally unflinching perspective), the music remains emotionally engaging as it covers a spectrum of horror and sadness by utilizing sounds both new and old to create something wholly elegant and unique. Of particular note is the elegiac "Haunted Piano"; a song which subtly slides between the bliss of pursuer and dejection of prey.