A soundtrack is an essential part of any film, whether it’s a catchy orchestral score or contemporary songs that follow the characters throughout their lives. And yet it’s curious that creating a soundtrack is often an entirely separate process. Composers will of course base their writing on the filmed material and the director’s notes but, ultimately, the music they conjure up is its own artistic beast.
So sometimes a completely fantastic soundtrack will accompany a not-so-fantastic film. This could be due to the caliber of artists or composers involved; other times it’s just a fluke that the musical elements turn out to be better than the film itself. Regardless, these ten films ended up being overshadowed by their far superior audio backgrounds.
9
Tron: Ares
Tron: Ares has always been a curious concept. The previous two films garnered a cult following, but were never runaway critical or commercial successes. Casting a polarizing lead in Jared Leto only gave Tron: Ares a bigger hill to climb, and so it proved, as the trio landed in theaters to lukewarm reviews and a less-than-enthusiastic Rotten Tomatoes score, which currently sits at 54%.
Still, at least Nine Inch Nails wrote the soundtrack. Trent Reznor has been writing spectacular film scores for years, but Tron: Ares is unique in that it is branded “Nine Inch Nails”. The difference remains unclear, given that Reznor is the creative driving force behind Nine Inch Nails anyway, but one can’t doubt the results. Tron: Ares is arguably a more enjoyable experience when viewed as an extended Nine Inch Nails music video.
8
Dusk
As prevalent as Twihards were in the late 2000s and early 2010s, the sparkly vampires and questionable romances attracted many detractors. The only thing both sides could unite on was the fact that DuskThe soundtrack was an all-time classic filled with alternative rock.
The 2008 film represents the pinnacle of Duskthe musical greatness of , with Muse’s “Supermassive Black Hole” and Paramore’s “Decode” both featuring prominently. Carter Burwell’s score can’t be ignored, of course, but it’s the injections of post-MySpace rock that ensure the legacy and cultural impact of DuskThe soundtrack is as strong as the film itself in 2025.
7
Maximum overdrive
Given that “Stephen King adaptations” are practically a genre unto themselves, one might wonder why the horror legend doesn’t just make his own films. King himself had a similar thought and did just that with Maximum overdrive in 1986 – then I immediately regretted it. Maximum overdrive suffers from a lack of focus and minimal substance, and will go down as one of the author’s worst adaptations, even in the opinion of the man himself.
Fortunately, King had the good idea to hire AC/DC for the film’s soundtrack. The band mixes classics like “Hells Bells” with new tracks like “Who Made Who,” creating a reliably electrified hard rock landscape to accompany King’s questionable directorial debut. No one can question Stephen King’s status as a living legend, but Angus and his gang valiantly provide the one and only redeeming element of Maximum overdrive.
6
Ghosts of Mars
In addition to being a horror movie god, John Carpenter is something of a musical anomaly in that he is one of the few directors to score his own films. He’s also very good at it, as he wrote the iconic music of 1978. Halloween. Alas, Ghosts of Mars represents a low point in Carpenter’s film career – a futuristic horror starring Ice Cube and Jason Statham that really misses the mark.
Overall quality aside, Ghosts of Mars worth watching for the soundtrack alone. Carpenter himself is in great shape, but he’s also recruiting a group of top talent to help him. These maestros include guitar legends Steve Vai, Buckethead and Robin Fink, as well as the band Anthrax. The results are, as one would expect, fantastic and far eclipse the film itself.
5
The village
Many directors find a composer they collaborate well with and stick with them – from Danny Elfman to their Tim Burton. For M. Night Shyamalan, that composer is James Newton Howard, who composed classics like The sixth sense And Unbreakable. Unfortunately for Howard, he was also recruited for less well-regarded releases such as The Last Airbender And after Earth.
But if Shyamalan’s star in Hollywood waned somewhat, Howard’s did not, and his musical contributions continued to soar against the backdrop of less successful partnerships between director and composer. The village is perhaps the best example of Howard directing a not-so-great Shyamalan film, and his work was nominated for Best Original Score at the Academy Awards.
4
Flash Gordon
Flash Gordon is a cult classic in its own right, but fits firmly into the category “so bad, it’s good” category. The Queen soundtrack, on the other hand, is simply very good, especially the main theme. These two aspects of Flash Gordon straddling the taste line in terms of 80s cheese. Flash Gordon is a new version best enjoyed in the same ironic vein as Mark Wahlberg looks at it Tedwhile the Queen soundtrack is still perfectly acceptable to blast from the rooftops in 2025 without the slightest irony.
There simply isn’t a world in which Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor, and John Deacon come together to produce something subpar, and it’s intriguing to think about exactly what’s going on. Flash Gordon what would happen if Queen’s work was replaced with generic synth rock typical of the era. Certainly, it’s hard to imagine Flash gaining its cult status without the support of the British rock quartet.
3
Sucker Punch
Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch has attracted widespread criticism for its style-over-substance approach, depiction of female characters, and video game trends. The 2011 effort certainly has its supporters, but not quite with the same passion as other divisive Snyder efforts, such as Man of Steel And Guardians.
Almost all elements of Sucker Punch divides the crowd, but the soundtrack by Tyler Bates and Marius de Vries is the only exception. A clever mix of cinematic instruments focused on rock (something that Bates would later use for John Wick) and covers of classics from past decades, Sucker Punch is a perfect example of music that feels more inspired and intentional than the film’s soundtrack.
2
Purple rain
Purple rain isn’t a bad film, but it would be bad without the soundtrack to which it is inextricably linked – one of the greatest musical feats in human history. If Purple rain was an ordinary film devoid of Prince and his all-powerful music, it would probably have made it through the 80s and been forgotten by time.
It is also impossible to avoid realizing that Purple rain the album has aged like a good wine, while Purple rain the film smacks very strongly of a product of the 80s, including questionable depictions of female characters. That you watch Purple rain for the first time or in 1999, an inescapable truth shines through: the soundtrack is perfect without the film, but the film doesn’t work without its music.
1
The bodyguard
As Purple rain, The bodyguard is a film orbiting around a soundtrack, with Whitney Houston shining so brightly on screen that it’s easy to forget that Kevin Costner is there somewhere, too. Although it is impossible to deny The bodyguardIn the Hall of Fame of ’90s pop culture, it’s also impossible to deny that the film is deeply flawed, skating on star power, Houston charisma, a by-the-numbers love story, and, of course, absolutely classic tunes.
When an album begins with “I Will Always Love You,” “I Have Nothing,” and “I’m Every Woman,” it’s very obvious that it’s on the path to greatness, and Houston’s vocal performance is the sound of an artist truly reaching his peak. On the other hand, The bodyguard is a film that few people would be talking about in 2025 if anyone other than Houston had been the star.
