Awards season is officially over and the TLDR on this past Sunday night is that Oppenheimer dominated, taking home 7 Oscars including…
🏆 Best Picture
🎬 Best Director (Christopher Nolan)
đźŽÂ Best Actor (Cillian Murphy)
🎗️ Best Supporting Actor (Robert Downey Jr.)
📝 Best Editing (Jennifer Lame)
🎥 Best Cinematography (Hoyte van Hoytema)
🎶 And of course- Best Original Score (Ludwig Göransson)
Now if you’ve been part of the Composer Odyssey Newsletter since the film’s release, you’ll know how much I absolutely love Göransson’s Oppenheimer score! For me the work is simply unforgettable so I’m honestly not surprised that it won for Best Original Score this year.
🏆 Why I Loved the Oppenheimer Score
Göransson’s music in Oppenheimer is like a character all its own. From the intimacy and sporadic dynamic nature of the violin to the mind-blowing, bombastic power of the synths, the score is filled with a beautiful and haunting tension that perfectly mirrors the (destructive) creation of the atomic bomb. Göransson masterfully blends our traditional orchestral elements with incredible sound design from the ticking clock to a blaring siren – it’s like this constant reminder that throughout Oppenheimer's story, we’re up against time and nothing is quite as it seems. I think the score perfectly captures the moral ambiguity of creating the atomic bomb, leaving you as the viewer feeling completely unsettled.
🤝 The Power of a Great Collaboration
The connection between Göransson and Nolan is just incredible! For those who don’t know, they first started working together back on the film TENET. The score was deeply electronic and a definitive piece of work for Göransson. So it was great seeing them come back for Oppenheimer!
Nolan is notoriously hands-on with every aspect of his films, including the music! From the very start, Nolan knew that he wanted a violin to represent the character of Oppenheimer. They would get together every few weeks to discuss sounds, melodies, structure and how they could create a soundscape specific to the film. And this is ALL well before the film even starts shooting! Göransson's ability to translate Nolan's vision into such a powerful score is just another a testament to their incredible work together!
🆚 Göransson vs. The Competition
This year's category was stacked with unbelievable talent, with amazing scores for films like
American Fiction (Laura Karpman)
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (John Williams)
Killers of the Flower Moon (Robbie Robertson)
Poor Things (Jerskin Fendrix).
Each one different and of course unique for their respective film! I haven’t been able to watch all of the nominees but I’ve taken some time to listen through most of the original soundtrack albums and again- an incredible list of scores! Yet for me personally, there’s something magnetic; something innovative; something beyond description that Göransson brings to the Oppenheimer score that I think deserves the win.
🤩 Göransson – An Icon of Film Composing
Göransson has quickly become one of my top composers! I’ve always said that I’d love to just be in the room during his writing process- I think I’d learn so much just by observing how he approaches his sketching, the workflow, any internal decision-making! From his iconic, (Oscar-winning) work on Black Panther to his collaborations with artists like Childish Gambino, to Emmy-winning scores for The Mandalorian, Göransson has such a dynamic track record with music that resonates across any medium. He absolutely understands the power of music to deepen the storytelling experience and his innovative style has truly become such an inspiration for my own writing process!
Now that I’ve finished raving, let me know what you think! Do you agree with the Oppenheimer Best Original Score win? Maybe there’s another score that should have won or been nominated? I’m excited to hear your thoughts!
Also, I highly recommend you check out this interview from the Rotten Tomatoes Awards Tour Podcast!