Thank you Netflix. For exposing me to more and more good stuff. This Cuban movie released in 2005 follows three different families and their day to day struggles. You get a beautiful view into the real Cuba with its worn out cities and tropical dreamscape. All three sets of storylines are great. But the one that really pushes the sad ending is that of Santos. Santos decided to leave his problems and his family when his son was an infant. For years, his son imagines the day his father would return. Then one day, Santos finds the courage to return, he finds his son playing baseball. Watch the clip to see what happens on the field.

The first time I saw it I thought it was a great movie, like everyone else. But the second time I saw it, over ten years later, I realized that not only is the screenplay amazing, and the movie well paced, but that the soundtrack was extremely important to its success. Watch this clip and see the emotional climax at 2:50.  The music takes it over the top into an emotional frenzy for a brief moment. This movie has moved up my list of favorite all time movies to number 2, right behind Casablanca…speaking of which, the similarities are uncanny. Pre-WWII love affair that ends tragically, with Nazis thrown about. Loyalty, cheating, and most of all, a man keeping his honor above all else. They just don’t make em like this anymore.

This great video has the two best versions of this song back to back. First, the Righteous Brothers and then the instrumental version by Maurice Jarre. This one makes me cry even when I’m not drinking.

This gem goes without saying. The sadness is marked, from beginning to end. Nice climax towards the end..just how we like them

Can you hear the sadness in this tune? Its not straighforward sad but is mellow and minor key build up…aaaahhh. Nice.

Does Sakamoto mean bittersweet in Japanese? Probably not. But this tune sure is. And it sure is good.

The original Godfather’s Waltz was composed by Nino Rota, a great compozer. Henry Mancini did a tribute album to Italian Cinema in which he blew away many of the original versions of the songs he did tribute to, from a conducting and audio standpoint. This is one of them. Its undoubtedly better than the original recording from the movie. Its more emotional, its just plain better. The acoustic nylon guitar at the end just brings down the house as far as sad parts go!

Hay muchas versiones de esta canción, pero para mi, esta es una de las mas bonitas. La música, su voz, la actuacion, todo le fue muy bien en esta version de una canción sumamente triste.

De todas las versiones de esta vieja cancion, creo que esta es la mas potente en terminos de emocion.  No?

Escúchenla y díganme.

Its amazing how good I’m getting a knowing composers. The first time I heard this track, I thought about the soundtrack to Peggy Sue Got married. Something about the way the violins and cellos played against the piano.

Well, my audiophile hearing was right on, it was John Barry. This is one of those pieces that can bring you to tears if you let it. You don’t even have to see the movie to appreciate this song. It stands on its own as masterpiece of sadness, depth, beauty, whatever it brings out in you. Let it carry you. At about 1:00 into the track it has a very nice crescendo.

Simply a beautiful track. My favorite of this soundtrack. But its full of beautiful renditions of the main theme. Buy the soundtrack here.

Not only is this song sad, it is also uplifting in a way. It takes you down, brings you up, but ultimately makes you feel.

One of my favorites from Ryuichi. It makes you wonder how a person and piano can make such beautiful sounds. It may sound cheesy, but this piece is on a “soul level” in terms of how it affects. At least for me.

Buy and download this track here for only .99 cents or the whole album here.

Should this movie be retitled Hans Zimmer’s Gladiator? No. Its a good title as is. But I would attribute a BIG part of Gladiator’s emotional power to Hans’ soundtrack.

Sure it has a great, sad yet uplifting ending, but its the soundtrack that carries it. The soundtrack took a very good movie and transformed it into a great movie.

Ok, Youtube deleted my last link..this one is not as good…but comes close.