10 original scores...

To accompany my colleague's excellent Top 10 Songs from Movie Soundtracks post, here are 10 of my favorite original scores, plus they're all good films (original scores are defined by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as substantial bodies of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by the submitting composer. Every year, one composer wins the Academy Award for Best Original Score):

1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy - Howard Shore
2. American Beauty - Thomas Newman
3. Braveheart - James Horner
4. Jurassic Park - John Williams
5. Il postino (The Postman) - Luis Enríquez Bacalov
6. The Illusionist - Philip Glass
7. Brokeback Mountain - Gustavo Santaolalla
8. Atonement - Dario Marianelli
9. The Nightmare Before Christmas - Danny Elfman
10. The Departed - Howard Shore

And regarding this year's nominees for Best Original Score:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Alexandre Desplat
Defiance – James Newton Howard
Milk – Danny Elfman
Slumdog Millionaire – A.R. Rahman
WALL-E – Thomas Newman

I think A.R. Rahman should win and will win. And I predict Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman will win the Oscar for Best Original Song for "Down to Earth" from WALL-E.