Rush. Hans Zimmer

Set against the sexy, glamorous golden age of Formula 1 racing in the 1970s, the film is based on the true story of a great sporting rivalry between handsome English playboy James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth), and his methodical, brilliant opponent, Austrian driver Niki Lauda (Daniel Brühl). The story follows their distinctly-different personal styles on and off the track, their loves, and the astonishing 1976 season in which both drivers were willing to risk everything to become world champion in a sport with no margin for error: if you make a mistake, you die.

This is, basically, a rock score, featuring a small orchestra with strings and brass, but a large percussion section, and features solos for electric guitars, acoustic guitars, a drum kit, and lots of synthesizers. The main theme, “1976”, is a beauty. After a few moments of atmospheric build-up, with lonely piano chords and rumbling sustains overlaid with the occasional sampled whine of a passing race car, Martin Tillman’s haunting electric cello theme emerges. Then, a full brass section overlaid with the rock-and-roll style guitars and synthetic sound design elements introduces the core idea of the score: that these guys were hard-drinking, hard-living, hard-partying rock stars of the sporting world and the music follows them.