Conan the Barbarian

Directed by John Milius

The score that changed everything. Widely regarded as one of the greatest film scores ever written, Poledouris's music for John Milius's epic fantasy is a monumental achievement — choral, barbaric, sweepingly romantic, and unlike anything Hollywood had produced in years. Running almost continuously through the film, it functions as a second protagonist, giving Schwarzenegger's Conan a mythological weight that the dialogue alone could not achieve. Drawing on his Greek Orthodox upbringing, his love of Miklós Rózsa, and his USC training, Poledouris created an orchestral and choral tapestry of raw power and unexpected beauty. His daughter Zoë contributed a melody as a child that was woven into the score. Nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Music.