Monday, March 27, 2017

Updating Rob Neyer's Astros

Last year for Spring Training I gave a decade-by-decade account of the Astros.  This year, I have not had the time to do something similar.  Instead, I wanted to revisit one of my favorite baseball books.

Rob Neyer is one of my favorite baseball authors, and a great disciple of Bill James.  He also has, I think, a similar mind to me as much of his writing comes down to lists.  One such book is his Big Book of Baseball Lineups.  In it, he has a chapter for each franchise with a series of lineup with various themes.  There are the obvious All Time and Single Season, as well as those like All Rookie, All Bust, and All Nickname.  It’s fun and informative.  The problem is, it is a bit dated since it was published in 2003.  Hence, my idea to update the Astros.  So, I will include his lineup, followed by any changes that would need to be made.

A couple of notes: this is simply an update with players who have played since 2003.  I will not, therefore, change any lineup if I think he picked the incorrect player.

All Time

C - Alan Ashby
1B - Jeff Bagwell
2B - Craig Biggio
SS - Craig Reynolds
3B - Doug Rader
LF - Jose Cruz
CF - Cesar Cedeno
RF - Terry Puhl
SP1 - Nolan Ryan
SP2 - J.R. Richard
SP3 - Mike Hampton
SP4 - Don Wilson
CL - Dave Smith

Change: Roy Oswalt (SP3)

            Oswalt has the second most wins (behind Joe Niekro by one), the second most strikeouts (behind Nolan Ryan), and top 10 in ERA and WHIP, all while pitching in a much worse era and worse ballpark for pitchers than most of the others.  This knocks Wilson down to the No. 2 squad.

No. 2

C - Johnny Edwards
1B - Glenn Davis
2B - Joe Morgan
SS - Dickie Thon
3B - Ken Caminiti
LF - Bob Watson
CF - Jimmy Wynn
RF - Kevin Bass
SP1 - Mike Scott
SP2 - Joe Niekro
SP3 - Larry Dierker
SP4 - Ken Forsch
CL - Billy Wagner

Changes: Brad Ausmus (C)

            While worse offensively than Edwards, Ausmus had twice as many PAs and was the outspoken leader for the team even during the Bagwell/Biggio days. 
            Lance Berkman (1B)

            He has to be on the team somewhere, and while he played plenty in the outfield he played the most at first base.  Second all time in home runs, tops in on base, slugging, and, of course, OPS.
            Jose Altuve (2B)

            Currently lagging behind Morgan in PAs, but already a better resume.  The big question when he’s finished, and hopefully spent his entire career in Houston, will be if he’s better than Biggio.
            Wilson moved down bumps Forsch

            Others I considered: Hunter Pence (RF; did not last long enough), Morgan Ensberg (3B; also did not last long enough), Carlos Correa (SS; two great years not yet enough, but by the end he should be the best)

Single Season

C - Craig Biggio 1991
1B - Jeff Bagwell 1996
2B - Craig Biggio 1997
SS - Dickie Thon 1983
3B - Ken Caminiti 1992
LF - Jose Cruz 1984
CF - Jimmy Wynn 1969
RF - Jimmy Wynn 1972
SP - Mike Scott 1986
RP - Hal Woodeshick 1963

Changes: Morgan Ensberg 2005 (3B)

            I love Caminiti, but this was a fantastic year.  36 HR, .283/.388/.557, 127 OPS+
            Lance Berkman 2001 (LF)
            MVP caliber season; 34 HR, .331/.430/.620, 139 OPS+

            I don’t know what he was thinking with Woodeshick over Billy Wagner’s 1999, but by the rules I can’t make that change.

All Rookie

C - Mitch Meluskey
1B - Jeff Bagwell
2B - Joe Morgan
SS - Sonny Jackson
3B - Bob Aspromonte
LF - Luis Gonzalez
CF - Cesar Cedeno
RF - Lance Berkman
SP - Roy Oswalt
RP - Charlie Kerfeld

Changes: Carlos Correa (SS)

            Hello Mr. Correa: 22 HR, .279/.345/.512, 117 OPS+, Rookie of the Year
            Chris Devenski (RP)

            If you weren’t paying attention last year, you missed not only one of the best rookie performances, but one of the best relief performances period.  4-4-1, 108 IP, 2.16 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 194 ERA+.

Homegrown

C - Jerry Grote
1B - John Mayberry
2B - Joe Morgan
SS - Sonny Jackson
3B - Ken Caminiti
LF - Luis Gonzalez
CF - Jimmy Wynn
RF - Rusty Staub
SP - J.R. Richard
RP - Dave Smith

Changes: Jason Castro (C)

            There’s not much to talk about here, but Castro has turned into one of the best defensive catchers in the game.
            Lance Berkman (1B)
            Mayberry was quite good, but Berkman was great and might even get a vote or two for the HOF.

            Carlos Correa will be on this list soon, and Hunter Pence just misses against Staub.
           

Traded Away

C - Jerry Grote
1B - John Mayberry
2B - Joe Morgan
SS - N/A
3B - Ken Caminiti
LF - Manny Mota
CF - Kenny Lofton
RF - Bobby Abreu
SP - Curt Schilling
RP - Todd Jones

Changes: Jonathan Villar (SS, 2015)

            I needed to find someone to take this spot, and he did lead the league in stolen bases last year.
            Hunter Pence (RF, 2011)

            As Neyer says, Abreu wasn’t technically traded away but lost in the Rule V draft, which was just stupid.
            Billy Wagner (RP, 2003)

            The ownership was so bad the Wagner basically forced them to trade him.  All he did was collect nearly 200 more saves over seven seasons, reaching the playoffs four more times, or as many as in his nine season in Houston.

Gold Glove

C - Brad Ausmus
1B - Glenn Davis
2B - Craig Biggio
SS - Craig Reynolds
3B - Doug Rader
LF - Al Spangler
CF - Gerald Young
RF - Terry Puhl
P - Mike Hampton

Changes:  Adam Everett (SS)

            Frequently ranked as the top shortstop defensively during his career.  Never flashy, just solid.
            Colby Rasmus (LF)

            A cannon for an arm, even if not always accurate.
            Jake Marisnick (CF)

            His glove alone has won the spot as the fourth outfielder at least the last two seasons.

Iron Glove

C - Mitch Melusky
1B - Eddie Mathews
2B - Art Howe
SS - Julio Lugo
3B - Sean Berry
LF - Bob Watson
CF - Carl Warwick
RF - Greg Gross
P - Brian Williams

Changes: Carlos Lee (LF)

            Always looked bad in the field.  The DH was made for guys like him.

All-Bust

C - Eddie Taubensee
1B - Denis Menke
2B - Dave Rohde
SS - Sonny Jackson
3B - Chris Truby
LF - Wilbur Howard
CF - Gerald Young
RF - Eric Anthony
SP - Jose Lima
RP - John Hudek

Changes: J.R. Towles (C)

            Hit like gangbusters in 14 games in 2007.  Was supposed to be the bat behind the plate.  Never hit above .200 in parts of four more seasons.
            Jon Singleton (1B)

            Granted, he could still turn his career around, but has anybody been more frustrating to watch over the last few seasons.  Given a big contract before reaching the Majors, he has a career OPS+ of 76 and a negative number for WAR.  The ultimate Quadruple-A player (too good for AAA but terrible in the Majors).
            Carlos Lee (LF)
            Had a couple of good seasons, and then he became the $19 million man weighing down an old team.
            Carlos Gomez (CF)

            The one guy who can compete with Singleton for most frustrating over the last few seasons.  So bad they couldn't trade him so they had to release him.
            Mark Appel (SP)

            Maybe it’s unfair since he hasn’t pitched in the Majors yet, but that’s part of the issue.  The first round draft pick in 2013, he’s almost been worse the higher he goes.

Used-to-be-Great

C - Gus Triandos
1B - Eddie Mathews
2B - Nellie Fox
SS - Denis Menke
3B - Buddy Bell
LF - Tommy Davis
CF - Tommie Agee
RF - Kevin Bass
SP - Robin Roberts
RP - Mike Henneman

Changes:  Ivan Rodiguez (2009, C)

            At the height of the “let’s try to win now by overpaying over-the-hill veterans.
            Miguel Tejada (2008-2009, SS)

            Two fairly good seasons but not when compared to his time in Oakland and Baltimore.
            Darin Erstad (2008-2009, LF)

            Did you remember he was with the team?  Neither did I, until I was reviewing the rosters.

All-Name

C - "Skip" Alfred Jutze
1B - "Bags" Jeff Bagwell
2B - "Pigpen" Craig Biggio
SS - "Sonny" Roland Jackson
3B - "The Red Rooster" Doug Rader
LF - "The Bull" Bob Watson
CF - "Toy Cannon" Jimmy Wynn
RF - "Rusty" Daniel Staub
SP - "Turk" Dick Farrell
RP - "Ferrum Fireballer" Billy Wagner

Changes: “Big Puma” or “Fat Elvis” Lance Berkman (1B)

            Also called Sir Lance-a-lot, he embraced the Fat Elvis name because he could laugh at himself. 
            “El Caballo” Carlos Lee (LF)

            The Hispanic fans loved him and gave him this memorable nickname.
            “Lights Out” Brad Lidge (RP)

            Given the Wagner nickname was made up, this one was easy.  A great closer name.

Top Five Seasons

1986
1980
1998
1999
2001

Changes:
            2005 (#1) the only World Series appearance

Top Five Managers

Larry Dierker
Bill Virdon
Hal Lanier
Harry Walker

Terry Collins

Sunday, February 26, 2017

2016 Movie and Score Awards

2016 was not the best year for movies.  In fact, I would say it’s probably the worst in awhile.  Most of the summer blockbusters were pretty disappointing.  I think I saw nearly every movie from the year I want to see, so it's time to give out some fake awards.  But first, some thoughts on this year's movies.

Let’s start with superhero movies.  Those are the biggest things going now.  There were a couple of good ones, and a couple of stinkers.  The best, for my money, was Captain America: Civil War.  This is not because of the airport scene alone, though that was probably the best scene of the year, but overall it was a solid addition to the MCU.  The second best was probably Doctor Strange, which was a little more fun than I expected.  Visually it was astounding.  The cape stole the show.  Then there’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, the most polarizing movie of the year.  I would say it was not perfect, for sure, but it was a heck of a lot better than many people will say.  Ben Affleck was the best live action Batman I’ve seen, Wonder Woman was awesome, Superman was fine.  And, while people make fun of the “Martha” moment, I could not believe I had never thought of that connection before.  I was actually shocked!  Deadpool, which so many people loved, I thought was way overblown.  Suicide Squad was probably the most disappointing movie of the year.  Margot Robbie and Will Smith were excellent, but the rest of the cast was merely good to terrible.  The dancing witch is one of the worst villains I’ve ever seen.  Finally, X-Men: Apocalypse proved that the X-Men trilogies have no idea how to do a finale.  A truly terrible movie.

Science fiction had another solid year.  10 Cloverfield Lane was the most suspenseful movie of the year.  Rogue One and Star Trek Beyond were both excellent additions to their franchises.  In fact, I would argue that Beyond is the best of the new Star Trek so far.  Passengers, as I recently wrote, was disappointing though still well made.  Arrival is a beautiful movie with some interesting ideas that will leave the viewer thinking about them for awhile, and of course wondering what they just saw.  The only terrible science fiction movie was Independence Day: Resurgence, and boy was that one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen.

Let’s talk about the overhyped movies, because there were a few.  I already mentioned Deadpool.  Another majorly overhyped movie was Zootopia, which I thought was merely a decent animated movie.  I thought it was more annoying than great, and really the spoiled the best scene (DMV) in the trailer.

Speaking of family movies, I really liked Fanatastic Beasts.  Sure, it’s not Harry Potter, but it was still quite good.  Finding Dory was a very good return to form for Pixar.  Sure, it’s not as good as the original, but the octopus was a great addition.  The Jungle Book verges on the overhyped.  It was good, but not great as many people made it sound.  I thought it was a bit disjointed.

Then we have the disappointing movies, which is the largest amount of movies this year.  I already mentioned Suicide Squad, Passengers, and X-Men (plus I guess Independence Day).  The other most disappointing movie of the year was Jason Bourne.  That trailer had me really excited for one of my favorite franchises.  It wasn’t a bad movie, per se, and it had some great action scenes as you would expect from a Bourne movie.  The biggest problem was, as many people have said, it was exactly what you expected.  There were no surprises, it was paint-by-number, it only muddled the storyline unnecessarily.  Another disappointing movie, for me, was Hail, Caesar!  Now I’m not a big Coen Brothers fan, though I really like a few of their movies.  I thought this movie was a can’t-miss, but it ended up being boring and just bad.  And then there was The Girl on the Train.  I read the book because I knew the movie was coming out.  I didn't particularly like the book, but it was quite suspenseful.  With Emily Blunt I figured the movie would be good, despite the negative reviews.  Well, the reviews were right.  The movie was a mess and had none of the suspense of the book.  What a huge swing and a miss.

There’s also a few movies that were just kind of there.  This would include things like Criminal, Hush (which was pretty dumb), Money Monster, Risen (interesting concept not done well), and Now You See Me 2 (did we really need a sequel?).

There was also one very underrated and underwatched movie.  I remember seeing the trailers for The Nice Guys and thinking it looked interesting but not something I'd run out to see.  So I didn't.  And neither did anyone else.  I finally saw it streaming much later, and I thought it was really funny.  Certainly it's not as good as Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, also from Shane Black, but if you liked that you will like The Nice Guys.  And it actually made me like Ryan Gosling, which I thought was impossible.

One other movie I have not mentioned so far, because I’m still not really sure what to make of it.  Silence.  I really wanted to love this movie.  I did like it…up to a certain point.  (Spoiler)  The martyrdom and the torture of the faithful was powerful, as was the psychological battle of Padre Rodriguez.  But the movie made a huge turn, for the worse, when he hears Jesus’ voice (as someone else said, how dare they put words in the Lord’s mouth?) and then completely destroys itself when he apostasies.  It almost make apostasy seem ok, which is not ok at all.  So while it was a beautiful movie with good acting, I left angry.

What’s left?  The best movie of the year: 13 Hours.  It was the first movie of the year that I saw, and it set a high standard.  It was not perfect, but all around it was the best.  It was very emotional (I left the movie very angry, but for the right reason).  It was shot very well.  The acting was good.  As a friend said, it was like a new Black Hawk Down.  And I finally saw Hacksaw Ridge.  Maybe it was hyped too much for me, but while I thought it was a good movie, it felt incomplete in some way.  I am happy to see Mel Gibson back making epic movies since, no matter what you think of him personally, he is one of the best directors for telling an epic story.

Best Superhero Movie: Captain America: Civil War
Best Action Movie: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Best Comedy: Finding Dory
Best Family Movie: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Best Suspense: 10 Cloverfield Lane
Best Science Fiction: Arrival
Best Drama: 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

Best Movie: 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

Worst Superhero Movie: X-Men: Apocalypse
Worst Action Movie: Criminal
Worst Comedy: Hail, Caesar!
Worst Family Movie: Risen
Worst Suspense: Hush
Worst Science Fiction: Independence Day: Resurgence
Worst Drama: Money Monster

Worst Movie: Independence Day: Resurgence

5 Favorite Movies:

Rogue One
Captain America: Civil War
Fantastic Beasts
Star Trek Beyond
10 Cloverfield Lane

5 Best Movies:

13 Hours
Captain America
Hacksaw Ridge
Rogue One
Arrival

Best Actor: Andrew Garfield (Hacksaw Ridge)
            Honorable mentions: Andrew Garfield (Silence), Chris Pratt (Passengers), Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling (The Nice Guys)

Best Actress:  Amy Adams (Arrival)
            Honorable mentions: Jennifer Lawrence (Passengers), Emily Blunt (The Girl on the Train)

Best Supporting Actor:  John Goodman (10 Cloverfield Lane)
            Honorable mentions:  Daniel Bruhl (Captain America), Ben Affleck (Batman v Superman), Adam Driver (Silence), Will Smith (Suicide Squad)

Best Supporting Actress: Angourie Rice (The Nice Guys)
            Honorable mentions: Alison Sudol (Fantastic Beasts), Rebecca Ferguson (The Girl on the Train)

Now, let's talk about my favorite part of the movies, the music.  I hate to say that they have been on the decline recently, but so many of them are just white noise any more there's nothing really to distinguish them.  So, very few stood out for me this year.  I'm just going to name those that are worth mentioning, in no particular order:

Arrival (Johann Johannsson) - the best music in this movie isn't even the score, it's a track by Max Richter at the beginning and end
Batman v Superman (Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL) - another lackluster Hans Zimmer effort, with the exception of the fantastic Wonder Woman theme
Captain America: Civil War (Henry Jackman) - yet another mediocre Marvel score
Doctor Strange (Michael Giacchino) - finally a Marvel score that stood out, with some really interesting Eastern/70s sounds
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (James Newton Howard) - this would be solidly middle of the pack Harry Potter music
Finding Dory (Thomas Newman) - a solid follow up to Finding Nemo
The Girl on the Train (Danny Elfman) - Elfman in his most forgettable
Hacksaw Ridge (Rupert Gregson-Williams) - the music is fine
Independence Day: Resurgence (Harald Kloser & Thomas Wander) - like the movie, the music pales in comparison with the fantastic original
Jason Bourne (John Powell & David Buckley) - while it's hard to go wrong with Powell's Bourne music, there's nothing really that interesting here
The Jungle Book (John Debney) - uses the original Disney music well
The Legend of Tarzan (Rupert Gregson-Williams) - I listened to it, can't say I remember it
The Magnificent Seven (James Horner & Simon Franglen) - the last music the iconic Horner wrote, it's great to hear the original theme spliced in
The Nice Guys (David Buckley & John Ottman) - some decent 70s sound, but like most Ottman there's not much to remember it
Passengers (Thomas Newman) - I've listened to this more than any other this year, and it's so good it makes me want to see the movie again
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (Michael Giacchino) - I wrote about this more before, but again I'll say he did very well in the short time he had
Star Trek Beyond (Michael Giacchino) - another good addition to the franchise
Suicide Squad (Steven Price) - there are moments that are good
X-Men: Apocalypse (John Ottman) - see: Ottman comment on The Nice Guys
10 Cloverfield Lane (Bear McCreary) - does a great job of building the suspense
13 Hours (Lorne Balfe) - like the movie, reminiscent of Black Hawk Down

Best Score:  Passengers (Thomas Newman)
Best Drama Score: Passengers (Thomas Newman)
Best Animated Score:  Finding Dory (Thomas Newman)
Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Score: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (Michael Giacchino)
Best Action/Adventure Score:  Captain America: Civil War (Henry Jackman)
Best Horror Score: 10 Cloverfield Lane (Bear McCreary)
Best Genre Score:  The Nice Guys (David Buckley & John Ottman)
Best Composition:  Michelle (from 10 Cloverfield Lane, Bear McCreary)
Best Theme: Is She With You? (from Batman v Superman, Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL)
Best Love Theme:  Spacewalk (from Passengers, Thomas Newman)
Best Action Sequence:  The Tunnel (from Captain America, Henry Jackman)
Best Use of Classical/Source Music:  On the Nature of Daylight (Max Richter, in Arrival)

Composer of the Year:  Michael Giacchino

Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Split and Shyamalan

I finally got to see Split, and I feel like I really need to talk about it and M. Night Shyamalan.  But before going further, know that there will be many spoilers, so please watch Split before reading this.  You should anyways, but I really don’t want to spoil it for you as someone did for me.

I will start by saying I am a Shyamalan fan.  No, not his newer stuff, but his early movies are some of my favorites.  I can still remember an idiot spoiling The Sixth Sense for me in speech class in high school.  It had only been out for a couple of weeks and he thought it would be funny to spoil it for everyone.  So when I finally got to see it, even though I knew the twist, I still loved it.  Then came Unbreakable, which is still one of the best comic book movies of all time.  Some people thought it was long and boring, but that’s what I love about Shyamalan.  He is deliberate, has a story to tell, and takes his time doing it.  I have to say I really liked Signs and The Village too.   The Lady in the Water was a somewhat surreal experience as I was the only person in the theater.  I did not think it was great, but it was pretty good for what it was (a fairy tale).  Then there was The Happening, one of the most disappointing movies I have ever seen.  I skipped The Last Airbender, but I did make my way to After Earth which, while not great, is not as bad as many people say.  I wanted to see The Visit, but I have not had a chance to yet.

How big of a fan am I?  One of my most memorable papers in undergrad was for a class on Edgar Allan Poe where I compared the use of colors in Shyamalan’s movies to Poe’s works.  (Alfred Hitchcock, by the way, is the intermediary.  Hitchcock loved Poe, Shyamalan loves Hitchcock.)  This is what I’m talking about deliberate, watch his movies and look at his use of colors.  Mr. Glass always is in purple or there is purple around him.  David Dunn is surrounded by green.  Anything that a dead person interacts with in The Sixth Sense is red (that’s the biggest clue about Willis’ character).  I could go on, but you get the point.

Leading up to Split was a weird thing.  The first time I saw a trailer, I was mildly interested.  At some point I decided it was a “wait until home video” movie.  Then, when it came out, I started to hear good things.  I changed my mind and decided I would see it, but I just did not have time.  Then, sometime last week (after only a week in the theaters) I unfortunately saw a story on the frontpage of Yahoo that spoiled the ending.  “What does Shyamalan have in plan for Unbreakable 3?”  At first I thought it was a typo, but then I realized, no, Split is #2.  Well that’s great, thanks for spoiling it right away.  I figured I’d take it like The Sixth Sense and go anyways, though unfortunately instead of just watching the movie like most people I was waiting for the reveal.

Before getting to that, let’s talk about the movie.  It’s definitely signature Shyamalan.  It takes its time, spending extra beats on scenes that most movies would quick cut from.  I see it as a great callback to older movies that have similar paces, though unfortunately many people today just say “it’s boring.”  It’s also sometimes overly serious, especially with the psychologist.  It’s beautifully shot.  No matter what you think about his movies, no matter how bad they might be, they are always beautiful.

Then there’s James McAvoy.  WOW!  I’ve known for awhile that he’s a very good actor, but this was amazing.  He went for it with each of the personalities and knocked it out of the park.  So many people are talking about the little boy, Hedwig, and rightly so.
  For me, Patricia was the most impressive.

The rest of the cast was very good as well.  At first the main girl, Casey, seemed weird, but as we learn her history we definitely understand why she is the way she is.  I will agree that many of the other characters are not well fleshed out, that’s a legitimate complaint about the movie, but it is not a huge problem.

Now, let’s talk about the ending.  As the story is leading up to the beast, I was worrying how far they would go.
  In the end, I thought it was an interesting turn, and it is especially good when considered in the full story as the creation of a supervillain.  Since I already knew the connection to Unbreakable, I had an idea this was where it was headed, so I was not as surprised as some people and even had a different view on the beast.  As someone else said, Shyamalan has done a superhero origin better than DC and a villain better than Marvel.  It’s also interesting, and I did not catch this, that when he laid the flowers at the train station it is possible/probable that it is the train crash initiated by Mr. Glass, meaning he created both a superhero and a supervillain with one act.  This is a great comic trope.

The way Casey was spared was a bit weak, but it also kind of makes sense.  I just wanted to see her fight back a little more.  The good thing is that means the beast (or The Horde?) is still lose, which means Bruce Willis will hunt him down.

Speaking of…I really liked the reveal.  Even though I knew what was coming, when I started to hear the Unbreakable theme playing I started to get really pumped.  The comment from the random woman about what happened 15 years ago, I suppose it is unusual that someone would remember that, but not necessarily if it was well known how many people Mr. Glass killed.  That final shot of Bruce Willis was just a great nod to the fans.  I am very much looking forward to more in the Unbreakable franchise.  I remember reading back in 2000 that Shyamalan had been planning a trilogy from the beginning.  I am glad that he is finally getting a chance to finish that project.

So, I really liked the movie.  It was suspenseful, well acted, beautifully shot, and had me wanting more.  I’d give it a solid 8/10.

How would I rank the movies?  This is fairly simple.

The great:

The Sixth Sense
Unbreakable

The good:

Split
Signs
The Village

Ok:
Devil (producer)
Lady in the Water
After Earth

Ugly:

The Happening

Another great aspect of Shyamalan movies has long been his use of James Newton Howard (though unfortunately not in his last two).  This is truly one of the best director/composer combinations of all time.  This ranking is a little harder.  The amazing thing is all of these are good, if not great.

The Village (it does not get any better than Hillary Hahn’s violin in The Gravel Road)
Unbreakable
Signs
The Sixth Sense
Lady in the Water (if the whole score was as good as The Great Eatlon this would be much higher)
Split
After Earth
The Happening

The Last Airbender