The score was composed using a 90-piece orchestra ranging from solo piano to classically styled orchestral music to big-band jazz, as "The film explores the story of his life and the story of America in parallel, and the music explores different genres as it all evolves over the decades of the story."[1] He felt the idea of how a "typical American-symphonic sound is" and how Cheney's journey progresses. In the structure of the film's music, there is also certain dissonance woven into the score, as "Cheney worked in the shadows, there is also this question of what is true and what is false that has become such a big part of our daily conversation."[2] The theme cue "The Lineman" follows Cheney's journey in politics from younger age, has the shape of a "trumpet theme" suggesting the idea of the West and Americana, and consciously include notes that do not fit the theme. A "power motif" was also created in the score which was meant for "crazy big bands" or "hip hop tracks", but occurs in different places in the film.[2]
Britell had written a musical number, featuring Steve Carell as Donald Rumsfeld teaching Cheney on how power works around Washington D.C. and in the White House of Richard Nixon. The song was sung by Alabama Shakes' frontman Brittany Howard and choreographed by Andy Blankenbuehler. McKay mentioned the score as "breathtaking" and "incredible", but however could not include in the film's test screenings. He mentioned about the number, "It was kind of when Rumsfeld is teaching Cheney about Washington D.C. and how to get ahead. It’s sort of like ‘neither a borrower nor a lender be,’ he’s kind of giving him that speech. But the speech is about, ‘Who cares about anything? You’ve got to just get ahead of people, making your moves.’ I think there was a line in it, ‘The means justify the ends,’ which I always loved."[3] He further had possibilities of that scene being included in the Blu-ray version of the film.[4][5]
James Southall of Movie Wave wrote "Writing a film score that is both satirical and sincere at the same time is one of the most difficult balancing acts a composer can undertake. You have to key the audience in to the joke while not overselling it to the point of obviousness, but then also use that same music to score scenes that are intended to be viewed un-ironically; finding that line can be a key element in whether a film is successful or not. Nicholas Britell not only found that line in Vice, but he also made his score genuinely interesting and appealing from a musical point of view – something that many composers fail to do." and called "Vice is his standout score of the year, and it confirms that this is a composer whose voice will continue to be heard for many years to come."[7] David Edelstein of Vulture wrote that Britell's score is "deadly serious even when the film is at its zaniest".[8] LATF USA-based critic felt that Britell's score "nicely complements the film’s comic and dramatic elements".[9] Alci Rengifo of Riot Material wrote "The music by Nicholas Britell is fittingly imperial, emphasizing the story with grand trumpets both somber and martial."[10] It has been complimented by film critics as "one of the best scores of 2018" by publications such as IndieWire,[11]Vulture,[12] and Film School Rejects[13] along with Britell's If Beale Street Could Talk.
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