John Williams is my favorite. His music often tells a story in its own right, and typically perfectly captures the moments of the on-screen action.
I do love Hans Zimmer. His earlier scores in the mid-90s are what first drew me in to his work - The Rock, Crimson Tide, Broken Arrow. It was Gladiator, though, that solidified my opinion of him, that he was not just an action movie composer, but could handle anything. I love his work in the Dark Knight series, Interstellar, and Dunkirk. I'm sure I've left off a bunch of really good ones.
Jerry Goldsmith had a long career with so many damn good scores, from science fiction like Star Trek, Alien, and Planet of the Apes, to WWII in the form of Patton and Tora! Tora! Tora! that I rank among his best work. I love much of the music in films such as The Omen, Capricorn One, and the Rambo series.
James Horner produced a lot that sounded very militaristic, a sound that I've always loved. I have not one ounce of musical ability or understanding, but I think it was his use of brass ? that I really liked. Star Trek II/III, Commando, and Aliens are what I'm thinking of for the military sound, but then, he could turn around a do something like Field of Dreams.
