The score relies on neo-classical themes more than "the decades' respective earmark sounds of the British invasion", punk music and synthpop,[1] while including "[Jóhannsson's] signature blend of acoustic instruments and electronics".

[9][3] To portray the trying relationship between the Hawkings after the physicist's deteriorating health due to motor neuron disease, a three-quarter-time piece waltz music was used in the cue "Domestic Pressures".

[1] It was a challenging scene, according to Jóhannsson, where "It starts very joyfully and comedically, goes through this idyllic stage, and then ends where it sort of curdles and becomes quite sour and a little bit bitter.

[3] Aggregator Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned The Theory of Everything (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) a score of 69 out of 100 based on 4 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

[10] In a four-star review, James Southall of Movie Wave wrote "The Theory of Everything is an impressive piece of work, charting a difficult dramatic path with great skill and managing to combine very different pulls of emotion and drama into a coherent whole.

This is a perfect example of a score that benefits enormously from subtlety and restraint, instead of wallowing in mawkishness [...] If you have not yet explored the work of Jóhann Jóhannsson, this is undoubtedly the place to start.

"[15] Timothy Monger of AllMusic wrote "Often known for blending icy minimalism with textural electronics, Jóhannsson's work here is far more sentimental, telling the story of Hawking's humanity rather than his science.

"[16] Mfiles wrote "Given Johann Johannsson's relative inexperience in the realm of mainstream film scoring, The Theory of Everything is both a delightful surprise and a very impressive achievement.

It's entirely to Johannsson's credit that he's composed a score both subtle and highly engaging, gently enhancing the movie whilst allowing Redmayne and Jones' excellent performances to stand out.

Resplendent in a sense of intimacy whilst also alluding to the more expansive, universal themes on which Stephen Hawking has built his career, The Theory of Everything is a fine piece of work and most deserving of its Oscar nomination.