Film Music: A discussion

[Marky B]

Some people don't understand why films have music. Admittedly,there are films with music put together as general background music,and often they don't add the tone or vibrance to the mood of the film. A film comes to mind is Assault On A Queen where Frank Sinatra leads a group of modern pirates to attack the Queen Mary,but the score was jazz based and lent no elegy to the film. However,a film with a good director and good composer can bring a survey of ambience to a film. My favourite example is John Williams to his peerless score for Jaws. His music tells the viewer of impending peril - remember the first attack on Chrissie,the girl from the beach party,and the attack on young Alex,the boy on the inflatable raft. The sound of the cellos as the shark grew closer! Then came the 4 July scene,as underwater sequences show bathers,but there is no music,but they see a dorsal fin,they panic,they run,they cause confusion - but it was a hoax. However,Spielberg and Williams indicated:no music of terror,so no danger.
Probably,the first film to have freestanding music of its own importance (and I will stand to be corrected on this) is the music for Gone With The Wind - a magnificent score which is probably the unofficial anthem of Hollywood. Since then,film music has evolved into creating music of somewhat symphonies:The Sea Hawk,Lawrence of Arabia,Dr Zhivago,Out In Africa,Dances With Wolves,Star Wars,Schindler's List to name but a few.
Of course there are contributions from composers who had never had the restraint of fitting music to a film story,but succeeded nonetheless,such as Ralph Vaughan Williams for his music for 49th Parallel,Scott Of The Antarctic and William Walton's scores for Henry V up to his stirring score Battle In The Air for Battle Of Britain.
So can you think of any film that has been undermined by the music? Any film that needed music? Any music that was better than the film (for me Psycho and Gone With The Wind). The discussion is open. Over to you,friends!
Ta Ta
Marky B

[Steve Crook]

"Silent" films were often shown with a full orchestra in the larger cinemas. Film music is as old as film.

Steve

[Heinrich]

...
So can you think of any film that has been undermined by the music?

I cannot think of a movie that was spoiled by bad music which was not already a dead loss.

Any film that needed music?

Alfred Hitchcock's Torn Curtain suffered from lots of things besides the corny direction, stupid plot, poor casting, but most especially without Bernard Herrmann's score.

Any music that was better than the film ...

It has to be The Big Country which was a routine oater with exceptional music by Jerome Moross.

[GRAEME]

Quest for Love. Not the greatest film in the world but it could have done better without the normally excellent Eric Rogers' score. It sounds way too similar to one of his Carry On scores - totally comedic when it should sound dramatic - just way wrong.

And I love Eric Rogers work on comedy films.

[Marky B]

I cannot think of a movie that was spoiled by bad music which was not already a dead loss.


Alfred Hitchcock's Torn Curtain suffered from lots of things besides the corny direction, stupid plot, poor casting, but most especially without Bernard Herrmann's score.


It has to be The Big Country which was a routine oater with exceptional music by Jerome Moross.

I agree. The same could be said for Gone With The Wind and Psycho.
Ta Ta
Marky B

[wadsy]

Wasn't the American release of Witchfinder General cocked up by substituting Paul Ferris's beautiful background score by

some awful synthesised music?

[cassidy]

On a personal note I like the way that the opening theme song "Do Not Forsake Me" was fitted into certain scenes from High Noon after it was re-edited after it's preview, but critics are generally split on this one.

[Heinrich]

On a personal note I like the way that the opening theme song "Do Not Forsake Me" was fitted into certain scenes from High Noon after it was re-edited after it's preview, but critics are generally split on this one.

It worked quite well.

[Moor Larkin]

I recall Joesph Losey got the hump over The Gypsy & The Gentleman because Rank changed his planned music; so much so, that he asked for his name to be removed from the whole movie.



This one I always found to be an Assault on the senses in every way.......

[cassidy]

Thanks for that Heinrich, I always enjoy seeing that final gunfight. A couple of bits of trivia. The first gunman shot was "Ben Miller" played by Sheb Wooley (Pete the scout in Rawhide") who had a 50's hit with "The Purple People Eater" and Lee Van Cleef (Colby) must have had the award for the longest non speaking role for a credited actor who was in so many scenes in the film.

It worked quite well.

[zettel45]

I always thought The Godfather's score helped the film a lot. It's both sinister and romantic at the same time - just like the film itself.

And last time I saw The Shining I was struck by how much Kubrick relied on the jarring, atonal score to add tension to scene after scene which would otherwise just be Shelley Duvall wandering around hotel corridors with a stunned look on her face. In fact, Kubrick relied on this so heavily that it began to feel like a trick.

There Will Be Blood is a film that benefits hugely from not using much music at all, so that when it appears (if you see what I mean) it has great impact - for example, when Brahms' D Major violin concerto bursts out at the end it gives the film a bleakly comic, almost upbeat finale.

Finally, a word of praise for Carter Burwell, whose long-standing relationship with the Coen Brothers has enormously enhanced their films - especially, I think, Blood Simple and Fargo.

[Heinrich]

Thanks for that Heinrich, I always enjoy seeing that final gunfight. A couple of bits of trivia. The first gunman shot was "Ben Miller" played by Sheb Wooley (Pete the scout in Rawhide") who had a 50's hit with "The Purple People Eater" and Lee Van Cleef (Colby) must have had the award for the longest non speaking role for a credited actor who was in so many scenes in the film.

Sheb Wooley was also an accomplished horseman in real life. He learned to ride horses at an early age, and was a working cowboy and rodeo rider. Notice how he controls his horse at the beginning of the movie and how relaxed the animal is after he dismounts.

[jimw1]

Without Doubt my Favourite Film Soundtrack