If you don’t know scores, don’t pretend you can review them. While sifting through my soundtrack and movie score collection, I came across this piss poor Alien 3 score review, in which the ‘reviewer’ asserts:
“Alien 3: (Elliot Goldenthal) An abundance of noise, with little substance.”
and
“One of the major pitfalls of this score is the fact that it isn’t scary. Nor is it grand.”
Alien 3 was the score that made me recognize Elliot Goldenthal, who in the humble opinion of this blogger, is one of the best ‘new’ score composers out there. Whether you like or dislike his style is one thing. It’s a challenging score, certainly. But to accuse the Alien 3 score of not being scary and not being grand… Well that categorizes as ignorant in my book.
Personally I trust Score Reviews for my ehm… score reviews.
PS: I’m putting together a list of my personal favorites, any suggestions?
Update: Now here’s a guy who gets it:
“What is most worth noting about this score is that it conveys a distinct post-apocalyptic feeling, one of dystopia, devoid of any joy or hope. I think this is what makes Alien 3 repugnant for so many people. James Horner’s Aliens, despite its brutal action sequences and creepy underscore, still had an underlying heroic and adventurous tone to it that listeners accepted. Jerry Goldsmith’s Alien was more desolate, yet you could detect a few hopeful chord progressions nested within the main theme. But Alien 3 banishes all musical warmth, and the result is much like being imprisoned in a nightmare. The only glimpse of hope is achieved at the score’s climax, and it is the hope of self-destruction. Whether this is a good thing depends on what you consider good music, but I consider Alien 3 at least effective, if not uplifting.”
To be fair, it isn’t scary… it replaces scary for clostrophobic complexity. Like being covered in insects.
It’s not so much grand either as… bombastic in places. My only problem with that score actually is that you can tell he isn’t happy being constrained with the thematic needs of the movie’s previous scores… and wants to do more, but is held back.
Oh.. and for suggestions: The Batman Begins OST is one of the best in years.
Plunket and Mclaine is probably the best score in the last 10 years as well… it has everything, and doesn’t go too far over the top like many scores too.
I’m thinking of Goldenthals score for Final Fantasy. The best thing about it being that it’s all your own. Completaly untainted since no one cares for the actual movie, hehe.
Michael, you’re SUCH a list-kinda person. What’s up with that?!?
–Ras
Danny Elfman: Batman soundtrack, Planet of the Apes soundtrack
Compilation: Lost in Translation soundtrack
Hans Zimmer: The House of the Spirits
Various: Il Postino soundtrack.
Those are only a few.
Gregory, seriously, the absolutely weakest part of Batman Begins is the score!… It’s just so average.
Poulsen, reg. lists; ever see High Fidelity? :) — That’s the kinda list person I am :)
Joen, Elfman’s Planet of the Apes soundtrack was too much attack-o’-the-conga’s for me. But I’ll definitely go with his Batman score (one of the best themes ever written I might add).
I’m not so much into the Lost in Translation soundtrack style, but it is a good compilation though.
House of Spirits is good; but for Zimmer I would definitely go for The Rock, Prince of Egypt or Black Hawk Down.
I think it’s hard to review scores, especially if you try to review it on its own out of context with the movie (as it seems the review you linked to did in some ways). A score which sounds noisy or weird when heard by itself may complement the movie perfectly.
I don’t know if I have any recommendations of scores, but there are a few scores I like when listening to them on their own:
And then I have a game soundtrack, the soundtrack for Kingdom Hearts (amazon.co.uk link) is really cool. I’m not usually much into adventure games, but the experience of Kingdom Hearts drew me in, and the soundtrack is a large part of this.
Well, for me, the score was the best part of that film. It was spot on for the style, and unlike anything else. Very unique and for me something that branded that movie. The theme has also found a huge following in the form of scoring trailers whose movies are yet to be scored themselves. Example: Star Trek Nemesis trailer.
Indeed. Impressive show of skill by Elfman there.
Also good choices, but the theme from House of the Spirits is just so strong and melodic. Only with John Williams do you usually get such memorable tunes (IMHO).
Meet Joe Black…just saw the film again, and I was reminded how electrifing the score is. Man it’s good.
Michael you have to be kidding right? I mean it’s not as obvious or intrusive as many but it perfectly sets tone and pace. Plus it has some lush bass in it, that’s always good.
I listen to it a hell of a lot in the car too.
If you prefer the more… intrusive scores tho (like Alien3 definately is) then you’ll probably love Plunket & Mclaine, it’s very much a part of the movie whereas BB is much less so, more an underscore than I score I guess.
I was never much of a fan of the original Batman soundtracks for that reason – they screamed out too much “look at me!!!!” although the main theme was great.
Some of my favorites
John Williams: star wars, superman, jurasic park etc.
Howard shore: lord of the rings
Don Davis: the matrix
Don’t forget David Arnold’s Stargate. IMHO, second best SF soundtrack, behind SW:ANH.
Also worth nothing: Bram Stoker’s Dracula (Wojciech Kilar) and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (Ennio Morricone) – actually anything by Ennio.
Honorable Mention: Batman – Mask of the Phantasm (Shirley Walker); not exceptional, but it does convey the darkness and mystery of Batman & Gotham, and is the music you see in all of the Animated Series.
The absolute to me : Zimmer, The Rock.
This is a bit of toughy.
I think i’d have to figure out favorites based on what I have in iTunes. I think the score for The Transporter was great. Crouching Tiger…/Hero/House of Flying Daggers are very moody good scores.
It’s difficult to separate scores from soundtracks in my head but for soundtracks I’d think the soundtrack to the Cowboy Bebop anime is unbeatable.
Alien3 was fantastic, and the soundtrack even better.
What I love most about discussion related to Alien3 is (similar to Alien Ressurection) when you reveal the nugget that David Fincher directed it, suddenly the nay sayers will often change their tunes.
Is it really supposed to smack you on the head like a twinkie?
Can’t it ask slightly more of you?
/* runs for cover */
I agree. I actually enjoyed Alien 3.
Just a couple of months ago, I bought the Alien Quadrilogy DVD box (no, that’s not a word, just like Nucular or Useability aren’t words either). The box included a so-called “Extended Work Print” by David Fincher, which basically meant a recut of Alien 3 with some changes, some omitted scenes cut back in, and others cut out. This is a great version, really.
Serious spoiler alert.
Some of the changes are:
That’s not entirely correct; Fincher has completely disowned the movie, after Fox’s treatment of him during production.
That said, the new edition is so much better than the theatrical release!
I know, he’s not even appearing for commentaries.
The reason I called it “Extended Work Print by David Fincher” was because that’s what they called it on the commentary track, or rather, they said they had tried as hard as possible to cut it together to match that work print.
Or something. At least that’s how I remember it.
I’ll not mince words then, we’re in agreeance. And it rocks :D
Which reminds me
I should have known you’d like Alien 3. That’s a great review. It’s great to see I’m not alone on this, which is usually the case when Alien 3 is being discussed.
Particularly some of the opening moments of A3, the funeral and of course The Finale, are all great cinematic moments. Too bad they didn’t help out Fincher, it could’ve been fantastic.
As for Resurrection, well, I don’t despise it as much as you seem to do. I thought it had some cool moments (hey, the whiskey cube?), and some good designs. Jeunet does have a nack for atmosphere. It’s not art, like the other 3, and maybe it’s not even a worthy sequel, but I enjoyed the flick.
I’m glad I’m not the only one that doesn’t hate Resurrection.
I just liked it. I also just liked the previous entries in the series. I suppose I’m not critical enough of movies.
As a standalone movie, I think it’s below average. The dialogue is horrible, the plot weak and suffering from sequelitis with weird freudian ovetones. As a sequel to the alien franchise, it’s an unmitigated disaster of biblical proportions.
I think the offness that Alien3 has due to it’s troubled production makes it stand out in a way aswell.
As if a troubled and sour production can in fact help a movies’ feel, if the movie deals with monsters, death, deciet and the like. Many halfbaked, halfly implemented ideas, make it a complex and somewhat jittery film experience. I REALLY like that about an Alien film. Completely unlike, say Alien4, wich is “a commercial”.
Any thoughts?
Oh and by the way Heile….contrary to your own statement in the text, your oppinion is NEVER humble. I know you, haha! Liar!
Well, don’t let me stop you. Tell me how you really feel. :)
Back to scores… with all the talk of Elfman, I’m surprised that Charlie and the Chocolate Factory hasn’t been mentioned. It’s a fantastic score, especially the songs, and I found it worth the price of admission… although now that I think of it, I didn’t pay. Anyways, it would have been worth the price if I had paid.
My other favorite scores are any of James Newton Howard’s scores for the M. Night Shyamalan films. I love that his trailers use the actual movie scores as opposed to trying to cash in on subliminally feeding the audience the score from a previously successful movie. I also love that you only have to hear a few notes from each score and you feel the movie again. That specific movie, not like a Zimmer score where you’re thinking “oh yeah, that’s The Rock… no wait, Crimson Tide… or is it Broken Arrow… I can’t tell.”
Having said that, I do love Zimmer’s score for The Rock, as well as his score for Gladiator, and I know he’s done a ton of scores that are nothing like Crimson Tide as well, like Matchstick Men for example.
Anyways, I can’t finish without mentioning Howard’s Waterworld and Horner’s Braveheart, and I’m sure there’s more that I just can’t think of at the moment.
I think that’s very true. The energy can really be felt in some of those movies, like for instance Blade Runner. Quite contrary to movies like the new Star Wars trilogy, in which no one seem to have had to fight for anything.
… FUCK!
It should be said, that often trailers are made so early in the process that there isn’t actually a score to use!
And while Crimson Tide and The Rock share strong similarities, Broken Arrow is quite different :)
Braveheart, Waterworld and Signs are all some of my favorite scores.
It’s true that for the most part Broken Arrow is different, but there a few parts of it that are very similar to The Rock or Crimson Tide. Gladiator shares those parts as well, but manages to be distinguishable thanks to Lisa Gerrard. I’ve heard the same “dum dum dum da-dum” in quite a few Zimmer scores, even a few non-Zimmer scores (Pirates of the Carribean) and it just seems to be quite unoriginal. Although that doesn’t seem to change the fact that I like listening to them, I just have more respect for scores that are completely distinct.
The scores you are referring to, is what Score Reviews (the site I use most of the time), refers to as Media Ventures Scores. They are by and large very similar.
As a professional musician/producer I know what it is to have a crowd of attorneys and business men take your work and destroy it. I know how angry it makes a person. I also understand completely how someone might walk away from a potentially lurative career, or opportunity steaming with artistic rage, and personal feelings of betrayal.
Everyone tells you that you are stupid for walking. Everyone tells you that you will never work again.
Years later, just the mention of the project, or a name related to it will revive the wound, and you enjoy it all over again as if it happened yesterday, or earlier that afternoon.
Vindication, like Fincher’s, is rare.
I cheer at the success and glory of Fight Club, and anything else the man chooses to undertake.
It’s amazing that he got another opportunity, and it’s wonderful that he stood right up and knocked it out of the park!
Huzzah!
Fincher’s vindication came from Seven, not from Fight Club. Although Fight Club was a great film, Seven came first and showed people that the problems with Alien3 largely weren’t his fault.
And it’s not like he never did any music videos or commercials afterwards. In fact, the fact that he could fall back on music videos and commercials and just do those for a while probably helped save his feature film career.
Personally I just wish Fincher would get off his ass and put out some more movies; he is in my eyes the perhaps most talented of new-new-new-Hollywood.
Oh my, I am so molded… you are so completely right.
How could I overlook a masterpiece like Seven?
Forgive me. (sorry Dave)
Michael, how about “About a Boy” for your list? This is certainly one of Badly Drawn Boy’s best works. But it may be too popular for your tastes.
Also, since we’re talking soundtracks here, may I ask a question to you aficionados out there?
In Gladiator, what’s the track that plays when we watch a captivated, semi-lethargic, still-not-realizing-where-he-is Russel Crowe being transported in the desert? (The scene opens that way.)
I’ve downloaded “To Zucchabar” (track no.6) but this doesn’t seem to be it. Any guesses would be greatly appreciated.