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Post by Southall on Aug 9, 2013 2:17:38 GMT -8
You can't have a film music messageboard without a thread about Jerry Goldsmith.
I started an Ennio Morricone thread here recently in which I called him the greatest composer to have worked in film; now, I say I think Jerry Goldsmith is the greatest film composer. (Notice the difference - I'm so subtle!)
I watched The Great Train Robbery last night. This is not a typical "Goldsmith film" at all. A lighthearted, witty caper movie set in England, it's the sort of thing you'd have expected Ron Goodwin or John Addison to score, back in 1978. Yet Goldsmith doesn't just nail the thing, he elevates it to a whole new level that no other film composer would have done.
It's a short score, around 30 minutes in a 105-minute film, and every moment is perfectly judged. His music plays a key role in turning Sean Connery's character into a loveable rogue, required for the audience to start rooting for him despite him being a thief. The spectacular action sequence of him running along the train, dodging bridges etc, looks anything but spectacular without the music (try it - I did). The music injects so much charm and wit into the film - a truly great film score. And it probably wouldn't even get into most people's Goldsmith Top Fifty - that's how good he was.
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Post by Paul Schroeder on Aug 9, 2013 5:14:24 GMT -8
You can't have a film music messageboard without a thread about Jerry Goldsmith. I started an Ennio Morricone thread here recently in which I called him the greatest composer to have worked in film; now, I say I think Jerry Goldsmith is the greatest film composer. (Notice the difference - I'm so subtle!) I watched The Great Train Robbery last night. This is not a typical "Goldsmith film" at all. A lighthearted, witty caper movie set in England, it's the sort of thing you'd have expected Ron Goodwin or John Addison to score, back in 1978. Yet Goldsmith doesn't just nail the thing, he elevates it to a whole new level that no other film composer would have done. It's a short score, around 30 minutes in a 105-minute film, and every moment is perfectly judged. His music plays a key role in turning Sean Connery's character into a loveable rogue, required for the audience to start rooting for him despite him being a thief. The spectacular action sequence of him running along the train, dodging bridges etc, looks anything but spectacular without the music (try it - I did). The music injects so much charm and wit into the film - a truly great film score. And it probably wouldn't even get into most people's Goldsmith Top Fifty - that's how good he was. James, thanks for starting a Goldsmith thread. Have never made such a list, but THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY would certainly make my Goldsmith top 50. Another example of how he elevated virtually every film he scored. The film is fun and Michael Crichton's novel is quite good as well. Just received the expanded STAR TREK: INSURRECTION but haven't been able to listen to it yet.
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Roman
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Post by Roman on Aug 9, 2013 6:50:36 GMT -8
You can't have a film music messageboard without a thread about Jerry Goldsmith. So very true! I started an Ennio Morricone thread here recently in which I called him the greatest composer to have worked in film; now, I say I think Jerry Goldsmith is the greatest film composer. (Notice the difference - I'm so subtle!) Well Goldsmith is my favorite film composer... period. Love his stuff and each new score I pick up I find so much to enjoy and revisit. One of my favorite Goldsmith moments is near the end of "Congo". You've got a guy in an ape suit with a Nintendo Power Glove on that makes her talk, protecting our "hero" from guys in grey ape suits. Then Laura Linney grabs a frickin' LASER CANNON and starts bisecting the guys in the grey ape suits... while lava is exploding out of the earth and Ernie Hudson cracks wise. ... and Goldsmith works overtime to make the whole thing so god dammed huge and awesome. It's a wonderful moment. I don't think any other composer could have elevated that scene nearly as well as he did, and yet the visual stupidity still overwhelms everything. And then... at some level I think Jerry was laughing at it too.
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Roman
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Post by Roman on Aug 12, 2013 6:18:49 GMT -8
Since James brought up Westerns, it seems like a good time to ask about recommendations for Jerry Goldsmith's westerns. I've picked up "100 Rifles" and "The Red Pony". I think it is safe to say these are on opposite ends of the spectrum. I really enjoy them both. "The Red Pony" is a gentle score with a lot of americana and an almost pastorale feel to it. "100 Rifles" is loud, action packed and has some really creative instrumentation.
But where do I go next? I was thinking about picking up the rerecording of "Hour of the Gun". But is there another score I should seek out.
What is your favorite Goldsmith western?
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Post by Pawel Stroinski on Aug 12, 2013 7:40:32 GMT -8
It is sadly sold out by now, but I do think Lonely Are the Brave is plain exquisite and Southall's review agrees.
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Post by Jon Broxton on Aug 12, 2013 8:28:23 GMT -8
My favorite Goldsmith western score is probably TAKE A HARD RIDE, most likely because it's his most traditional-sounding. A lot of Goldsmith's westerns were quite stark, realistic, and tended not to romanticize the era at all. TAHR is different, musically, and is the closest Goldsmith got to the sound of Elmer Bernstein and Jerome Moross - big orchestra, harmonica, sweeping theme etc.
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Post by indy2003 on Aug 12, 2013 11:43:40 GMT -8
I'd probably have to go with WILD ROVERS as my favorite Goldsmith western score. Such a beautiful sense of melancholy and a score which makes the movie it accompanies seem much stronger than it really is. TAKE A HARD RIDE is probably the most entertaining, though. BREAKHEART PASS actually features my favorite Goldsmith western theme - it's just that the rest of the underscore isn't quite as compelling as most of his other efforts for the genre.
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Post by Jon Broxton on Aug 13, 2013 11:46:07 GMT -8
Inspired by this thread, I was going through some 70s Goldsmith scores at home last night, and really digging the dark, energetic action music he was writing around that time. RANSOM, HIGH VELOCITY, BREAKOUT, THE CASSANDRA CROSSING and BREAKHEART PASS, all had some fabulous set-pieces. Only Goldsmith could write like that, with the staccato low-end pianos playing off the percussion and brass rhythms. So good.
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Mike Skerritt
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Post by Mike Skerritt on Aug 19, 2013 12:43:52 GMT -8
For some odd reason most of the samples from GNP's new expanded INSURRECTION release are from the old album. I've never seen the movie so I'm really not familiar with what's not on the album - can anyone offer thoughts about what's on the expanded release and/or point me towards relevant samples?
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Roman
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Post by Roman on Aug 22, 2013 6:36:46 GMT -8
How about an impossible choice? Which Goldsmith historical epic from 1966 is the best - The Blue Max or The Sand Pebbles?
I think I lean more toward "Sand Pebbles". It has a bit more color and complexity, and the action music is a bit more intense. "Blue Max" has that great themes, and some excellent moments, and in any other year it would have been the top. But this time I think "Sand Pebbles" trumps it.
What do you think?
(amazing that these two scores were written in the same year and so early in his film career)
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Post by Jon Broxton on Aug 22, 2013 9:38:45 GMT -8
I'd say THE SAND PEBBLES too. There's so much depth and intelligence to the writing. Plus that gorgeous love theme, that astonishing brassy opening... wonderful stuff.
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Post by Southall on Aug 22, 2013 9:54:08 GMT -8
They're both brilliant, but The Sand Pebbles. And I think it's probably the best film he ever scored.
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Mike Skerritt
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Post by Mike Skerritt on Aug 23, 2013 7:39:11 GMT -8
Perfect timing for that question since I've been thinking about finally picking up the complete Sand Pebbles.
Related but unrelated, Kritzerland will be releasing complete and totally remastered (ie, from analog tapes and not digital) POLTERGEIST II on Monday.
ETA: Posting the POLTERGEIST II info here because it's really not worth going to the thread on FSM just to read about Kimmel and Doug Fake taking shots at each other.
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Post by FalkirkBairn on Aug 23, 2013 22:53:14 GMT -8
This topic always seems to appear as having new posts but they are not showing - post testing.
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Post by FalkirkBairn on Aug 23, 2013 22:54:21 GMT -8
Nope. Can't see what I just posted in this topic from my phone. :-(
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