HP - The Movie O.S.T

[Caius Marcius]

No: HPFGUIDX 9861

--- In HPforGrownups at egroups.com, Amanda Lewanski <editor at t...> wrote:
> Dai Evans wrote:
> 
> > --- In HPforGrownups at egroups.com, "Jim Ferer" <jferer at y...> wrote:
> > > Don't hope for much.  I don't like John Williams doing the score
> > > either; too grandiose, too comic-book for me and this material
> >
> > Comic book? This is the same guy who did the soundtracks for 
Saving
> > Private Ryan and Schindlers List (particularly heartfelt violin 
solo
> > lead on that one). What comic books do you read?
> 
> Yeah, but he's also the one who's stolen just about every melody 
from
> "The Planets" at one time or another (example off the top of my 
head:
> from The Lord of the Rings [the old one], the tune to "Mithrandir" 
is
> Jupiter [or one of those largish planets] almost note for note),


Bakshi's LOTR was scored by Leonard Rosenman (a fine and under-rated 
composer) not Williams

 as well
> as some other classical works. I wouldn't mind if he gave credit. 
At one
> time my dad, who was irritated by this tendency of John Williams', 
made
> a list of the liftings, but I've no idea what became of it. But I
> haven't really kept track lately (babies, no movies anymore), so 
perhaps
> he's writing his own melodies by now.


"Talent borrows - genius steals" as Thomas Beecham once quipped. 
Williams certainly takes from other composers - though not as much 
from Holst as from Erich Wolfgang Korngold, one of the great 
filmscore masters of the 30s and 40s (Captain Blood, Anthony Adverse, 
Kings Row, Between Two Worlds, etc).  Yet Williams has a unique and 
instantly recognizable style, which is something few contemporary 
film composers have achieved.  Williams IMHO has been at the height 
of powers in recent years, and just about every recent score (e.g., 
Amistad, Nixon, the Patriot, and especially the beautifully 
understated and elegiac Pvt. Ryan) has been a masterpiece.

Although I will not see the movie under any circumstances, I will 
listen to Williams' score, which may prove to be the only component 
of the cinematic version worthy of the literary original.


   - CMC