- This topic is empty.
- Posts
Danny Elfman’s scores for Batman, Edward Scissorhands, and Beetlejuice are included in the list, in case you can’t find them between the John Williams and Jerry Goldsmith mentions. It was good to see Bernard Herrmann listed a good number of times, though.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i0dac803b1646d6af51c12926006ccb3e
That’s pretty good. These lists always make me mad. I feel they are way out of order. Films like “On the Waterfront” and “Planet of the Apes” should have been higher up on the list. It feels like they don’t get the right person to do them sometimes. But it’s all opinionated I guess.
Re-looking the list… WHERE THE HELL IS JURASSIC PARK!?? freakin’ Toy Story got on the list and Jurassic Park didn’t?!?!?! This list is getting worse the longer I look at it. Tip for anyone else. Don’t look too long. It might make you mad… just sayin’
…
Jurassic Park ? I think there is already too much John Williams in that list !
Like the Times’ 100 most influential people in the world list, this one is mosty American-centred with too much JW and some major scores at the wrong position (Alexander Nevsky 98 !?) or simply absent. Even Beetlejuice feels out-of-place when scores like Comptent, L’Avventura or The Music Room are missing.
And let’s not talk about 8 1/2 and Once Upon A Time In America’s positions…I totally agree. This list is yet more proof that Americans have no taste in music whatsoever (well, they do have taste, but it is very bad), and only the “foreigners” (Europeans, Asians, and so on) can truly critique art forms such as music and films.
Um… Lets not go to far Nick.. Film is a true American art form.. Music is universal. You can’t say Americans can’t critique music and you especially can’t say film! America leads the way in the movie industry. Although, I’m sure they lead the way in the crap movie making business too. And this list is probably just some Nino Rota fanboy who thinks the Godfather is the best film ever made. Sure it’s an amazing movie and an awesome score.. but I don’t think It’s at the top of everyone’s list. Definitely not mine.
Sure the list is bad, but your comment was pretty over dramatic..
Just sayin’…plus… I thought you’d be happy big JW is on there like 50 times!
…
Oh, the wonders of sarcasm…as an Italian-American, I can say with certainty that I never understood the recurring opinion that Americans are only capable of appreciating “mega-budget popcorn flicks”, “blockbuster fluff” and so on, and my post was intended as a satire of that foolish belief. That being said, there are still some very questionable entries in that list, in my opinion. The inclusion of scores like Gladiator and Toy Story seem to be more a testament of the films themselves rather than their scores (and even then, I would not include Gladiator). Just thought I would clarify.
(Re-reading the list)
What is this!? Vertigo is below Chariots of Fire? Does anyone even remember anything outside of the “sappy” theme is supposed to somehow be inspiring!? This is madness!
Like I said first.. The list is screwy… Don’t reread it. It makes it worse.. Like… look how far back “The Day the Earth Stood Still” is… its saddening.
And Nick… If you want your post to not sound sarcastic, you should word it differently so none of us(me) are confused.. don’t make a concession either. It makes it sound too real if you do that..
just sayin’..
Wow, I’m almost sorry I posted this! Didn’t mean to get y’all riled up.
As for me, I guess by now I just kind of expect the mainstream’s basic ignorance of the world of film music. *shrug*
I never understood how someone could get mad at a list! It’s a subjective list…I’m sure you would post a different one, as would I, as would Jonathan from Arkansas or Bjørn from Sweden. It’s just an excercise in personal favourites and “interpretations” of history, even if it is put together by a bunch of people and even if it is done by connaiseurs of film and music. Lists like these have little pragmatic value beyond that and should not be used as some sort of benchmark for an entire industry or artform or for the cultural competence of a given nation.
Why don’t we do that then… start a post where we put our own opinions of the greatest film scores of all time together.. See how much they vary between each other. I think it would be interesting.. see how much Elfman is on everyone’s list. I dunno. I wont start the post but I think it would be cool if someone did(*cough Ryan).. although it’d be off topic. I’d enjoy putting that list together. And you’re right in a sense, Thor, but I just find it idiotic that a business like this would put up a list for all to see that is so subjective to popular film rather than actual judgment on the talent of a composers works. So that’s why I would put my own list together… just sayin’
…
With the exception of Alexander Nevsky being WAY too low, I thought the list was fine. But now that I’m complaining, Gladiator had no business being on there; unless, of course, he was referring to the music that was lifted from Holst.
I loved the fact that Brazil was on the list, seeing as that is one of my favorite Kamens scores(along with Baron Munchausen), the Empire Strikes Back definitely needed to be higher on the list.
I ofund it very interesting that Batman was higher than Superman, with which I agree. I don’t think the Score for Superman has aged particularly well, while Batman still sounds fresh. I do like Superman a lot though.
Superman score is as classic as Batman. If not more since it has no challengers. When people think Superman music they think John Williams. With Batman it’s a different story. They could think Elfman or the `60s Adam West theme or even Shirley Walker’s theme from the cartoon series. Or the 10 people who’ll think of Hans Zimmer. But with Superman there is only Williams. Although I also enjoy the theme from the `40s Max Fleschier shorts and Shirley Walker’s theme from the `90s cartoon series. But sadly those aren’t as remembered as Williams.
Actually, it unfortunately seems that when one says “Batman music”, people tend to think of the 1960’s theme….
I am the first to admit that John William’s is the first thing that pops into my head when I think of Superman, but as for the score itself, it comes across almost silly at times (Williams even stated in an interview on the DVD release that he intentionlly wrote it slightly campy). As for Batman, it never fails to excite, even though it is 20 years old. I appreciated the fact that on this list someone else actually agrees with me and holds the Batman score in higher regard than Superman.
Superman score is as classic as Batman. If not more since it has no challengers. When people think Superman music they think John Williams. With Batman it’s a different story. They could think Elfman or the `60s Adam West theme or even Shirley Walker’s theme from the cartoon series. Or the 10 people who’ll think of Hans Zimmer. But with Superman there is only Williams. Although I also enjoy the theme from the `40s Max Fleschier shorts and Shirley Walker’s theme from the `90s cartoon series. But sadly those aren’t as remembered as Williams.
That may be true — Batman and Batman Returns was so very long ago, and Superman Returns is fairly recent, and sadly, audiences are probably more aware of the synthetic, droning Zimmer tone than Elfman’s efforts; be that as it may, “most-remembered” doesn’t equal “best,” or “better.” That said, comparing the Elfman and Williams scores are like, well, comparing Batman to Superman.
Well if you remember.. In Wizard Magazie(the comic book magazine)… they named Batman as the #2 Greatest comic book character of all time… while Superman was at a puny #4… So in my opinion… Batman always kicks more ass than Superman! .. just sayin’
…
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.