Inappropriate Movie Scores - Page 2

I don't want to turn this into an "I have no taste" thread, so I'm going to caveat the hell out of this by saying I've only seen the movie once, and that was a while ago. That being the case, I might just need one or two more viewings to get used to it and learn to appreciate it. (Or I could just be a complete philistine, not ruling that out either.) That said, here goes:

Anton Karas's iconic, celebrated zither score in The Third Man. It just seems so wildly out of place in a noirish mystery set in post-war Vienna. It sounds too cheerful and goofy, and has too much of a Mediterranean flavor. (I know the zither actually comes from Austria, but the twanginess feels more appropriate for something set in a village in southern Italy, Spain, or Greece, not the ruins of occupied central Europe.) That famous opening theme doesn't exactly get me ready for the kind of movie I'm about to watch, full of betrayal and cynicism; instead, I want to tap my feet and sway my head in anticipation of some light comedy or something:

And even when the score goes for something a little more melancholic, like in that famous last scene, it comes across as sentimental and hokey, like it's trying to wring as much romantic emotion as possible out of each note:

The movie as a whole is outstanding, every other aspect is spot on, but I just can't figure out what they were trying to convey with that zither. Now go ahead, have at me. Do your worst. I probably deserve it.

That music is awesome.  It always felt to me like an ironic counterpoint to what was happening onscreen.  I think it worked better than something expected and dramatic.

The score for THE THIRD MAN is aces.
 

Don't get me wrong, it's not bad music by any means. It just strikes me as so incongruous with the movie. I got some of that irony vibe that Bailey mentioned, but it still seemed really weird in that context, almost distracting. It's probably just a matter of needing to watch it a few more times and get myself used to it.

I've seen a number of big action flicks - within the last ten years - that don't commit the awful sins of 80s synth scores, but seem to quite tone deaf (and/or overly bombastic) to what's on screen, and manage to kill whatever tension the visual story is trying to convey.

Case in point? Silvestri's score for THE MUMMY RETURNS. I know he had Goldsmith to follow up - tough act for anyone, really - but the score for TMR is so damn HAPPY HAPPY NEAT ADVENTURE MUSIC throughout the whole film, especially combat scenes where, I assume, Sommers & Co were at least somewhat interested in conveying some sense of danger rather than just HAPPY ADVENTURE MUSIC. It wouldn't have saved the film - TMR is just terrible, period - but I do think it could've helped individual scenes quite a bit. (And TMR is a film that, when I used to own it, I would chapter skip to watch only a handful of scenes.)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Curiosity Cosby 

I don't want to turn this into an "I have no taste" thread, so I'm going to caveat the hell out of this by saying I've only seen the movie once, and that was a while ago. That being the case, I might just need one or two more viewings to get used to it and learn to appreciate it. (Or I could just be a complete philistine, not ruling that out either.) That said, here goes:

 

Anton Karas's iconic, celebrated zither score in The Third Man. It just seems so wildly out of place in a noirish mystery set in post-war Vienna. It sounds too cheerful and goofy, and has too much of a Mediterranean flavor. (I know the zither actually comes from Austria, but the twanginess feels more appropriate for something set in a village in southern Italy, Spain, or Greece, not the ruins of occupied central Europe.) That famous opening theme doesn't exactly get me ready for the kind of movie I'm about to watch, full of betrayal and cynicism; instead, I want to tap my feet and sway my head in anticipation of some light comedy or something:

You are not alone with this opinion...sort of.

I didn't care for The Third Man or it's seemingly ill-fitting music the first couple times I saw it. It just felt...off. By the 3rd viewing, I began to dig it...or at least understand it. By the 4th viewing something changed & I began to fall slobberingly in love with the film and it's music.

The film isn't like other films of it's type. It's it's own thing. That's a big reason why it's so bloody special. YOU have to come to IT.

While even remotely close to a cinematic classic (or even a small footnote), I always enjoyed the score to City Slickers lI: The Legend of Curly's Gold.   I own the album because saw it at some closeout store for 2 dollars.  The film's main theme (a modified and fleshed out version of the original's) feels like Marc Shaiman's love letter to Aaron Copeland and the scores to many classic western movies.  I especially love the random percussion and silly noisemaker phrases sprinkled generously all throughout the main titles and the little transitions into other styles, as they're meant to line up with the cute little cartoon at the beginning.

But at about 2 minutes into the main titles, it breaks into a horrible couple of seconds worth of what amounts to the equivalent of It Takes Two by Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock while a bull plays basketball with the little cartoon cowboy man.  What really irks me is that in the film, they simply play the same exact music for the closing credits that they did in the opening credits.  So you're sitting there trying to see who did the catering for the film when (Fake) It Takes Two blasts out over the peaceful, scrolling text for no good reason.  No bull, no cowboy.  Just a knock-off hip-hop sample in the middle of this sweeping Western suite.  Drives me nuts.

It's the soundtrack to City Slickers lI: The Legend of Curly's Gold. What did you expect? Hell, I can't believe that there was ever a market for the musical score of fucking City fucking Slickers lI: The fucking Legend of Curly's motherfucking Gold.

I was told Jack Palance rapped on it.

Believe it or not.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Art Decade 

It's the soundtrack to City Slickers lI: The Legend of Curly's Gold. What did you expect? Hell, I can't believe that there was ever a market for the musical score of fucking City fucking Slickers lI: The fucking Legend of Curly's motherfucking Gold.

This made me laugh really hard.  To answer your question, I didn't expect much.

In general: I don't care for Trevor Rabin's work scoring films.  ARMAGEDDON, THE GLIMMER MAN, GONE IN 60 SECONDS...at best, they are completely unremarkable.  At worst, they get in the way with something really jarring.  I thoroughly enjoy his guitar work, though.

Also: the first idiot who calls out the Queen soundtrack to FLASH GORDON as being 'inappropriate' gets slapped and sterilized.

What about the Highlander soundtrack? Not having seen the movie, I love the idea, but am curious if Queen does end up "fitting" the movie.

It, like many things about the film, comes out on the fun side of absurd. Trenchcoats! Lightning! Swords! Mullets! And Freddy Mercury sings about conquering the universe!

Somehow it all sticks together and works.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lightning Slim 

It, like many things about the film, comes out on the fun side of absurd. Trenchcoats! Lightning! Swords! Mullets! And Freddy Mercury sings about conquering the universe!

 

Somehow it all sticks together and works.

Seconded. I have no idea how many of the songs were written specifically for the film, but they work really well with the absurdity on display. Queen's version of "New York, New York" is killer, too.

Quote:

Originally Posted by akutagawa 

Other than the iconic theme, I always thought the music in Jaws is just way off the mark.

Is this some sort of test?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris Spider 

What about the Highlander soundtrack? Not having seen the movie, I love the idea, but am curious if Queen does end up "fitting" the movie.

The Queen soundtrack is as much a character in the film as Macleod, Ramirez and The Kurgan. It works, it works well.

There's been a few Bond references in the thread already, but I've seen few movies that felt as completely torpedoed by a misconceived score as Never Say Never Again, and it's not just the absence of the iconic theme: there's not a single beat in the thing that suggests action, adventure, danger or dry wit.