From what I read, the original 3rd act included a typical action sequence with lots of fighting and explosions. In a short coda there is a brief montage which may include some scenes from that original ending setting up the sequels.
Having seen the film, while Beltrami's score works effectively, the most prominent musical motif is definitely Muse's piece "The 2nd Law: Isolated System", which is used as the main theme in the film, over and over again, to great effect. It adds an urgency and an epic scale to every scene it touches.
Here is a music video Warner Bros Records released to promote the film using the song. Sadly it's not on the soundtrack album.
Here's an article about how Muse was inspired to write their recent album by reading the novel "World War Z" and what a natural fit the song ended up being for the film:
Brad Pitt says: "Two years ago, we wanted to find -- remember the theme from 'The Exorcist'? It's called 'Tubular Bells,' " he said. "We wanted to find something like that. At the same time, these guys were reading the book, unbeknownst to us, and were fans of the book. They wrote the album ... [and] on it, we found the song, 'The 2nd Law,' that we thought was exactly what we were looking for for the film. It just kind of worked out in a nice, kismet kind of way."
Picked up the score today. Listened to it once through. Lots of generic synth? percussion which surprised me coming from Beltrami. I loved the track "Wales" and is definitely worth the purchase for me. Short album, though.
For those who think this will be Beltrami's year, think again because what else must the man do?!
He has for the last 5 if not 10 years produced good/great work and at least 2 scores that deserved spots in the top 10 if not 20 of the past years.
SOUL SURFER alone shows how much he can add to a mediocre project and how great and refreshing he is without falling into the wall of noise sound.
He ranks with Clint Mansell, John Murphy, and Dario Marionelli in my book for always dependable scores and puts more work then all of them combined on most years.
I am rooting for him of course but it is maddening that he doesn't have a stronger legion or more work [the kind that goes to the MV/RC folks].
Well, he obviously have ENOUGH of work considering over the last 12 months he has finished 8 major scores pretty much back to back. And we are not talking about Carnage type of movies, but many of them are very long scores.
For those who think this will be Beltrami's year, think again because what else must the man do?!
He has for the last 5 if not 10 years produced good/great work and at least 2 scores that deserved spots in the top 10 if not 20 of the past years.
SOUL SURFER alone shows how much he can add to a mediocre project and how great and refreshing he is without falling into the wall of noise sound.
He ranks with Clint Mansell, John Murphy, and Dario Marionelli in my book for always dependable scores and puts more work then all of them combined on most years.
I am rooting for him of course but it is maddening that he doesn't have a stronger legion or more work [the kind that goes to the MV/RC folks].
I think that having big blockbuster movies this year will get him even more work on high profile films, and deservedly so.
I had pigeonholed him before as someone who specialized in horror movies and other low-budget films - regardless of the high quality he brought to those scores.
With WWZ and THE WOLVERINE he will be recognized as one of the leading film composers of his generation.
With WWZ and THE WOLVERINE he will be recognized as one of the leading film composers of his generation.
Unlikely. Even though WWZ (and don't forget Warm Bodies) and Wolverine might be smash hits, Beltrami is unlikel to get more assignments for blockbusters.
Why?
Because essentially he got the WWZ (and Warm Bodies) assignment because of his genre specialization. Think about it, if you're making a "serious" zombie film, and you don't want to use electronic groove AKA John Murphy's 28 Days Later style, which current composer are you gonna call? And if you're making an unorthodoxical zombie comedy/love story, which other composer can do the job better?
As a result, the success of these films will only further pigeonhole him into the genre.
On the other hand, he got the Wolverine assignment because of his connection with the director. Would it lead to future collaborations with the same director? Maybe. Will it lead to other directors calling him for more assignments? Not necessarily.
Comparing to someone like Djawadi or Henry Jackman, Beltrami is unlikely to be the first composer a director wants to call if he wants to make a blockbuster with a score of the mandatory "popular" style.
Along with Giacchino, Beltrami is still going to find assignments for unorthodoxical films and his regular collaborators.
After my first complete listen: purely fantastic score. (very zimmer-esque also!)
I personally don't hear the Zimmer. What makes you say that?
I think I remember sirusjr saying the same thing. Is it the thick, hard-hitting percussion? The anthemic "Like a River Around a Rock" cue? Even those options don't seem to match anything I've heard Zimmer do in recent memory. I'm curious what Zimmer-isms people hear?
Saw the film last night. Really enjoyed it..much more than i thought i would. The music is absolutely spot on in the movie. Marco really nailed this one. The use of the 'Muse' track also really works well and its there quite a bit in the film.
