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I don't know, but I'd say probably not.
Addison was a tank-hero in WWII and knew these theatres and the mindset of the soldiers. Also, Addison had scored a truly ironic and critical film about the military, namely Richardson's 'Charge of the Light Brigade'.
Goldsmith was always good, but I think he'd have given it less of an ironic feel and less of a jaunty thing. And Goldsmith, except when he's being oriental, is always American. Addison did manage some good 'Yank' stuff with the bridge builders and Gould etc. but could also do British, because he had that background musically as well as by experience of such events.
The music, apart from the civilian rhapsody scenes, doesn't concentrate on the serious stuff, or the horror, but ironically on the bungles, and on the comradeship.
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Dead right BobD.I had the impression from somewhere that they may have been friends, Add and Att.
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DAMN!--double posts.
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Sorry--skip down one.
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I know I seem like a broken record on this but I find Addison's work for BRIDGE the most detrimental score to a film since Jarre's RYAN'S DAUGHTER. (It's wishful thinking to imagine how one by Goldsmith would have lifted this film.) I recall Attenborough's gushing liner notes on the original LP and can't help but wonder, "what was he thinking?"
I also realize there's a British tradition in historical war films to underline it with a stalwart march. For my money this comes off as badly as Max Steiner's totally off the mark approach to THE CAINE MUTINY
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Speaking from no knowledge (cause that's what so many of us do on this board!), it's always seemed to be that Attenborough carefully chose his composers for what he wanted in a particular film.
I think of the two examples here - who better than Addison for Bridge? And Goldsmith for Magic - I still remember hearing the inhale/exhale of the harmonica for the first time in the theater, and realized that by damn Goldsmith had come up with a musical analogue for a "living" ventriloquist doll. A brilliant choice by the composer - and by the director.
And then the terrific interplay of Fenton and Shankar's score for Ghandi sort of saying, "yes, this is a Britisher's view of the man who ended British rule in India."
And the sweet sad sentimentality of Barry's score for Chaplin - the very ideal composer for a 90's biopic of the Little Tramp.
He seemed to always know best what he wanted musically and who he could work with to achieve his goals. He spoke about this specifically in the Barry Moviola documentary released at about the same time as Chaplin - which is on YouTube (though I've no idea where the Attenborough comments come in).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZ-WfscDrdM
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I think Addison's score is perfect. Loved it from the start. Jerry is not what this particular film needed. MacArthur fit his military style much better.
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I think Addison's score is perfect. Loved it from the start. Jerry is not what this particular film needed. MacArthur fit his military style much better.
First let me say I didn't have the problem with the Addison score Vinylscrubber had, maybe because I could hear the irony in his march as opposed to Steiner's. But I know of no composer who did not want to be pigeonholed for anything more than Jerry. The proof being was he was offered practically every military film that came out after PATTON and said no to all except two (MACARTHUR because he thought he was a contrasty general to PATTON, INCHON because he thought Korea was a very different type of conflict). But if you look at his war films before PATTON (IN HARM'S WAY, THE SAND PEBBLES, THE BLUE MAX, TORA! TORA! TORA!) you find a totally diverse approach each time leading me to believe he could have tackled the ironies of A BRIDGE TOO FAR just fine. He always made his scores fit like a glove and I don't see his style leaning away from the type of film A BRIDGE TOO FAR was. In fact his VON RYAN'S EXPRESS march reminds me a bit of the type of march A BRIDGE TOO FAR is.
Jerry could handle most types of films well. That's what made him Jerry. It doesn't make him the best choice for every movie. I don't want to see Meryl Streep in everything either. No knock on her. As things stand, I'm thankful that Addison's march adds diversity to my military playlist, alongside Patton, McArthur and the rest.
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