I have mentioned this before but what a gem of a score! Melodic, orchestral and gorgeous. I love Newman's technopop score for the first movie but this is something else. In my opinion, you could easily confuse it with Silvestri, Horner or Broughton from that period, perhaps even Goldsmith too.
Looking at that list of nominees for best score in 1988, with a straight face I think Pike's Critters is vastly superior than the majority of those that got a nod that year.
To my mind, Pike deserved to be a major player after this, but Critters 2 seems to be his last big scoring assignment.
Shame that not many of Nicholas Pike's scores get released (thinking Captain Ron here). I would like to add Star Kid as an under-rated soundtrack too. Nothing too extraordinary but an enjoyable, fun listen.
admittedly i am more partial to david newman's score for the first one. and of course critter skitter remains a prime example of 80's amazingness. i don't remember a lot about 2 except that song for the hamburger chain. i'll give it a relisten.
Critter Skitter is indeed great, cheese 80s fun, but I think Pike's Critters 2 sounds like it's from a much more dignified franchise and has a timeless quality.
This is indeed a terrific score. Highly thematic, varied and enjoyable. In particular, I LOVE the "Finale" cue. What an utterly exhilarating piece of music. Pike's score for the remake of "The Shining" is really good as well.
I actually fell in love with the music of David Newman during his Americana Main Title to the first Critters film. I couldn't believe what I was hearing, as those scenes played out and that music tugged at my heartstrings in the cinema. It's a gorgeous theme and it still gets me today in exactly the same way. The House Returns is another amazing cue. I don't recall Pike's sequel score. In fact, I'm not sure if I've ever seen the film.
That track CRYO posted sounds like something from a dignified Golden Age Western, not at all like a B movie sequel to a low budget Gremlins cash in. Remember, this was at a time when most cheap horror sequels were scored with a keyboard, a drum machine and a soft rock song over the credits.
Talk about going above and beyond the call of duty.
Yep. I'm with you, bobbengan. Really fun score. I saw both this and Critters in the theater when I was a kid, so the nostalgia factor is strong but the memories are fading. I have both scores on CD and listen to them every now and then. I need to check out the movies again soon, for better or worse.
To my mind, Pike deserved to be a major player after this, but Critters 2 seems to be his last big scoring assignment.
He also wrote a great score for Stephen King's Sleepwalkers and for Michael Jackson's short Ghosts. Shame that Mick Garris seems to be the only director to give Pike a chance.
I always wondered by the rock No Turning Back by Che Zuro, wasn't included on the original soundtrack album to Critters. When they released the soundtrack on cd, they dropped Power Of The Night by Mann. What the heck?! It also seems that some of the music selections that where on the original soundtrack album where dropped too from the cd.
