Intrada announced two new CDs featuring never-before released scores this week, including an early score by a fan favorite and an especially surprising release -- a two-disc compilation of music from a largely forgotten '60s TV series.
Right between his first two Robert Zemeckis-directed smash hits, Romancing the Stone and Back to the Future, Alan Silvestri scored Kevin Reynolds' feature directorial debut FANDANGO, inspired by his USC student film Proof, a comedy-drama set in 1971 and starring Kevin Costner (in his first leading role in a studio film), Judd Nelson, Sam Robards and Suzy Amis. The film received only the briefest releases in theaters in 1985 (I'm ashamed to say that even I still haven't seen it) but was critically well regarded, and the director went on to an eclectic career with such projects as the hugely underrated The Beast, the blockbuster Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, the notorious Waterworld and the recent TV hit Hatfields & McCoys. The Intrada release features for the first time Silvestri's original recording of the score, plus 7 minutes of alternates and source cues.
In case film music fans were worried that the labels would only be releasing scores by popular films (particularly those from the '80s and '90s) composed by fan favorites, Intrada has startlingly bucked the trend with their new, two-disc set of music from the short-lived TV series THEN CAME BRONSON. Sort of a cross between Route 66 and Easy Rider (but premiering only months after Easy Rider's first U.S. screening), Bronson told the story of a disilusioned newspaperman who rides around the country on a Harley-Davidson, impacting the lives of strangers. Bronson was played by Michael Parks, decades before Quentin Tarantino spotlighted the actor's versatility with roles in such films as Kill Bill (both volumes) and Django Unchained, and the show's pilot score, composed by Golden Age great and five-time Oscar nominee George Duning, was released by Film Score Monthly as part of their wondrous TV Omnibus boxed set. Intrada's Bronson features Duning episode cues on Disc One, with Disc Two filled by a variety of composers including TV veterans John Parker, Stu Phillips and Richard Shores as well as unfamiliar names (even to me) such as Dean Elliott, Tom McIntosh and Philip Springer.
La-La Land plans to release two new CDs next week -- an expanded, two-disc version of James Horner's score for the second of the Jack Ryan adventure films, 1992's PATRIOT GAMES, and a second volume of Frederik Wiedmann's music for GREEN LANTERN: THE ANIMATED SERIES.
On August 6, Varese Sarabande will release the soundtrack to the upcoming science-fiction action film ELYSIUM, starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster, the second film from District 9's Oscar nominee Neil Blomquist (I'm not a District 9 fan -- though I'm thrilled a sci-fi film could get a Best Picture nomination, Moon deserved it way more -- but even I think Elysium looks like it could be really cool). The score was composed by newcomer Ryan Amon.
CDS AVAILABLE THIS WEEK
Badland - Ludek Drizhal - Keepmoving
Elephant Walk/Botany Bay/Stalag 17: Franz Waxman at Paramount - Franz Waxman - Kritzerland
Fandango - Alan Silvestri - Intrada Special Collection
Fringe: Season 5 - Chris Tilton - Varese Sarabande
Leningrad - Yuri Potyenko - Keepmoving
10 - Henry Mancini - Real Gone
Then Came Bronson - George Duning, various - Intrada Special Collection
IN THEATERS TODAY
Byzantium - Javier Navarrete - Score CD due July 9 on Silva
Copperhead - Laurent Eyquem - Score CD due July 9 on Varese Sarabande
Detention of the Dead - Cody Westheimer
The Heat - Michael Andrews - Song CD on Lakeshore
How to Make Money Selling Drugs - Spencer Nezey
I’m So Excited - Alberto Iglesias - Score CD on Quartet
Maniac - Rob
Redemption - Dario Marianelli
Some Girl(s) - David Carbonara
The Stroller Strategy - Sylvain Ohrel
White House Down - Thomas Wander, Harald Kloser - Score CD due July 23 on Varese Sarabande
COMING SOON
July 2
Green Lantern: The Animated Series, Vol. 2 - Frederik Wiedmann - La-La Land
Patriot Games - James Horner - La-La Land
Summer in February - Benjamin Wallfisch - Universal (import)
July 9
Byzantium - Javier Navarrete - Silva (import)
Copperhead - Laurent Eyquem - Varese Sarabande
Game of Thrones: Season Three - Ramin Djawadi - Watertower
Pacific Rim - Ramin Djawadi - Watertower [CD-R]
July 16
The Conjuring - Joseph Bishara - La-La Land
The Legend of Korra - Jeremy Zuckerman - Nickolodeon/Sony
Only God Forgives - Cliff Martinez - Milan
Turbo - Henry Jackman, songs - Relativity Media
Young Justice - Lolita Ritmanis, Michael McCuistion, Kristopher Carter - La-La Land
July 23
The Hangover Trilogy - Christophe Beck - Varese Sarabande
The Lone Ranger - Hans Zimmer - Intrada/Disney
Romeo and Juliet - James Horner - Sony (import)
The Smurfs 2 - Heitor Pereira - Varese Sarabande
White House Down - Thomas Wander, Harald Kloser - Varese Sarabande
July 30
Caprica (the series) - Bear McCreary - La-La Land
The Wolverine - Marco Beltrami - Sony
August 6
Elysium - Ryan Amon - Varese Sarabande
Planes - Mark Mancina - Disney
Prince Avalanche - David Wingo, Explosions in the Sky - Temporary Residence
August 13
One Track Heart: The Story of Krishna Das - J. Mascis, Devadas - Varese Sarabande
August 20
Kick-Ass 2 - Henry Jackman, Matthew Margeson - La-La Land
September 3
The Vikings - Trevor Morris - Sony (import)
Date Unknown
Arthur of the Britons - Elmer Bernstein, Paul Lewis - Silva
Blondy - Stelvio Cipriani - Quartet
Cicciolina Amore Mio - Gianni Marchetti - Beat
The Far Horizons/The Secret of the Incas - Hans J. Salter, David Buttolph - Kritzerland
I, the Jury - Bill Conti - La-La Land
Il Tigre - Fred Bongusto - GDM
Io La Conscevo Bene - Piero Piccioni - Beat
La Banca Di Monate - Carlo Rustichelli - Digitmovies
La Legenda Della Pianista - Ennio Morricone - Digitmovies
Leonor - Ennio Morricone - GDM
Once Upon a Time: Season Two - Mark Isham - Intrada
Revenge - iZLER - Intrada
Space Shuttle Columbia: Mission of Hope - Blake Neely - Buysoundtrax
Star Trek: Music from the Video Games - various - Buysoundtrax
Stark System - Ennio Morricone - Beat
Timanfaya - Stelvio Cipriani - Quartet
Wyatt Earp - James Newton Howard - La-La Land
The X-Files, Vol. 2 - Mark Snow - La-La Land
THIS WEEK IN FILM MUSIC HISTORY
June 28 - Richard Rodgers born (1902)
June 28 - Bjorn Isfalt born (1942)
June 28 - George Duning's score for the Star Trek episode "Metamorphosis" is recorded (1967)
June 28 - John Scott begins recording his score for North Dalls Forty (1979)
June 29 - Joseph Carl Breil born (1870)
June 29 - Bernard Herrmann born (1911)
June 29 - Ralph Burns born (1922)
June 29 - Mischa Spoliansky died (1985)
June 29 - Bert Shefter died (1999)
June 30 - Stanley Clarke born (1951)
June 30 - Jerry Goldsmith begins recording his score for The Boys from Brazil (1978)
June 30 - Craig Safan begins recording his score for the Amazing Stories episode "The Wedding Ring" (1986)
July 1 - Sigmund Krumgold born (1896)
July 1 - Anton Karas born (1906)
July 1 - Hans Werner Henze born (1926)
July 2 - Jeff Alexander born (1910)
July 2 - Fabio Frizzi born (1951)
July 2 - Miklos Rozsa begins recording his score to Plymouth Adventure (1952)
July 2 - Frederic Talgorn born (1961)
July 2 - Nathan Van Cleave died (1970)
July 3 - George Bruns born (1914)
July 3 - Jean Prodromides born (1927)
July 3 - Robert O. Ragland born (1931)
July 3 - David Shire born (1937)
July 3 - Peer Raben born (1940)
July 3 - The Great Escape opens in Los Angeles (1963)
July 3 - Delia Derbyshire died (2001)
July 4 - Larry Herbstritt born (1950)
DID THEY MENTION THE MUSIC?
MONSTERS UNIVERSITY - Randy Newman
"Nothing lasts anywhere near that long in the sequel, and there's no counterpart for the lovable child; the monsters mostly interact with robot kids in jokey simulations. Randy Newman's score has no emotional resonance; that's a first. And though many of the characters have multiple heads and eyes, the movie is single-minded to the point of brainlessness in its stress on scares and scaring."
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal
WORLD WAR Z - Marco Beltrami, Muse
"Director Forster, whose frenetic editing style drew sharp criticism on the James Bond film “Quantum of Solace,” still favors hummingbird pacing over carefully constructed suspense. The score by Marco Beltrami and British rockers Muse effectively hammers home the nonstop action beats."
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune
"But to actually see the chaos, the panic and complete lack of crowd control depicted with the ferocious intensity that director Marc Forster ('Finding Neverland;' no, that’s not a typo) gives these sequences is unnerving; this muddled, flailing survivalist epic is at its best when it goes huge, capturing wave after wave of rabid, chomping bodies from on high as they surge en masse through public spaces like fire ants swarming over carrion. Add in a soundtrack full of ominous droning and some 'Dawn of the Dead' sleazy-keyboard noddling, and by Romero, we’ve got ourselves some seriously overwhelming spectacle."
David Fear, Time Out New York
THE NEXT TEN DAYS IN L.A.
Screenings of older films, at the following L.A. movie theaters: AMPAS, American Cinematheque: Aero, American Cinematheque: Egyptian, LACMA, New Beverly, Nuart, Silent Movie Theater and UCLA.
June 28
ALIENS (James Horner) [Nuart]
BUFFALO 66 (Vincent Gallo) [Silent Movie Theater]
CATTLE ANNIE AND LITTLE BRITCHES (Sahn Berti, Tom Slocum) [UCLA]
CHINA GATE (Victor Young, Max Steiner) [LACMA]
DOUBLE INDEMNITY (Miklos Rozsa), THE LOST WEEKEND (Miklos Rozsa) [New Beverly]
EVERYTHING GOES WRONG (Keitaro Miho), KILLERS ON PARADE (Naozumi Yamamoto) [Cinematheque: Egyptian]
FULL METAL JACKET (Abigail Mead) [LACMA]
JOURNEY TO ITALY (Renzo Rossellii) [Cinematheque: Aero]
STEAMBOAT BILL, JR. [LACMA]
UN FLIC (Michel Colombier) [Nuart]
WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? (Frank DeVol) [AMPAS]
June 29
THE APPLE (Coby Recht) [Silent Movie Theater]
BELLE DE JOUR [LACMA]
DOUBLE INDEMNITY (Miklos Rozsa), THE LOST WEEKEND (Miklos Rozsa) [New Beverly]
EL NORTE (Melecio Martinez, Emil Richards, Linda O'Brien) [LACMA]
EYES WIDE SHUT (Jocelyn Pook) [LACMA]
THE GREAT ESCAPE (Elmer Bernstein) [Cinematheque: Aero]
GROUNDHOG DAY (George Fenton) [AMPAS]
LAST ACTION HERO (Michael Kamen) [New Beverly]
UN FLIC (Michel Colombier) [Nuart]
June 30
ARMAGEDDON (Trevor Rabin) [New Beverly]
CALMOS (Georges Delerue) [Silent Movie Theater]
CONVERSATION PIECE (Franco Mannino), ATLANTIC CITY (Michel Legrand) [UCLA]
LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (Maurice Jarre) [Cinematheque: Egyptian]
TOUCH OF EVIL (Henry Mancini) [Cinematheque: Aero]
UN FLIC (Michel Colombier) [Nuart]
July 1
ARMAGEDDON (Trevor Rabin) [New Beverly]
UN FLIC (Michel Colombier) [Nuart]
July 2
ARMAGEDDON (Trevor Rabin) [New Beverly]
THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI (Heinz Roemheld) [LACMA]
SISTER ACT (Marc Shaiman) [Arclight Hollywood]
UN FLIC (Michel Colombier) [Nuart]
July 3
THE RIGHT STUFF (Bill Conti) [New Beverly]
1776 (Sherman Edwards, Ray Heindorf) [Cinematheque: Aero]
SHOCK (I Libra) [Silent Movie Theater]
UN FLIC (Michel Colombier) [Nuart]
July 4
THE RIGHT STUFF (Bill Conti) [New Beverly]
UN FLIC (Michel Colombier) [Nuart]
July 5
DOWNHILL [LACMA]
JAWS (John Williams) [Nuart]
JAWS (John Williams), TINTORERA: KILLER SHARK (Basil Poledouris), BLUE WATER, WHITE DEATH (Tom Chapin) [Cinematheque: Egyptian]
THE LAST WALTZ [Cinematheque: Aero]
THE LODGER [LACMA]
ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA (Ennio Morricone) [Silent Movie Theater]
POSSESSION (Andrzej Korzynski) [Silent Movie Theater]
THE RIGHT STUFF (Bill Conti) [New Beverly]
SMOKE SIGNALS (BC Smith) [LACMA]
July 6
THE 'BURBS (Jerry Goldsmith) [New Beverly]
CHAMPAGNE [LACMA]
ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA (Ennio Morricone) [Silent Movie Theater]
PIRANHA (Pino Donaggio), GRIZZLY (Robert O. Ragland), ALLIGATOR (Craig Hundley) [Cinematheque: Egyptian]
PLAYTIME (Francis Lemarque) [LACMA]
THE RIGHT STUFF (Bill Conti) [New Beverly]
THE RING [LACMA]
THE SHINING (Wendy Carlos, Rachel Elkind), ROOM 237 (William Hutson, Jonathan Snipes) [Cinematheque: Aero]
July 7
FUNNY GIRL (Jule Styne, Walter Scharf) [Cinematheque: Aero]
ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA (Ennio Morricone) [Silent Movie Theater]
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