Mike Esssss:Need this and MINORITY REPORT to hang on for a few weeks so I can reload the old budget bucket.
Yes, get Minority Report before it can't be got. Fellow collectors with limited budgets will regret not getting that one the same way many rue missing out on Varèse's deluxe edition of Starship Troopers.
It's been too long a wait for this. With the 25%-off sale at La-La Land, my excuses are gone.
Those samples from Poseidon sound too good to permit me to pass this up. I'd pay 65 bucks for the end titles from The Poseidon Adventure alone. I've run the end titles on blu-ray more than I can count. As great as any of the adventure end titles from Williams' late 70's super-blockbuster period.
Here it is. I was able to keep the sound effects and I used the suggested start/end points mentioned above. Love those otherworldly voices that coincide with the howling wind. Very spooky stuff.
Stellar work, Mutant! What a difference this version makes - really cool.
Mike Esssss:Need this and MINORITY REPORT to hang on for a few weeks so I can reload the old budget bucket.
Yes, get Minority Report before it can't be got. Fellow collectors with limited budgets will regret not getting that one the same way many rue missing out on Varèse's deluxe edition of Starship Troopers.
Yeah, if A.I. can go out of print then Minority Report and War of the worlds can too.
I was super excited to get these and finally did but I’m having a hard time listening to some of the music for the death scenes. All of the movies have really horrific sequences like this and Williams’ music for these sections is really graphic, like the musical equivalent of visceral anguish - it’s not just like some orchestra sting for Luke Skywalker’s hand getting cut off or a sad melody for Han Solo falling off a pit - it’s brutal, screeching agony.
Towering Inferno is probably the worst. I think real world events at the beginning of the 21st century make it difficult to listen to those parts of the soundtrack. I can’t even imagine trying to watch the movies again for that reason, particularly the Towering Inferno.
Towering Inferno is probably the worst. I think real world events at the beginning of the 21st century make it difficult to listen to those parts of the soundtrack. I can’t even imagine trying to watch the movies again for that reason, particularly the Towering Inferno.
That also makes me think about "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" that ironically came out at about the same time of the "world events at the beginning of the 21st century". I understand your point of view, concerning Towering Inferno : because yes, that bloody day, many innocents were forced to play Robert Wagner and Susan Flannery parts. For real.
Since I've had the FMS Inferno , two editions of Poseidon and the Varese Earthquake, it's taken me this long to finally splurge on this. Wow, the set is a thing of beauty. Love that almost velvety feel to the box itself
Inferno sounds fantastic, the distortion is always going to be there, but otherwise it is a heck of an upgrade.
And the earlier comments on the cheese factor of Inferno's main title - really ? Maybe since I grew up with it, saw the movie in theaters ( I was 12 eeeek ! ) and bought the LP soon after, that main title was, is, and shall be, a total powerhouse ! Hell, Williams had 5 minutes to cover and did it in spectacular fashion. It's one of my favorite Williams pieces, and probably top 10 film score tracks. And for what it's worth, the Joel McNeely re-recording is the best version.
And the earlier comments on the cheese factor of Inferno's main title - really ? Maybe since I grew up with it, saw the movie in theaters ( I was 12 eeeek ! ) and bought the LP soon after, that main title was, is, and shall be, a total powerhouse ! Hell, Williams had 5 minutes to cover and did it in spectacular fashion. It's one of my favorite Williams pieces, and probably top 10 film score tracks. And for what it's worth, the Joel McNeely re-recording is the best version.
Not to tear it up, but to analyze it: I think the kitchiness is due to a few things - the major 2nds and major 7th with those opening chords is itself kind of a dated sound, and a chord creation not unlike the what Leonard Rosenman did for Fantastic Voyage’s dissonant theme song.
Then, the dissonance that is created by that resolves in this really unashamedly major key, which is a bit on-the-nose musically.
The songs also keeps modulating around, which is also a bit kitschy because the song doesn’t develop anywhere - it’s just kind of “upcoming excitement” for 5 minutes - very much like an old-fashioned overture.
THEN, there are parts where there’s a pop drum kit which accentuate the beat on hi hats and drums and that instantly dates it. That pop rhythm is also detrimental to the song because it’s very of its time.
Finally the theme dates itself by not playing to anything specific other than “upcoming excitement for the coming attraction”, much like Williams’ theme songs for Allens’ TV shows. It’s literally a helicopter flying through the air, but the music soars like it’s Superman (you can hear a lot of Superman in this).
If you want to compare it, it actually bears a lot of similarity structurally to Jurassic Park’s Journey to the Island. Not only is it scoring for a helicopter, but the lighthearted parts when the helicopter lands and the scientists start driving in jeeps is reminiscent of this main title.
But the difference is that Jurassic Park sequence is scoring something SPECIFIC.
Anyway, that similarity to Fantastic Voyage always stood out to me. Same chord construction actually as Jerry Goldsmith’s work for Capricorn One - it’s all about those Major 2nds and 7ths. It was like the go-to chord for drama and intrigue - almost reminds me of what they’d do for old Radio Plays.
Great analysis, Jurassic! Those bits are indeed the parts that feel particularly dated to me, and I also don’t like that the melody itself doesn’t really “go anywhere”. I love Journey to the Island but just never warmed up to Towering’s Main Title. Love Poseidon’s tho!
And the earlier comments on the cheese factor of Inferno's main title - really ? Maybe since I grew up with it, saw the movie in theaters ( I was 12 eeeek ! ) and bought the LP soon after, that main title was, is, and shall be, a total powerhouse ! Hell, Williams had 5 minutes to cover and did it in spectacular fashion. It's one of my favorite Williams pieces, and probably top 10 film score tracks. And for what it's worth, the Joel McNeely re-recording is the best version.
Agreed. Williams did a powerhouse job on that main title. I don’t find anything dated about it at all. It conveys that bustling metropolis feeling and the optimism/celebration of this new “tallest building in the world.” A brilliant architectural feat, ultimately brought down by greed and hubris. Listen to the main titles and then the end titles, it really tells the whole story from beginning to end. One of my favorite Williams scores.
And the earlier comments on the cheese factor of Inferno's main title - really ? Maybe since I grew up with it, saw the movie in theaters ( I was 12 eeeek ! ) and bought the LP soon after, that main title was, is, and shall be, a total powerhouse ! Hell, Williams had 5 minutes to cover and did it in spectacular fashion. It's one of my favorite Williams pieces, and probably top 10 film score tracks. And for what it's worth, the Joel McNeely re-recording is the best version.
Agreed. Williams did a powerhouse job on that main title. I don’t find anything dated about it at all. It conveys that bustling metropolis feeling and the optimism/celebration of this new “tallest building in the world.” A brilliant architectural feat, ultimately brought down by greed and hubris. Listen to the main titles and then the end titles, it really tells the whole story from beginning to end. One of my favorite Williams scores.
Agreed, nothing dated or inappropriate about the Main Title. The music was celebrating the majesty of the tower. Perhaps his most powerful Main Title next to Superman the Movie Main Title sequence.
It would easily be in my top 10 favorite John Williams cues.
And the earlier comments on the cheese factor of Inferno's main title - really ? Maybe since I grew up with it, saw the movie in theaters ( I was 12 eeeek ! ) and bought the LP soon after, that main title was, is, and shall be, a total powerhouse ! Hell, Williams had 5 minutes to cover and did it in spectacular fashion. It's one of my favorite Williams pieces, and probably top 10 film score tracks. And for what it's worth, the Joel McNeely re-recording is the best version.
Agreed. Williams did a powerhouse job on that main title. I don’t find anything dated about it at all. It conveys that bustling metropolis feeling and the optimism/celebration of this new “tallest building in the world.” A brilliant architectural feat, ultimately brought down by greed and hubris. Listen to the main titles and then the end titles, it really tells the whole story from beginning to end. One of my favorite Williams scores.
Agreed, nothing dated or inappropriate about the Main Title. The music was celebrating the majesty of the tower. Perhaps his most powerful Main Title next to Superman the Movie Main Title sequence.
It would easily be in my top 10 favorite John Williams cues.
For all his gifts, John Williams is not one of my top go-to composers. But his exciting Main Title to THE TOWERING INFERNO (try playing that helicopter ride sequence with the volume off!), along with STAR TREK classic TV scores and Bernard Herrmann's recorded suites that were popular on LP at that time, was instrumental in igniting my lifelong enthusiasm for film music.
