There are two kinds of movies usually guaranteed a spot in this category: historical epics, and anything scored by John Williams. For the former, the obvious representatives are The Last Emperor, the almost three-hour bio of the last representative of empirical rule in China, Pu Yi, and Empire of the Sun, Steven Spielberg's three-hour narrative of a young English boy's experiences in a Japanese POW camp in China; for the latter, look no further than the sexy supernatural fantasy-comedy The Witches of Eastwick...and also Empire of the Sun. Double-dipping! We may be tempted to include Cry Freedom in the historical epic category, but good Lord, no. Which just leaves The Untouchables, a 1920s-set gangster thriller, scored by the legendary Ennio Morricone.
I find Cong Su's remarks, as translated by David Byrne, about wishing for more interest in the arts of China especially poignant, given that, as the only Chinese composer on the film, his work is relegated to but one track - "Lunch" between Peter O'Toole's Reginald Johnston and Wu Tao's young Pu Yi.
Anyway. Let's listen to the music, shall we? After the jump....
Lord, I just want to take a break from writing for a short time. Fortunately, we can take a music break, as this is Best Original Song!
Culture critic Joe Reid calls the 1980s the greatest decade for this category. He may be right: from "Fame" in 1980 to "Under the Sea" in 1989, with some karaoke standbys and Bond themes in between, the 80s are rife with riches in the Original Song category. 1982 is no exception, with lyricists Alan & Marilyn Bergman taking up three slots, and the standards "Up Where We Belong" and "Eye of the Tiger" among the nominees. The eagles did fly, right into a win:
(This is just a bizarre video, from the dead silence greeting Yes, Giorgio to the uncomfortable PDA between Nitzsche and Saint-Marie)
Oddly missing is Victor/Victoria, which boasts several original songs and won for Best Adapted and/or Song Score. Where is "Le Jazz Hot"? Whither "Crazy World"?
Anyway, the nominated songs after the jump - and while we're at it, you'll also get the songs nominated for the 2017 Oscars! So have a listen, won't you?:
The music branch of the Academy seems to be the most insular, exclusive group. Like every category, there's usually one newcomer a year, but the rest of the nominees tend to have an unusually high tally of previous nods. The record for most Academy Award nominations is held by a composer, and soon it will become clear who (as if you didn't already know!).
I break the nominees up like so:
Welcome to the Club - My goodness, they actually let some "new" blood in, and look who it is: Ravi Shankar and George Fenton sharing a nom in 1982 (Fenton would return), Jonny Greenwood in 2017 (and I should mention, Shankar and Greenwood are both best-known around the world as popular music figures)
Old Friend - Prolific, but not in the double-digits yet, and a winner who keeps doing great work: Marvin Hamlisch in 1982 (he had two wins in one year) and Alexandre Desplat in 2017 (recently won for The Grand Budapest Hotel)
Prolific Bridesmaid - It feels like he's always here, yet despite his reputation, he's actually only won once before, if at all: Jerry Goldsmith in 1982 (12th nominationforscoring, previous winner for The Omen) and Hans Zimmer in 2017 (11th nomination, previous winner for The Lion King)
Second Time's the Charm - Just when you thought he was a one and done, he comes roaring back: Jack Nitzsche in 1982 (previously nominated for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, also up for Best Original Song this year) and Carter Burwell in 2017 (previously nominated for Carol)
John Williams - You can't getrid of him! Fifty-one nominations total, 46 in scoring alone, most recently 2017's The Last Jedi! 1982's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial got him his fourth Oscar (hehasfive).
Let our ears feast upon their work, after the jump......
*****
second nomination following Best Original Song for Blazing Saddles
Tomorrow, the nominees for Best Actress: Ellen Burstyn (Resurrection), Goldie Hawn (Private Benjamin), Mary Tyler Moore (Ordinary People), Gena Rowlands (Gloria), Sissy Spacek (Coal Miner's Daughter).
I've always found it a challenge to write about this category - it's to be heard, to be experienced. Though I suppose there is something to be said about this category having its favorites, as many do. It's how John Williams can get a third nomination for one series - of course, he would return for a fourth (The Force Awakens), and let us not forget that Jedi was his 19th overall nod....outof50.
Williams had wonOscars already -- but so, too, had fellow nominee Leonard Rosenman, though both of his were in the Adapted Score category (Barry Lyndon, Bound for Glory). Another two-time Oscar winner was Michael Gore, who won this category, and Original Song, just three years previously for Fame. Poor Jerry Goldsmith - the Under Fire composer only had one Oscar to console himself with!
The odd man out, clearly, was Bill Conti, who in years past had only been nominated for Best Original Song. The first time for Rocky, and yes, it is incredible that it was only nominated in Song, not Score. The second time was for the Bond flick For Your Eyes Only. The Right Stuff marked his third nomination, first Original Score nomination...and final time in the running for Oscar.
Fortunately for him, he won. Should he have? Let's investigate....
Over the next three weeks, we'll be taking a look at the films of 1971 -- as usual, seen through the prism of the Academy Award Nominees from that year. Not as usual, we will also take a look at the corresponding nominees of this year's Oscars. How does J.K. Simmons stack up alongside Ben Johnson? What is the parallel between Alexandre Desplat and Jerry Fielding? Can we trace an evolution, or possible plateau, in the 43 years that have passed between The French Connection and Selma? These are the types of questions we will try to ponder.
Later, though. For now, let us concentrate on one of my favorite categories to have gone the way of the dodo -- the Adapted Song Score (aka...well, see post title).
I'm still not entirely sure why they discontinued the category (is it because no one could top Prince?), especially since the minimum required was only three. Easy enough, I should think. This year alone could have seen nominations for Annie, Begin Again and Into the Woods, all of which use both songs and music derived from those songs to create a complete score. Previous years would have been able to honor Frozen, True Grit, Black Swan, Ray, Walk the Line -- plenty of options!
And we're back! I hope you had a loverly weekend, that you caught up with our 1993 Retrospective, that you took a look at Andrew'scontributions to our time travelling activities, and that you watched at least some of the flicks written about here.
You've seen Schindler's List, right? John Williams won for it.
It's funny: the more things change, the more they stay the same. In 1974, this category saw honors for Richard Rodney Bennett, Alex North, John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith and Nino Rota & Carmine Coppola, who scored the eventual Best Picture winner. In 1975, we're now looking at a line-up that includes Gerald Fried, Alex North, John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith and Jack Nitzche, who scored the eventual Best Picture winner. As always, Goldsmith's and Williams' scores have stood the test of time, with both up for AFI's 100 Best Film Scores (only Jaws placed).
Gerald Fried for Birds Do It, Bees Do It
ABSTAIN
I will never understand how an Academy Award-nominated film can go unreleased in any home viewing format. It boggles the mind, and reduces the film to a footnote.
Alex North for Bite the Bullet
***
This year was full of hat-tips to genres past, and North's Classic Western score is no exception. Shades of Aaron Copland in this perfectly fine, solid piece of work. It doesn't distinguish itself as much as the other nominees, but it's not to be sniffed at.
John Williams for Jaws
*****
Instantly iconic. Everyone knows what you mean when you go "duhn duhn duhn duhn, etc." But we shouldn't forget the more adventurous music played for the Orca, music that calls back another era of filmmaking and turns the men's trip into a high-seas adventure...before returning to the relentless repetition of those damning strings.
Jack Nitzche for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
****
Its Native American influence hints at the novel's origins, as it provides the connection between Chief Bromden and Randle McMurphy. A simple tune, it's calming at the beginning, triumphant near the end, and haunting well afterward.
Jerry Goldsmith for The Wind and the Lion
****
Where Milius fails, Goldsmith succeeds. Exciting and exotic, the score provides the adventure, romance and depth lacking elsewhere in the film. Paves the way for future adventure scores from Raiders of the Lost Ark to the remake of The Mummy. The kind of music that gets your blood pumping and turns the most mundane of tasks into a mission.
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I have to admit, Oscar usually does me proud in this category, and I'm going with its proclamation that the Award for Best Original Score belongs to:
One problem I've never been able to get over is my dislike for saxophone in noir films. It seems to always show up in scores to neo-noirs, yet I can't for the life of me think of a precedent for it. Many of the original noir films had those big Elmer Bernstein orchestras, didn't they, like any other Hollywood film of the time? Someone point out to me the exceptions, because I can't think of any.
Anyway, I didn't care for Goldsmith's score, and I think it isn't needed except for the opening credits. Hell, there's barely a score in the movie anyway, right? That's one of the things I love about Chinatown, it's naturalistic take on the noir genre. Then, here and there, the score comes up again, and while I don't hate it, it's not my cup of tea.
Nino Rota and Carmine Coppola for The Godfather: Part II
*****
I feel like I would pick a fight with anyone who doesn't like the score to these films. Rota brings the old themes back with beautiful new work, and Carmine Coppola (father of director Francis Ford) adds some great work to complement him. Coppola's work can mostly be heard when young Vito is in New York, the most notable track coming during a neighborhood Catholic festival during which Vito makes a significant move to power. Rota, of course, is still giving us that immortal trumpet theme, but gives Vito his own theme, as well.
Really, it would still be amazing if it was the same old music from the last film. But it isn't, and the result is just as high-five worthy.
Richard Rodney Bennett for Murder on the Orient Express
****
Sidney Lumet was very clear that everything have a capital letter in his vision of Agatha Christie's whodunit. The performers Acted while wearing Costumes and walking amongst Production Design. So, naturally, Bennett wrote an Original Score, beginning with a loud, cymbal-crashing opening theme that sets the mood just perfectly. Eerie strings punctuate the unfolding of a child kidnapping/murder case. The jaunty Orient Express theme has the energy and glamor of a train ride with Lauren Bacall. The greatest crime is that the idea for an opening song was scrapped. If only!
Alex North for Shanks
***
Shanks is an odd little film, a semi-silent flick starring Marcel Marceau and his fellow mimes, in William Castle's final effort as director. It's beautiful and funny, and more than a little uncomfortable -- I'm pretty sure the 50-year-old titular puppeteer and the 15-year-old girl with him are supposed to be in love or something. It's more than a little weird, especially when he starts puppeteering corpses.
Since it does play out like a silent film, title cards and all, this is perhaps the most-scored out of any of the movies on this list -- hell, in this year, probably. The results are mixed, but I have to say it was, for the most part, a great success. The finale works as well as it does because of the music. If it wasn't for North's work, the corpse-puppets would just be creepy. It's really his score that makes this such an effective dark comedy. It's an odd little gem that's worth seeking out, movie and music both.
John Williams for The Towering Inferno
***
Suitably epic in parts, with that groovy 70s-ness for the more intimate moments. There are moments that drag, and I don't think it's as exciting as Williams' own Earthquake score, or as important as Alfred Newman's for Airport. But dammit, you've got John Williams scoring a big, epic disaster flick, so it must be great, right? Oh, sure, maybe a little unmemorable in parts, and maybe you don't even remember there being music in the helicopter scene even though the IMDb trivia specifically mentions it as a point of disagreement that Williams won -- sure, maybe you don't remember stuff like that. But then there's the main title theme and the finale and the theme for Fred Astaire's romance. I only wish it was two solid hours of pure music magic.
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UPDATE: How did I forget to weigh in on my vote? Of course, you can see the stars, but just to reassure you, I agree with Oscar.
NINO ROTA & CARMINE COPPOLA
for
THE GODFATHER: PART II
though maybe it should've been in Adapted Score ;)
