John William's soundtracks

[Teebin]

I started this thread so that Bri wouldn't have a coronary.

Empire of the Sun also has some beautiful music. The film didn't succeed, probably because it was a reminder of the worst of mankind and boykind. There is little goodness in it. A difficult arc.

 

[GAcoaster]

It's also amazing to see Christian Bale as a really young kid and what a good actor he was even back then.

Just the sheer number of John Williams scores is pretty staggering: List of compositions by John Williams - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Teebin]

Do all other film composers add bells or chimes to their grand endings? It seems a Williams signature. I would never have agreed that Hedwig's theme had sleigh bells and tambourine... but it does! And of course, I am still geeking over learning Celesta thanks to Joe.

 

[GAcoaster]

I do enjoy some of his recordings with the Boston Pops during his time as conductor. I grew up with Arthur Fiedler's recordings, but I came to appreciate John Williams recordings as well. When I worked at Six Flags in New Jersey, our head of Shows seemed to incorporate his music into the pre-show or post-show of everything and I ended up getting Out of this World: Pops Out Of This World by Boston Pops Orchestra & John Williams on Apple Music and America: The Dream Goes On: America, The Dream Goes On by Boston Pops Orchestra & John Williams on Apple Music

 

[Teebin]

Now, there have been heavy lifts that even Williams could not hoist. A.I. had to be one of the most dreary creations, both directorily and musically. Of course, that is my opinion. If you find something redeeming about the story-line then please tell me what it is.

 

[Teebin]

This piece of William's music has always sent me. Breaks me into tears every time I hear it... for personal childhood reasons.



So, beware you younger folks, you will never forget what happened to you at age 5,6,7... it will stay with you for the rest of your life. You can try to ignore it, but it will always be there... always.

 

[ChrisFL]

I owned this as a kid...amazing works:

 

[Teebin]

Friggin eep! I saw John Williams trending on Twitter in the wee hours of this morning and I panicked. Evidently so did everyone else. Turns out that he conducted at the Hollywood Bowl last night. PHEW!

 

[SkiBum]

It's really difficult to pin down favorites of John Williams. The music from Jaws, in particular, the music from when they are out in the boat chasing down the shark with the barrels bouncing through the water is a favorite. Theme to Superman is iconic in every way. Jurassic Park music is the movie. Home Alone with the children's choir and the blending of themes.

He may be one of the best at using the leitmotif, as shown in most of his movies. An undercurrent of the same theme brings a reminder of who is about. The Imperial March is awesome at this and he blended it so well into the score. Even in "The Phantom Menace" (which I despise as a movie), the end where the Imperial March is played when Palpatine is talking to Anakin is chillbump inducing.

 

[SkiBum]

Also, the Olympics aren't the Olympics without his music.

 

[ChrisFL]

Interesting note: the Hook score was done by John Williams and also plays at the Port of Entry in IOA, and the E.T. theme plays inside...The Land pavilion (!?!?) I guess it's part of the Soarin' queue music but I hear it in the main area of The Land.