Cerebral Cortex

I quite liked this post from a Reddit thread on the video:

Wow, that variation of the Indy theme at 3:17 is fantastic! That's really inspired.

I really walked away impressed by the presence the score had in Dead Reckoning. One choice, in particular, I've been a bit fascinated by is this variation of the main theme that plays for Ethan in pivotal moments involving his character (his "theme" of sorts). I think it's a really interesting solution to the problem of being 7 movies deep into a franchise with no established recurring character themes to draw from and you also want to try and score it in a more classically leitmotific way. It's a really unique approach I feel to take the theme that defines the franchise and alter it such that a variation of it then becomes the theme for the character in a way. It's such a simple variation, sure, but I think it's really effective within the film.

Because true talent no longer guarantees you advancement in the film industry.

Fucking FINALLY, man. Absolutely ridiculous that it's taken this long.

I also think you could make the case that Williams writing the theme in that way, in addition to stuff like bringing ASM in for a different recording of the theme, is what makes the project interesting for him. Getting to write stuff that is more creatively challenging while also leaning more into that concert space that he already seems more geared towards at this point in his life is what probably helps make these projects worthwhile for him at this point in his life.

This thread and comments like this are why I come to JWFan. That final point is superb.

So if Dial of Destiny pulls music from every Williams/Spielberg action movie collaboration of the last 20 years (Minority Report, WOTW, KOTCS, Tintin), does that mean that there is a universe out there where Williams scored and then tracked in music from Ready Player One into an Indiana Jones movie?

I think there also might be something to the idea of Williams seizing the opportunity to just play the Raiders March in the credits with nothing tied to it. It doesn't lead into anything, it doesn't act as a sandwich to bookend the credits. It just gets to kinda stand on its own, which it never has in quite the way it does here.

There's definitely something quintessentially Indy about that passage and then it's second rise at around 2:12. It's fascinating to hear because you're listening and there is just something to the music in moments like that where it just feels like it belongs in an Indy film. At the end of the day, I'm not sure what ultimately creates that distinction for Williams that separates that sort of sound from a Star Wars film. One of my concerns honestly was that this was gonna sound more like another Star Wars ST score than Indy 5, but it unmistakably is Williams in Indy mode, and it's so much fun to hear. Another moment in that track that I can't get enough of is this brief little twinkly strike Williams does here at 3:00. It...

I think you could definitely frame the film musically as Indy having to "earn" his theme again throughout the film. After the flashback opening, it slowly trickles back to the forefront in terms of prominence. Once the film ends and cuts to black, you get hit with the full theme in its entirety as Indy has completed his arc (not ark!) and gets a last musical hurrah. After that, Williams moves past the man and focuses on recounting the adventure you just observed the man experience musically. The celebration and rush you get from hearing the Raiders March in full with the start of the credits gets diminished by getting to hear it again. Ideally, you WANT more. You don't want your time with this character to be done. But it is, and that's okay. Because the fact he and his music ever graced us at all is something to be treasured. Or at least, that's one way to look at it.

I'm seeing so many more people online talking about the score for this film in a positive light, even in more casual corners of the Internet. Definitely seems to me to be getting noticed and appreciated in the public sphere in a way that I never saw so immediately after release with the ST scores, so that warms the ol' heart.

Probably been mentioned, but I love this little brief variation of the Archimedes theme that plays right before they finally go back to ancient Rome:

I think one thing about the standard that Williams has created is the expectation that his music isn't just film score that accompanys the film in an exceedingly satisfactory way but also is music that genuinely is enjoyable to listen to even when sperated from the film proper. Even if the OST doesn't click for others, I think there is genuine revelation had in getting to see it with the film because, regardless of how you feel about the OST, there are multiple sequences in the film that are so wonderfully scored that really help to elevate the film. The Airport really went up a couple appreciation levels, for example, after seeing it in the film. It's so enthralling when it plays out in the film and fits the film like a glove.

One thing I really like that might have already been mentioned is how Helena's theme is first introduced in the prologue opening as music for her dad and plays right after Indy rescues Shaw from his carriage. Intent really does help clarify meaning. After being able to see that Battle of Syracuse was Williams scoring a mini-Roman epic, that Golden Age Hollywood pastiche really shines through. What a fun track. And, fuck me, the old age rendition of the Indy theme that closes Centuries Join Hands sounds awesome and ancient. It's like the Indy theme being treated like it also got taken to an earlier time and place.

"To Athens" is nothing but Williams magic. Nobody else working today could have given us something like that. That could be the only new track and I'd be a happy camper and be prepared to say the film more than justified existing if only to give us a track like that. Holy shit.

Could you post a larger version of one of these images? Just want to get a better look at the font and framing and then I'll happily edit one.

Now that we have less than 50 hours to release, I do just want to take a moment to say how much fun it has been to be a part of this community for the last few years. The possibility of new Star Wars movies scored by John Williams back in 2012 is what got me to lurking on this board and watch to see members speculate if he'd come back. The actual hype up to TFA and the actual score is what caused me to create an account. The last decade has allowed me to geek out with people about film score events in a way that I had always wanted but felt like I had missed out on. Part of me still can't believe we got another trilogy of Star Wars scores and an Indy 5 score alongside more Spielberg scores. Whether or not you like the movie, I hope you all find something to like in the new score. This little recess of the Internet has consistently been a fun little space to geek out on these things, and I've very grateful for it. This is truly the end of an era, and I'm happy to be here for it.

I think what will really help is getting to hear Williams do action renditions of it in the film. Hearing it in punchier statements with a little less fluff and little more directness is what really helped me click with Rey's theme, which in retrospect I have no idea how I had such a hard time with at the start. Also... whistle.mp3

TROS feels like the man who scored my childhood giving me one last warm hug, but I definitely wouldn't complain if Dial of Destiny felt like another one.