fatehbaz

I know this is a bit off-topic, but: I've thought about this a lot, and I tend to believe that the use of Leia's theme at that moment does actually make good sense, and I wouldn't be surprised if JW consciously and deliberately made the choice. From Luke's perspective, his guide on this adventure and the person who he has the closest emotional relationship has just perished - and immediately following this realization, Luke's heart may abruptly shift its emotional neediness onto Leia. As if there's a immediate subconscious refocusing of his hopes and needs onto this other person. Happens in real-world human emotional trauma, as a safety mechanism: following a loss, pin your needs on the next-closest/dearest friend/family member. Was JW thinking that deeply into the moment? Maybe. I don't know. But he's clever and thoughtful enough, especially at the peak of his career.

Well: Hook, of course. The subdued cameo of the actual Pan theme that makes its first ethereal statement at the climax of "The Never-Feast" (in the film: as Pan holds the sword confidently for the first time) is one of my single favorite individual moments in JW's repertoire. When "Remembering Childhood" and the first half of "You Are the Pan" are treated as a single musical sequence... well, that's one of the most cathartic and satisfying musical sequences I've heard in my life. Despite not being in the same league as the aforementioned, I have a soft spot for The Witches of Eastwick, Angela's Ashes, and The Fury.

Given that the Resistance march/theme was my favorite new thematic identity from TFA (and I agree that its absence from the TFA finale was peculiar), I was pleasantly surprised to hear so much of the theme integrated in this new score. Two of my (new) favorite iterations of the theme appear in rapid succession in "Main Title and Escape." First, at 3:01-3:10-ish, that rapid, frantic statement is fresh - desperate yet building towards triumph. Then, my favorite new addition to the theme occurs at 3:20-3:23, after the explosive introductory fanfare but before the main statement - that very brief sort of reverberating horn (or is it trombone?) performing a bold, defiant fragment of the theme leading into the main statement. It immediately evoked a mental image of someone raising their fists and quickly positioning themselves for a fight, as if in a gritty fisticuffs match. What a great addition - it fits the sort of early twentieth century revolutionary militarism and every-man grit of the theme. I'm glad that the heroes have a theme with some grit and fire, a bite. Following this statement, between 3:30-3:40, I enjoy the pounding drums and thundering brass - this reminded me very much of "Superman."

From the red carpet premiere from tonight (Saturday, 9 December). Excuse the annoying corporate, bourgeois content of the video, but the very first 40 seconds of the video might be interesting (new statements of Kylo's motif and Rey's theme). Thoughts?

Merkel's right about Akakor: it's an old myth concerning a hidden pyramid complex and native city on the Peruvian frontier. Some simple research on your own should turn up info. Lucas and Koepp and the crew almost certainly deliberately mispelled Akakor as "Akator" for some unknown reason. Maybe it sounds less awkward. And the Orellana speculation is in the right direction: when he travelled in the Ecuadorian region as a Spanish emissary, Orellana claimed to have bumped into a tribe of warrior women (probably just native men) and the legend of the Amazons caim to mind. The Amazon River was subsequently "named" by the encounter. Anyway, Orellana was one of the famous pursuers of El Dorado. So the connection/spoiler that the track listing reveals is that apparently "Akator" and El Dorado are one and the same (in the movie). Anyway, sorry to "speak" so much. Excited to see the potential of three new themes (Irina, Mutt, crystal skull). Should be good.