Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 5-film series

[bollemanneke 3,337]

I wouldn't call Desplat's effort bland and generic.

[crumbs 14,301]

Was more referring to Hooper's 2 efforts. Desplat's scores are a big improvement but still suffer from the Yates "how can I make this magical world as sleep inducing as possible?" syndrome.

 

I get the whole darker, grittier progression of the series, but Deathly Hallows was such a miserable slog.

[bollemanneke 3,337]

Agreed.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Excellent film!

[Once 604]

1 hour ago, Mr. Big said:

Order of the Phoenix, Half Blood Prince, and Deathly Hallows 1 also fit into Williams' schedule...

I know.

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

2 hours ago, bollemanneke said:

I wouldn't call Desplat's effort bland and generic.

1, maybe not but 2 fits both of those descriptions for me.

[crumbs 14,301]

Desplat tried to introduce a few nice musical ideas, and the action material in Gringotts is excellent, but I found most of the score forgettable.

 

Then there's those direct lifts of Williams music, which are like the film screaming, "hey everyone, remember how Harry Potter music used to sound, before we sucked the life out of things?"

 

Arguably it's thematically fitting for Harry's return to Hogwarts, but it felt strange after they seemingly spent so many films phasing the theme out.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

It felt very out of place!

[JoeinAR 1,949]

On 11/5/2015 at 10:37 AM, SafeUnderHill said:

I'm talking about the book.

nothing really happened? what a crock. I guess that Umbridge never committed any acts of evil.

[bollemanneke 3,337]

I don't think that every score should be memorable, but I do agree that Williams's music felt out of place in the end. Also,why did they have this recurring obsession with using Hedwig's theme again? As if Doyle (or Williams) never wrote other themes...

[crumbs 14,301]

There were so many perfect moments screaming for references to Fawkes the Phoenix and Window to the Past which went begging. Especially some of the scenes with Sirius.

[bollemanneke 3,337]

And Harry In Winter during The Kiss!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

But those arent the Harry Potter theme!

[crumbs 14,301]

True, the masses wouldn't notice the difference. 

 

Plus, they don't have to pay Williams royalties for more than one theme! Everyone wins!

[MSM 126]

3 hours ago, bollemanneke said:

And Harry In Winter during The Kiss!

Also the graveyard scene where Harry visits his parents' graves. The Family Theme was mandatory here. Big miss.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Why?

 

Williams himself had already abandoned the family theme by the time he scored the third film.

[bollemanneke 3,337]

Because it's a gorgeous theme written for Harry and Cho and because it sort of beats Hooper's bland The Kiss at, like, every level.

[MSM 126]

6 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

Why?

 

Williams himself had already abandoned the family theme by the time he scored the third film.

Its a technique called leitmotiv. It would have increased the emotional impact of the scene significantly.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

It depends. Sometimes it can be effective. Other times it can actually be counterproductive.

 

And in the case of a film series like Harry Potter, which had several composers and therefore several different musical voices I don't think the leitmotif approach is the desired one.

 

And again, Williams already abandoned the family theme in Azkaban in favor for the more mature Window To The Past melody. Why should other composers be ablidged to use it?

[MSM 126]

1 minute ago, Stefancos said:

It depends. Sometimes it can be effective. Other times it can actually be counterproductive.

 

And in the case of a film series like Harry Potter, which had several composers and therefore several different musical voices I don't think the leitmotif approach is the desired one.

 

And again, Williams already abandoned the family theme in Azkaban in favor for the more mature Window To The Past melody. Why should other composers be ablidged to use it?

To get over their egos and add some logical consistency to the series.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

You seriously believe it was a matter of ego's, rather then trying to serve the film in a different way then you would have wanted?

[bollemanneke 3,337]

Wasn't it? Are you saying that there are people at WB who give a shit about HP music?

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I'm sure the directors, the producers etc find the music important.

 

You and MSM are acting like presumptious fanboys.

[bollemanneke 3,337]

Isn't a fanboy someone who loves everything about something? I'm just being critical. WB clearly didn't care about continuity, and for me that's okay when you have someone like Doyle or Desplat who reinvents the genre, but most of Hoopers cues sound as simple as you can possibly get. If you want more proof of the fact that Hooper didn't have a clue what he was doing, you should watch the music documentary on the HP4 ultimate edition. It's hilarious to compare Hooper's quotes to what the story requires and what he finally ended up doing.

[mrbellamy 6,272]

The most disheartening thing about Hooper is that according to the liner notes of OOTP he was working on that score over the course of the entire film, from preproduction to the end, a period of over 18 months. He wrote a draft of the Ministry entrance cue as an "audition" for Warner Bros, Yates talked about playing the little theme in the Sirius scenes for the cast during production. I assume it was a similar process for HBP. What on earth was he doing in all that time?

 

I do also remember an interview with Hooper where he praised his team of orchestrators who "transferred my MIDI files and turned them into music." I guess in a way it's kinda impressive he came up with the scores he did. I believe it when Yates said he was too exhausted to continue.....enough to make you feel bad for the guy. 

[Jay 37,287]

He's simply not a very talented composer.

[bollemanneke 3,337]

Excuse the question, but don't all composers start with MIDI/demos? Or do you mean that MIDI files are too basic a standard? I think HBP is much worse than OOTP. His best quote was about 'When Ginny kissed Harry': 'I was reminded of continental European films.' You can debate lots of topics about HP, but the fact that Hogwarts is British is a given.

[Jay 37,287]

No, not all composers start with MIDI!

John Williams and Howard Shore write all their scores with pencil and paper.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I'm fairly certain Hooper didn't voluntarily bow out of the series, despite what the Internet will tell you. Half Blood Prince had some serious backlash from even the casual audience. 

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

Nicholas Hooper's score never hurt the film but it was the absolute bare-bones.  Even the "highlights" are extraordinarily tepid and the underscore is beyond bland (featuring an overabundance of string tremolos and glockenspiel) 

 

 

6 hours ago, mrbellamy said:

He wrote a draft of the Ministry entrance cue as an "audition" for Warner Bros,

I wonder who would have done the score had he "failed" the audition.  One has to wonder if Williams would have been asked.

 

 

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

Hooper's scores were more boring than algebra.

[Wojo 2,453]

Looking back, I miss algebra and calculus. I should've been a math teacher. Except with common core, I would have become a murderer. 

[bollemanneke 3,337]

How did HBP have a backlash from the audience? Can you elaborate?

[Arpy 4,145]

Apparently Hooper was butthurt by the reactions, so would any composer and I feel deeply sorry for him because I think they were solid efforts, even if they didn't entirely capture the essence of the films.

 

I think they suited the films fine in so far that they supported it, Half-Blood Prince is a fairly consistent score , it doesn't jump all over the place like Order of the Phoenix. The main criticisms have already been elaborated on here, but they didn't have the energy and majesty that Williams and Doyle accomplished. 

[bollemanneke 3,337]

I used to like HBP more than OOTP, but then I realised that HBP is even more bland and weak and small, which, for me, doesn't make it a solid effort at all.

[Timm6011 1]

I thought he had used the family theme in Prisoner of Azkaban when they show his parents photo, towards the beginning. 

 

 

 

Just checked it's window to the past. I guess I was thinking of chamber of secrets. 

[crumbs 14,301]

Even though I think HBP is an ineffective score, Hooper seemed self-aware that he was out of his depth. Even if stepping down was a mutual decision with the studio, he clearly worked tirelessly on the scores and wanted Williams back at the podium as much as we did.

 

Didn't work out but such is life. Instead, Williams probably spent that 5 months enjoying life with his family and writing music casually. Nothing wrong with that.

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

 

7 minutes ago, crumbs said:

Even though I think HBP is an ineffective score, Hooper seemed self-aware that he was out of his depth. Even if stepping down was a mutual decision with the studio, he clearly worked tirelessly on the scores and wanted Williams back at the podium as much as we did.

 

Didn't work out but such is life. Instead, Williams probably spent that 5 months enjoying life with his family and writing music casually. Nothing wrong with that.

Come to think of it, it's really lucky that we got a new Williams score for The Force Awakens.  

[crumbs 14,301]

I think we can thank his close friendship with Kathleen Kennedy for that. If it was some unfamiliar Disney executive begging him to help JJ, I doubt it would've worked out. 

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

Just now, crumbs said:

I think we can thank his close friendship with Kathleen Kennedy for that. If it was some unfamiliar Disney executive begging him to help JJ, I doubt it would've worked out. 

I do think that the fans' desire for Williams' return helped push things along too. 

[Jay 37,287]

1 hour ago, Timm6011 said:

I thought he had used the family theme in Prisoner of Azkaban when they show his parents photo, towards the beginning. 

 

 

 

Just checked it's window to the past. I guess I was thinking of chamber of secrets. 

 

Hedwig's Theme and Nimbus 2000 are the only PS/COS themes that returned in POA.

[Timm6011 1]

1 hour ago, Jay said:

 

Hedwig's Theme and Nimbus 2000 are the only PS/COS themes that returned in POA.

Do you think that was John Williams or Alfonso Cuaron's decision? Cuaron may have requested something completely different, seeing how he wanted his film to be unique and different from the first two or John Williams may have decided that the old music did not fit after seeing the drastic style change of the movie. 

 

Also, is there any chance he is coming back to score Fantastic Beasts? It's driving me crazy how they still have not announced the composer. How far in advance are composers typically announced for films, especially for big blockbusters? Could it be that they are trying to negotiate someone big like John Williams, which is why it is still such a secret? I feel like if if was Desplat or Hooper, they would have already announced it. 

[Jay 37,287]

Schedule-wise, Williams could theoretically fit in Fantastic Beasts after The BFG (opening July 2016) and before Episode 8 and Ready Player One (both opening December 2017) since Fantastic Beasts opens November 2016.

 

But realistically, there's simply no way he's going to score it.  He's basically retired, and only working for Spielberg and Star Wars now.  And Yates probably doesn't care too much about who scores the film, nor would any producers over there think the composer would have any impact on ticket sales

[Mr. Breathmask 555]

I expect Desplat to end up scoring it.

[crumbs 14,301]

Desplat's also attached to five other films releasing this year. I know he's previously done 6+ scores in the same year, but usually just smaller dramas with an occasional blockbuster. Maybe he decided to focus on Star Wars alone, rather than split his focus with this?

 

Note that Desplat isn't even scoring Yates' next "blockbuster," Tarzan.

[Jay 37,287]

Yea there's no way Desplat is scoring this.  Not with Rogue One opening a month after it - he can't do both

[bollemanneke 3,337]

Patrick Doyle has my vote.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

No, it needs to be an American this time.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

No American actors in Harry Potter!

[Jay 37,287]

Giacchino could do it once he's done with Star Trek Beyond