Jurassic Park VS The Lost World

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Well said Thor. 

 

TLW is a score where JW could have easily done something similar as he did for the first film, but he (and Spielberg) chose to do something different. It's always nice when Williams leaves his comfort zone for a bit.

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Arguably Spielberg wasn't really across what direction Williams was heading, otherwise we wouldn't have the mangled mess that resulted.

 

Wasn't he off shooting Amistad and handed post of TLW to Koepp? Would love to have been a fly on the wall at that first crew screening post-recording sessions. 

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Is that why he didn't write a note for the non-existent booklet?

 

What's with Spielberg's ADD habit of having to direct more than one movie at once? It's like he never really gave a shit about the Jurassic Park movies.

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I don't think I've ever heard Spielberg's thoughts on the score for TLW. The film is rarely mentioned in interviews and I don't think Spielberg was even in the scoring featurette on the DVD?

 

TBH I just don't think he really cared that much. Regardless of some excellently directed sequences, TLW (like KOTCS) comes across as a 'freelance' job for him, with little emotional investment in the craft and merely happy to cash the cheque.

[Richard Penna 3,671]

I think film-wise it's an easy call: JP.

 

TLW is a mess, and while I can see the overall story arc, there are too many things going on, and given how SS treated JW's score in many scenes, he was clearly having problems with the tone. I also think he really should have reconsidered the entire San Diego ending.

 

Score: I went for JP too, but that was very close. JP is more beautiful, with unforgettable set pieces and a sense of child-like wonder that will never leave me. TLW is way more complex to my ears, and has a ton of fantastic set pieces, but it's more of a task to listen to the whole thing, and could use a melodic break now and then.

 

Having said that, the TLW concert arrangement is one of my all-time favourites, and kicks f****g ASS!

 

I also think that SS's tracking in both films works really well - I recreated several of them when I got my box, and the use of the respective 'hero' themes works better than what JW came up with in most cases. I've never really liked the raptor theme at the climax of T-Rex Rescue, and the end of Ceiling Tiles sounds very anti-climatic without the TLW theme almost literally saving the day.

[Thor 7,465]

Guess I'm one of the few who also really like THE LOST WORLD, the movie.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

52 minutes ago, Thor said:

Guess I'm one of the few who also really like THE LOST WORLD, the movie.

 

#MeToo

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I like the movie, kinda. Overall it doesnt hold up at all. But it has good individual parts.

 

 

[Brundlefly 2,385]

1 hour ago, Thor said:

Guess I'm one of the few who also really like THE LOST WORLD, the movie.

Nope. The 30 min trailer sequence is one of the most intense and suspenseful action scenes of all time. The rest of the movie could be as bad as shit and I would still love it.

10 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

I like the movie, kinda. Overall it doesnt hold up at all. But it has good individual parts.

Exactly.

[John 2,032]

The Lost World, as a film, comes across as an exercise in excess, like Spielberg's Temple of Doom. It's a beautifully shot film, with groundbreaking visual effects, but he seemed to have tried to cram in so many pieces and scenes that didn't quite fit, the final film felt bloated and unbalanced. On the other hand, everything in Jurassic Park fits together as a whole masterfully, aside from the embryo-heist plotline with Dennis, which unfolds like a sitcom, rather than a high-stakes thriller. Overall, The Lost World is an otherwise entertaining, if ultimately unmemorable, action flick.

 

The Lost World, as a score, is serviceable at best. I have never quite understood the admiration for it. The "jungly" feel to the soundtrack gets rather tiresome and stale after awhile. While it never reaches the heights that Williams accomplished with his first Jurassic Park score, it is a worthy companion to his original masterpiece.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,498]

TLW might not be the apex of filmmaking, but it could be so much worse. On the whole, SS gives good sequel. Can you imagine what we might have been served up, if someone like Colin Trevorow had directed KOTCS? Oh, the humanity!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

There's more Spielberg in TLW than in KOCS though.

[Jay 37,287]

I definitely agree with that!

[Thor 7,465]

Most certainly.

 

But I actually re-watched KOTCS two days ago. I've always defended that film too. The first hour or so is actually quite good. It's only when they get to Peru that things start to go a bit haywire. It's still entertaining throughout, but some of the setpieces are rather stupid -- even when taking the general 'camp'/anything goes value of the Indy universe into consideration: the swashbuckling car chase, the Tarzan thing, the Indians creeping out of the woodwork, the whole interdimensional beings thing. All of this could have been solved a bit better. Still...the film is overall not as bad as people make it out to be.

 

But THE LOST WORLD is a lot better. 

[Josh500 1,615]

1 hour ago, Thor said:

Most certainly.

 

But I actually re-watched KOTCS two days ago. I've always defended that film too. The first hour or so is actually quite good. It's only when they get to Peru that things start to go a bit haywire. It's still entertaining throughout, but some of the setpieces are rather stupid -- even when taking the general 'camp'/anything goes value of the Indy universe into consideration: the swashbuckling car chase, the Tarzan thing, the Indians creeping out of the woodwork, the whole interdimensional beings thing. All of this could have been solved a bit better. Still...the film is overall not as bad as people make it out to be.

 

But THE LOST WORLD is a lot better. 

 

Agreed! 

 

I never thought KOTCS was a bad movie. It's just not as good as the original 3 Indy movies...

[Jay 37,287]

The original Indy movies are better than anything!

[Brundlefly 2,385]

KOTCS has mainly superficial flaws: Weird CGI sequences and things like the nuked fridge and the UFO. But this is all limited to content choices and technical decisions.

1 minute ago, Jay said:

The original Indy movies are better than anything!

Not necessary to say that.

[Thor 7,465]

36 minutes ago, Brundlefly said:

KOTCS has mainly superficial flaws: Weird CGI sequences and things like the nuked fridge

 

I was never as bothered by this particular scene as everyone else. It's actually a pretty damn intense scene -- and following immediately after the great warehouse scene. It's no more outlandish than a lot of stuff in the first three movies. I maintain that it's really only from Peru onwards that there are several critique-worthy scenes.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Nuke The Fridge is great!

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

7 hours ago, Baby Jane Hudson said:

 

#MeToo

 

I seem to recall you challenging me on TLW. As we all know, it's my favorite JP and my favorite JW score.

As for KOTCS, I wouldn't say being boring to the point of unwatchability is a "superficial" flaw. Whoever is defending the first half hour, it's because things are actually happening there. The fridge scene isn't necessarily that offensive. Yes, it's ludicrous, but it sets up a ludicrous film that never actually follows in its wake. Weirdly, everything after that is more boring than Algebra 2. I thought this was Indiana Jones, not Blade Runner 1957.

[John 2,032]

I actually just recently watched Crystal Skull for the first time just a few days ago; it's certainly not a bad film. Mediocre, yes, but there's certainly a lot to like about it. The return of Indy and Marion is more than welcome, and I really didn't mind Mutt that much; I actually thought he was a pretty likable character. The visual effects were rather cartoonish at times, but overall, they hold up decently. I also thought the alien subplot was pretty neat; honestly, is the reveal of a South American temple as a hidden UFO really more outlandish than seeing angels of death and a pillar of fire flying out of the Ark of the Covenant in Raiders? Judaism, voodoo magic, and alternate dimensions all coexist in the Indiana Jones universe; who's to say that there isn't any room in the sky for aliens as well? I also really enjoyed the "doom-town" scene as well; if you can get past the ridiculous physics and utter impossibility of Indy's survival in that scene, then you'll make it through the rest of the film. Overall, it's just a fun action movie, and that's really what the Indy series is all about.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

Zzzzzzzzzz....

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Who ever thought Shia was a suitable replacement for Harrison Ford?

[John 2,032]

5 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

Who ever thought Shia was a suitable replacement for Harrison Ford?

 

When did Shia ever replace Harrison Ford in KOTCS? Last time I checked, Ford still played Jones and was the main character. It's even implied in the film that Mutt wouldn't be filling his father's shoes any time soon.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

It was implied heavily Mutt would take over the franchise.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

2 hours ago, The Doctor said:

 

I seem to recall you challenging me on TLW. As we all know, it's my favorite JP and my favorite JW score.

 

I just dived on the opportunity to use the #MeToo hashtag. Seems like everyone else in the world has been sexually harassed except me.

[John 2,032]

3 hours ago, Stefancos said:

It was implied heavily Mutt would take over the franchise.

 

I never once got that impression when watching KOTCS. He's just a supporting character that also serves frequently as the film's comic relief.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Shia Lubuff was big news back then, and they were prepping him for stardom, so I think it was high on the agenda that he'd become the series' new hat hair. But he decided to become an individual instead.

[Thor 7,465]

7 hours ago, JohnSolo said:

 

I never once got that impression when watching KOTCS. He's just a supporting character that also serves frequently as the film's comic relief.

 

Exactly. The final "hat" scene is not intended as a take-over, but rather as a last "Ha! Gotcha!" from Spielberg to the audiences that expected he would. Will be interesting to see if they make any references to Mutt in the 5th movie, though.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,498]

I listened to TLW, yesterday. It really is stupendous, and I'm sorry to say that leaves JP in the shade! So much better. I love the percussion work, on RESCUING SARAH. I would be very interested to see the sheet music for this cue.

[Jay 37,287]

The sheet music to TLW has been all over the internet for a decade

[Josh500 1,615]

4 hours ago, Richard said:

I listened to TLW, yesterday. 

 

For the first time? 

[Naïve Old Fart 9,498]

5 hours ago, Jay said:

The sheet music to TLW has been all over the internet for a decade

 

Thanks, Jay, I'll check it out.

 

 

2 hours ago, Josh500 said:

 

For the first time? 

 

 No. I've owned the CD since May, 1997, but this thread prompted me to take another listen.