Paul Andrew MacLean

What about the "Theme from Sabrina"for the rings? I shot the wedding of one of my best buddies about a year and a half ago, and edited the opening and closing montages to Sabrina. It seems to suit weddings really well. (I made my friend's video for free -- it was my wedding gift -- and no one is going to watch the video except his family, so I figure I'm exempt from copyright issues!)

Best: Tie: Raiders of the Lost Ark and Amistad. Worst: Earthquake (though I admit I have not seen any of those derided 60s comedies he scored).

Back in the 90s, when I saw a trailer for the Young Indiana Jones series, I assumed that the music playing under it was Williams' music for the new series. It was brassy, heroic, melodic, invoked a sense of adventure -- and was quite well-written. Maybe not on the level of the Indiana Jones movies, but up there. I was quite surprised when I later discovered that it was library music -- composed by the highly underrated Richard Harvey. Further on Young Indiana Jones, I'd say Laurence Rosenthal's music for the pilot episode could easily be mistaken for John Williams, in both style and artistry. (And I'm still waiting for the release of this score!)

For me his last truly great score was Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. In fact it might even be the most impressive score he ever wrote. It satiates the appetite for the fantastical but is more substantial that his work for other escapist pictures. Certainly it is his most eclectic score, spanning music styles as diverse as Renaissance, romantic, impressionistic, East European avant garde and even progressive jazz. Although I love the final track on the War Horse CD, and selected cues from The Book Thief and bits of the Star Wars sequels, nothing he's written since Azkaban comes close.

I was really stung by the revelation (in Tim Greiving’s book) that Delbert Mann wanted Williams to score Kidnapped — which is a terrific and very underrated adaptation of Stevenson’s book (much better than the Disney version). Michael Caine heads a great story, with action, suspense, gorgeous locations. John Williams scoring a classic adventure with a Scottish bent. What a missed opportunity.

Of course scheduling was the most obvious issue -- but exhaustion certainly played a role as well. Even if Memoirs of a Geisha hadn’t been made, I’m not sure a man nearing his mid-70s would would be inclined to immediately go into a big fantasy like Goblet of Fire, having just come off a couple of tent poles, and with Munich looming on the horizon.

I love Heartbeeps. No, it's not profound like Schinder's List or Angela's Ashes, and no, it's not epic like Star Wars or Superman, but it is fun, melodic, has beautiful themes -- and has heart (and few composers write music with heart like John Williams). I also find its use of electronics effective and pleasing to the ear; Williams' decision to rely on an EVI as opposed to only keyboards adds a unique character to the score (as a breath-controlled synth, the EVA has more the quality of a woodwind). I remember seeing the movie poster for Heartbeeps as a kid, and being delighted to discover that not only was John Williams scoring it, the poster also included the blurb "Original Soundtrack on MCA Records and Tapes". Unfortunately, the album got cancelled! My only criticism with the eventual CD Club release is that I find it a bit overlong and redundant. I'd love to hear (and see a reissue that includes) Williams' original LP sequence.

And when one considers Williams' obligations in 2005 -- War of the Worlds and Munich (Steven takes priority), Revenge of the Sith (he certainly couldn't blow off the final Star Wars movie; well, we all assumed it to be the final movie at the time!), Memoirs of a Geisha (a passion project) -- it's most likely those assignments (not Newell) are what put Goblet of Fire out of the question. And it's a shame -- I prefer GoF to any of those movies!

10. Dracula 9. Far and Away 8. Hook 7. The Witches of Eastwick 6. Star Wars: The Phantom Menace 5. Angela's Ashes 4. Raiders of the Lost Ark 3. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone 2. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 1. Superman

Most composers were grateful that Williams made traditional scoring fashionable again. Star Wars ushered-in a new respect for the role a score could play in a film -- and not just romantic scores (in the late 70s and early 80s there were also avant garde efforts like Alien and Altered States, jazz-flavored scores like Body Heat, electro-acoustic fusings like Tron, etc.). Georges Delerue decided to move to LA around that time because opportunities were better for a composer in Hollywood than in France. "John made us all lucky with Star Wars because he made symphonic music respectable again." -- Elmer Bernstein (Starlog #103)

I suppose it's a fool's errand to respond to a 2008 comment about an article I wrote in 1997. All the same, the Christopher Young bit was based off an interview with Young, in which he detailed the way he worked with an orchestrator. Maybe Young was lying, maybe his method changed later on, I don't know. I did my research and I know the subject pretty well. I'm not a composer but I studied music theory and music history. I've interviewed many composers over the years -- Corigliano, Jarre, Poledouris, Fenton, Conti, Elmer Bernstein, etc. I've been to LA scoring sessions. A friend and former teacher of mine is a session player and arranger / orchestrator in New York. I'm not a complete ignoramus.

Glad to see Jones' work in this genre given some overdue attention. I would add what is (for me) his most compelling and absorbing score in this style, Angel Heart (featuring the solo sax work of Courtney Pine)... There are moments in his score for Richard III also exhibits that jazzy shadow of doom... Would love to see non-dialog releases of both these scores one of these days.

Ah, my old picture surfaces again. If only Williams hadn't moved and blurred his face!

10) The Reivers 9) Jaws 8) Jaws 2 7) Dracula 6) The Phantom Menace 5) Far and Away 4) Raiders 3) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone 2) Superman: The Movie 1) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

I remember Warner Bros. pushing to re-cast the kids (I believe after he second film) presumably to be able to spend more time on each subsequent movie -- but that idea was nixed in a hurry. Later, Warners wanted to shift production to Eastern Europe (Hungary if I recall right), but the parents of the three leads -- and Rowling -- adamantly resisted this. Chris Columbus' films are to me the most appealing. He accentuates the fantasy, adventure and sentiment with an approach I'd describe as "Spielberg meets Dickens". I always felt Columbus was ideally suited to the material, because I have a hard time believing Rowling was not influenced -- even subconsciously -- by Young Sherlock Holmes. John Williams' score of course further establishes the "Spielberg" tone. I like some of the visual panache which Alfonso Cuarron brought to the third film, but don't care for the dour, unsubtle "real world cynicism" he imposes on the movie. He pushes Rowling's (hitherto subtle) comments on bigotry, inequality, animal rights, etc. (as well as the horror elements) to the fore -- at the expense of the magic and wonder. The result is more social justice sermon than fantasy. Critics hailed Cuarron's movie as "more mature", but think it has didactic and pretentious moments (plus I dislike the pointless continuity breaches with the previous films — the street clothes, completely altering Tom and Professor Flitwick, etc.). And I'll never forgive him for not casting Peter O'Toole as Dumbledore! Mike Newell plays-up the British boarding school experience -- which makes sense, his having been British boarding school boy himself. The book's emphasis on growing-up (in particular how the relationships of boys and girls start to change around the age of 12) is also nicely handled. In terms of interpretation, Newell seems more sympathetic to the Columbus approach of Harry Potter as a fantasy-adventure first and foremost, while retaining some of Cuarron's visual flair. Not a fan of the score though. David Yates' movies were solid -- but they lack the scope of the previous films. I think the fact that Yates had been a TV director, and that the Harry Potter movies are a series to begin with, cause his films to take-on a more perfunctory, "this week's episode" quality. I like his Potter efforts, but I don't feel he brought much to the franchise.