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Docteur Qui

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  1. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to Aliandra in 11 film composers named their favorite John Williams score   
    https://planetradio.co.uk/scala-radio/entertainment/movies/mark-kermode-a-john-williams-birthday-special/
     
    Rachel Portman: Schindler's List:
     
    "My favourite score of John Williams' is Schindler's List and in particular the main theme. I hugely admire all his film work and in particular his complex rich orchestration to compliment his musical ideas, but for me, there's something even more elevating in his theme for Schindler's List. I think it's the deep humanity and grief he expresses in the violin melody that resonates so fully with the story. It moved me so much when I first heard it. Wishing him a very happy birthday!"
     
    Anne Dudley: The Witches of Eastwick:
     
    "A score full of wit and sparkle. It seems in many ways to prefigure the "Harry Potter" scores with its big colourful orchestration, glittering percussion and celeste. It captures the devilish humour of the film so well. "The Dance of the Witches", as you might expect builds to a frenzy and when the trumpets take the tune towards to end the woodwind, strings and percussion provide a positively manic backdrop. But the track ends quite quietly, almost with a little wink".
     
    Nainita Desai: Memoirs of a Geisha:
     
    "John Williams's music has been a huge inspiration to me, particularly his use of strong melodies and themes which formed a part of my musical awakening to film scores as a kid. The music from Raiders, Close Encounters and ET have been eternal ear worms for me and the reason why I fell in love with walking out of a cinema whistling a good tune. "I have a soft spot for Sayuri's Theme from Memoirs of a Geisha. The score is mesmerising and the Japanese influence is very cleverly interwoven into the score becoming part of the fabric of the film. "Along with various oriental instruments, William's draws upon renowned cellist Yo-Yo-Ma and violinist Itzhak Perlman who performed on Schindler's List. The atmosphere is delicate, intimate and perfectly captures the grace and beauty of the film. It was a touchstone for me when I composed the score for Enemy Within, a WW2 drama that also required a Japanese influence."
     
    Mychael Danna: Home Alone:
     
    "Hmm I know it's not quite the right season just now, but if I'm going to be honest: My Very Favourite JW score, is Home Alone. The Maestro takes a rather cheezy B-movie, and gives it a high class, masterfully orchestrated A-movie musical score, which singlehandedly transforms Home Alone into a must see Christmas Classic. That simple melody of the Main Title theme sums up the fun, warmth, nostalgia and play that is Christmas. This movie would be forgotten, not an evergreen classic, without this score, and that's the proof of the power of his music. A great track is Man of the House… a pudding of mayhem, magic and mischief.
     
    Harry Gregson-Williams - Jurassic Park:
     
    "Of course, I love and admire John Williams' scores. The main theme he wrote for Schindler's List is sublime and created the perfect, heart wrenching emotions that that film just had to have. "However, after an unexpected experience I had in Prague a few years ago, maybe my favourite cue is from Jurassic Park. I had the pleasure of conducting a couple of suites of my own scores in the first half of a symphonic concert and JW's Jurassic Park was scheduled to be played during the second half of the program that night. Of course I'd heard this score before, but never quite how I did that evening. From my position backstage I was able to creep unseen in to a vantage position on the stage floor best described as 'within the brass section!' Being in such close proximity to the players as theme soars and takes off was an unforgettably exhilarating moment."
     
    Michael Giacchino - The Witches of Eastwick:
     
    "I have always loved the Witches of Eastwick score - Along with the brilliant melodic aspect of the writing, John's use of both full orchestra and smaller ensemble has always intrigued me. He managed to create both a wonderfully romantic and at the same time atonal and frightening sonic soundscape which gave an incredibly unique sound to this score".
     
    Brian Tyler - Born on the Fourth of July:
     
    "There are too many masterpieces to name from John Williams. But one in particular that really stirred my soul was 'Born on the Fourth of July.' His emotional depth is heard in the music here: the stoic strings, restrained in their tragedy, along with beautiful trumpet melodies. This is a score that should not be missed. I love everything he has done and I am also moved to tears by 'ET' and so many others. As popular as John Williams is as a composer, I have always maintained that he is actually underrated. Brilliant."
     
    Lorne Balfe - JFK:
     
    "You can close your eyes and the score tells the story of the movie perfectly. The mixture of patriotic themes and conspiracy blends perfectly together . The haunting main theme reflects the loss of a country's hero."
     
    Segun Akinola - Memoirs of a Geisha:
     
    "I absolutely love John Williams' score for Memoirs of a Geisha. If I had to choose a favourite from the soundtrack release it has to be Sayuri's theme. The composition, coupled with the performance of Yo-yo Ma, is so emotional and I think it's played a big part in informing the solo cello sound that I like. I often find myself humming the theme, even if I haven't watched the film recently".
     
    Patrick Doyle - Close Encounters of the Third Kind:

    "I am a huge science fiction fan and I will never forget watching 'Close Encounters' in Glasgow's Greens Playhouse in the 1970s. The theatre had a two and half thousand seat capacity and a screen the size of the city itself!vI sat on the balcony for the full vista and audio experience and was captivated. I had no idea I would become a composer one day, but I revelled in the drama and music. When I saw the scientist, played by François Truffaut, make a hand signal to the visitors using John Williams' famous contact theme, I recognised this fine detail, as I was taught the same choral teaching method at my primary school. It would have meant very little to most people in the audience but, as a music boffin, it made the experience even more special and memorable.
     
    Germaine Franco - E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial:
     
    "I have been inspired by John Williams' music since I was a child. He is one of the true pillars of film scoring! He has set the standard very high for all other film composers. His contributions to music reach beyond the world of film scoring. In short, he is an entire musical universe unto himself. He is simply the best! My favorite John Williams score is E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. This score is the epitome of storytelling through music. I still remember seeing that movie when it came out as a young musician. It made a huge impact on me. There are so many amazing cues in that film. It is hard for me to just pick one favorite cue. However, if asked to choose only one, it would be: Escape / Chase / Saying Goodbye Soundtrack Reissue (2002)"
  2. Confused
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from bruce marshall in What is the last Television series you watched?   
    LOST is definitely in my top 10, probably top 5 even. For all its shortfalls, the ambition and scope was unlike anything else that came before, and the influence it had on the television landscape in terms of what you could actually do on the small screen is still felt 18 years after its stellar debut. There would be no Game of Thrones or “golden age of television” without it. And it was a network show, not even prestige cable! 
     
    I’m so glad Lindelof is still writing. The Leftovers and Watchmen were really special. I really hope we see him tackle something at the same scale as LOST one day, preferably new and not an existing IP.
  3. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to Jay in MV Gerhard of La-La Land Records: "It's a harsh reality, but digital won"   
    Because Varese the same same label as the OST, already owning the rights.
     
    In other words, Varese released the original score album for The Matrix, so they are the only entity with the music rights for that score.  They can fund expansions that license the unreleased music that wasn't on the OST from WB Pictures if they want to, and release it anyway they want.
     
    For most score expansions though, it's a third party coming in that makes them happen at all.  For example, Intrada was the third party for Back To The Future II, licensing the music rights from UMG (because they inherited them when they absorbed MCA Records, who released the OST and had the music rights), the unreleased music from Universal Pictures, via a contract with both parties that stipulated they could sell X copies on physical CD - and that's it.
     
    So that's why Varese's expansion of BTTF3 is on all digital platforms, but the BTTF 1 and 2 expansions are not.
     
    So in other words, an entity like, say, Sony Classical, who released the Tintin OST, could very well choose to release a 2CD complete edition of that score, since they own the music rights, if they felt like hiring a producer to manage it, and felt like paying the AFM fees for the unreleased music.  It's just that these major labels don't really have anyone in them that care about film sore expansions (and when they do, they screw it up like Sony's Ghostbusters albums), while Varese absolutely has someone there who understands film score expansions and pursues them.
     
    I hope that makes sense
  4. Sad
    Docteur Qui reacted to Jay in MV Gerhard of La-La Land Records: "It's a harsh reality, but digital won"   
    When asked about the potential for future seasons of The Orville continuing to get physical CD editions from La-La Land Records, MV Gerhard said this:
     
    "Seasons 1 and 2 sold very poorly. We are out of the Orville business regardless of what network it's on. Sadly, No one bought it."
     
    and then
     
    "I just want to clarify that we absolutely love and adore the show and it's music. The unfortunate thing is no one cares about cds for new TV shows or films anymore. From time to time we will do a CD release of a new project but the only reason we are still in business is because of titles like Field of Dreams or Xmen...Fiddler on the Roof or Star Trek. That's what consumers want on CD and/or vinyl...not the new stuff. Why pay $15 or $20 for a CD when you can just stream it for free because some asshole puts it up on YouTube or other sites like bittorrent? Or if you pay a few bucks a month for Spotify or Amazon you can literally stream all the new product you want for practically nothing. It's a harsh reality but digital won."
     
    Discuss!
  5. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to Koray Savas in What is the last Television series you watched?   
    The Leftovers is brilliant. As you said, it has the mythological and philosophical trappings of LOST, but without any of the filler. LOST still comes out on top for me, because of the sheer scope and visceral narrative, but The Leftovers is easily a Top 10 series for me. 
     
    Carrie Coon and Anne Dowd are brilliant here. 
  6. Like
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from Koray Savas in What is the last Television series you watched?   
    Loved reading your thoughts on The Leftovers @Marian Schedenig, I watched the whole thing a year ago and was floored by it. I remember starting it a while back and couldn't get into the first few episodes, I found Theroux' character unlikeable and it wasn't doing much for me. But I'm glad I gave it a second go. I agree with you on the jolting change in tone that occurs through the run, particularly between seasons 1 and 2. I remember watching the prologue in the second season premiere and thinking I accidentally clicked on a completely different show, and then the new title sequence and song happened and I thought I was being pranked. Such a huge departure from Max Richter's gothic and serious title theme (and general tone) from the first season. 
     
    But I stayed on board and was rewarded for it. It's definitely a show that challenges its audience with swings like that; it's fairly experimental even by prestige cable standards, but it's held together by some seriously compelling work by Coon, Dowd, Eccleston (accent notwithstanding) and especially Regina King in S2, who was a revelation for me. Theroux is surprisingly funny in a very serious and complex role - I hadn't seen much of him before but he's a wildly talented actor. Richter's score is gorgeous, haunting and memorable. The writing is top-notch, taking the philosophical intrigue and supernatural/mystery elements from LOST but with far more conviction, nuance and skill. Unlike LOST it's clear from the outset that we're watching a character study and that everything else is just window dressing, and doesn't fall into the former's trap of making the mystery too much of a hook and alienating audiences with an "it was all about the characters" bait-and-switch. And to top it all off, parts of season 3 were filmed in Melbourne (where I live), with further scenes filmed not far from where I grew up. It was an extremely surreal experience, something that has never happened to me before, and only added to the effect the show had on me. One year on and I'm confident in saying it's in the top 3 series that I've ever watched. 
  7. Like
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from Marian Schedenig in What is the last Television series you watched?   
    Loved reading your thoughts on The Leftovers @Marian Schedenig, I watched the whole thing a year ago and was floored by it. I remember starting it a while back and couldn't get into the first few episodes, I found Theroux' character unlikeable and it wasn't doing much for me. But I'm glad I gave it a second go. I agree with you on the jolting change in tone that occurs through the run, particularly between seasons 1 and 2. I remember watching the prologue in the second season premiere and thinking I accidentally clicked on a completely different show, and then the new title sequence and song happened and I thought I was being pranked. Such a huge departure from Max Richter's gothic and serious title theme (and general tone) from the first season. 
     
    But I stayed on board and was rewarded for it. It's definitely a show that challenges its audience with swings like that; it's fairly experimental even by prestige cable standards, but it's held together by some seriously compelling work by Coon, Dowd, Eccleston (accent notwithstanding) and especially Regina King in S2, who was a revelation for me. Theroux is surprisingly funny in a very serious and complex role - I hadn't seen much of him before but he's a wildly talented actor. Richter's score is gorgeous, haunting and memorable. The writing is top-notch, taking the philosophical intrigue and supernatural/mystery elements from LOST but with far more conviction, nuance and skill. Unlike LOST it's clear from the outset that we're watching a character study and that everything else is just window dressing, and doesn't fall into the former's trap of making the mystery too much of a hook and alienating audiences with an "it was all about the characters" bait-and-switch. And to top it all off, parts of season 3 were filmed in Melbourne (where I live), with further scenes filmed not far from where I grew up. It was an extremely surreal experience, something that has never happened to me before, and only added to the effect the show had on me. One year on and I'm confident in saying it's in the top 3 series that I've ever watched. 
  8. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to Marian Schedenig in What is the last Television series you watched?   
    The Leftovers. I'd seen the first season when it came out (or perhaps shortly afterwards), but had missed the rest. Amazon.fr had the complete series for €25, so I could finally watch it in full.
     
    Ultimately, a rather odd and incongruent experience. In many ways, it reminded me of Lost - starting out with a mystery that's just the motor for an almost entirely character focused first season, but then gradually turning more and more towards the mystery aspect. But where Lost keeps the story going by answering a few of the questions it raises and twisting more of them into further questions and mysteries (and in the end leaving probably not more unresolved threads than is to be expected), Leftovers keeps bringing up new questions out of the blue and then mostly just dropping them unceremoniously. Some (or perhaps much) of it is clearly intentional and amounts to a fittingly bleak and nihilistic view of the Departure and what it "means", and some things are successfully kept ambivalent throughout - but much of that is rather compromised by more and more mystery and supernatural stuff creeping into the main plot. To the point where it doesn't seem feasible anymore to write it all off as delusions and characters going astray, and even if it were, it would reduce most of the questions raised by the show (even the "serious" ones) to mere MacGuffins, driving a plot that no longer focuses on just the characters, but ultimately amounts to nothing on that front. The whole serious starts out as a reasonably profound elaboration on loss (of people, of meaning, of security) and grows into a big mystery comedy that tries to be so many contrasting things at once that they cancel each other out. Films and series have been written of as pretentious for much less.
     
    Still, the whole thing is entertaining throughout, enough so that I watched it in just one week. The serious aspects, especially in the first and much of the second seasons, are convincing and gripping (and the view on religion/cults, conspiracy delusions, and radicalisation in a post-traumatic world seems strikingly (and rather eerily) spot on during the pandemic). The comedy, while I think often at odds with everything else, is often hilarious. The characters are strong, and the cast is mostly very good - personal favourites are Carrie Coon and Scott Glenn. I just can't say that I ultimately find it all half as convincing as I did halfway through.
     
     
    Afterwards, I moved straight on to Mr Robot. Loving it so far, I binged the entire first season in two days.
  9. Love
    Docteur Qui reacted to Bespin in What is the last Television series you watched?   
    I just started "9-1-1: Lone Star".
     
    Interesting. 🔥
     

  10. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to mrbellamy in Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 5-film series   
    Animated would probably be the way to go if someone wanted to redo the whole series. Easier on kid actors. Idk who really needs to see the whole thing attempted live-action again. 
     
    I always thought the obvious prequel idea would have just been to take the backstory in the books that never made it into the movies and just do some miniseries event. Hogwarts Founders, Dumbledore/Grindelwald, Tom Riddle, Marauders, First Wizard War up to Harry. 
  11. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to Holko in Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 5-film series   
    That's why Yates baffles me. Sure he might be easy to work with but he completely neutered and watered down the brand.
  12. Thanks
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from Holko in Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 5-film series   
    I think it's a shame that JKR, WB and the Wizarding World brand are so gung-ho about "canonising" the film series as the definitive media portrayal of the Potter world. Now we're in the golden age of streaming, imagine a 10-episode, 7-season long adaptation of the novels with HBO money! It will never happen of course; there's no financial benefit in re-adapting such a successful series with such strong branding, plus casting child actors who can both act convincingly and commit to 8+ years would be a nightmare - something the films struggled with enough is it is. But I'd have loved it if a gifted showrunner got the chance to do something like that.
     
    The best parts of the books aren't the complicated plots or whodunnits (though they are occasionally appealing); it's the everyday stuff; seeing the students in class, learning new spells, exploring the grounds, world-building stuff. A longer form of storytelling could really lean into those aspects. It's the reason the FB franchise has fallen so flat; it's full of boring characters, overly complicated plots and fan-servicey cameos/references, and the wizarding world as it has been portrayed since OotP just doesn't feel like any fun. Spells aren't really spells; characters just use wands as guns or shields and it feels like watching a video game. 
     
    I look forward to a Lucas-esque reacquisition of the brand, but I'm not holding my breath on that, if there's one thing JKR has shown the world it's how much of a tight grip she has on her IP. At the very least, expand with some ambition and imagination. An animated prequel series set during the founding of Hogwarts produced by Cuarón or Terry Gilliam would be a dream.
  13. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to Alex in Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 5-film series   
    I just want Cuaron involved in HP in some capacity. I spot something new every time I watch POA.
  14. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to crumbs in Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 5-film series   
    The marketing demonstrates what a thoroughly soulless, cynical exercise this franchise is.
     
    So lacking in inspiration that, only three films in, they're relying entirely on characters and locations used ad nauseam in 9 previous films.
  15. Like
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from Bofur01 in The Doctor Who Thread.....   
    Seems extremely unlikely.
     
    What is likely is that Tennant is coming back for the 60th. And I can only hope that means Smith and Capaldi are coming back too. I can already hear Twelve ragging on Ten for his footwear and haircut, just like War did. 
  16. Like
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from Tom Guernsey in The Doctor Who Thread.....   
    Seems extremely unlikely.
     
    What is likely is that Tennant is coming back for the 60th. And I can only hope that means Smith and Capaldi are coming back too. I can already hear Twelve ragging on Ten for his footwear and haircut, just like War did. 
  17. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to Jay in Harry Potter 7CD Collection - MUSIC discussion   
    I think it blurs the line between source music and scoring.  From a listening standpoint, you certainly want the theme introduced this way in the score proper, and not only exist as a bonus track
     
    Personally I like the shorter version with the new opening properly flowing into it in the main program, and the full untouched recording as a bonus track
  18. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to Arpy in Star Trek: Picard (2020 TV Series)   
    Looking forward to Q and Guinan, but the damage season one did to the legacy of TNG and Picard as a character is irreparable. At this point, the tepid antics of Discovery make for a more entertaining Star Trek show than seeing some of my favourite characters again.
  19. Love
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from MikeH in What do you consider to be Williams “darkest” score?   
    "Epilogue" from The Fury has to be one of the most intensely dark and dispairing pieces Williams has ever written. It's one of my all time favourites of his. But as it's not technically from the film, I guess it doesn't count. Also, "For Gillian" is so light and fluffy it changes the mood of the work as a whole.
     
    I'll also go with War of the Worlds. It's almost wall-to-wall bleak, as even its more hopeful moments are plaintive and understated.
  20. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to crumbs in Scherzo For Motorcycle and Orchestra (revised)   
    It's more of an action motif tied to the Falcon, IMO.
  21. Like
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from bollemanneke in Harry Potter 7CD Collection - Pictures, unboxing videos, and art design / liner notes discussion   
    Vinyl is single-handedly keeping many contemporary musicians afloat in the era of dirt-cheap, royalty-scamming streaming. I love it! A vinyl library also looks great. It's not just for hipsters anymore.
  22. Like
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from bollemanneke in Harry Potter 7CD Collection - Pictures, unboxing videos, and art design / liner notes discussion   
    Hey to be fair that would be pretty amazing! Impractical, sure, but I'd love it!
  23. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to JNHFan2000 in What is the last Television series you watched?   
    Finally started with Succession. Halfway through the 1st season. Wow this show is amazing! I love it so much.
  24. Like
    Docteur Qui reacted to crumbs in What do you consider to be Williams “darkest” score?   
    I love the Epilogue from WOTW more than the equivalent from The Fury. Not only dripping with atmosphere but insanely bleak.
     
    I wouldn't complain if Williams spent the rest of his days just writing Epilogues! They seem to bring out a latent musical darkness within him.
  25. Like
    Docteur Qui got a reaction from crumbs in What do you consider to be Williams “darkest” score?   
    "Epilogue" from The Fury has to be one of the most intensely dark and dispairing pieces Williams has ever written. It's one of my all time favourites of his. But as it's not technically from the film, I guess it doesn't count. Also, "For Gillian" is so light and fluffy it changes the mood of the work as a whole.
     
    I'll also go with War of the Worlds. It's almost wall-to-wall bleak, as even its more hopeful moments are plaintive and understated.
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