Have we heard or seen too much?

[BLUMENKOHL 1,068]

Of course movie ideas will be recycled.

There are 52 (non-basic, as in man vs. himself, man vs. nature, etc.) stories that every literary (written, film, or otherwise) work in the world is built around.

There is no original story, only original plots.

[Delorean90 42]

I don't know what the next level of film music will be, if we will go back to the traditional symphonic style or electronics will dominate for the next 20 years. Will filmmaking change to allow for the more dissonent and atonal styles of Alex North or early Goldsmith to re-appear? Or perhaps sounds might be used more extensively.

It seems to me that the main problem with music in general has been that in the mainstream, when there is a new style or mode of music, anything previous is rejected, for the most part. There are some holdouts, and some assimilation, and certainly nothing we have now would have been possible without what came before, but when jazz started, classical music began a decline. However, with the introduction of jazz, there was more of a simultaneous acceptance, it seems, and at the same time an experimentation and mingling of jazz with other styles, like with Gershwin, for instance. Then rock and roll came to the forefront, and pushed the other styles aside. Even within the realms of jazz, very often there was a clashing between the traditionalists and the newer jazz proponents of fusion, bebop, and others. And now finally it's gotten to where anything that isn't in the box of the mainstream, computerized blah, is unaccepted.

Of course I'm generalizing and simplifying, here, but the basic trend has been replacement of styles as opposed to the addition of styles. And this wouldn't be a problem if the mainstream consumption wasn't such a deciding factor in the production and distribution of creative things.

Anyway, what I'm getting at is that what would be ideal is more of a balance, of exploration of new ideas, combinations of old and new, and further exploration of older styles and formats. And I think that is still possible.

[Bryant Burnette 654]

2 trailers I saw today had the MV generic crap and synth choir going on

Prince Caspian and Wanted

We're in agreement on the music in the Prince Caspian trailer. It's odious, and almost makes me not want to see the movie.

[A24 4,327]

There is no original story, only original plots.

Plot and story are the same.

[BLUMENKOHL 1,068]

False.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

I'm sick of these scores like Star Wars, Close Encounters and E.T. that do nothing but draw attention to themselves and distract from the movie. I mean, I'm trying to watch a movie here, not a musical or an opera! Watch a movie with a John Williams or Jerry Goldsmith score, and you'll find it's too damn loud and sometimes too artsy and original. Take Alien for instance, people would just laugh at that and see it as nothing more than some composer trying to show off how great they are at standing out from the crowd. What's needed is film music that has no real identity and can be interchanged with any cue from any other score that sounds just like it. The music can't be bad, but it can't be that much good either, so the movie won't be overwhelmed by the music. Simplify the music by computerizing it and having certain chords that correspond with "action", "good", "evil", "melancholy", and the audience won't know the difference - some may even fanatically embrace it. We have no room for "trained film composers" who think they can leave their mark or signature on our movies.

Only that way will film music be doing its job.

[A24 4,327]

False.

You tell tell the same story in a 1000 different ways. It's the style that makes it unique.

[QMM 4]

There is no original story, only original plots.

Plot and story are the same.

Have you ever taken an English class?

[Bryant Burnette 654]

I'm sick of these scores like Star Wars, Close Encounters and E.T. that do nothing but draw attention to themselves and distract from the movie. I mean, I'm trying to watch a movie here, not a musical or an opera! Watch a movie with a John Williams or Jerry Goldsmith score, and you'll find it's too damn loud and sometimes too artsy and original. Take Alien for instance, people would just laugh at that and see it as nothing more than some composer trying to show off how great they are at standing out from the crowd. What's needed is film music that has no real identity and can be interchanged with any cue from any other score that sounds just like it. The music can't be bad, but it can't be that much good either, so the movie won't be overwhelmed by the music. Simplify the music by computerizing it and having certain chords that correspond with "action", "good", "evil", "melancholy", and the audience won't know the difference - some may even fanatically embrace it. We have no room for "trained film composers" who think they can leave their mark or signature on our movies.

Only that way will film music be doing its job.

Sadly, I've read reviews that say with a straight face what you say here with a grin.

My thoughts are that music in a movie primarily exists to enhance the emotional experience of watching it. A good score, in my opinion, is whatever accomplishes that goal. Within that relatively simple framework, there is room for just about any kind of music -- it could be non-original songs (American Graffiti), it could be a huge symphony orchestra (Star Wars), it could be synthesizer-based (Blade Runner), or it could be whatever Donnie Darko and The Royal Tenenbaums and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind are.

What works for the movie works for me.

[Henry B 50]

That famous quote that the best score is one that is unnoticeable is wrong (the director I work with is fond of telling me that, though... haha). A great score can be memorable and noticeable while not distracting from the performances of the actors.

[Bryant Burnette 654]

That famous quote that the best score is one that is unnoticeable is wrong (the director I work with is fond of telling me that, though... haha). A great score can be memorable and noticeable while not distracting from the performances of the actors.

I've always taken "the score should be unnoticeable" to really mean only this: that the movie should be so good, and the score such an integral part of it, that the audience kinda forgets they're watching a movie, and just begins to exist inside the world of the movie. This still happens to me for brief amounts of time when I watch a truly great movie, but it's mostly a pipe dream. Still, a good goal for filmmakers to shoot for, I think.

[A24 4,327]

There is no original story, only original plots.

Plot and story are the same.

Have you ever taken an English class?

Blah, blah, blah. The questions here is, "have you?" Clearly not.

[QMM 4]

There is no original story, only original plots.

Plot and story are the same.

Have you ever taken an English class?

Blah, blah, blah. The questions here is, "have you?" Clearly not.

Plot and story are not the same thing. Plot is just one part of a story; it’s a series of events linked by either external circumstances or by the character’s actions. Story is a cohesive frame that binds the theme, premise, events and emotional development.

Or if you want to get technical

Apart from the distinction between the two levels story and discourse, which is part of structuralist terminology, there is an older tradition which differentiates between story and plot. These two terms overlap only partly with the terms story and discourse. Since the terms story and plot are still used frequently in English Studies, one needs to be aware of their meaning. The basic difference between story and plot was pointed out by Aristotle, who distinguishes between actions in the real world and units that are selected from these and arranged in what he calls mythos (Aristotle 1953). The terms story and plot as used in English Studies were introduced and defined by the novelist and critic E.M. Forster in his Aspects of the Novel.

Forster defines story as the chronological sequence of events and plot as the causal and logical structure which connects events

[indy4 155]

That famous quote that the best score is one that is unnoticeable is wrong (the director I work with is fond of telling me that, though... haha). A great score can be memorable and noticeable while not distracting from the performances of the actors.

I agree. (Almost) Nothing makes me enjoy a film more than a sudden burst of excellent music, resulting in a sudden burst of adrenaline.

[A24 4,327]

Plot is just one part of a story; it’s a series of events linked by either external circumstances or by the character’s actions.

Forster defines story as the chronological sequence of events and plot as the causal and logical structure which connects events

Both speak of a series of events. Let's say that story is a series of events and plot a series of events expanded with motivation. That's close enough to be the same, especially seen in the light in which the statement has been made (about originality).

BTW, this is from the same article where you got your technical info:

Some critics even claim that the distinction between plot and story is artificial and of no practical use in the analysis of literature.

This tells me the alleged difference between story and plot isn't widely accepted.

Alex

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Sadly, I've read reviews that say with a straight face what you say here with a grin.

Really? I'd like to see those.

[QMM 4]

Both speak of a series of events. Let's say that story is a series of events and plot a series of events expanded with motivation. That's close enough to be the same,

Story is what happens, plot is how it happens. An outline is not the same as a completed novel is it?

Some critics even claim that the distinction between plot and story is artificial and of no practical use in the analysis of literature.

This tells me the alleged difference between story and plot isn't widely accepted.

It's been accepted in every writing course I've ever taken.

[BLUMENKOHL 1,068]

It is universally accepted that plotting is the arrangement of story elements in a work. Story is just a linear progression of events.

Even the drop-out Quentin Tarintino accepts it.

Some critics even claim that the distinction between plot and story is artificial and of no practical use in the analysis of literature.

Said critics are idiots who also believe that the meaning of a novel would not be affected if it were told exactly the same way in reverse.