Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted October 15, 2011 Share Posted October 15, 2011 I finally got myself to watch Happy Feet in a complete form. I've had both soundtracks for some time now, but for some reason the idea of dancing and singing penguins seemed not to be appealing to me. But recently, I started listening to the soundtracks again and I started thinking that such good music at least could make up for a bad movie.Luckily, the movie is actually quite good and entertaining. It's not a masterpiece, of course, and it has its flaws, but its an animated film that tries something a little different and more mature and it succeeds. It almost has a Don Bluth quality to it, something which shouldn't surprise me considering how this movie was inspired by a Don Bluth movie that I prefer not to mention.The animation is fantastic, the direction is magnificent, the visuals are incredible, the voice talents demonstrate how talented they are and the dances are pure fun to watch. But it's the music that makes the film. And I'm not talking about the songs -which, however, are fantastically arranged by Powell-, but more of the actual score itself. The serious cues really take the icing of the cake, demonstrating how mature Powell can be when assigned with the right project.Just listen to this and tell me that it doesn't give you chills...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KZCX9sHI4gSimply amazing. I think this one has become my second favorite Powell score, right behind HTTYD.For some reason, I'm really interested in seeing and hearing what will he do with Happy Feet 2, although the trailers look absouletly dreadful and not at all in tone with the original film. But we'll see, the trailers for the first film seemed silly too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Penna 3,662 Posted October 15, 2011 Share Posted October 15, 2011 That cue demonstrates how good Powell is at writing simple but catchy themes.Every single animated movie he does comes with at least one insanely memorable theme. His dramatic efforts less so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marian Schedenig 8,153 Posted October 15, 2011 Share Posted October 15, 2011 Remarkable suite. The performance of the romantic theme is heart-wrenching.And I love how he finishes See You Tomorrow off with the final part of Test Drive. Wow.Shame about the idiotic audience clapping bit though. Quite embarrassing, especially since they didn't mention that in the rehearsals, so even those of us in the audience who were there were completely unprepared. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 Samples from Happy Feet Two are up! Thanks to FSM for letting me know...http://www.amazon.com/Happy-Feet-Two-Original-Soundtrack/dp/B0064WL2UA/ref=sr_shvl_album_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1320885191&sr=301-3 The samples from Powell's score are too short to judge, but so far it doesn't sound as good as the first score. However, I'll reserve full jugdement until the score's out, as his cues seem to be quite lenghty. Tappin' To Freedom sounds very impressive. And the arrangemente for Rawhide is AMAZING! Powell desperately needs to do a western. You listening, Tarantino? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted November 17, 2011 Share Posted November 17, 2011 Some wonderful arrangements for Happy Feet Two: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Penna 3,662 Posted November 17, 2011 Share Posted November 17, 2011 I'm not a fan of how pop-culture it sounds - like Shrek was at points.But I do like that first track. Some really nice score material in the background too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 According to IMDb, Powell is finally going to work with Pixar in a Toy Story-themed short, called "Small Fry"...http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2033372/fullcredits#castCan somebody confirm this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neimoidian 14 Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 I listened to HF2 and it's preety good. In terms of writing, it's much lighter than HTTYD, thus more enjoyable for me, but it lacks equally interesting thematic basis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Penna 3,662 Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 The Huddle theme makes one appearance, but other than that it is rather light on themes.Other than that, it's good, functional music, but nothing special. HTTYD has the benefit of being the sole musical focus - it doesn't have songs to work around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,249 Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Varese will release John Powell's score to The Lorax on March 20th:http://www.varesesarabande.com/servlet/the-1023/Dr.-Seuss%27-The-Lorax/Detail Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alicebrallice 134 Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 I'm not a big powell fan, I do however love the how to train your dragon score (shocking!).listening through the mars needs moms score atm... not too bad, kind of reminds me of HTTYD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Coscina 3 Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Check out Powell's Hancock and X Men 3. He has some nice cues on that as well. Welcome to this forum as well Alice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faleel 5,326 Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 I find that I prefer Chicken Run to HTTYD, the underscore/non action cues in HTTYD just do not seem as interesting as the ones in CR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,249 Posted February 3, 2012 Share Posted February 3, 2012 The Lorax info and track list:http://www.varesesar...he-Lorax/DetailIsn't that short (both in number of tracks and total length) for a Powell release? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
publicist 4,643 Posted February 3, 2012 Share Posted February 3, 2012 Thankfully yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted February 3, 2012 Share Posted February 3, 2012 I believe Powell wrote a bunch of original songs for the film, so maybe there's a separate release for the songs? Like Happy Feet.Most of the track titles sound intriguing... Wasteland, Valley Exodus, Funeral for a Tree... It could be a lot more mature than we are expecting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted February 3, 2012 Share Posted February 3, 2012 I wonder if it will be in the same vein as Horton. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted April 1, 2012 Share Posted April 1, 2012 Is Powell's D-Tox any good? IMDb lists it as his only horror picture, so I thought it could be interesting, but I can't find any info on the internet about it...Anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 A wonderful suite from a wonderful Powell score I didn't know about. Endurance.http://www.dailymoti...urance-19_musicGreat stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 Endurance is indeed great.I was listening to The Bourne Ultimatum the other day and I still couldn't get over how awesome "Tangiers" was. One of the best action cues of the past several years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtwfan 1 Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 I'm not a big powell fan, I do however love the how to train your dragon score (shocking!).listening through the mars needs moms score atm... not too bad, kind of reminds me of HTTYD.Ditto. HTTYD is a great score. My take on "Romantic Flight" is below with more HTTYD recordings coming soon (www.youtube.com/user/DenverDebonair) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,249 Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 JOHN POWELL TO PERFORM AT THE VARÈSE SARABANDE 35th ANNIVERSARY GALA!Another exciting announcement about the quickly approaching Varèse Sarabande 35th Anniversary Concert Gala with the Golden State Pops Orchestra ... the great John Powell will be joining our epic anniversary line-up! John Powell is one of the best and busiest film composers in the world. He keeps us very busy at Varèse Sarabande and we couldn't be happier about it ... How To Train Your Dragon, The Lorax, The Bourne Identity, Horton Hears A Who!, Hancock, Kung Fu Panda 2, Paycheck, The Italian Job, Ice Age 3 &4, The Bourne Supremacy, X-Men 3, Rio, Robots, United '93 and many more! Don't miss John Powell conducting the GSPO on May 11, 2013 as part of Varèse Sarabande's historic anniversary festivities! Tickets are selling fast. http://www.gspo.com/season.phphttps://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=619993751347402&set=a.526956143984497.130599.100000103483647&type=1 Muad'Dib 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt C 452 Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 And he's also reuniting with Sergio Mendes to score Rio 2:http://filmmusicreporter.com/2013/02/23/john-powell-and-sergio-mendes-to-return-for-rio-2-2/Wish his return to film scoring wasn't a Blue Sky or DWA film... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 Nice! Do we know what he will be performing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony 572 Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 I would imagine How To Train Your Dragon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck 154 Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 Remarkable suite. The performance of the romantic theme is heart-wrenching.And I love how he finishes See You Tomorrow off with the final part of Test Drive. Wow.Shame about the idiotic audience clapping bit though. Quite embarrassing, especially since they didn't mention that in the rehearsals, so even those of us in the audience who were there were completely unprepared.If you noticed carefully, it's the conductor's fault; he prompted the audience to start clapping along. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marian Schedenig 8,153 Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 Yes, but that could mean that he did it of his own accord or was told to do so by the producers. Axelrod has been a great conductor for this series, but I have a feeling he was all too happy to fulfill all the producers' ideas to make the concerts more Octoberfest-y. Possibly the reason why Mauceri never returned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted March 15, 2013 Share Posted March 15, 2013 I found a little gem from Powell's early carreer at composing, a short french animated horror film, and it features some very interesting music!http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xcw54r_les-escarpins-sauvages-de-thierry-e_shortfilms#.UUObJhcz2SoI don't know how much of that is his, but it's still very interesting! I wish he did more of that kind of music. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Powell did a Q&A for Spitfire Audio, and he mocks the whole interview process. Seems really bitter towards the changing industry, but his responses are hilarious and insightful at the same time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A. A. Ron 1,736 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Geez, who pissed in his cheerios? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crocodile 7,973 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Is it for real?Karol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 I assume so, why wouldn't it be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KK 3,307 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Sounds like an April Fool's joke to me.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crocodile 7,973 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Yeah, it feels like Daily Mash or Onion News Network.Karol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pieter Boelen 740 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Definitely doesn't look serious. At all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 April Fools was over a week ago. There's no date on that page so I can't be sure when it was uploaded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLUMENKOHL 1,068 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 I don't think that's an April Fools joke. It was posted Sunday 7th of April: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brónach 1,301 Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Apparently, he's blunt like that.As for not listening to film music, I'll justJOHN WILLIAMS OR DEATH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted April 10, 2013 Share Posted April 10, 2013 He writes as pissed off as Steef or Quint when they're angry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,249 Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Question: What happened to Powell?For a while in the late 2000s and early 2010s, he was getting typecast as a scorer of animated films only. I mean, in the 5 year span of 2008 - 2012, he scored ELEVEN animated films, and only 6 live action. And, he hasn't scored ANY live action films since 2010.I thought I remembered reading in this thread that post-Lorax and Ice Age 4, he had a bunch of live action films in the works - Mad Max 4, Captain something or other, and some other one (I can't find the posts now).But now it looks like he won't be scoring ANY 2013 films, and the only 2 films he has for 2014 are both animated (HTTYD2 and Rio 2).Did he decide to take time off? Or is he just not getting offered live action gigs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crocodile 7,973 Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Powell did a Q&A for Spitfire Audio, and he mocks the whole interview process. Seems really bitter towards the changing industry, but his responses are hilarious and insightful at the same time.Karol - still not sure how to read it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 I thought this was discussed in detail? He took time off, presumably to spend more time with family, but after his most recent interview it seems he's fed up with the Hollywood system. A shame, since I was looking forward to his next Miller, Greengrass, and Liman films. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,249 Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 I thought so too but I can't find the posts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 Some news regarding HTTYD 2:DreamWorks Animation held a small filmmaker panel at Comic-Con today, and director Dean DuBois revealed that Jonsi will be working with John Powell, who worked on the music for the original film, and write three songs for How to Train Your Dragon 2, just like his Sticks and Stones track on the first film.Also, Cate Blanchett, Kit Harrington and Dijimon Honsou have been added to the cast.http://www.firstshowing.net/2013/how-to-train-your-dragon-2-gains-composer-jonsi-more-voice-cast/Three songs, huh? I wonder what does that mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 That there will be 3 songs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,800 Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 Yeah, but I mean how will it be used on the film. One is for the end credits I'm sure, but I hope they don't use the other two for the flying sequences. Let Powell do his thing like he did on the first one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
publicist 4,643 Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 I thought so too but I can't find the posts.http://www.spitfireaudio.com/john-powell-exclusive-qa.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faleel 5,326 Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 Yeah, but I mean how will it be used on the film. One is for the end credits I'm sure, but I hope they don't use the other two for the flying sequences. Let Powell do his thing like he did on the first one.source music hopefully. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 Happy Feet had a ton of songs and his score still had room to shine. There's no issue here, especially since he'll probably be arranging and producing them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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