The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

[publicist 4,643]

This score is to David Arnold's output what Desplat's Potter score is the its series, Williams' KOTCS to its series or Elfman's Alice is to his output. They're all competent, but... not... quite... there. At least for the majority.

Karol

ALICE has a better theme than KOTCS, POTTER 7 or NARNIA, that's for sure.

[crocodile 7,984]

Maybe, but that's not what I meant.

Karol

[publicist 4,643]

Maybe, but that's not what I meant.

Karol

Pragmatically speaking, there isn't much more than 5 or 10 minutes of all those scores in my iTunes collection, so ALICE's 5-minute theme surely left the biggest mark.

As for DAWN TREADER, it sounds like a lame John Debney score from the 90's. So much for '2010's most eagerly anticipated release'.

[ChuckM 1]

Well, despite all you complainers, I'm quite enjoying the score. I've listened through it about six times now. No, of course it's not quite up to par with Independence Day, but that's quite a high expectation to live up to.

It's much better than the previous Narnia scores, and I enjoyed them too.

The main theme is actually quite catchy. I've been humming it in my mind ever since first listening to the CD.

I'll be seeing the film tonight.

[King Mark 3,625]

sorry KOTCS does not belong to that list!

the others you mentioned are consistantly meh, KOTCS contains passsages of grandeur, and definately strong musical relation with the preceding films. (some shoehorned like the lc theme but still...)

Yeah it seems with recent Williams scores people focus on the boring tracks (Secret Doors and Scorpions,Oxley's Dilemnas) or a few snippets of re-used music to deem it a forgettable score . But other scores are "salvaged" by a few good tracks (Dawn Trader,HP7)

And the same people who dismiss the RotS and KotCS underscore as uninspired Williams manage to find some deep complexity in the HP7 underscore tracks

[crocodile 7,984]

I like Oxley Dilemma track. I really do, especially the part from the cave.

Karol

[King Mark 3,625]

The complete Jungle Chase is a masterpiece .Too bad it's edited to such a mess on the OST

[Demondm810 398]

The complete Jungle Chase is a masterpiece .Too bad it's edited to such a mess on the OST

Indeed

[John Crichton 4]

It's nice and it's great that it's more thematically driven that most '00s Williams action cues, but the more I listen to it the more I think that most of it is just generic filler in between the themes. I find myself going back more and more to the complete warehouse escape sequence as the score's best action cue. Or A Whirl Through Academe.

[King Mark 3,625]

There's also a large chunk of Jungle Chase towards the end that's still missing from the DVD featurette rip. You can hear a bit more of it in some Lego files and DVD rear channel rips

[ChuckM 1]

Why are we talking about KotCS in the Dawn Treader thread?

[King Mark 3,625]

is this thread about Dawn Trader?

[Muad'Dib 1,800]

Welcome to JW-Fan, where the thread title never matches its content. If you want to talk about Dawn Treader, create a KOTCS thread. Simple as that.

[ChuckM 1]

Welcome to JW-Fan, where the thread title never matches its content. If you want to talk about Dawn Treader, create a KOTCS thread. Simple as that.

Okay.

http://jwfan.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=19593

[Jeff 10]

I just watched the movie and it far exceeded my expectations. I had low expectations, so please don't raise yours and blame it on me if you don't like it. However, the story was much more coherent and forward-driven than the advertising made it seem (I thought they'd just be sailing aimlessly on a ship). The actors were all fantastic and the Son of Rambow kid was delightfully irritating as Eustace (it wasn't till I looked it up afterward that I remembered where I knew him from, it was driving me nuts). Overall, good film. The effects make it worth seeing in theaters - I wouldn't wait for the DVD unless you have a home theater that can do it justice.

[paleo 63]

I saw the movie yesterday, and I thought it was entertaining. I liked that here was more "magic" than in the last movie, and it's really nice to look at. If only it didn't have these preachy overtones repeatedly; some of it is really heavy-handed and hard to stomach in an otherwise "typical" fantasy movie. Oh well, I knew that was to be expected. The music is good; it was the first time this year that I actually fully enjoyed listening to the music while watching the film (i.e., I noticed it, and in a positive way - which is more than most scores achieve these days). Good that my CD arrived today. Btw, I don't mind that the score only has a limited number of themes, but the self-plagiarism is sometimes indeed startling.

[crocodile 7,984]

Yes, he is the strongest contender for the 2010 James Horner Award.

Karol

[ChuckM 1]

If only it didn't have these preachy overtones repeatedly; some of it is really heavy-handed and hard to stomach in an otherwise "typical" fantasy movie. Oh well, I knew that was to be expected.

It was WAY toned down from the book. This is C.S. Lewis we're talking about.

[Matt C 452]

I liked Arnold's score, as it is in the film. I hear a lot of Stargate more than, say, Godzilla or 007. Loathed that Carrie Underwood song -- honestly, they couldn't get Alanis Morrisette again? Having an Underwood song just hammers down the film's religious tones.

[Neimoidian 14]

The score has been growing on me, but I must admit that I find in extremely underwhelming, especially given the amount of expectation I had for this release. It's quite peculiar, because there is so much goodness in in. Some cues are truely gorgeous, probably among the best in his career and definitely among the best written this year, yet other leave me cold or yearning for more - most notably the action cues which are devoid of any thematic material and - as usual - mixed too loud and too dry for my taste.

The main theme is all right, but nothing special compared to the tapestry Arnold has created over the years. The most memorable tune is directly lifted from Godzilla, which was probably someone else's decision, not Arnold's, but nevertheless it doesn't give the score credit. As usual with Arnold there are plenty of smaller melodies and motifs scattered around the score which I find more interesting then the main theme. One of my favourite is the temptation theme presented in Temptation of Lucy / Edmund cues and zanily developed in Dragon's Treasure. Another great one can be heard in The Magician's Island track around 1:29. Brilliant.

Overall VTD is not a score that deserves to be dismissed, but unfortunately it didn't live up to it's potential.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

5 stars!

[Luke Skywalker 1,792]

amazing

[ChuckM 1]

...especially given the amount of expectation I had for this release.

I think that's the key right there. We all put this score up on an impossibly high level of expectation. It could have actually been another Independence Day, and many of us still would have been disappointed.

[Richard Penna 3,670]

I'm definitely one of those overhyped into thinking this would be another ID4.

The main theme is okay, but I'm not hearing the same true emotion that the themes in ID4 had. And in some places I can predict where the melody will go. That's not good.

Overall I'm underwhelmed by the first impressions.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

David Arnold can hardly be blamed for not meeting certain people's expectations. Stargate and ID4 were in an other era, scores like that are no longer in vogue.

Even by the time Godzilla was made Arnold was already approaching things differently.

If I wanna hear a score that sounds like ID4, I play ID4. (or certain tracks from Lair )

But I'm very interesting in a new Arnold fantasy score, so I can't wait to sample his new effort.

[King Mark 3,625]

If only it didn't have these preachy overtones repeatedly; some of it is really heavy-handed and hard to stomach in an otherwise "typical" fantasy movie. Oh well, I knew that was to be expected.

It was WAY toned down from the book. This is C.S. Lewis we're talking about.

In this case it's to be expected, so you know what your in for before you see the movie.

[crocodile 7,984]

David Arnold can hardly be blamed for not meeting certain people's expectations. Stargate and ID4 were in an other era, scores like that are no longer in vogue.

Even by the time Godzilla was made Arnold was already approaching things differently.

If I wanna hear a score that sounds like ID4, I play ID4. (or certain tracks from Lair )

But I'm very interesting in a new Arnold fantasy score, so I can't wait to sample his new effort.

I love Godzilla!

Karol

[paleo 63]

If only it didn't have these preachy overtones repeatedly; some of it is really heavy-handed and hard to stomach in an otherwise "typical" fantasy movie. Oh well, I knew that was to be expected.

It was WAY toned down from the book. This is C.S. Lewis we're talking about.

In this case it's to be expected, so you know what your in for before you see the movie.

Exactly, that's why I said: "Oh well, I knew that was to be expected." (?) ;-)

Anyway, Filmtracks reviewed the score, and I think he for once fully summarizes my view:

http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/dawn_treader.html

Edit: Oops, Drax was faster... Never mind

[King Mark 3,625]

This thread is off topic again. This is a KotCS thread

[scallenger 481]

I just saw the film yesterday and it exceeded my expectations, too. I actually overall liked it better than the other 2 Narnia films (which is odd because I grew up on the Lion, Witch, and Wardrobe story, so you'd think I'd like that film more. but maybe that's why I liked this one because it was "fresher" to me.) The story had a very nice pace that never bored me, the music was good (although, like many mentioned, a bit underwhelming from what I anticipated, and the lifts from Godzilla were all too obvious to me haha, however, using "Audrey's Theme" in this film actually worked better with the visuals it accompanied than in Godzilla). It had a pretty rousing climax (SLIGHT SPOILER) with a cool-ass creature design to boot. I was about to yawn at the thought of another Kraken, ala Pirates of the Caribbean, but was surprised by what I saw instead.

The religious undertone in a couple scenes was to be expected from the author, and the only one that really bothered me was close to the very end. But as some people have said, I guess it could have been even moreso since the author really put in a lot of Christian themes in his books. I don't mind the themes and symbolism of these kind of themes in films and stories (hell, most big stories borrow from them, even Harry Potter... well okay, that series borrows from A LOT of stories, lol). But when I feel like they are hinting at me to be just like the characters for a religious reason, it does irk me a bit, and that scene at the end felt like one of those. But no matter.

So, me being unfamiliar with the series, except for the films, does Eustace carry the rest of the series now? Or does he eventually "become too old" too and it becomes someone else's quest?

[ChuckM 1]

So, me being unfamiliar with the series, except for the films, does Eustace carry the rest of the series now? Or does he eventually "become too old" too and it becomes someone else's quest?

The next book, The Silver Chair, follows Eustace and a new character, Jill Pole. At the end of the Dawn Treader movie, we hear Eustace's mother say that Jill Pole came over to visit, which seems to be a hint that they at least want to make the fourth if it gets the green light.

Although I'd love to see all seven books become movies, I'd be content to see it end after four. To be honest, the first four make much more of a unified whole than the last three.

Book five, The Horse and His Boy, goes back into the past of Narnia—during the time that Peter, Edmund, Suzy, and Lucy were reigning—but focuses on different characters. Book six, The Magician's Nephew, goes back to the creation of Narnia. And book seven, The Last Battle, goes well forward to the consummation of Narnia.

Plus, of all the books, I think The Silver Chair is probably best suited for a movie adaptation.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,496]

Carrie Underwood singing the song? That's a bit like Matt (he won, BTW) singing the play-out song on D.H.pt2

[crocodile 7,984]

What? X Factor?

Karol

[Charlie Brigden 7]

X-Factor. Whoever wins, we lose.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,496]

X-Factor. Whoever wins, we lose.

[crocodile 7,984]

I don't care. The winner is usually the least remembered one anyway. Not that I watched even one full episode.

And yes, we're derailing the thread again.

Karol

[Naïve Old Fart 9,496]

"Consummation"? Do they all get married, or something? Isn't there some train-crash, or other?

[ChuckM 1]

"Consummation"? Do they all get married, or something?

con·sum·ma·tion

–noun

1. the act of consummating; completion.

2. the state of being consummated; perfection; fulfillment.

Isn't there some train-crash, or other?

In our universe, yes.

[crocodile 7,984]

"Consummation"? Do they all get married, or something?

con·sum·ma·tion

–noun

1. the act of consummating; completion.

2. the state of being consummated; perfection; fulfillment.

Or "the moment of most intense pleasure in sexual intercourse".

Now that's another layer to the understanding of Narnia saga!

Karol

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[ChuckM 1]

Now, the interesting question, if they make The Last Battle into a film, is :

will there be Susan in the ending scene ?

I think she was there... I'll have to re-read it sometime soon.

[Muad'Dib 1,800]

The Last Battle was an amazing book, but I'm not too sure how it will translate to the big screen...

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[BLUMENKOHL 1,068]

Boring movie. Boring music.

[crocodile 7,984]

We should do a HP7 vs. CON3 poll. "Which one is more boring?". Both scores disappointed majority of its crowd, to the extent

Karol - who knows his pick

[BLUMENKOHL 1,068]

CON3 sounds like Harry Gregson Williams meets Bond.

[crocodile 7,984]

Which is kind of the point, judging from Arnold's ability to adapt to the particular series' needs. Ironic in this case too.

Karol

[BLUMENKOHL 1,068]

But I don't like Harry Gregson-Williams.

It's like delicious cake with mold on it.

[Trent B 337]

Most of your old school composers are showing their age and at the same time the directors of movies want things to sound too generic. I can't remember who it was who said in another thread but composers today and even old school composers (IE: David Arnold, John Ottman and such) just don't have the creativity they're allowed to any more for films.

All though I will say that for a score like Terminator Salvation, that sounded very much old school Elfman and it's a good score.

I could see where scores like Narnia and Harry Potter are a let down to the majority of film score fans.

[Ollie 1,059]

Well based on the box office returns, this could be the death of the Narnia film series.