"Chase Through Coruscant" Is A Kick Ass Cue!: Observations Of John Williams' Evolving Action Music

[indy4 155]

I know many here hate this cue(/score) with a passion, but I must say, it really is fantastic once it starts to pick up pace. The entire action bit is a high speed, relentless, and chaotic ride through the planet that is pretty much the same. The way JW weaves the brilliant musical bits throughout the orchestra is fantastic, and he even branches out with the inclusion of an electric guitar (the first use of the guitar I quite enjoy, the second I could do without). The rythmns are complex and unpredictable, and the layering of instruments upon instruments is great. The pride of this piece is the many experimentations with rythmn, not melody. Of course, some credit must be given to the London Symphony Orchestra. With all the different highlights of this cue, all the complex rythmns, and the constant demand for proper dynamics, they really did a fantastic job. The ensemble playing is crisp and together, not jumbled in any way, the articulation and dynamics are perfect, and the orchestra feels as alive as the planet.

The point of this thread is not to gush about a great cue, as that would pretty much yield responses along the lines of "I like it" or "I do not like it," but rather to note the main difference between Williams action music of old and modern Williams action music, as there is quite a difference. In his newer stuff, JW has seemed to put more effort into rythmically interesting pieces as opposed to melodically interesting pieces. Compare "The Asteroid Field" to "General Grievous," the latter being a cue that I used to enjoy but consider it to be way out of the former's league. The fanfares of "Asteroid Field" are easily melodically superior to anything in "Grievous" (and a great many other cues, for that matter). But nothing in "Asteroid Field" is as rythmically intense as the music in "Grievous." I'm not saying that the two cues are equals, or even they're not, as that's not the point. The point is that JW takes a more rythmic approach to his action music of late, but a more melodic one on his older work. I personally feel that both approaches are equally awesome, and I listen to the different approaches equally depending what I feel like.

Of course, I'm not saying that JW has abandoned melody in his new action music, nor that he abandoned rythmn in his older action music. "Jungle Chase" and "A Whirl Through Academe" both seem like a mix between the rythmical style of modern JW and the melodic style of old JW. But at the same time, there are cues like "Ants!" that are based off a rythmic motif. If KotCS were written in the older days, we could have expected a more melodic motif for the ants setpiece. As I said, both approaches are equally valid IMO. Forgetting KotCS, even the earlier mentioned examples ("Coruscant" and "Grievous") both have definite melodic ideas, they just aren't the main focus of the piece, the same way "Asteroid Field" has definte rythmic ideas, they just aren't the main focus.

[Nick Parker 3,040]

I do not own the album, so I cannot comment on "Chase Through Coruscant" specifically, but you bring up a few good points.

[Henry B 50]

Yeah, I think it's a pretty good cue.

[indy4 155]

Sarcasm?

[Henry B 50]

No. I go back and forth on Attack of the Clones. I can't decide if I like all the unreleased material, much of which sounds B movie-ish. Across the Stars? Certainly no Leia's theme... I consistently believe, however, that cues like "Chase Through Coruscant" and "On the Conveyor Belt" are excellent action pieces.

[John Crichton 4]

I like it.

I love the sequence at the start from when Obi-Wan and Anakin burst in the room and Obi jumps out the window up to when he falls into the speeder Anakin...borrows. A perfect marriage of score and on screen action. After that the editing makes it harder to discern Williams' original intentions, but it's a good listen on the CD. I would say my favorite action cues in the score are Bounty Hunter Pursuit and the complete Chasing Dooku.

There's so much I like about AotC's score. I can see how some people find it dull, but to me the work as a whole has such cohesiveness and polish from start to finish, a flow driving toward the awesome end, even with the edits and tracking. More than a minor miracle, that. It just might be the ultimate of Williams' "dramatic" scores. One of my holy grails is the whole final Obi-Wan/Anakin/Dooku/Yoda lightsaber duel sequence as Williams originally intended.

[indy4 155]

That cue as well as "General Grievous" have really shot up in my book the past month or two.

[King Mark 3,631]

Chase Through Coruscant and General Grevious are the 2 prequel cues I find boring and tend to skip halfway through

[indy4 155]

You'd probably find both of them on my list of top 10 SW action cues.

[Bryant Burnette 654]

I like "Chase Through Coruscant" a lot, too -- I also like the scene itself, which is one of my favorites in the movie.

[aj_vader 534]

Chase Through Coruscant is a great peice alone and serves a great purpose as an action peice in Attack Of The Clones. Its a very dynamic track indeed, not just volume but all the different tempos. Keeps me on the edge of my seat

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

I'd rather listen to John Barry.

[aj_vader 534]

why?

[MissPadmé 17]

Yes this track is to me indeed the ONLY good track on the CD.

I love the strcture and the design of it. The drumparts, the overdubbed E-guitar!

The frentetic rhythms it really is a masterpiece and maybe the best actionmusic from the prequels..

[MattyO 62]

I've never understood the hate towards AotC. Whilst it's far from my favourite Williams or Star Wars album, it has enough in it to be enjoyable. The Love Theme, whilst derivative of Hook's "Flight to Neverland" still presents the necessary dichotomy between young, blossoming romance and the doomed tragedy the relationship is headed towards. The Chase cue, whilst meandering in parts, is also interesting enough to get by, but I must admit I need to be in the right frame of mind to really appreciate it. For me, the standout on the album is the Finale cue. I know it's been lambasted here because of it's over-use of the love theme, but as soon as those strings start up to accompany Dooku's flying escape I am unable to skip that track. The segue into the End Credits is splendid, as is the rendition of the Imperial March, and I feel the opening statement of the End Credits march (Luke's Theme) is one of the most robust and liveliest of the series. I listened to Attack of the Clones the other day and I had forgotten how much I like it, despite the negative criticism it receives from this board. For me, yes it is the least of the Star Wars scores, but it does have moments that greatly outshine much of Williams' post-2000 output and the other prequel scores (as I believe AotC has easily the best Finale of the prequel trilogy).

Just my two cents.

[Ollie 1,059]

Chase Through Coruscant is an ok cue but at times is boring to listen to. Plus the guitar is really out of place and has no business being in there. The music feels out of place for a Star Wars film.

[Nick Parker 3,040]

The version in the film does not feature an electric guitar, am I correct?

[John Crichton 4]

Right, the guitar's tracked out. I think it works, representing Anakin's wild side. But it should have only been used the first time, not the second.

[indy4 155]

I've never understood the hate towards AotC. Whilst it's far from my favourite Williams or Star Wars album, it has enough in it to be enjoyable. The Love Theme, whilst derivative of Hook's "Flight to Neverland" still presents the necessary dichotomy between young, blossoming romance and the doomed tragedy the relationship is headed towards. The Chase cue, whilst meandering in parts, is also interesting enough to get by, but I must admit I need to be in the right frame of mind to really appreciate it. For me, the standout on the album is the Finale cue. I know it's been lambasted here because of it's over-use of the love theme, but as soon as those strings start up to accompany Dooku's flying escape I am unable to skip that track. The segue into the End Credits is splendid, as is the rendition of the Imperial March, and I feel the opening statement of the End Credits march (Luke's Theme) is one of the most robust and liveliest of the series. I listened to Attack of the Clones the other day and I had forgotten how much I like it, despite the negative criticism it receives from this board. For me, yes it is the least of the Star Wars scores, but it does have moments that greatly outshine much of Williams' post-2000 output and the other prequel scores (as I believe AotC has easily the best Finale of the prequel trilogy).

Just my two cents.

The variation of the "Imperial March" at the end of the Finale is my favorite variation in the entire SW saga.

[Ollie 1,059]

Yeah Lucas made the wise choice to loose it. But was it really dialed out of the film? The last time I saw the film was the summer it was released.

[John Crichton 4]

Yeah, it is. The whole cue is one of the ones that was really chopped up in the final edit.

[indy4 155]

I thought the guitar was just representing the weirdness of Coruscant. It fits perfectly, IMO. I love its use at 3:17 and 3:30. I could do without its use later in the cue (I don't know the exact time).

[Charlie Brigden 7]

I always thought it was just drowned out by the weird noise made by Zam's speeder.

[Jeshopk 8]

Great track, and it is the "Desert Chase" of the Star Wars Saga. Way up there in my book, though the optional guitar is nice when it's not used.

I always thought it was just drowned out by the weird noise made by Zam's speeder.

No, they didn't use it. It was written to be optional. Willams commented at the sessions that it is either "usable or loseable" LOL.

[Trent B 337]

The Chase Through Coruscant is definitely a good cue. I could only imagine what the orchestra people must have thought when they saw how long they had to play the cue and the speed at times.

Edit: I know that guitar piece appears twice in the cue but Battlefront 2 features that second section with out the guitar and I for one prefer it with out the guitar. The guitar has really no place being in the score.

[Luke Skywalker 1,796]

Really I didnt liked the idea of the Electric guitar in the score, but once it was done it's was not that bad.

Why is a synthesyther usable and not the guitar? In the prequels coruscant has very prominent synth chorus. And ESB's the magic three has that synth that could have been made with an electric guitar sustaining a note.

Its not as noticeable as Beowulf's. A tale about 500 A.D. And many people liked it and was 'fitting'. Same on the scorpion king score...

[indy4 155]

The Chase Through Coruscant is definitely a good cue. I could only imagine what the orchestra people must have thought when they saw how long they had to play the cue and the speed at times.

Indeed, it seems like a very challenging piece to play.

[Luke Skywalker 1,796]

The Chase Through Coruscant is definitely a good cue. I could only imagine what the orchestra people must have thought when they saw how long they had to play the cue and the speed at times.

Indeed, it seems like a very challenging piece to play.

I think he is a she, and she is a changelling

[Charlie Brigden 7]

Really I didnt liked the idea of the Electric guitar in the score, but once it was done it's was not that bad.

Why is a synthesyther usable and not the guitar? In the prequels coruscant has very prominent synth chorus. And ESB's the magic three has that synth that could have been made with an electric guitar sustaining a note.

Its not as noticeable as Beowulf's. A tale about 500 A.D. And many people liked it and was 'fitting'. Same on the scorpion king score...

Just because Fender wasn't alive in medieval times doesn't mean a guitar-driven score can't be fitting.

[Luke Skywalker 1,796]

Really I didnt liked the idea of the Electric guitar in the score, but once it was done it's was not that bad.

Why is a synthesyther usable and not the guitar? In the prequels coruscant has very prominent synth chorus. And ESB's the magic three has that synth that could have been made with an electric guitar sustaining a note.

Its not as noticeable as Beowulf's. A tale about 500 A.D. And many people liked it and was 'fitting'. Same on the scorpion king score...

Just because Fender wasn't alive in medieval times doesn't mean a guitar-driven score can't be fitting.

Why isnt it fitting on a star Wars movie? In a chase though an industrial-city planet involving a young reckless character

[Josh500 1,615]

Yeah, one of my top favorites!!

I like the first 4:30 minutes of it, and then it kinda tapers off. But overall, a wow-cue.

[Red 75]

It's decent.

[Charlie Brigden 7]

Why isnt it fitting on a star Wars movie? In a chase though an industrial-city planet involving a young reckless character

I never said it wasn't.

[Marian Schedenig 8,210]

Yes this track is to me indeed the ONLY good track on the CD.

Across the Stars

Chase Through Coruscant

Jango's Escape

Bounty Hunter's Pursuit

Conveyor Belt

...all good cues.

[indy4 155]

Don't forget "Love Pledge and the Arena."

[John Crichton 4]

And the Finale. Absolutely wonderful, only The Throne Room is better in the SW saga.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Yes this track is to me indeed the ONLY good track on the CD.

Across the Stars

Chase Through Coruscant

Jango's Escape

Bounty Hunter's Pursuit

Conveyor Belt

...all good cues.

Jango's Escape is a travesty!

[indy4 155]

It starts out pretty good, but goes downhill starting about 30 seconds in.

[Mr. Breathmask 555]

Really I didnt liked the idea of the Electric guitar in the score, but once it was done it's was not that bad.

Why is a synthesyther usable and not the guitar? In the prequels coruscant has very prominent synth chorus. And ESB's the magic three has that synth that could have been made with an electric guitar sustaining a note.

Its not as noticeable as Beowulf's. A tale about 500 A.D. And many people liked it and was 'fitting'. Same on the scorpion king score...

Just because Fender wasn't alive in medieval times doesn't mean a guitar-driven score can't be fitting.

Why isnt it fitting on a star Wars movie? In a chase though an industrial-city planet involving a young reckless character

It's jarring because it's laid on very thick and just jumps at you. It's not integrated into the sound of the rest of the cue at all. I think that's the bigger problem.

[Luke Skywalker 1,796]

very thick?

i consider it background

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

No, it's clearly audible the 2 moments it appears.

[Mr. Breathmask 555]

The fact that it's a prominent solo doesn't help matters either.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

They sound like seperate overlays.

[John Crichton 4]

I bet it was recorded seperately, especially since it's not in the final film version.

[Luke Skywalker 1,796]

anyway, wasnt the guitarrist with the orchestra?

i think i remember so, since they discussed 'usable or unusable' in the stage booth.

[Desplat13 1]

I'd rather listen to John Barry.

Somewhere In Time: The Movie.

-Colin

[Hlao-roo 389]

I'm not sure about this rhythm/melody dichotomy. I think "The Battle of Hoth" proves you can have your cake and eat it, too.

[Nick Parker 3,040]

You can have your cake and eat it, too.

May someone please explain this phrase to me?

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

You can have your cake and eat it, too.

May someone please explain this phrase to me?

Having something both ways.

[John Crichton 4]

I've always hated that phrase. In what way can you "have" cake without eating it?