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Underrated Williams


Quintus
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I nominate Saving Private Ryan, which movie-wise is scorelite and for the better. Why? Because when the music does appear, it is an exercise in how to spot music for movies, when the mindset is modesty and beauty. Williams approaches the subject matter without ever falling into cliché or lesson - his score is delicate without ever seeming deliberate or forced, indeed the music is completely unnoticed. An underrated gem from the maestro.

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I would also like to nominate Monsignor, how it was nominated for a Razzie Award is beyond my comprehension.

It's because the Razzies are useless. They nominate movies into certain categories just because they want to poke fun at them, not because there is an actual reason.

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No, they've nominated some films that are well deserving.

I can think of 3 underrated Williams:

The Towering Inferno

Jaws

CE3K

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I think Monsignor got the Razzie because it was tied to a movie that was also Razzied. There might have been a lack of bad scores that year, or the nominators find it cute to nominate works by artists who, in another year, might have released a masterpiece. It's interesting seeing which scores have been nominated for Razzies, though by 1986 that category was thankfully dropped.

Jaws is underrated because it's been so overplayed for the past 30 years that the general public is sick of it and its score everytime they see a shark fin or dip their toes into the water, that it's become a cliche' for those things. And by being buried for being a cliche, it's become a lost relic to the contemporary generation and thus, underrated.

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I'd say that The Fury, Dracula and Jaws 2 are excellent scores from his prime period that hardly get any love around here, maybe it's because they're overshadowed by Star Wars, Superman and the like.

Speaking of Star Wars, ROTJ is certainly not very appreciated here and it's a wonderful score, even Star Wars doesn't always get the praise it should with all the love for Empire in this forum.

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Attack. Of. The. Clones.

I'd say that The Fury, Dracula and Jaws 2 are excellent scores from his prime period that hardly get any love around here, maybe it's because they're overshadowed by Star Wars, Superman and the like.

Dracula is really hard to get a hold of, I think that has a lot to do with it. Those of us who know it are pretty effusive.

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After watching the film recently, I think I can say that I am content with the original album, as far as content is concerned. Save for the music leading up to Dracula's entrance, I did not notice anything missing that was truly necessary. I would still buy an expanded issue, though, of course.

Would Checkmate be considered underrated? It is not discussed much here, but I think it is a wonderful early effort from John Williams.

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Close Encounters and Jaws are very far from being underated. They are mentioned, discussed and praised all the time. At most, Jaws and Close Encounters are so highly regarded that sometimes their praise is taken for granted and therefor not voiced so veemently.

I would consider these scores to be sadly underated:

Nixon

Sabrina

Sleepers

Rosewood

Seven Years in Tibet

Amistad

Saving Private Ryan

War of the Worlds

Munich

Horn Concerto

Cello Concerto

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Attack. Of. The. Clones.

YES. The worst thing I can say about the score is that there are five Star Wars scores that are superior to it. That can be said of most film scores. It may indulge a bit much in cutesy music, and it was horribly chopped up in the film, and it only introduces one truly spectacular theme...but it's an awesome score.

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SPR, Amistad, Minority Report, AotC, KotCS, Home Alone 2, Jaws 2

My usual reply:

Spacecamp

Lost in Space

Haven't heard Spacecamp, but Lost in Space scores tend to bore me besides the two main themes which are great.

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I feel that Satellite Celebration, aka Song for World Peace is one of John Williams' masterpieces. The original version with the Japanese singers singing "Heiwa Ho" and choir is the best.

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I feel that Satellite Celebration, aka Song for World Peace is one of John Williams' masterpieces. The original version with the Japanese singers singing "Heiwa Ho" and choir is the best.

Damn, I like that piece (on Call of the Champions cd), but I have never heard the original. Is it available somewhere?

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1) Sabrina

2) The Missouri Breaks

3) Always

They are in my top 10 Williams scores but unfortunately in nobody else's.

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1) Sabrina

2) The Missouri Breaks

3) Always

They are in my top 10 Williams scores but unfortunately in nobody else's.

They( esp. 2 and 3) are among my least favourite JW's scores.

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1) Sabrina

2) The Missouri Breaks

3) Always

They are in my top 10 Williams scores but unfortunately in nobody else's.

They( esp. 2 and 3) are among my least favourite JW's scores.

Don't you realize you're underrating them, though?

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1) Sabrina

2) The Missouri Breaks

3) Always

They are in my top 10 Williams scores but unfortunately in nobody else's.

They( esp. 2 and 3) are among my least favourite JW's scores.

Don't you realize you're underrating them, though?

I will contemplate in on a Tree of Woe.

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So that means Hans Zimmer & RC are underrated? :P

I can think of someone here who would say yes... ;)

My point is that if you take this discussion to its logical conclusion, you pretty much end up right back where you began. Certain genres in film music tend to have a wider audience (i.e., action-adventure); certain styles of writing tend to be more popular (i.e., rich melodicism); but, ultimately, everyone has somewhat different tastes.

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In layman's terms: whilst the vast majority of people will sing the praises JW's Star Wars, there will always be a few who always bang on about Sabrina instead.

So that means Hans Zimmer is underrated? :P

If this minuscule message board of about 20-odd regulars accurately represents the entire planet and its 6 billion human occupants, then yes.

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So not only is he underrated on this bit of fluff down the back of the interweb, it seems there are fans beneath the waves of the sea who feel he should be more appreciated too. What a waste of time, if only they knew how much everyone loves him really! They really needn't worry themselves, bless 'em.

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So that means Hans Zimmer & RC are underrated? :P

I can think of someone here who would say yes... ;)

My point is that if you take this discussion to its logical conclusion, you pretty much end up right back where you began. Certain genres in film music tend to have a wider audience (i.e., action-adventure); certain styles of writing tend to be more popular (i.e., rich melodicism); but, ultimately, everyone has somewhat different tastes.

Perhaps the title of the thread should be: Not truly grasping the greatness of the music.

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Attack. Of. The. Clones.

True.

After watching the film recently, I think I can say that I am content with the original album, as far as content is concerned. Save for the music leading up to Dracula's entrance, I did not notice anything missing that was truly necessary. I would still buy an expanded issue, though, of course.

I've seen the film long ago and as far as I remember, I didn't really miss any important music on the CD. But I'd buy a remastered release instantly just for the improved sound.

Close Encounters and Jaws are very far from being underated. They are mentioned, discussed and praised all the time. At most, Jaws and Close Encounters are so highly regarded that sometimes their praise is taken for granted and therefor not voiced so veemently.

Agreed on Jaws. But CE3K is in that very special league of scores that are underrated as soon as there are people who are not completely enthusiastic about it, and there are a few on this board.

The River. It's awesome but few know it (not on this board perhaps, but overall).

It's lovely. I love The Pony Ride. I wouldn't call it awesome though.

1) Sabrina

2) The Missouri Breaks

3) Always

They are in my top 10 Williams scores but unfortunately in nobody else's.

They( esp. 2 and 3) are among my least favourite JW's scores.

I really don't like Sabrina.

The Cowboys have also never received quite the praise they deserve, methinks.

True.

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1) Sabrina

2) The Missouri Breaks

3) Always

They are in my top 10 Williams scores but unfortunately in nobody else's.

They( esp. 2 and 3) are among my least favourite JW's scores.

:s Maybe give them another chance. I would prefer them ANY time over my Superman or Jaws album (ALBUM mind you).

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1) Sabrina

2) The Missouri Breaks

3) Always

They are in my top 10 Williams scores but unfortunately in nobody else's.

They( esp. 2 and 3) are among my least favourite JW's scores.

:s Maybe give them another chance. I would prefer them ANY time over my Superman or Jaws album (ALBUM mind you).

I gave them, but they're not my cup of tea. On the other hand there is a great deal of JW's non-classic scores that I really like - The River, The Eiger Sanction, Cinderella Liberty, Sleepers, Stepmom or Images.... In some cases I prefer that "underplayed" Williams over his more famous works.

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The River is something you can get tired of. It's not something that you keep coming back to for the rest of your life. It's not an 'evergreen', if you know what I mean.

Alex

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The River is something you can get tired of. It's not something that you keep coming back to for the rest of your life. It's not an 'evergreen', if you know what I mean.

Alex

It depends. I find it truly interesting and highly enjoyable. I come back to it way more often than I do it with, say, The Fury or Jurassic Park.

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