The Book Thief (2013) - New Williams film score!

[Tom 4,651]

Just crossed my mind:

Do you know what would be entirely ORIGINAL for Williams?

To write a score for a string quartet with maybe 2-3 instruments more.

He has written for orchestra, we all know he can write, but such a score would be someting NEW! And totally UNEXPECTED!

I'm even surprised that he hasn't written any concert music too for sting quartet.

Stanley and Iris comes very close to a chamber score, and it is quite delightful as well.

[Wojo 2,453]

Boring movie title. I know it's a book. But who would have seen National Treasure with its original title: The Map Thief?

[JoeinAR 1,949]

Boring movie title. I know it's a book. But who would have seen National Treasure with its original title: The Map Thief?

I like the book title, it intrigued me at first. Wasn't sure if it was an adult novel, or a Harry Potter clone. Turns out it's somewhat both.

[indy4 155]

Nice. Even better that the studio moved it up to this year... it was originally supposed to debut mid-January 2014 when they started filming.

Maybe the studios were impressed quality-wise, and wanted it to be more competitive come awards season?

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Oscar bait?

[Josh500 1,615]

Amazing news...

This year just got a whole lot better!!

[crocodile 8,000]

Just crossed my mind:

Do you know what would be entirely ORIGINAL for Williams?

To write a score for a string quartet with maybe 2-3 instruments more.

He has written for orchestra, we all know he can write, but such a score would be someting NEW! And totally UNEXPECTED!

I'm even surprised that he hasn't written any concert music too for sting quartet.

Stanley and Iris comes very close to a chamber score, and it is quite delightful as well.

What about The Missouri Breaks?

Karol

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

I wonder if we'll have narration on the album like with Angela's Ashes.

[chuck 154]

Boring movie title. I know it's a book. But who would have seen National Treasure with its original title: The Map Thief?

Would you like the title to be changed into The Holocaust Treasure?!

[Hlao-roo 389]

Boring movie title. I know it's a book. But who would have seen National Treasure with its original title: The Map Thief?

Would you like the title to be changed into The Holocaust Treasure?!

How about The Holocaust Booty?

[chuck 154]

Boring movie title. I know it's a book. But who would have seen National Treasure with its original title: The Map Thief?

Would you like the title to be changed into The Holocaust Treasure?!

How about The Holocaust Booty?

Only if there're peg legs and one eyed jacks and a talkative parrot.

[Hlao-roo 389]

Maybe The Bildungsroman Kleptomaniac?

[MSM 126]

I can already hear the frolic tuba theme that Williams is going to write for this.

Alex

Nuh-uh! That character is not fat! Tuba is reserved for fat, ungainly people! It is going to be a whimsical woodwind moment I tell you!

This is going to be scored with bassoon + pizzicati from the low strings.

[chuck 154]

Maybe The Bildungsroman Kleptomaniac?

Only if JW will be credited as Johann Guillaume

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I can already hear the frolic tuba theme that Williams is going to write for this.

Alex

Nuh-uh! That character is not fat! Tuba is reserved for fat, ungainly people! It is going to be a whimsical woodwind moment I tell you!

Unless he decides to go for Mark Tillman's dreadful electric cello - a sound I absolutely detest.

Karol

Martin, actually

[Matt C 452]

Nice. Even better that the studio moved it up to this year... it was originally supposed to debut mid-January 2014 when they started filming.

Maybe the studios were impressed quality-wise, and wanted it to be more competitive come awards season?

Probably. Mid-November was originally cluttered with several movies opening on two different weekends. Since then, two moved to October and so Fox thought "Eh, we'll have it done way before January, so why not release it earlier if there's a spot?"

Although the period setting is more Oscar-friendly...

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

The story sounds terribly contrived. I'm sure it'll have great performances and whatnot but lets not forget Angela's Ashes. It had an established and experienced director and a great cast but was still a critical and commercial failure. It was released around Oscar time too.

[Incanus 5,714]

I am sure Williams is driven to score films purely to win awards.

I think that at this point him winning an Oscar would more a nice gesture of appreciation and pat on the back from Hollywood but it would really be just another statuette in his large trophy cabinet. I agree that he deserves to win another one but whether he needs it or not is another matter.

[King Mark 3,631]

Well, a lot of Williams scored dramas weren;t exactly comercial and critical successes

-Rosewood

-Stepmom

-Seven Year in tibet

-Memoirs of a Geisha

-Sleepers

-Angelas Ashes

-Monsignor

[Incanus 5,714]

Well, a lot of Williams scored dramas weren;t exactly comercial and critical successes

-Rosewood

-Stepmom

-Seven Year in tibet

-Memoirs of a Geisha

-Sleepers

-Angelas Ashes

-Monsignor

While Williams has had a good hunch on what will resonate with audiences his choice of these dramas has been perhaps more artistic interest than making money. As he has said predicting success is extremely difficult and that is not what film makers (I do not take the Hollywood bean counters in consideration here) are focused on, when they are making a film.

[indy4 155]

I want him to win another Oscar, because if he doesn't there's a good chance he'll end with 50 nominations and 5 Oscars. Numbers that perfect just don't sound believable, so people will assume you're being hyperbolic when you tell them. It keeps me up at night.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Didn't he actually say that he only scores film that he thinks will be successful?

[chuck 154]

What are the chances of JW winning the award and receive an Honorary Oscar the same year?

[Incanus 5,714]

Didn't he actually say that he only scores film that he thinks will be successful?

Could you find me an article, interview or documentary where says that. I can't remember him putting it quite in those terms.

What are the chances of JW winning the award and receive an Honorary Oscar the same year?

And he should write a song for the Book Thief! It could make possible a triple whammy on the Oscar night!

[chuck 154]

What are the chances of JW winning the award and receive an Honorary Oscar the same year?

And he should write a song for the Book Thief! It could make possible a triple whammy on the Oscar night!

With Leslie Brick-Ass writing the lyrics!

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

Geoffrey Rush seems excited about the movie. He said "There is a real air of excitement, we're feeling very buoyant" when asked about it's Oscar contention. I don't exactly know how sincere he is though. I think the lead might have a chance for Best Lead Actress based on Rush's recommendation in the article. But then again he might just be saying that to promote the film.

[A24 4,331]

I can already hear the frolic tuba theme that Williams is going to write for this.

Alex

Nuh-uh! That character is not fat! Tuba is reserved for fat, ungainly people! It is going to be a whimsical woodwind moment I tell you!

This is going to be scored with bassoon + pizzicati from the low strings.

Think of the more gentle and sensitive high notes that a tuba can produce! True, in the hands of a lesser composer, the tuba is ideal for mocking those who are a little bit chubby. But this is Williams we are talking about! He's not afraid to take that old cliché and spin it around so that it will become something fresh and new.

Alex

[Incanus 5,714]

Well if there is a composer who can write something like that for tuba then it is surely John Williams. I was just mesmerized by the slow movement of his Tuba Concerto when I heard it live a couple of years ago. It was just beautiful and lyrical, not the kind of material or even sound one usually associates with the music written for that instrument.

[indy4 155]

Recently, when Williams writes a prominent tuba part it is more to aunnounce key changes or establish a rhythmic groove in comical scenes, ala "Getting Out the Vote" from Lincoln and "Snake Pit" from KotCS. He hasn't really given it prominent thematic material in awhile, unless I'm forgetting something.

[MSM 126]

I can already hear the frolic tuba theme that Williams is going to write for this.

Alex

Nuh-uh! That character is not fat! Tuba is reserved for fat, ungainly people! It is going to be a whimsical woodwind moment I tell you!

This is going to be scored with bassoon + pizzicati from the low strings.

Think of the more gentle and sensitive high notes that a tuba can produce! True, in the hands of a lesser composer, the tuba is ideal for mocking those who are a little bit chubby. But this is Williams we are talking about! He's not afraid to take that old cliché and spin it around so that it will become something fresh and new.

Alex

You think the girl is chubby?

[TownerFan 4,983]

Well if there is a composer who can write something like that for tuba then it is surely John Williams. I was just mesmerized by the slow movement of his Tuba Concerto when I heard it live a couple of years ago. It was just beautiful and lyrical, not the kind of material or even sound one usually associates with the music written for that instrument.

Indeed, the Tuba Concerto explores (with a good deal of fun) the more lyrical side of the instrument, playing mostly with its high register and very fast passages, almost to the point of writing for it as if it was a cornet or even a french horn. It seems Williams wanted to go against the usual practice of using tuba as the typical "buffoon" instrument, showing how beautifully lyrical and lovely such a weird instrument can sound. It's also a very difficult piece to play even for the more seasoned performers--tubist extraordinaire Roger Bobo said once he had to practice a lot to play it right.

[steb74 53]

Didn't he actually say that he only scores film that he thinks will be successful?

Could you find me an article, interview or documentary where says that. I can't remember him putting it quite in those terms.

I should check to be sure man but I think he mentions something like that in the 'Personal Notes' interview with Andre Previn.

You're right though, the comment needs to be heard in context.

[Incanus 5,714]

Didn't he actually say that he only scores film that he thinks will be successful?

Could you find me an article, interview or documentary where says that. I can't remember him putting it quite in those terms.

I should check to be sure man but I think he mentions something like that in the 'Personal Notes' interview with Andre Previn.

You're right though, the comment needs to be heard in context.

And I am sure it is a rare succesful composer who regularly chooses only duds and commercially unsuccesful flops as his metier. I am sure every composer has had his fair share of bad decisions when choosing projects and made wrong judgement on the viability of a film but I am quite certain most people who are committed to do a movie hope it will be a success, whether or not they have immediate hunch of its full potential.

[steb74 53]

Yes absolutely and if I am right in thinking it was that particular interview, Williams says that he doesn't choose or need a project so he can practice more.

So of course he hopes they will be successful, I think any artist who says otherwise is a little bit of a pretentious liar to be honest, or a bullshitter in layman's terms

[ymenard 54]

I wish he would go solo piano on this!

[Naïve Old Fart 9,515]

I've just read a synopsis of the book: it's set in a concentration camp, and it is narrated by Death, of all people. This colud be the flip-side of "SL".

Looking forward to November.

[chuck 154]

I've just read a synopsis of the book: it's set in a concentration camp, and it is narrated by Death, of all people. This colud be the flip-side of "SL".

Looking forward to November.

Wow. Wouldn't it be funny if this Death turns out to be Gaiman's sexy goth version?

[Romão 2,274]

I've just bought the book. I suspect it was what made Williams take on this project

[Hlao-roo 389]

So somehow scripts take away the surprise factor for Williams, but not books.

[Incanus 5,714]

So somehow scripts take away the surprise factor for Williams, but not books.

John Williams is a completely unprincipled man! How dares he to change his stance like that from project to project!

I believe JW has said that he prefers not to read the script, not that he flat out refuses to do it if someone would ask if of him. If Williams has read a novel and then it happens that someone offers him a film based on that novel I don't think he finds it difficult to accept even though he knows the story. Harry Potter and Memoirs of a Geisha were certainly such exceptions.

And besides a film adaptations are usually different beasts than the novels, as the storytelling has to be fitted into the filmic world so the element of suprise is still there for the composer even if he has read the source material. Undoubtedly the experience is a bit different from the "clean slate" film assignment as the artist has already some notions and ideas to fuel his imagination that came from the book and not from the film alone but that is not a bad thing I think.

[Hlao-roo 389]

For what it's worth, from the Ian Lace interview:

When I asked if he had read [Anne Tyler's The Accidental Tourist] to obtain an extra dimension of inspiration he said, "No, but only because I don't like to read material before I begin working on a film. You tend to have a such pre-conception from anything you read, that when you look at a film, it often doesn't match your mental image of what should be there so I prefer to see a film with a completely 'clean slate' as it were."

[Incanus 5,714]

Yes he has stated this in numerous interviews over the years (almost a "stock question") but again it is preference not something set in stone. He has made exceptions. I can certainly understand his point of view, the "without preconceptions approach", which gives a fresher perspective on the film, spontaneity and emotional response that Williams says he then uses when he then goes to compose the score and tries to reawaken in the music.

[indy4 155]

JW's preconceptions from books usually yield excellent scores...Sorceror's Stone, Angela's Ashes and Memoirs of a Geisha. So I hope he's read this one!

[Incanus 5,714]

JW's preconceptions from books usually yield excellent scores...Sorceror's Stone, Angela's Ashes and Memoirs of a Geisha. So I hope he's read this one!

Very true in my opinion as well. Even though Williams' music does present a great deal of intelligence in writing he has always been in my opinion more focused on the emotional resonance of the subject matter than in the intellectual side of things. That doesn't mean that his scores lack subtext or depth but rather that he doesn't usually go to enormous amounts of literary research (e.g. like Howard Shore) when it is a literary adaptation he is working on. He likes to draw from the materials at hand instead extra-film sources.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Lazy bastard!

[Incanus 5,714]

Lazy bastard!

The jury, judge and executioner has spoken!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I AM THE LAW!

[King Mark 3,631]

JW's preconceptions from books usually yield excellent scores...Sorceror's Stone, Angela's Ashes and Memoirs of a Geisha. So I hope he's read this one!

Well he can we prove he really read them?

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

He was probably just skimming for important plot points.

[Incanus 5,714]

JW's preconceptions from books usually yield excellent scores...Sorceror's Stone, Angela's Ashes and Memoirs of a Geisha. So I hope he's read this one!

Well can we prove he really read them?

Do you mean that, do we have photos of him reading HPPS to his grandchildren? Eye witness accounts of him reading Memoirs of a Geisha and Angela's Ashes from cover to cover? As we of course have to doubt everything he says as it is just self serving way to get attention and publicity.

He was probably just skimming for important plot points.

Perhaps the Maestro just likes to read the ending of each book he reads.

You guys are impossible!