Hlao-roo 389 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 From indieWIRE's review:When the exposition speeds up, "The Force Awakens" becomes every fan's idea of how the "Star Wars" world should look and feel. Abrams and cinematographer Dan Mindel recapture the bright colors of the universe, while John Williams' boisterous score turns up the pervasive sense of awe. Cerebral Cortex 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crumbs 14,313 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 It's a disaster! Our worst fears have been realised. Damn you, Williams! Damn you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hlao-roo 389 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 From the ScreenCrush review:[Viewers] also get John Williams’ magnificent score, which has aged even better than Harrison Ford. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerebral Cortex 3,357 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Thanks so much for posting these, Hlao-roo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tannhauser 101 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Never trust the Irish!Póg mo thóin, amadán!Ba mhaith liom, a chara! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hlao-roo 389 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 From The Independent's review:[T]he score is warmly familiar and crucially doesn't sound like a coach load of timpani crashing, and the tone [of the film] returns to a mixture of wild-eyed adventure and comedy and relies substantially less on the martial arts, overbearing, swiftly outdated CGI and general tangential dicking around that dogged the prequels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crumbs 14,313 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Hlao-roo, you're a star. Scarpia 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incanus 5,714 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Yes thank you very much Alan! Our own The Force Awakens review aggregate service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quintus 5,399 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 From Drew McWeeny's HITFIX review:Suffice it to say that John Williams remains one of the most important players in the "Star Wars" universe, and the way he creates new themes that fit perfectly alongside the instantly recognizable score that he brings back is perfect. Fuck. Why did it have to be so bad?Do you never give up? You're fucking relentless mate.Nice one for the score reactions, Alan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Never trust the Irish!:-( Damien F 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tannhauser 101 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 It's okay, I'm Irish too, so I can say it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Yes thank you very much Hlao-roo!Everyone,The intention of this thread was to collect SPOILER FREE quotes about the score from reviewers around the web, etc. Let's moved the detailed discussion of the score to here:http://www.jwfan.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=25882I'll be moving posts to there so people can safely read this thread. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mstrox 6,651 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 From Todd McCarthy's The Hollywood Reporter review: a strict limitation on self-referential, in-jokey humor Thank god - my biggest concern with the whole affair! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TownerFan 4,983 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Yes thank you very much Hlao-roo!Everyone,The intention of this thread was to collect SPOILER FREE quotes about the score from reviewers around the web, etc. Let's moved the detailed discussion of the score to here:http://www.jwfan.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=25882I'll be moving posts to there so people can safely read this thread. Thanks!Sorry, Jay. Move my posts away accordingly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 TownerFan, you have absolutely nothing to apologize for.I should have started the thread in question yesterday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewya 360 Posted December 16, 2015 Author Share Posted December 16, 2015 Big negative comment on the score here, the reviewer gave the movie a 5/5 rating but mentioned that the score was the only true disappointment:"The only true disappointment that can be found with The Force Awakens is the score, composed by Star Wars and industry veteran John Williams. While certain score elements from the other films can be found through the 135 minute run time, the rest of the score is very forgettable. No new themes that played through the film are memorable, and this truly is a let down for a film in a series that has some of the best scores done in the history of cinema."http://flickdirect.com/movie-review/1430/star-wars-episode-vii-the-force-awakens/movie.ashxNot even Rey's Theme? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I don't expect any of the new themes to make a big impression on the average moviegoer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joni Wiljami 1,206 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I'm not interested about the average moviegoers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I don't expect any of the new themes to make a big impression on the average moviegoer. Absolutely true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taikomochi 1,136 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Yeah, I expect bitching and moaning for years to come about the lack of a "Duel of the Fates" or an "Across the Stars." Not that I care. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Mr. Big 4,639 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Yeah, I expect bitching and moaning for years to come about the lack of a "Duel of the Fates" or an "Across the Stars." Not that I care.Yeah, people who complain about the lack of any "epic songs" are the worst. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex 2,835 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I can't even remember the last time I went to see a film and was truly blown away by a theme Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Jupiter Ascending for me Taikomochi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Mark 3,631 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I can;t even find tickets for this weekend Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 That's why they sell them early, KM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muad'Dib 1,802 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Check this shit outhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt2488496/board/thread/251586158the best part of the soundtrack was the 2 minutes of the trailer, which of none is in the actual soundtrack release.Very sad. The soundtrack is forgettable... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taikomochi 1,136 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Check this shit outhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt2488496/board/thread/251586158the best part of the soundtrack was the 2 minutes of the trailer, which of none is in the actual soundtrack release.Very sad. The soundtrack is forgettable... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joni Wiljami 1,206 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Yes. The same shit I'm used to read here in this forum. If they don't get it, they should just shut that shit off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Mr. Big 4,639 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Check this shit outhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt2488496/board/thread/251586158the best part of the soundtrack was the 2 minutes of the trailer, which of none is in the actual soundtrack release.Very sad. The soundtrack is forgettable...Idiots! This reminds me of the overwhelmingly negative reaction Horner's The Amazing Spider-Man was receiving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewya 360 Posted December 17, 2015 Author Share Posted December 17, 2015 Sad comment on the prequel scores here: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Mark 3,631 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 what a useless review Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 TFA Score Reaction/Review from a JWFan desperate and starving for new Williams, sitting alone in a corner of the Disneyland Star Wars Launch Bay near a speaker listening to new recordings of JW Star Wars music like a fucking weirdo: Should we put on some music? Oh! Oh yes! Oh God! Oh yes! Oh God! Yeah, right there! Talk dirty to me! Do you like that? Oh God! Don't stop! UUUHHH!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewya 360 Posted December 17, 2015 Author Share Posted December 17, 2015 I love Williams. The man is a genius. A master of our times.... But his limitations have been showing for the last 15 years, and to be honest, the man is OLD - probably tired to some degree or another....And really doesn't have much left in him. I say this because after hearing the Force Awakens score on Youtube, it occurred to me that NONE of it is very memorable. AT ALL. Save perhaps for Rey's theme, which is barely there, the rest of the score is the same old meandering xylophone beating, horn section blaring, string section rubbing that he's been doing over the last 15 years...Much of it interchangeable. Very little of it memorable. None of the music on the soundtrack holds any resonance. Williams tosses in motifs for previous themes - but they're brief and lack any sort of evolution whatsoever. They're just used as nostalgic statements. And then the Williams jazz begins again....and again... His music meanders...like a drunk trying to walk home. I will say the last best score of his was in fact Revenge of the Sith. After that, he made a meandering mess of Indiana Jones 4, and then just practically faded away. Much of his scoring after that is just plain old "whatever" - From War Horse to Lincoln to Book Thief, and now this movie..... if I were to compare this score to any of his prior works, it would be on par with Attack of the Clones....or Indy 4. That's about it, because both scores just wander in and out of place, only to get hit by a quick motif of theme restatement to put it back in line.... I'll even say this, out of the whole of the score? The music from the Trailer was WAY better than this - and Williams didn't even score that! I'm not saying Zimmer or related should take over - hell no. But Williams is in his 80s, man...It would benefit him to have some help - maybe Giacchino or someone else who is good at harping his style - to come up with stronger themes. This score sounds tired. Weaksauce. Boring. It's like Williams doesn't have the passion for it anymore. And it literally shows. Williams should seriously consider retiring...He sounds nothing like his younger self. I love the man's work, but there comes a point in your life where you have to draw the line before you start making a fool out of yourself. And i don't want to see Williams go out like that - with a meandering whimper. This is just my opinion, but I can't be the only one... I understand his age limitations...But you gotta admit this score is BARELY Star Wars. Barely.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2488496/board/thread/251608947 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artguy360 1,843 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 I mean, everyone is entitled to their own opinion but this reviewer writes off the scores to Lincoln and War Horse which are great and good respectively in my mind. Maybe this reviewer didn't listen to the score or know what he/she was listening to because Rey's theme is featured heavily throughout the entire CD, and is better in the other cues than in the actual Rey Theme cue. Plus, JW seemed to mostly retire his xylophone in this score. It only features a few times and largely in the background, not like the action music from the PT. Taikomochi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joni Wiljami 1,206 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Why should I read reviews by other people, they are mostly idiots. I got a taste of my own, I'm a big boy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 I don't expect any of the new themes to make a big impression on the average moviegoer.Absolutely true.This has been an issue with both the general public and film music fans since....Philosophers Stone?Williams just doesn't do the big, easily hummable themes the way he did in the 70's and 80's anymore. Even the Prequels had far less of that then the OT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarpia 132 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 I'm surprised at the mainly unprofessional level of music discussion on these reviews. Critics and reporters should at least have basic knowledge of the arts they are going to write about, but not even the basics are mastered in most of the quotes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 in what way?No need for a film critic to have a music degree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Incanus 5,714 Posted December 17, 2015 Popular Post Share Posted December 17, 2015 I think they should have a sound Classical education, those uncouth Philistines! DarthDementous, Taikomochi and Scarpia 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarpia 132 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 in what way?No need for a film critic to have a music degreeOf course not, but the comments on the score could be a bit more elaborate than just adjectives like "magnificent" or pointing out the appearance of previous themes and new ones. Far more interesting would be comments about how the music helps to tell the story, especially in a film that is far more focused on the characters and their feelings and emotions, something the score reinforces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quintus 5,399 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 That'll all come later and over the course of about 90 threads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 in what way?No need for a film critic to have a music degreeOf course not, but the comments on the score could be a bit more elaborate than just adjectives like "magnificent" or pointing out the appearance of previous themes and new ones. Far more interesting would be comments about how the music helps to tell the story, especially in a film that is far more focused on the characters and their feelings and emotions, something the score reinforces.That's only interesting to film music fans. Which is not who reviewers usually write for Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,495 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 I can understand the above critics' frustrations (I share some of them), but to blow off the last 15 (fifteen!) years that way just shows total lack of perspective. There have been some fantastic scores by Williams in the last 15 years -- whether thematic or more textural. If he'd say the last FIVE years, OK, maybe a bit better, but 15? Geezes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filmmusic 1,826 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 If I listen to the score without having seen the movie, I guess I'll understand where the film is going and guess possible spoilers?(eg. if there is funeral music near the end or whatever) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jilal 569 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Go see the film first! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 If I listen to the score without having seen the movie, I guess I'll understand where the film is going and guess possible spoilers?(eg. if there is funeral music near the end or whatever)I don't think so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filmmusic 1,826 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Go see the film first! Ok. This will be on the 29th the earliest! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jilal 569 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Oh dear. Listen to the OST album first, then! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 If I listen to the score without having seen the movie, I guess I'll understand where the film is going and guess possible spoilers?(eg. if there is funeral music near the end or whatever)Nope Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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