The Last Jedi THE LAST JEDI - Score mentions in online reviews & social media, etc

[gkgyver 1,647]

6 minutes ago, Chen G. said:

 

That's because its not Finn's theme, per se. Its a recurring motif for the comedic beats of the early action scenes, which tends to coincide with Finn's "scared-out-of-his-living-mind-of-what's-happening" behavior.

 

It really is a very single minded score. Rey's theme is the absolute centerpiece, to a fault.

 

Out of curiosity, I listened to the soundtrack today on my way home, it's been a while, just so I don't remember it wrong. It's a score that lacks diversity in my opinion, both thematically and in style. Episode III for example is completely superior in every way. If I dare say it, it's the least diverse SW score out of the 7.

The Sound of it is an odd middle ground between A New Hope and Revenge Of The Sith, which I find confusing, since it should in theory be a continuation of Return Of The Jedi. 

I think people put too much thought into this, like comparing the Sound of it to previous scores. I simply don't think it's something JW pays much attention to. TFA is as much of a reflection of which period the composer is currently in as every Williams score.

Just like Indy 4 is a long shot away from Indy 3.

[Chen G. 4,621]

1 minute ago, gkgyver said:

I think people put too much thought into this, like comparing the Sound of it to previous scores. I simply don't think it's something JW pays much attention to. TFA is as much of a reflection of which period the composer is currently in as every Williams score.

 

YES! Exactly.

[gkgyver 1,647]

2 minutes ago, Chen G. said:

 

YES! Exactly.

 

If we are talking really, really diverse scores JW has done in the past 10 years, I'd say Tintin is easily the most notable one. The Force Awakens is more like a War Horse kind of score, something that has one or two really outstanding themes, but you can't easily get through the album because of how same-y it all is.

[Chen G. 4,621]

That's part of my issue with scores that insist too much on their "main" theme. Rey's theme must recur over twenty times in that score!

[Jurassic Shark 13,158]

3 hours ago, BloodBoal said:

 

Since 2003 (to keep with RadJ's example of ROTK) up to 2015 (TFA)?

 

Just to name a few, off the top of my head:

 

2004 Howl's Moving Castle, Harry Potter And The Prisoner of Azkaban, The Village

2005 Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire, King Kong

2006 X-Men: The Last Stand, Eragon, Da Vinci Code, BBC Robin Hood

2007 Stardust, The Golden Compass, Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End, Spider-Man 3

2008 The Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian, Ponyo On The Cliff By The Sea

2009 The Cape, Avatar, Star Trek

2010 How To Train Your Dragon, The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader, Robin Hood

2011 The Adventures Of Tintin: The Secret Of The Unicorn, Puss In Boots

2012 John Carter, Journey To The Mysterious Island, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

2013 The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug, The Lone Ranger, Star Trek: Into Darkness

2014 How To Train Your Dragon 2, The Monuments Men, Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes, The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies

2015 Pan, Jurassic World, Tomorrowland

 

Thanks, I see I have a few scores to check out.

[gkgyver 1,647]

That's not really the issue with me, I'm a sucker for thematic variations. My issue is more that, IF you're going to focus so much on a theme, then use it more, and with more variations, and make the surrounding underscore, and smaller motifs, more interesting. I realize this is criticism on a high level, but in the first 30 minutes or so of this album, or more, it does very very little to hold my interest. Something like "I Can Fly Anything" just pales in comparison to just about everything JW has done for Star Wars.

 

For the lack of a better word, I don't feel the heart of this score for about 75% of it.

I mean, my god, I listen to "Anakin's Dream", and that's more heartfelt and true to me than anything in TFA. And that is scoring an atrocious movie.

[Balahkay 629]

33 minutes ago, Chen G. said:

That's part of my issue with scores that insist too much on their "main" theme. Rey's theme must recur over twenty times in that score!

 

It's such a good theme to my ears that I don't mind all the variations.  It's a very versatile theme and the reoccurrences work well since Rey is the star of the film.

[Alejandro 28]

4 hours ago, BloodBoal said:

 

Since 2003 (to keep with RadJ's example of ROTK) up to 2015 (TFA)?

 

Just to name a few, off the top of my head:

 

2004 Howl's Moving Castle, Harry Potter And The Prisoner of Azkaban, The Village

2005 Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire, King Kong

2006 X-Men: The Last Stand, Eragon, Da Vinci Code, BBC Robin Hood

2007 Stardust, The Golden Compass, Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End, Spider-Man 3

2008 The Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian, Ponyo On The Cliff By The Sea

2009 The Cape, Avatar, Star Trek

2010 How To Train Your Dragon, The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader, Robin Hood

2011 The Adventures Of Tintin: The Secret Of The Unicorn, Puss In Boots

2012 John Carter, Journey To The Mysterious Island, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

2013 The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug, The Lone Ranger, Star Trek: Into Darkness

2014 How To Train Your Dragon 2, The Monuments Men, Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes, The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies

2015 Pan, Jurassic World, Tomorrowland

 

Nothing beats 1993 for me:

 

Matinee

Homeward Bound

Army of Darkness

Point of No return

Adv of Huck Finn

Dave

Dragon: Bruce Lee Story

Dennis the Menace

The Firm

Sleepless in Seattle

Rookie of the Year

Free Willy

The Fugitive

Searching for Bobby Fischer

Jurassic Park

Age of Innocence

Gettysburg

Nightmare Before Christmas

Rudy

The Piano

Mrs. Doubtfire

Schindler’s LIst

Beethoven’s 2nd

Pelican Brief

Tombstone

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sandor 843]

1 hour ago, gkgyver said:

 

If we are talking really, really diverse scores JW has done in the past 10 years, I'd say Tintin is easily the most notable one. The Force Awakens is more like a War Horse kind of score, something that has one or two really outstanding themes, but you can't easily get through the album because of how same-y it all is.

 

Although I agree with you mostly on TFA, you need to give War Horse another listen. Not only is the album telling a story musically, exploring opposite ends of the emotional spectrum, it also houses at least four truly outstanding themes. It is -by far- Williams’ best score from the current decade and among the 15 best scores he ever wrote. Yes, it’s that good.

[mrbellamy 6,753]

 

[Jost1 105]

4 minutes ago, mrbellamy said:

 

If it's thematic material from ROTJ: awesome! If it's just tracked in from ROTJ: less awesome.

[pete 970]

Jabba's Theme!

[artguy360 1,899]

4 minutes ago, mrbellamy said:

 

I imagine Luke and Leia's theme making an appearance but I don't know what else JW would repeat from ROTJ. I wonder if these early preview people are familiar enough with JW's music to be trusted or if the music has some superficial similarities to past Star Wars scores that they mistake for whole quotes or if there is tracked music in the film from ROTJ, which would strike me as odd.

[gkgyver 1,647]

How about some Lapti Nek?

I really hope this doesn't end up being a nostalgia fest.

[Muad'Dib 1,863]

Oh no....

[Damien F 1,773]

"Rian baby, this is the theme I wrote for the porgs. I call it Parade of the Ewoks"

[Oskar 80]

I just saw it. Here's the lowdown on the music:

 

Beware! Read at your own risk.

 

- There are (best to my knowledge) 2 new themes. A sweet one for Rose, and a more militaristic one for Admiral Holdo. They both get some workout during the end credits.

- Returning are (of course) the usual suspects: Rey's theme, Kylo Ren's/First order themes, March of the Resistance, Snoke's male choir, Poe's Theme, Force Theme, Rebel Fanfare, Luke's theme, Leia's theme.

- Jedi Steps is referenced.

- No references to the 'running along with Finn' theme from TFA.

- I don't think there is a theme for the Porgs.

- I could not hear any tracked music (although the Main Title may have been from TFA, I could not hear because of screams and clapping of the audience)

- Canto Bight will probably be a fun source music track. Lots of steel drum. It sounded a bit like the Cantina Band, but different.

- Saw William Ross credited alongside Williams for conducting.

- Other old themes return, but revealing them would be very spoilerific. Best you find out what they are in the theater or on the OST.

- The Verizon ad music is NOT in the film, so it was just library music after all.

[Cerebral Cortex 3,358]

Bless you. 

 

How was the mixing of the music in the film, if I might ask? 

[John 2,032]

Is there a theme for the Knights of Ren?

[King Mark 3,713]

6 minutes ago, Oskar said:

I just saw it. Here's the lowdown on the music:

 

Beware! Read at your own risk.

 

 

  Hide contents

 

 

- There are (best to my knowledge) 2 new themes. A sweet one for Rose, and a more militaristic one for Admiral Holdo. They both get some workout during the end credits.

- Returning are (of course) the usual suspects: Rey's theme, Kylo Ren's/First order themes, March of the Resistance, Snoke's male choir, Poe's Theme, Force Theme, Rebel Fanfare, Luke's theme, Leia's theme.

- Jedi Steps is referenced.

- No references to the 'running along with Finn' theme from TFA.

- I don't think there is a theme for the Porgs.

- I could not hear any tracked music (although the Main Title may have been from TFA, I could not hear because of screams and clapping of the audience)

- Canto Bight will probably be a fun source music track. Lots of steel drum. It sounded a bit like the Cantina Band, but different.

- Saw William Ross credited alongside Williams for conducting.

- Other old themes return, but revealing them would be very spoilerific. Best you find out what they are in the theater or on the OST.

- The Verizon ad music is NOT in the film, so it was just library music after all.

 

yeah, but how did you like the score ? better than TFA?

 

are the new themes any good. Your description is pretty neutral

[mrbellamy 6,753]

7 minutes ago, Oskar said:

I just saw it. Here's the lowdown on the music:

 

Beware! Read at your own risk.

 

 

  Hide contents

 

 

- There are (best to my knowledge) 2 new themes. A sweet one for Rose, and a more militaristic one for Admiral Holdo. They both get some workout during the end credits.

- Returning are (of course) the usual suspects: Rey's theme, Kylo Ren's/First order themes, March of the Resistance, Snoke's male choir, Poe's Theme, Force Theme, Rebel Fanfare, Luke's theme, Leia's theme.

- Jedi Steps is referenced.

- No references to the 'running along with Finn' theme from TFA.

- I don't think there is a theme for the Porgs.

- I could not hear any tracked music (although the Main Title may have been from TFA, I could not hear because of screams and clapping of the audience)

- Canto Bight will probably be a fun source music track. Lots of steel drum. It sounded a bit like the Cantina Band, but different.

- Saw William Ross credited alongside Williams for conducting.

- Other old themes return, but revealing them would be very spoilerific. Best you find out what they are in the theater or on the OST.

- The Verizon ad music is NOT in the film, so it was just library music after all.

 

 

 

I got in a PM conversation with someone who claimed to have seen the film and he said one of the returning old themes was

 

Spoiler

The Emperor's Theme

 

True?

[Oskar 80]

1 minute ago, king mark said:

yeah, but how did you like the score ? better than TFA?

 

are the new themes any good. Your description is pretty neutral

 

True, I tried to give you just the facts.

It's difficult to give a good assessment of the score. There were highlights, definitely, but it was indeed a lot of explosive brass and statements of the aforementioned themes.

 

2 minutes ago, mrbellamy said:

 

I got in a PM conversation with someone who claimed to have seen the film and he said one of the returning old themes was

 

  Hide contents

The Emperor's Theme

 

True?

 

True

[King Mark 3,713]

normally a great score you can't wait to listen to the c.d. after

 

Was the mix loud?

[Oswin Pond 59]

How was the music of the battle of Crait ? Is it as good (or near) as The Battle of Hoth / Coruscant / Naboo/ Endor / Yavin or is it more like the Starkiler battle which was... Well in my opinion very disappointing (I mean shezro to Xwing is just Luke's theme over and over again and before that there is no music)

[Cerebral Cortex 3,358]

3 minutes ago, mrbellamy said:

 

I got in a PM conversation with someone who claimed to have seen the film and he said one of the returning old themes was

 

  Reveal hidden contents

The Emperor's Theme

 

True?

 

Must... resist... clicking...

[Oskar 80]

19 minutes ago, Cerebral Cortex said:

Bless you. 

 

How was the mixing of the music in the film, if I might ask? 

 

Loud! Better than TFA

8 minutes ago, Oswin Pond said:

How was the music of the battle of Crait ? Is it as good (or near) as The Battle of Hoth / Coruscant / Naboo/ Endor / Yavin or is it more like the Starkiler battle which was... Well in my opinion very disappointing (I mean shezro to Xwing is just Luke's theme over and over again and before that there is no music)

 

It reminded me of Anakin Defeats Sebulba (the fast strings part).

[Oswin Pond 59]

Ow that's cool thanks ! 
Did you like the last music ? Is it again The Force Theme ? I mean it's been 3 times in a row now that a Star Wars ends with The Force Theme (ROTS TFA and R1), it would be nice to change.
Was there any "one time" music (So not the new or old leimotivs) that stood out ?

[Cerebral Cortex 3,358]

4 minutes ago, Oskar said:

Loud! Better than TFA

 

 

Now that's what I'm talking about! Thanks a lot for the response, bud. 

[John 2,032]

@Oskar What is the final theme heard in the film before the end credits?

[Damien F 1,773]

Thanks for answering our questions.

 

Can you remember how much of the film is scored. Is it wall to wall like the prequels or are there a lot of scenes with no score?

[Oskar 80]

3 minutes ago, Oswin Pond said:

Ow that's cool thanks ! 
Did you like the last music ? Is it again The Force Theme ? I mean it's been 3 times in a row now that a Star Wars ends with The Force Theme (ROTS TFA and R1), it would be nice to change.
Was there any "one time" music (So not the new or old leimotivs) that stood out ?

 

Yes there was music that stood out that didn't involve leitmotifs. I just hope they're on the OST!

[curlytoot 97]

Did it overall leave a good impression on you? Are you excited to get the soundtrack album?

[Oskar 80]

27 minutes ago, Damien F said:

Thanks for answering our questions.

 

Can you remember how much of the film is scored. Is it wall to wall like the prequels or are there a lot of scenes with no score?

 

 

I got the feeling it was definitely wall-to-wall like the prequels. There's nary a quiet moment in the film

[Remco 688]

Thanks, Oscar! This all sounds so good. 

[Damien F 1,773]

19 minutes ago, Cerebral Cortex said:

 

Must... resist... clicking...

Be careful on mobile. When this page loads on my phone, the spoiler section is visible for a second before it gets hidden. I inadvertently saw the name of the old returning theme.

[Manakin Skywalker 5,296]

Most importantly; is that music from the Verizon commercial from the film?

[mrbellamy 6,753]

It's in his first post, but if you're not clicking the spoiler tag, the answer is no.

[Oskar 80]

9 minutes ago, curlytoot said:

Did it overall leave a good impression on you? Are you excited to get the soundtrack album?

 

 

Ok this is very hard for me to say, but it was disappointing to discover that no new GREAT SW theme was added to the lexicon.

No big set pieces like DOTF of BOTH. No sweeping new themes like Across the Stars or Rey's Theme. But, like TFA, I have the feeling this one is going to be a grower once you hear the OST. There are highlights aplenty, for sure. So please, don't base all your hopes on one person's first opinion.

 

[curlytoot 97]

2 minutes ago, Oskar said:

 

 

  Hide contents

Ok this is very hard for me to say, but it was disappointing to discover that no new GREAT SW theme was added to the lexicon.

No big set pieces like DOTF of BOTH. No sweeping new themes like Across the Stars or Rey's Theme. But, like TFA, I have the feeling this one is going to be a grower once you hear the OST. There are highlights aplenty, for sure. So please, don't base all your hopes on one person's first opinion.[/spoilers]

 

 

Spoiler

That's totally OK with me; I wasn't really looking for anything like that anyways. Just want some good (complex) battle music, some loud brass stuff, some nice renditions of known themes, etc.

 

[crumbs 14,869]

Ok, time to bail on this thread!

[mrbellamy 6,753]

8 minutes ago, Oskar said:

 

  Reveal hidden contents

Ok this is very hard for me to say, but it was disappointing to discover that no new GREAT SW theme was added to the lexicon.

No big set pieces like DOTF of BOTH. No sweeping new themes like Across the Stars or Rey's Theme. But, like TFA, I have the feeling this one is going to be a grower once you hear the OST. There are highlights aplenty, for sure. So please, don't base all your hopes on one person's first opinion.[/spoiler]

 

 

Spoiler

So would you say that this score maybe works best as almost an extension of TFA rather than a standalone? For example, did you feel like any of the TFA themes really came into their own more with this score? Anything that maybe has a new favorite version for you?

 

I think that would make up for the lack of something particularly special for TLJ, if the score at least succeeds at further cementing TFA's material into the saga.

 

[Oskar 80]

2 minutes ago, mrbellamy said:

 

  Hide contents

So would you say that this score maybe works best as almost an extension of TFA rather than a standalone? For example, did you feel like any of the TFA themes really came into their own more with this score? Anything that maybe has a new favorite version for you?

 

 

That is an absolute PERFECT description of the score! Thank you!

[John 2,032]

@Oskar what is the last theme you heard in the score before the end credits?

[mrbellamy 6,753]

6 minutes ago, Oskar said:

 

 

  Reveal hidden contents

That is an absolute PERFECT description of the score! Thank you!

 

 

 

Haha okay great!

I will say, though, the only thing that concerns me about that is if it feels like a "Chamber of Secrets" situation where the reuse of old themes basically just feel like a retread of the previous score. Did it feel like Williams actually expanded and enhanced TFA's score for you, without just doing the same thing over again?

Related to that, how do you feel the use of music compares to TFA in cinematic terms? Could you feel a change in Rian Johnson's direction from Abrams's, in terms of how they each approached the music? Does it feel like the score brings anything new to the table in terms of sound or drama or atmosphere, if not necessarily in the themes or setpieces?

 

 

[Cerebral Cortex 3,358]

3 minutes ago, JohnSolo said:

@Oskar what is the last theme you heard in the score before the end credits?

 

I PM'd a guy who said he has seen the film and he said it was

Spoiler

Yub Nub

 

[Oskar 80]

2 minutes ago, JohnSolo said:

@Oskar what is the last theme you heard in the score before the end credits?

 

Sorry, but I really want to wait discussing this until more people have seen the film or heard the OST. Once a TLJ music spoiler discussion thread is created we can divulge in it futher

Just now, Oskar said:

 

 

  Hide contents

Sorry, but I really want to wait discussing this until more people have seen the film or heard the OST. Once a TLJ music spoiler discussion thread is created we can talk about it in depth

 

 

[John 2,032]

Just now, Oskar said:

 

 

  Hide contents

Sorry, but I really want to wait discussing this until more people have seen the film or heard the OST. Once a TLJ music spoiler discussion thread is created we can divulge in it futher

 

 

Gotcha.

[Code 000. Destruct. 0. 4,260]

 

 

I didn't follow much of the buildup rumors and production stories of this film, but the little that I did see on here led me to believe that the score might be more exotic and colorful than TFA was.  This is not really the case, at least not in the way I expected.  Still essentially Williams in lean and mean 2010s mode.  Unsure yet if I actually do prefer it to TFA or if it's just newness syndrome, but no this isn't a tonal 180 or anything or a throwback to the prequel aesthetic.  

13 minutes ago, mrbellamy said:

 

  Reveal hidden contents

Haha okay great!

I will say, though, the only thing that concerns me about that is if it feels like a "Chamber of Secrets" situation where the reuse of old themes basically just feel like a retread of the previous score. Did it feel like Williams actually expanded and enhanced TFA's score for you, without just doing the same thing over again?

Related to that, how do you feel the use of music compares to TFA in cinematic terms? Could you feel a change in Rian Johnson's direction from Abrams's, in terms of how they each approached the music? Does it feel like the score brings anything new to the table in terms of sound or drama or atmosphere, if not necessarily in the themes or setpieces?

 

 

 

[Oskar 80]

10 minutes ago, mrbellamy said:

 

  Hide contents

Haha okay great!

I will say, though, the only thing that concerns me about that is if it feels like a "Chamber of Secrets" situation where the reuse of old themes basically just feel like a retread of the previous score. Did it feel like Williams actually expanded and enhanced TFA's score for you, without just doing the same thing over again?

Related to that, how do you feel the use of music compares to TFA in cinematic terms? Could you feel a change in Rian Johnson's direction from Abrams's, in terms of how they each approached the music? Does it feel like the score brings anything new to the table in terms of sound or drama or atmosphere, if not necessarily in the themes or setpieces?

 

 

 

It felt more like Revenge of the Sith. No simple retread of previous scores. Just a lot of references to older material with many new variations

Your second question is very difficult to answer. Can't really say right now, sorry.

[Simon McBride 114]

Man this thread is interesting when you don't look at the spoilers