Let's rate and discuss "Far and Away"!

[Bilbo 3,709]

Scotland is Ireland’s more depressing, colder, and more rain drenched cousin. 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Hows their beer?

[publicist 4,643]

They have prettier lakes.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Ive been told this!

[Jurassic Shark 12,033]

And nicer women.

[KK 3,307]

Agreed with pub on this one. Great themes, middling underscore. The opening theme/tune channels that lofty Gaelic high spirit beautifully. I wish the rest of the score built on that sound more, rather than the Americana flourishes that make up most of the album.

 

Never bothered to watch the film.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

There's something lacking!

[Josh500 1,615]

28 minutes ago, KK said:

Agreed with pub on this one. Great themes, middling underscore. The opening theme/tune channels that lofty Gaelic high spirit beautifully. I wish the rest of the score built on that sound more, rather than the Americana flourishes that make up most of the album.

 

Agree with you, but the characters do move to America pretty early in the movie. Whatchoo gonna do? 

 

It occurred to me that this score somewhat reminds me of War Horse.... Beautiful music to accompany the  gorgeous (British or Irish) landscapes and human struggles against a historical background. 

[Brundlefly 2,385]

The only difference is that the score of the newer film is better and the film itself is significantly better.

[Thor 7,478]

The WAR HORSE score -- despite being JW's best since the mid 2000s -- doesn't even come CLOSE to the wonderful FAR & AWAY, but I agree that the film is better.

[Bilbo 3,709]

1 hour ago, Stefancos said:

Hows their beer?

 

You know, the only scottish bear I know is Tennants and that’s piss water. That’s the limit of my knowledge. 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Can't be worse than English beer!

[publicist 4,643]

Some of it is quite good. 

[Bilbo 3,709]

7 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

Can't be worse than English beer!

 

That’s a pretty low bar though. 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

11 minutes ago, publicist said:

Some of it is quite good. 

 

I'm sure. I probably chose poorly.

 

 

[Josh500 1,615]

And another video of JW conducting selections from Far and Away, this one from the year 2000. This is quickly becoming one of my favourite scores.... Well, I am rediscovering it, so to speak. I haven't listened to this one for some time, and now it seems I can't stop listening to it.

 

 

 

[Naïve Old Fart 9,507]

2 hours ago, Stefancos said:

Can't be worse than English beer!

Wha?!  Hobgoblin, I'll have you know, is yummy.

 

FAR AND AWAY movie revised rating:

5 stars

4.5 stars

4 stars

3.5 stars

3 stars

2.5 stars

2 stars

1.5 stars

1 star

I don't know this movie

Oh, fuck, do I have to?

[Brundlefly 2,385]

1 hour ago, Richard said:

FAR AND AWAY movie revised rating:

5 stars

4.5 stars

4 stars

3.5 stars

3 stars

2.5 stars

2 stars

1.5 stars

1 star

I don't know this movie

Oh, fuck, do I have to?

My version:

2 stars

1.5 stars

1 star

I don't know this movie

Oh, fuck, do I have to?

[Thor 7,478]

We get it, Brundlefly. You don't like it.

[Brundlefly 2,385]

That's not my point. My point is that it's not good.

[Richard Penna 3,676]

I've always liked The Land Race but the rest of the score doesn't really 'do' it.

 

I've never seen the film but I just watched the clip above and had a similar reaction to JNH's The Great Eatlon, in that the cue has such structure and detail, and invokes such imagery, but the film scene turns out a bit underwhelming and doesn't really deserve the music. I expected the scene to react a bit more specific to the music.

[Josh500 1,615]

5 hours ago, Richard Penna said:

I've always liked The Land Race but the rest of the score doesn't really 'do' it.

 

I've never seen the film but I just watched the clip above and had a similar reaction to JNH's The Great Eatlon, in that the cue has such structure and detail, and invokes such imagery, but the film scene turns out a bit underwhelming and doesn't really deserve the music. I expected the scene to react a bit more specific to the music.

 

So you're basically saying the music is good, but the scenes it was written for aren't that good, so in the end I don't really like the music either? 

 

And that from somebody who hasn't actually seen the movie? 😂 

 

5 hours ago, Thor said:

We get it, Brundlefly. You don't like it.

 

He's one of the trolls desperate for attention! It's best to ignore them.

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

Movie is bad but watchable.  Score has some dull underscore moments but the highlights more than make up for it.

[Jurassic Shark 12,033]

8 hours ago, Thor said:

We get it, Brundlefly. You don't like it.

 

Perhaps he thinks 1 is the best rating? 

[Brundlefly 2,385]

Yeah, maybe. In GTA, for example, five stars is worse than just one star.

 

But in general, I should maybe spend more time listening to Far & Away, since I basically listened to it a few times, decided it's not my cup of tea and almost never took it out of the shelf after that.

So I don't have the slightest right to objectively rate the score.

The reason why the score doesn't appeal to me personally, I think, is firstly because I'm really not into Irish music and the score features a bunch of very traditionally sounding music, and secondly because of the little reflective, light-hearted tone. It's a very comfortable score emotion-wise and that is not what I'm looking for in my relatively young age.

No, at the time I'm looking for a ferocious, tragic, complex or emotionally distracting kind of tone. Especially the 90s offer a lot from Williams in that regard: Presumed Innocent, JFK, Jurassic Park, Sleepers, Rosewood, The Lost World, Amistad and may I add A.I. which is not from the 90s, but it belongs to this list.

[publicist 4,643]

I can objectively rate it for you: it's OK at best. 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

It's lacking something!

[bollemanneke 3,338]

It needs more plunging and scrubbing.

[Jurassic Shark 12,033]

It clearly needs drum loops. The more, the better.

[publicist 4,643]

More session chitchat at the start of cues.

[bollemanneke 3,338]

Less Enya.

[Richard Penna 3,676]

7 hours ago, Josh500 said:

 

So you're basically saying the music is good, but the scenes it was written for aren't that good, so in the end I don't really like the music either? 

 

And that from somebody who hasn't actually seen the movie? 😂 

 

The scene underwhelmed me but I still love the cue for what it invokes in my mind.

 

I don't think I've ever had a great cue ruined by watching the film and being underwhelmed.Usually it's just a case of musical changes or emphasis not being in reaction to anything on screen.

[Brundlefly 2,385]

2 hours ago, publicist said:

I can objectively rate it for you: it's OK at best. 

That is the impression I have from my first few listens.

[Jurassic Shark 12,033]

I'd say the best parts of the score are better than OK, but overall it could have been a more interesting listen.

[Muad'Dib 1,801]

On 11/3/2018 at 3:55 PM, ins said:

Actually, Far and Away contains one of my personal Williams favorites of all time:

I put this kind of writing into the good-happy-mood category. I especially like the flute and cello counterpoint to the end. 

 

This one's better!

 

 

[Jurassic Shark 12,033]

That's so Irish!

[Josh500 1,615]

3 hours ago, Richard Penna said:

 

The scene underwhelmed me but I still love the cue for what it invokes in my mind.

 

I don't think I've ever had a great cue ruined by watching the film and being underwhelmed.Usually it's just a case of musical changes or emphasis not being in reaction to anything on screen.

 

A great cue is never ruined by a bad scene! However, a great scene can be (and often is!) ruined by a bad cue! 

 

But since we're talking about JW here, we (almost) never have a bad cue. And even if the movie is bad, the cue is still great!

 

 

_____________

 

This is another one of my all-time favourite moments from this score. The Irish dueling music gets faster and faster, crazier and crazier.... And then it gets overwhelmed by the love theme, as if to say "love triumphs over any fights." My God! The music makes you feel euphoric.

 

Starts at 3:16:

 

 

[Brundlefly 2,385]

4 hours ago, Josh500 said:

A great cue is never ruined by a bad scene! However, a great scene can be (and often is!) ruined by a bad cue!

But you can try to ruin a good cue with a bad scene, which means: Do never ever watch Damnation Alley!

[_deleted_ 203]

 

Tens times better than Solo. 

[1977 1,743]

I've read through and seen lots of comments about the film being "bad". Just wondering, what makes a film bad specifically? Is it technically lacking (camera work, sets, costumes, make-up, lighting) or is it the story/characters/dialogue? Are the performances unconvincing? Something else?

[Thor 7,478]

31 minutes ago, JTWfan77 said:

I've read through and seen lots of comments about the film being "bad". Just wondering, what makes a film bad specifically? Is it technically lacking (camera work, sets, costumes, make-up, lighting) or is it the story/characters/dialogue? Are the performances unconvincing? Something else?

 

I elaborated a bit on that on the first page: 

 

 

But the film is not without enjoyment.

 

 

[1977 1,743]

14 minutes ago, Thor said:

 

I elaborated a bit on that on the first page: 

 

But the film is not without enjoyment.

 

 

 

Thanks Thor, so l suppose its up to the individual to find enjoyment (or none) in a film. For my part, I enjoyed it in the cinema on release and still do to this day, whenever I get to see it on TV (I also have it on Laserdisc). The chemistry between the leads never bothered me and as you mentioned the cinematography and score are magnificent.

[Edmilson 7,398]

I don't listen to it frequently, but when I do I always like it. Indeed it's probably one of Williams' best on the 1990s, and that's saying something.

[Thor 7,478]

42 minutes ago, JTWfan77 said:

 

Thanks Thor, so l suppose its up to the individual to find enjoyment (or none) in a film. For my part, I enjoyed it in the cinema on release and still do to this day, whenever I get to see it on TV (I also have it on Laserdisc). The chemistry between the leads never bothered me and as you mentioned the cinematography and score are magnificent.

 

Yes, there are redeeming factors. The score and the cinematography, in particular.

[Josh500 1,615]

13 hours ago, JTWfan77 said:

I've read through and seen lots of comments about the film being "bad". Just wondering, what makes a film bad specifically? Is it technically lacking (camera work, sets, costumes, make-up, lighting) or is it the story/characters/dialogue? Are the performances unconvincing? Something else?

 

All of those things, of course. But for the record, in my opinion "Far and Away" is a pretty good film, not the best of its kind, but pretty up there. If I had to rate it, I'd give it a straight B (while the score gets an A+)! 

12 hours ago, Edmilson said:

I don't listen to it frequently, but when I do I always like it. Indeed it's probably one of Williams' best on the 1990s, and that's saying something.

 

Right after Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, Phantom Menace, The Lost World, JFK, and Home Alone! 😅 

[Brundlefly 2,385]

After Rosewood the worst film that John Williams scored in the nineties and one of his worse scores of the nineties. Okay at best.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

It's a very schlocky score but it has its moments. The best track is the Enya song.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,507]

Re: the title of this thread;

let's not.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Plenty of 90's Williams bombast, and the writing is naturally incredibly accomplished.

 

But there's something missing.

 

Couple of great highlights though 

[Luke Skywalker 1,793]

Well, i saw he film after listening to the score (and loving it). So the score really elevates the film. the land race is great in the film and watching it sometimes my hairs rise...i think it is a powerful track. The film is not a masterpiece, but it can be watched...i think.

 

I love this score and i hope Mattesino does an expansion soon, and the patriot too!