Jump to content

Which expanded soundtrack from the last decade has been the greatest improvement over the OST?


Jurassic Shark

Recommended Posts

Wow, that's a big question, with so many expanded releases having come out this decade!

 

Here's a list that might help people remember most of what came out, though it doesn't include 2010 at all, and I still haven't caught up with most 2017-2019 titles, unfortunately

 

https://www.jwfan.com/forums/index.php?/topic/20226-the-specialty-film-score-label-catalog-of-new-titles/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think the #1 answer has to be DIE HARD WITH A VENGEANCE


The OST album was this weird score/song/classical music hybrid with less than 30 minutes of score, most of which wasn't heard in the film.  The LLL 2CD set is this glorious 2 hour main program with another almost 40 minutes of bonus tracks and finally reveals what Kamen really got up to with that score.  It's fantastic!

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 minutes ago, publicist said:

For JG:

 

The Ghost and the Darkness

Star Trek V

The Shadow

Explorers

Chain Reaction

Executive Decision

Air Force One

 

 

 

First Knight!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think next up would be some John Williams expansions that come to mind

 

A.I. Artificial Intelligence added so much crucial music that wasn't on the OST, like the many cues that setup the Blue Fairy theme before it pays off at the end, and a much longer time spent in the first act at the Swinton household really helps set up everything that happens at the end of the score

 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone certainly had a lengthy OST, but when you factor in how it was a hybrid of concert arrangement and film cues, when you separate them out you end up with a nice, lengthy film score presentation with so much more going on than you could hear on the OST album, like a lot more Voldemort theme and a lot of nice underscore instead of just set pieces, plus the entire Children's Suite is so nicely listened to as its own little mini-album as a bonus instead of chopped up and mixed between random film cues.

 

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets had a lengthy OST too, but I'd say the wrong cues were chosen to represent the full score on it.  The amazing Chamber theme only appears in the concert arrangement on the album, when the film score features fantastic develops of it through and not a single one of those cues made the OST, nor did some other cues of completely original material, with the OST instead sometimes featuring cues that straight-up reprised HPSS arrangements for some reason.  The new main program is just so much more satisfying.

 

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban again had a pretty lengthy OST, not as long as the others if you factor out the repeated material at the end, and there is just such a variety of different ideas that no 75 minute presentation could ever hope to cover them all.  The OST doesn't include some of the most memorable aspects of the whole score at all, like the harpichord for Peter Pettigrew, or Sirius's rescue at the end.  The expanded release really makes all the work JW did for this film shine brightly

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Most of the time, I'm grateful for the additional music but don't find the albums to be an improvement on the OST.

 

Looking at OSTs that I've always found lackluster for one reason or another, I found improvement in Elfman's Batman Returns and Williams' The Lost World.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Jurassic Shark said:

I wonder what expansion @Thor will highlight.

 

I considered replying with 'None' (which is the truth!), but then that would have been too obvious. ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, Jay said:

I think the #1 answer has to be DIE HARD WITH A VENGEANCE


The OST album was this weird score/song/classical music hybrid with less than 30 minutes of score, most of which wasn't heard in the film.  The LLL 2CD set is this glorious 2 hour main program with another almost 40 minutes of bonus tracks and finally reveals what Kamen really got up to with that score.  It's fantastic!

 

 

 

Good point. I own the original album and it's a weird coaster. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Too many to count. Off the top of my head:

 

The Lost World

Harry Potter 1-3

Hook

Home Alone

The Ghost and the Darkness

The Haunting

Apollo 13

Star Trek III

The Lion King

Starship Troopers

Spartacus

Ben-Hur

The Ten Commandments

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (in any case for sound, but especially skipping the two earlier CD reissues and looking only at the 1977 Arista to judge by)

Towering Inferno (Williams) (ditto)

Dracula (Williams)

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (again in context against the OST)

Poltergeist (Goldsmith)

Marnie (Herrmann)

Obsession (Herrmann)

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Although not the best of the decade, Star Trek Into Darkness was a great improvement as it presented a more accurate representation of the musical narrative than the OST.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The main program of the LLL album is about 80 minutes, and the OST was 63 minutes, so roughly 17 minutes longer, though throughout the main program there are the right film takes of cues where the OST used alternates.  There is also additional alternate takes in the bonus track section, along with all the OST tracks that had unique takes.

 

In between the OST and this LLL expansion, of course, was the 73 minute Varese expansion.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, Arpy said:

Although not the best of the decade, Star Trek Into Darkness was a great improvement as it presented a more accurate representation of the musical narrative than the OST.

I was all in on Star Trek 2009 and even got the deluxe, but haven't found my way into the two sequel scores yet (and the films and fan reception of kept me at a distance). Any preference for one over the other, and reasons or highlights?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I honestly think both Into Darkness and Beyond are stronger, more well-rounded scores than ST09, with better themes.

 

For Into Darkness, check out London Calling and Ship to Ship from the OST album, and Ode To Harrison and Ode To Vengeance available only on the expanded album

 

For Beyond, check out Night On The Yorktown and Crash Decisions from the OST album, and Jaylah's Theme and Yorktown Theme available only on the expanded album

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jaws must be mentioned. The previous MCA anniversary edition was unlistenable due to its muffled sound. The Intrada Matessino 2.015 remaster really rescued this score.

 

Psycho II was a grail and the expanded is so much better with all the wonderful tracks that were left off the 30 min. album.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Psycho II OST is more digestible in one sitting than the exhaustive Intrada. I'm not a fan of itty bitty tracks stacked together, instead I prefer the composer going to some effort to albumise the score if necessary.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Þekþiþm said:

The Psycho II OST is more digestible in one sitting than the exhaustive Intrada. I'm not a fan of itty bitty tracks stacked together, instead I prefer the composer going to some effort to albumise the score if necessary.


So you’re saying you don’t like John Powell’s insane 50-track OSTs for the Ice Age films? 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's only annoying if you're listening on YT when you have to wait for each video to load up the next cue. Several of those album cues that fade into each other are actually one cue that had to be cut up due to choir reuse fees or something like that. That's a thing of the past and apparently, Powell doesn't have to deal with that anymore in his albums. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, Jay said:

I honestly think both Into Darkness and Beyond are stronger, more well-rounded scores than ST09, with better themes.

I also completely randomly just watched the Short Treks directed by Giacchino (and also just realized there were new episodes) and it was delightful.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 that stick out the most:

 

Minority Report

Star Trek V

The Lion King

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Apollo 13

A.I. Artificial Intelligence

Dracula

Die Hard 2

Batman Returns

The Lost World: Jurassic Park

 

 

Plus almost anything by Jerry Goldsmith. There's probably much more.

 

Karol

Link to comment
Share on other sites

TLW is one that sticks out for me. Its OST wasn't bad - there are other expansions that have saved scores from much worse treatment - but the wealth of great previously unreleased music keeps bringing me back to that one in particular.

 

Other contenders for me would be POA and Superman, the former for reasons similar to TLW and the latter for the quantum leap in sound quality.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Apollo 13 is a prime candidate as well, considering that for years the official OST was that awful one with 60s songs and fucking dialogue from the movie, indefensible for such a classic, beloved score. For 24 years Horner fans had to be happy with the FYC and bootlegs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

42 minutes ago, Datameister said:

TLW is one that sticks out for me. Its OST wasn't bad - there are other expansions that have saved scores from much worse treatment - but the wealth of great previously unreleased music keeps bringing me back to that one in particular.

My only issue with the OST was putting The Stegosaurus near the end. The rest of the OST not being in chronological otherwise played fine, with that one odd exception. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Quantum leap actually means a very small step.

 

Scale is relative. For the electron, making that jump between energy levels is pretty huge. And more importantly, there's no "in between" state, which is why the phrase is often used to refer to abrupt or extreme changes. Objects on a macroscopic scale don't literally exhibit this behavior, so you'll have to forgive me for using a much smaller metaphor.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Though i find most C&C releases too complete i'm pretty grateful for the gaping holes a lot of these releases did fill. Though i'd probably single out 'The Shadow' by a small margin. That score is so much fun and the old release was so half-assed. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, Edmilson said:

Apollo 13 is a prime candidate as well, considering that for years the official OST was that awful one with 60s songs and fucking dialogue from the movie, indefensible for such a classic, beloved score. For 24 years Horner fans had to be happy with the FYC and bootlegs.

 

I like the OST.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I will ignore releases that were of minor significance since they just expand upon a former expansion that was created before 2010, like for example Star Trek: The Motion Picture or Superman: The Movie.

 

---Goldsmith---

Air Force One

Chain Reaction

Executive Decision

Explorers

First Knight

The Ghost and the Darkness

The Haunting

The Shadow

Small Soldiers

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Star Trek: Insurrection

Star Trek Nemesis

 

---John Williams---

A.I. Artificial Intelligence

Dracula

The Philosopher's Stone

The Prisoner of Azkaban

The Lost World

Minority Report

Rosewood

 

Williams had less insufficient albums than Goldsmith, so that's it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Guidelines.