WampaRat 1,105 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 Listening to the expanded Rocketeer this weekend got me thinking. In the early to mid 90s there was a crop of films set in the 30s/40s inspired by pulp magazine characters. Some were enjoyable. Most were flops. But all had terrific scores. What’s your favorite? (Ps- While Zorro is a pulp magazine hero his adventures don’t take place in the 30s/40s so I didn’t include Horner’s The Mask of Zorro in this poll;) Also I know the Burton Batman films had a pseudo-1940s feel. But they weren’t really set in that era. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Mr. Big 4,639 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 Rocketeer aiaec Watching The Shadow now and it's pretty lame. It's "The Shadow knows", not "The Shadow Nose" WampaRat 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WampaRat 1,105 Posted May 31, 2021 Author Share Posted May 31, 2021 Yeah. HD is no friend of the Shadow lol. Killer score though. Film is campy as all get out. But fun. I tried watching the Phantom the other day (slipped by me as a youngster in the 90s) I was surprised by how boring it was. A purple-clad superhero living in a dark jungle fighting pirates and looking for skulls in the 40s should be a blast right? And it was super dull😔 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Mr. Big 4,639 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 9 minutes ago, WampaRat said: Yeah. HD is no friend of the Shadow lol. Especially on the main Blu ray release Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricard 2,244 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 You're comparing three very good scores by Goldsmith, Newman and Elfman to one of Horner's masterpieces, so... Edmilson and WampaRat 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,322 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 The Rocketeer AINEC Not Mr. Big 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faleel 5,340 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 The Shadow AINEC. Fabulin and Not Mr. Big 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stark 312 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 Definitely the Rocketeer, it has one of the greatest Horner themes ever written and a great score to back it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
publicist 4,643 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 The Shadow. Rocketeer always was overrated (The Flying Circus notwithstanding), the Newman and Elfman are also-ran's. Though i agree the 1994 movie was tacky (but not un-entertaining). Faleel and Fabulin 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,478 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 Score-wise, THE PHANTOM wins. But I was not, and still am not, a fan of the movie. I collected and obsessed over the Phantom comics as a kid (it was far more popular in Norway than in its country of origin), and I was more attracted to the stylish and slightly darker versions by Hans Lindahl or Jaime Valvée than I was the original Lee Falk strip. So I was disappointed by the film, which was a campy affair - and had the rather feminine Billy Zane in the title role. The comic should have been adapted by, and directed by, someone from Northern Europe, not from Australia. But again - the score remains a favourite, and I still consider it Newman's best. The other scores are fine too. I'd rank THE ROCKETEER second, DICK TRACY third and THE SHADOW fourth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,033 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 What about The Spirit? It was made only a decade too late. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romão 2,274 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 All great scores, but The Shadow is one of my all time favourites. No question Faleel 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Guernsey 2,281 Posted May 31, 2021 Share Posted May 31, 2021 12 hours ago, Jurassic Shark said: What about The Spirit? It was made only a decade too late. I was going to say thah but it’s a decade too late for the question posed. But it does have a terrific David Newman score, much underrated next to the more popular effort for The Phantom. Having said that, I went for The Rocketeer… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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