Images (1972) - 2021 remaster by Quartet Records (CD and LP)

[rough cut 1,714]

I love getting my hands on a rare Williams score, falling in love with it, then tracking down the movie.

 

Now that I think about it, it’s kind of a tradition.

 

One that I’m pretty sure I share with a lot of JWfans.

 

Oh! And also: my copy is shipped and on way! Huzzah!

[Corellian2019 383]

For those who wish to compare the score to the film: 

 

 

[Dr. Rick 1,155]

I’ve seen the movie recently on one of the free streaming channels.  It was definitely a different film!  😂 

 

mine has shipped and is scheduled for delivery on Wednesday!

[Jay 37,267]

54 minutes ago, rough cut said:

I love getting my hands on a rare Williams score, falling in love with it, then tracking down the movie.

 

Now that I think about it, it’s kind of a tradition.

 

One that I’m pretty sure I share with a lot of JWfans.

 

Hell yea!  In the past few years, I've caught up with a bunch of Williams-scored films I had never seen before, all whose OST albums I had maybe listened to one time prior - The Eiger Sanction, Always, Stanley & Iris, Presumed Innocent, Far and Away, Sabrina, Sleepers, Rosewood, Amistad, The Patriot (well, I had seen that one 20 years prior, but didn't remember much about it and never listen to the OST)....  It's been nice to go back and listen to each OST album after seeing each film and having a different appreciation of it!

 

My list of post-Jaws JW-scored films I haven't seen yet is down to just Family Plot, Missouri Breaks, Midway, Black Sunday, Jaws 2, Heartbeeps, Yes Giorgio, Monsignor, The River, The Accidental Tourist, Born on the Fourth of July, Nixon, Seven Years in TIbet, Stepmom, and Angela's Ashes.  The pre-Jaws list however is every single one except The Sugarland Express....

[ciarlese 248]

I get that this release, although the only one approved by the composer, is not complete.
Does anyone have an idea of how much recorded music is missing in this release?

[Jurassic Shark 12,008]

They could at least have included a few alternate grunts.

[Jay 37,267]

2 minutes ago, ciarlese said:

I get that this release, although the only one approved by the composer, is not complete.
Does anyone have an idea of how much recorded music is missing in this release?

 

I don't think we have any insight into how much was recorded but not released; All we'd be able to know is how much music appears in the film but isn't on the album.

 

I don't think I've ever seen anyone post a list of all the music heard in the film anywhere, tbh.  I can put something together after I finally see the film if no one beats me to it.

[GerateWohl 4,322]

31 minutes ago, Jay said:

Hell yea!  In the past few years, I've caught up with a bunch of Williams-scored films I had never seen before, all whose OST albums I had maybe listened to one time prior - The Eiger Sanction, Always, Stanley & Iris, Presumed Innocent, Far and Away, Sabrina, Sleepers, Rosewood, Amistad, The Patriot (well, I had seen that one 20 years prior, but didn't remember much about it and never listen to the OST)....  It's been nice to go back and listen to each OST album after seeing each film and having a different appreciation of it!

 

My list of post-Jaws JW-scored films I haven't seen yet is down to just Family Plot, Missouri Breaks, Midway, Black Sunday, Jaws 2, Heartbeeps, Yes Giorgio, Monsignor, The River, The Accidental Tourist, Born on the Fourth of July, Nixon, Seven Years in TIbet, Stepmom, and Angela's Ashes.  The pre-Jaws list however is every single one except The Sugarland Express....

You should definitely watch The Poseidon Adventure. It's probably my favourite of his pre-Jaws movies. Not favourite score, but favourite movie. 

[Jay 37,267]

I'll see them all eventually!

 

We might watch Images this evening actually - it's free on six different streaming services currently!

 

https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/images

[Corellian2019 383]

2 hours ago, Jay said:

I don't think I've ever seen anyone post a list of all the music heard in the film anywhere, tbh.  I can put something together after I finally see the film if no one beats me to it.

 

In this thread, I mentioned that Images was missing 12 minutes of music heard in the film, the highlight of which is a harpsichord cue featuring the "A" side of the main theme.

[Jay 37,267]

Well, we watched the film yesterday.

 

What a bizarre film.  I wouldn't say it's necessary a good movie, but it's a very interesting one.  I'm not really sure what Altman was trying to say, but at least it was unlike any other movie I'd seen, and was never boring;  If anybody else is thinking of watching it, it's not a slog to get through, it's pretty nicely paced and never boring; New and unusual things keep happening.

 

The film is very sparsely scored; Most of it plays with no music at all.  The OST album gives you a good idea of the whole score.  12 minutes missing sounds about right to me.  Most of the cues in the film are all very short, kind of disappearing as quickly as they come in.  A complete presentation might be a bit disjointed if we ever get to hear one one day.  The OST album does a good job of presenting the ideas they came up with in a listenable format.

 

I'm looking forward to listening to the album again now that I've seen the film!  I was kinda surprised there wasn't as much of the weird vocals in the film as there is on the album, at least not that I noticed

[Thor 7,453]

8 minutes ago, Jay said:

 I'm not really sure what Altman was trying to say...

 

I don't know if Altman had watched Polanski's REPULSION - since the two films share similar DNA - but this is what he said about the genesis of the movie:

 

«It all came from a frightening thing I imagined. You’re sitting on the bed and you’re talking to your wife, who’s in the bathroom. And you’re talking away and she comes out and it’s an entirely different woman you are talking to. What do you do? Do you continue the conversation and think, “I’m wrong,” or do you cover and think this is in your mind? Or do you throw her out of the house because she is a stranger? In writing it, I had the woman sitting on the bed and the guy comes out and it’s a different guy, and that’s the whole genesis of Images.»

 

It's a basically an essay on schizophrenia that also touches on issues such as identity and sexual trauma.

[Jay 37,267]

Yea but it just kinda shows you a bunch of stuff and doesn't then draw any conclusions from it or offer any solutions for it

[Thor 7,453]

Sure, it's open-ended, but it's an arthouse film that doesn't neatly fit into traditional narrative storytelling. It's more like a character portrait.

[Jay 37,267]

Definitely

[Luke Skywalker 1,792]

1 hour ago, Jay said:

Definitely

You know I learnt today that this is the correct spelling.

 

Been writing it myself and reading it here as "Definately" for ages.... If one searches that term... i'm the one that writes it the most....but looking on the older entries... I can easily see  whom I learnt it from XD

[Jay 37,267]

ha!  That's funny

 

 

In other news, my copy arrived from Spain today via DHL!

[Corellian2019 383]

2 hours ago, Jay said:

What a bizarre film.  I wouldn't say it's necessary a good movie, but it's a very interesting one.  I'm not really sure what Altman was trying to say, but at least it was unlike any other movie I'd seen, and was never boring;  If anybody else is thinking of watching it, it's not a slog to get through, it's pretty nicely paced and never boring; New and unusual things keep happening.

 

My first impression was that, at times, it felt more like a weekend exercise with actors and improvisation than a conventional film. Still didn't stop it from being a good film, imo

[Jay 37,267]

I forgot that the sheet music for 9 cues have been all over the internet forever

• 1M1 In Search of Unicorns
• 11M2 Kathryn Runs
• 12M1 Kathryn Returns To Kill Marcel
• 12M2 Killing Marcel
• 13M2 Kathryn's Drive
• 13M3A First Body Fall
• 13M5 Night Watch Ride
• 13M7 End Titles
• Love Making

From information I had gathered (sorry I don't know who to credit), this is where you can find them on the OST album:

• 1M1 In Search of Unicorns = OST 01 In Search Of Unicorns [all], but the very end isn't in the OST track
• 11M2 Kathryn Runs = OST 10 The Night Witch Ride [0:00-1:50], but the album has shakuhachi and vocals not in the film or in the sheets
• 12M1 Kathryn Returns To Kill Marcel = OST 04 Visitations [0:00-0:49]
• 12M2 Killing Marcel = OST 06 The Killing Of Marcel [0:00-1:00]
• 13M2 Kathryn's Drive = OST 04 Visitations [2:03-end]
• 13M3A First Body Fall = OST 11 The Waterfall and The Final Chapter [1:16-1:50]
• 13M5 Night Watch Ride = not on the OST, but OST 10 The Night Witch Ride [1:50-end] is a alternate version of this music
• 13M7 End Titles = not on the OST
• Love Making = not on the OST, but OST 07 The Love Montage must be a different composition for the same scene

 

Which means the OST album breakdown as we know it is:

 

1 In Search Of Unicorns 4:03

• 1M1 In Search of Unicorns {ending of cue omitted}

2 The House 2:38

• 0:00-1:13 = not in sheet leak
• 1:13-end = not in sheet leak

3 Dogs, Ponies & Old Ruins 2:14

• not in sheet leak

4 Visitations 2:52

• 0:00-0:49 = 12M1 Kathryn Returns To Kill Marcel 
• 0:49-2:03 = not in sheet leak
• 2:03-end = 13M2 Kathryn's Drive [bars 9-end]

5 Reflections 3:15

• concert arrangement not in sheet leak

6 The Killing Of Marcel 3:13

• 0:00-1:00 = 12M2 Killing Marcel
• 1:00-end = not in sheet leak

7 The Love Montage 4:46

• not in sheet leak (does not match "Love Making" sheets)

8 Blood Moon 3:16

• concert arrangement not in sheet leak

9 Land Of The Ums 1:47

• 0:00-0:36 = not in sheet leak
• 0:36-1:09 = not in sheet leak
• 1:09-end = not in sheet leak

10 The Night Witch Ride 2:54

• 0:00-1:50 = 11M2 Kathryn Runs [with shakuhachi and vocals not in the film mix/sheets]
• 1:50-end = not in sheet leak (alternate/revised version of 13M5 Night Watch Ride)

11 The Waterfall and The Final Chapter 4:13

• 0:00-0:44 = not in sheet leak
• 0:44-1:16 = not in sheet leak
• 1:16-1:50 = 13M3A First Body Fall
• 1:50-end = not in sheet leak

 

So combining this information with this chronological order, we get:

1. 01 [all] In Search Of Unicorns (4:03) {1M1 In Search of Unicorns}

2. 11D [1:50-end] The Waterfall (2:23) {"Ums"}

3. 02B [1:13-end] The House (1:25) {"The House"}

4. 09B [0:36-1:09] Land Of The Ums (0:33) {"Rene"}

5. 03 [all] Dogs, Ponies and Old Ruins (2:11)

6. 02A [0:00-1:13] The House (1:13) {"Hugh's Surprise"}

7. 09A [0:00-0:36] Land of the Ums (0:36) {"Fear"}

8. 07 [all] The Love Montage (4:43)

9. 09C [1:09-end] Land of the Ums (0:38) {"Shooting Rene"}

10. 11A [0:00-0:44] The Waterfall (0:44) {The Waterfall}

11. 10A [0:00-1:50] The Night Witch Ride (1:50) {11M2 Kathryn Runs}

12. 04A [0:00-0:49] Visitations (0:49) {12M1 Kathryn Returns To Kill Marcel}

13. 06 [all] The Killing of Marcel (3:10) {12M2 Killing Marcel} & {unknown cue}

14. 04C [0:49-end] Visitations (2:03) {unknown cue} & {13M2 Kathryn's Drive}

15. 11C [1:16-1:50] The Waterfall (0:24) {13M3A First Body Fall}

16. 10B [1:50-end] The Night Witch Ride (1:04) {13M5 Night Watch Ride}

17. 11B [0:44-1:16] The Waterfall (0:32) {"Hugh"}

    Concert Arrangements

18. 05 [all] Reflections (3:12)

19. 08 [all] Blood Moon (3:13)

[Corellian2019 383]

2 hours ago, Jay said:

I was kinda surprised there wasn't as much of the weird vocals in the film as there is on the album, at least not that I noticed

 

Yes, for some of the cues, the vocals are dialed out of the mix; and then of course there are film versions of album tracks

[Faleel 5,326]

Shipped!!!

[Luke Skywalker 1,792]

1 hour ago, Jay said:

ha!  That's funny

 

 

In other news, my copy arrived from Spain today via DHL!

What were you shipping fees in dollars?

43 minutes ago, Corellian2019 said:

 

Yes, for some of the cues, the vocals are dialed out of the mix; and then of course there are film versions of album tracks

Damn, I can see me triple-dipping on this already!

[Jay 37,267]

8 minutes ago, Luke Skywalker said:

What were you shipping fees in dollars?

Order details

Product	Total
Images × 1	16,95€
The Silence of the Lambs × 1	16,95€
Drop Zone × 1	16,95€
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (3-CD) × 1	29,95€
Subtotal:	80,80€
Shipping:	18,40€ via Courier – Rest of the world
Payment method:	Debit / Credit Card
Total:	99,20€

[crlbrg 381]

So that's how you notate grunts!

 

8 hours ago, Jay said:

I forgot that the sheet music for 9 cues have been all over the internet forever

• 1M1 In Search of Unicorns
• 11M2 Kathryn Runs
• 12M1 Kathryn Returns To Kill Marcel
• 12M2 Killing Marcel
• 13M2 Kathryn's Drive
• 13M3A First Body Fall
• 13M5 Night Watch Ride
• 13M7 End Titles
• Love Making

From information I had gathered (sorry I don't know who to credit), this is where you can find them on the OST album:

• 1M1 In Search of Unicorns = OST 01 In Search Of Unicorns [all], but the very end isn't in the OST track
• 11M2 Kathryn Runs = OST 10 The Night Witch Ride [0:00-1:50], but the album has shakuhachi and vocals not in the film or in the sheets
• 12M1 Kathryn Returns To Kill Marcel = OST 04 Visitations [0:00-0:49]
• 12M2 Killing Marcel = OST 06 The Killing Of Marcel [0:00-1:00]
• 13M2 Kathryn's Drive = OST 04 Visitations [2:03-end]
• 13M3A First Body Fall = OST 11 The Waterfall and The Final Chapter [1:16-1:50]
• 13M5 Night Watch Ride = not on the OST, but OST 10 The Night Witch Ride [1:50-end] is a alternate version of this music
• 13M7 End Titles = not on the OST
• Love Making = not on the OST, but OST 07 The Love Montage must be a different composition for the same scene

 

Which means the OST album breakdown as we know it is:

 

1 In Search Of Unicorns 4:03

• 1M1 In Search of Unicorns {ending of cue omitted}

2 The House 2:38

• 0:00-1:13 = not in sheet leak
• 1:13-end = not in sheet leak

3 Dogs, Ponies & Old Ruins 2:14

• not in sheet leak

4 Visitations 2:52

• 0:00-0:49 = 12M1 Kathryn Returns To Kill Marcel 
• 0:49-2:03 = not in sheet leak
• 2:03-end = 13M2 Kathryn's Drive [bars 9-end]

5 Reflections 3:15

• concert arrangement not in sheet leak

6 The Killing Of Marcel 3:13

• 0:00-1:00 = 12M2 Killing Marcel
• 1:00-end = not in sheet leak

7 The Love Montage 4:46

• not in sheet leak (does not match "Love Making" sheets)

8 Blood Moon 3:16

• concert arrangement not in sheet leak

9 Land Of The Ums 1:47

• 0:00-0:36 = not in sheet leak
• 0:36-1:09 = not in sheet leak
• 1:09-end = not in sheet leak

10 The Night Witch Ride 2:54

• 0:00-1:50 = 11M2 Kathryn Runs [with shakuhachi and vocals not in the film mix/sheets]
• 1:50-end = not in sheet leak (alternate/revised version of 13M5 Night Watch Ride)

11 The Waterfall and The Final Chapter 4:13

• 0:00-0:44 = not in sheet leak
• 0:44-1:16 = not in sheet leak
• 1:16-1:50 = 13M3A First Body Fall
• 1:50-end = not in sheet leak

 

So combining this information with this chronological order, we get:

1. 01 [all] In Search Of Unicorns (4:03) {1M1 In Search of Unicorns}

2. 11D [1:50-end] The Waterfall (2:23) {"Ums"}

3. 02B [1:13-end] The House (1:25) {"The House"}

4. 09B [0:36-1:09] Land Of The Ums (0:33) {"Rene"}

5. 03 [all] Dogs, Ponies and Old Ruins (2:11)

6. 02A [0:00-1:13] The House (1:13) {"Hugh's Surprise"}

7. 09A [0:00-0:36] Land of the Ums (0:36) {"Fear"}

8. 07 [all] The Love Montage (4:43)

9. 09C [1:09-end] Land of the Ums (0:38) {"Shooting Rene"}

10. 11A [0:00-0:44] The Waterfall (0:44) {The Waterfall}

11. 10A [0:00-1:50] The Night Witch Ride (1:50) {11M2 Kathryn Runs}

12. 04A [0:00-0:49] Visitations (0:49) {12M1 Kathryn Returns To Kill Marcel}

13. 06 [all] The Killing of Marcel (3:10) {12M2 Killing Marcel} & {unknown cue}

14. 04C [0:49-end] Visitations (2:03) {unknown cue} & {13M2 Kathryn's Drive}

15. 11C [1:16-1:50] The Waterfall (0:24) {13M3A First Body Fall}

16. 10B [1:50-end] The Night Witch Ride (1:04) {13M5 Night Watch Ride}

17. 11B [0:44-1:16] The Waterfall (0:32) {"Hugh"}

    Concert Arrangements

18. 05 [all] Reflections (3:12)

19. 08 [all] Blood Moon (3:13)

Thanks @Jay, you set me up for my next listen!

[Incanus 5,713]

7 hours ago, Jay said:

Order details

Product	Total
Images × 1	16,95€
The Silence of the Lambs × 1	16,95€
Drop Zone × 1	16,95€
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (3-CD) × 1	29,95€
Subtotal:	80,80€
Shipping:	18,40€ via Courier – Rest of the world
Payment method:	Debit / Credit Card
Total:	99,20€

Wow, you only paid about 5 € more for shipping to US than I did for inside Europe (even though I got my package in a day). It's ridiculous that these days you basically would get another CD with the price of that shipping cost. 

[Luke Skywalker 1,792]

Have you seen intrada? You get 2cds and have to pay 26$. :/

 

mind you i paid 6'5€ for a compulsory (due to covid) registered courier mail. And i got a broken case. 

 

filled my first broken case complaint ever. It should have been like 2-3€ with regular mail, i wouldnt have complained if the had used it.

 

[Jay 37,267]

Shipping is what it is, I don't worry about it. We have an expensive hobby. 

[Bespin 8,472]

5 hours ago, Jay said:

Shipping is what it is, I don't worry about it. We have an expensive hobby. 

 

It's a weird and expensive hobby, but at least we don't collect Elvis figurines!

[Jay 37,267]

[Dr. Rick 1,155]

Back in the day, when my older son was a wee young lad, he was into Hot Wheels cars and therefore I started collecting some of their higher-end Red Line club cars.  Now that's an expensive hobby!     

[Chewy 2,372]

2 great Quartet releases arrived today!

[Amer 2,078]

I should be getting mine next week.

 

Oh by the way, Images, Jane Eyre (TV) and Superman the only films that Williams has scored starring Susanah York?

[Jurassic Shark 12,008]

Isn't that enough?

[MrJosh 892]

I received mine a few days ago along with The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (Rozsa). 

 

It does sound better now, it has a solid sound rather than that "recorded from an LP" sound of the old release. I appreciate that Mike M gave attention to this score and made it sound as good as it does. 

 

My favorite tracks are the more melody-driven, but I do enjoy all the percussion and it's great with headphones to hear how they mixed the different percussion hits and noises. The only thing I don't really like is some of the grunting but eh, it's part of the unique experience. 

 

It really is quite a unique entry in Williams' output! 

 

The string runs in In Search of Unicorns and also in Dogs, Ponies and Old Ruins are very much a foreshadowing of the difficult violin runs in Hedwig's theme.

 

Prior to this release, I have only listened to this soundtrack  3 or 4 times. This recent time was the most enjoyable and engaging, probably because I forced myself to just sit and listen instead of passively listening while driving or doing other work. 

[Jay 37,267]

Yea I haven't mentioned it yet but the sound quality is fantastic!  Really sounds like a proper release now.

It's a weird score, and definitely one that I won't frequently be in the mood to listen to.  But when I am in the mood, it's a pretty dang cool score

[Holko 9,491]

First ever listen.

 

 

...wow.

 

 

 

[Jay 37,267]

It's a weird one, eh?

[Dr. Rick 1,155]

Waiting for my text update from USPS for delivery to my mailbox today...  SOON....  SOON...

[Holko 9,491]

9 minutes ago, Jay said:

It's a weird one, eh?

It's a very positive wow! A highly varied and interesting score.

[Holko 9,491]

The set also looks very nice, the design is simplistic but fittingly and tastefully vintage feeling. The font already helps a lot in placing it in time. The border and text on the front cover looks like The Post!

[crlbrg 381]

30 minutes ago, Holko said:

The border and text on the front cover looks like The Post!

True! The Helvetica effect

 

2 hours ago, Holko said:

It's a very positive wow! A highly varied and interesting score.

I was also positively surprised by this - can't wait for the 2nd proper listening. Any favourite moments?

[Chris ChrusherComix 46]

I got mine a few days ago from Intrada, cheapest shipping AND fast.

 

Sound quality is definitely improved from the old bootleg CD transfer of the rare LP, and the prior CD release. Can hear a lot in there that I had never noticed before. Big improvement.

 

Big fan of this score. Dark, twisted and tormented. Two cues are two of my favorites in Williams entire career, and the others are... well uniquely creepy in a dark room, that's for sure.

 

Wished the entire film score was also included... damn.

[Holko 9,491]

6 hours ago, carlborg said:

Any favourite moments?

Blood Moon!

Reflections with its dementory and CE3Key strings!

Track 3 where the dark almost lullaby just plays and plays and the mad strings slowly overpower it!

[Jay 37,267]

Yea, track 3 is great.  We need more lute in film scores

[Holko 9,491]

The context of JW's massive body of work only makes this score more interesting. This is a JW already after his first Oscar but still 3 years from being a general population household name and 5 years from ruling over the universe for all time. A highly experimental and out there exercise, especially when compared to the vastly melodic, sweeping and fun The Cowboys, composed and recorded only months before. In certain tracks, it sounds almost unrecogniseable, but parts of other tracks, despite their experimentalness, are very much recogniseable JW - he rarely went back to full-blown Images territory, but elements and techniques still remained in his vocabulary (thinking of touches resembling the drippily gentle Hook-HP1 line, the Dementory strings, some Hedwig-esque string runs as mentioned above, just for a few examples). Funnily enough, known for all his melodies and being a poster boy of "traditional" film music, the most traditional and overtly melodic track on the album, Blood Moon, is perhaps the least JW-like of them all!

[1977 1,743]

17 hours ago, Chris ChrusherComix said:

I got mine a few days ago from Intrada, cheapest shipping AND fast.

 

Sound quality is definitely improved from the old bootleg CD transfer of the rare LP, and the prior CD release. Can hear a lot in there that I had never noticed before. Big improvement.

 

Big fan of this score. Dark, twisted and tormented. Two cues are two of my favorites in Williams entire career, and the others are... well uniquely creepy in a dark room, that's for sure.

 

Wished the entire film score was also included... damn.

 

Chris! You're still here!

[ZackR 95]

Mine arrived from Intrada today. Much faster than I was expecting. Can't wait to dig in!

[Thor 7,453]

I'm glad this new release is turning out to be somewhat of an 'eyeopener' to those who are primarily into his post-STAR WARS output, or who previously had no interest in checking this out.

[Amer 2,078]

On 6/17/2021 at 5:53 AM, Chris ChrusherComix said:

I got mine a few days ago from Intrada, cheapest shipping AND fast.

 

Sound quality is definitely improved from the old bootleg CD transfer of the rare LP, and the prior CD release. Can hear a lot in there that I had never noticed before. Big improvement.

 

Big fan of this score. Dark, twisted and tormented. Two cues are two of my favorites in Williams entire career, and the others are... well uniquely creepy in a dark room, that's for sure.

 

Wished the entire film score was also included... damn.

Very good. I suppose not just the newly found source was used but the album master/sources may have been also utilized here under the expertise of Matessino here. We should get more details whenever a new podcast comes out. 

[Ludwig 1,120]

Just wanted to chime in with my two cents on this score. A number of years ago, a couple of JWFanners and I had a crack at analyzing this score to see how Williams worked atonally. What was interesting to me was that there wasn't any particular "system" he adhered to in the cues. In other words, it wasn't 12-tone music for example, where you take the 12 notes of the chromatic scale, put them in a certain order and use that as your main material. It also wasn't based primarily on any kinds of scales, like octatonic for example.

 

Instead, it seemed to use small chords of 3 or 4 notes as the basis of most cues, and have those chords be of the same or a very similar kind as one another. I mention this because, although the score is in its harmonies vastly different from what Williams usually writes for film, the method really isn't different at all. Since I've been studying his action music, the name of the game there is variation. I've also studied and seen the same thing in his theme writing: variation is big there too.

 

It's just interesting how you can take very different sounding musical styles and find that they were assembled using basically the same method of grouping together sounds that are mostly the same but slightly different. That's probably why Williams has never been 12-tone in his writing - it doesn't provide enough freedom to use different materials but insists on different forms of the same ones throughout.