Movie Music Musings – Horrifying John Williams

Ask film music fans about horror film scores and you’ll hear a few composer names pop up almost immediately. Bernard Herrmann and his work with Hitchcock will leap to mind. Jerry Goldsmith crafted some amazing work for The Omen and Poltergeist. Christopher Young is the current master of horror music from the creepy music for The Grudge and the bombastic thrills of Drag Me to Hell. Even Hans Zimmer has taken on the genre with some really intense music for the Hollywood version of The Ring.

But one name you don’t hear too often related to horror scores is the maestro himself, John Williams. This has more to do with the type of films that Williams gets attached to and isn’t a commentary on his skills. Williams has provided some excellent scores to thrillers and individual cues in the Harry Potter films and Jurassic Park have some excellent moments of tension and fear. But these days, Williams works primarily in dramas and fantasies.

You have to journey back in his career, right when it was really taking off, to hear some of his most interesting horror music. The 1970s were fruitful time for a more experimental side to Williams work. He hadn’t been locked quite into the full Golden Age mode he achieved with Star Wars and Superman. But you can hear hints of those scores in some of this work. Instead, this is a Williams fresh from The Towering Inferno and the Poseidon Adventure.

1975 kicked it off with one of the most famous monster movies of the decade: Jaws. The movie isn’t wall-to-wall horror, in fact Williams provides the film with a wonderful nautical heroic theme for Chief Brody and his band. But everyone remembers the shark motif, something so simple and primal that it actually builds on images and makes them even more impressive. This motif gets quite a workout in the film, sneaking in and out of the music and building to terrifying levels. This rerecording for the Boston Pops conducted by Williams himself is a treat. Love how the audience chuckles as soon as they recognize it.

In 1977 Williams worked on Close Encounters of a Third Kind. Again his music played a big role in the finale of the film, with his communication theme become instantly memorable. But in the first half of the film, Williams scored the movie like it is a horror film. One of the most terrifying scenes in the movie, is the abduction of young Barry. Williams pulls out all the stops raising the tension to amazingly horrifying levels and making a wonderfully discordant and disturbing track. For real fun, play this back to back with Jerry Goldsmith’s Twisted Abduction track from Poltergeist for a nasty one-two punch.

The next year saw Williams score a sequel to Jaws but more interesting is his work on the Brian Depalma thriller The Fury. Williams creates a lovely main theme that starts off so quietly and then build and builds in power as it carries along. The end credits version is really something else. What is great about this whole score is that Williams takes lots of inspiration from Bernard Herrmann, almost giving The Fury a Hitchcockian feel when it comes the music. For my money this is easily one of Williams best scores of the decade. And yeah this decade includes some of his most impressive work.

In 1979 Williams got to write music for one of the most famous of all horror icons: Dracula. With Frank Langella as the bloodsucker and Lawrence Olivier as Van Helsing, well this was something else. The score has a gothic romantic sweep to it, but remains pure John Williams. In fact, you can hear ideas in this score that would be fleshed out further in The Empire Strikes Back during the Cloud City sequences. Sadly this score has never gotten a good release. The archival sound quality is pretty bad. Film score fans are hoping for some good quality recordings to be found, or to have a full rerecording supervised by the Maestro at some point in the future. That said, it is clear that Williams has the chops to craft excellent horror scores, you just have to know where to look.

Movie Musings: The Strange Journey of the Star Trek Films - Part 1

Part One - The Original Series Cast

"So a Klingon, a Romulan and a Vulcan walk into
a bar..."

It is hard to argue Star Trek's legacy within pop culture. It’s characters and universe have endured almost as long as James Bond.  Every time I think we can count the franchise as down and out, along comes a new incarnation to bring it back to whole new group of fans yearning to explore strange new worlds.

One of the interesting things about the franchise is that its longevity is due in large part to the success of the feature films that were released starting in 1979 with StarTrek: The Motion Picture. While the television series is where the franchise started, if the films were not as successful as they were, Star Trek would be a fondly remembered relic of the 1960s.  In addition, we can see how Paramount, the studio that owns Star Trek, feels about the series depending on how they approach the films.

I think Decker wants his chair back.

In this two part blog, I’ll take a look at the ways the films were impacted by and impacted the franchise, and why they are important to its legacy. I won’t be going into too much detail on my thoughts on the films, but I will discuss critical reception (and perception of that reception) and how that affected the films.

The original series ended in 1969 after three seasons. While it was popular among science fiction fans, it never really exploded in popularity during its run. Instead Star Trek got syndicated and that is where the fanbase really started to grow. During the 1970s it was hard to avoid a rerun of Star Trek and even growing up in the 1980s, it felt like the series was always around.

Wait! There was a cat girl in Star Trek the Animated
Series! Sign me up!

An animated series followed in 1973 and 1974 that expanded the voyages a little bit, and allowed the writers to take the series in directions that would have been impossible with live action.  All this exposure of Star Trek in the 70s inspired Paramount to look into creating a new series of adventures with the same crew for Phase II. Production started and then a little movie called Star Wars erupted onto the screens, and suddenly Paramount shifted gears to turn Star Trek into a film franchise.

The increased the budget to a whopping 35 million dollars (of 1970s money). They pulled in acclaimed director Robert Wise and got their marketing into high gear. This was the turning point. If Star Trek: The Motion Picture was a failure, than the franchise was dead.

The moons of Vulcan are affecting her mind!

Critical and general response was average. But the combined fanbase of the 60s and 70s had been thirsting for new Star Trek adventures, and they went back to the theaters over and over again to see the film. For all it’s faults The Motion Picture has a huge visual scope, impressive visual effects and a wonderful soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith. Seeing it in the theater is a real experience (one I actually had the pleasure of revisiting in 2012). There was also a frenzy of interest in space adventures because of Star Wars, so I bet a lot of little kids dragged their parents to see the film. In the end, the Motion Picture was a financial success.

Paramount felt confident in continuing the series as a film franchise, and moved forward producing Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. But they reduced the budget to a little over 11 million, and asked director Nicholas Meyer to make sure there was more action in the film (a criticsm of the previous film they wanted to avoid). Meyere delivered a film that is more visceral, goes back to the roots of the original series, and cranks up the action with some excellent visual effects and high stakes. The Wrath of Khan was an immediate hit, with excellent critical response and fan approval. It also did very well on VHS, a new medium that studios were just beginning to explore in 1982.

"Is that a giant worm in your hand, or are you just
happy to see me?"

So Paramount kept the same focus when it came to The Search for Spock in 1984. Once again the budget was increased to 17 million. But the focus on characters and the quest to bring Spock back to life helped pull viewers in the theaters to find out how it was all going to shake out. Director Leonard Nimoy obviously knew the series inside and out, and crafted a solid follow up to the previous movie. The film got average critical response and most people enjoyed it well enough. But the film had a dark undertone that surprised many viewers.

Do you think he's using colorful metaphors here?

Gears were shifted in the storytelling for the next film, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Nimoy was back at the helm and the budget was given a bit of a boost (to 25 million) for some really impressive visual effects by Industrial Light and Magic. But the script involving time travel, saving the whales, and the crew interacting with the denizens of San Francisco circa 1986 was a blast. It was a fun movie with plenty of laughs and adventure all mixed together. Critical response was full of praise. But it was the success of the film with a wider audience that gave Paramount a view of what a successful Star Trek franchise could be. This was the most financial successful Star Trek film until the reboot in 2009.

In 1987, Star Trek: The Next Generation arrived on television screens. It was a new cast, new starship, hell it was a new century! Paramount understood that in order for the franchise to continue it would need to evolve. To do this, they needed to inject it with new blood creatively. Obviously the film franchise was still profitable, but a new television series could create new fans and lead to a new series of films.

It is like that Depeche Mode song, reach out and touch
face.

1989 brought the first good season of The Next Generation after its rocky start over the first two seasons. Meanwhile Paramount attempted to strike gold in the theaters again with William Shatner directing Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Unfortunately the film was plagued with production issues, and arguments over the direction and tone of the script. Shatner wanted to go darker and more intense. Paramount wanted to keep it light and fun. The end result was a film that was critical and financial failure. Fans disliked the film for a whole host of reasons and rumor is that even Gene Roddenberry felt the film was not part of the official cannon. The movie also had the unfortunate release during one of the most crowded years in movie history. Batman, Ghostbusters 2, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Back to the Future Part 2 were all battling for seats in the multiplexes. Someone had to lose and Star Trek “won” that honor. While it did eventually recoup it's 28 million dollar budget, no one was really pleased with the final film.

"No, it's not Tribbles. The joke only works if
the Klingon asks the bartender first."

This did set off alarms at Paramount. They wondered if the aging cast was losing their audience appeal. But they also learned some lessons. Budget cutting your special effects heavy films is not a good option. So they turned back to Nicholas Meyer who did so well with The Wrath of Khan to helm Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. In a cunning bit of synergy, the plot for the film directly impacted events in The Next Generation episodes Unification with Nimoy making a special appareance as Spock in the two-part adventure. Meyer brought back high stakes, tension and excitement to the series. The plot was inspired by world events, and with the increased budget (to 30 million) the movie looked great. Meyer’s script balances humor and tension better than the previous film did. Even with all that, the movie was also declared the final voyage of the full cast from The Original Series. All those elements stirred together made The Undiscovered Country a critical and financial success in 1991.  It was a win for Paramount and the franchise. But everyone knew it was time to switch gears.

In part two of this post, I take a look at the trails and Tribble-ations of the films featuring the case of The Next Generation and Beyond...

"Just imagine it. We are all animated, and there's
a cat girl in a red uniform! That is my vision."

Mad Max (1979)

Introduction:

Some of the big holes in my movie watching experience are the Mad Max films. Honestly, I’ve only seen about 20 minutes of Beyond Thunderdome at a friends house. I just wasn’t terribly interested in dystopian science fiction when I was a kid, and it wasn’t until much later did I hear how insane The Road Warrior was supposed to be. I was finally able to see the first film in this franchise and I’ve got to be honest, it wasn’t what I was expecting.

Summary:

Max (Mel Gibson) is part of a group of highway patrollers attempting to keep the highways in Australia safe. But marauding gangs of thugs are criss-crossing the country after an undisclosed crisis has brought the world to the brink.  During an extended chase with a particularly nasty madman, Max takes the killer out. He figures he should take some time off with his wife Jessie (Joanne Samuel) and their son.

Of course, the thug has friends, and they are lead by the ruthless Toecutter (Hugh Keays-Byrne). The gang starts a campaign of harassment against the police, but Max and his pals think they can handle it. The dangers escalate and Max realizes that he may be in over his head and putting his family in jeopardy. Should he attempt to face Toecutter and his cronies, or make an escape with his wife? In the end Toecutter is going to face Mad Max and wish he had left well enough alone.

Good Points:

• Some excellently staged chases and driving
• Charged with intensity and unease
• Creative sound and visuals add to the unique feel of the film

Bad Points:

• I found the score to be very distracting
• The plot is nothing terribly new
• Thick accents and very loud music may make it hard to follow some of the dialogue.

Overall:

Based on all the trailers for Fury Road and what I keep hearing about The Road Warrior I expected a massive action-fest. Instead I got a simple tale of a man fighting to stay sane in an insane world. Vengeance fuels the final ten minutes of the film, but the rest of the movie is the build to that climax. Miller does a fine job keeping the pacing brisk and the atmosphere of intensity rising and rising. The car chases are filmed very well, pulling you into the thrills. I enjoyed this grim film, but was expecting something a bit more fun.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 4

Sound: 4

Acting: 4

Script: 3

Music: 2

Direction: 4

Entertainment: 4

Total:  4

Curious about a full review, sent me an email and I’ll make additional thoughts to this review.

The Black Hole (1979)

Introduction:

I know a lot of movie snobs that blame Star Wars for all the bad movies after 1977. I love that movie too much to join them. However, we can certainly blame George Lucas’ space opera for the sudden attack of science fiction adventures that flooded the cinemas in the late 70s and early 80s. 20^th Century Fox was raking in the cash and all the other big studios wanted in on the action. Disney was no exception. It would be decades before they brought Star Wars under the power of the mouse, but before that happened, we were treated to this film.

Summary:

The starship Palomino is exploring deep space when it comes upon a black hole of enormous size. Captain Dan Holland (Robert Forster) and his crew are excited about the scientific discoveries they can make. Then they find something even more interesting, a long lost ship, the Cygnus, just hovering at the very edge of the black hole and seemingly unaffected by the tremendous gravity.

The Palomino attempts contact with the Cygnus but it is almost destroyed by the black hole. They land on the ghost ship and discover that only one man remains alive on board, Dr. Hans Reinhardt (Maximilian Schell). He is a genius scientist who created the field that holds the Cygnus in place. He is surrounded by a crew of robots that run the ship and maintain order. But as the crew of the Palomino start to find out more about Reinhardt and the Cygnus the more they realize that they are in terrible danger. Reinhardt is preparing for his ultimate experiment and none of them may escape the destructive power of The Black Hole.

Good Points:

• Some gorgeous and unique production design
• Solid acting by the entire cast
• An impressive score by John Barry

Bad Points:

• Cute robot antics may rub some viewers the wrong way
• The derivative nature of the story or characters may be too familiar
• Anyone looking for hard science fiction should look elsewhere 

Overall:

This is one of those movies that almost works but never quite gels into a complete entertainment package. So many elements are solid or even excellent. But when taken together you get a movie that feels messy and unrefined. The film looks and sounds spectacular considering its age and Schell gives a performance that steals the show. Those who remember this fondly will probably find plenty to enjoy but new viewers may find it lacking.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 5

Sound: 4

Acting: 4

Script: 3

Music: 4

Direction: 3

Entertainment: 3

Total:  4

In Depth Review

He can't stop watching The Black Hole either.

When I was a kid I used to torment my sister by watching The Black Hole and Tron over and over again. My goal wasn’t to torment her, I just liked the creativity and adventures in those movies. For me, these two Disney flicks represent some of the amazing risks the studio was taking at the time and also some of the issues they couldn’t seem to avoid. 

The Black Hole is essentially a retelling of Disney’s take on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea with Maximilian Schell playing the Captain Nemo role that James Mason owned in 1954. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was one of Disney’s most popular and lucrative films in the 1950s. So it makes sense that they wanted to mirror that success with their space adventure. The story acts as the frame The Black Hole is built on. But it is the other influences that end up muddying the clarity of the film.

The black hole or  V'ger's cloud?

Star Wars was a pioneer for visual effects. Things were accomplished in that film using computer controlled cameras and a variety of innovative techniques to create a type of realism that hadn’t been seen in science fiction films since 2001: A Space Odyssey. What makes the Black Hole impressive is that the visuals were accomplished not by ILM or anyone from Lucas’ team, but by Disney’s in-house effects crew. It may be one of the last Hollywood films to actually feature effects by the studio instead of an independent specialized effects house.

Visually the movie forged its own path. A quick look at the space ship, robot and costume design will show you that. The starships in The Black Hole are completely unique. The Palomino is a squat cylinder with extended legs and thrusters. It looks very functional, almost like a 1970s satellite.

"Like a tree on Christmas Morning..."

But the real visual masterpiece is the Cygnus. This is a gorgeous ship. I love the lighting scheme used on it, giving it a warm and yet sinister feel. It exudes mystery and menace in equal measure. During the scene where the crew of the Palomino does a flyover of the Cygnus we are treated to some up close views of this impressive model. Both The Black Hole and Star Trek: The Motion Picture feature this kind of flyover sequence and I find both very effective. Oddly enough, both films came out the same year.

The interiors for the ships follow a similar feel. The Palomino is cramped, utilitarian and mostly grey. Again, it feels like a natural progression from the 1970s space technology. But the Cygnus is all gothic style mystery. It’s filled with struts, supports creating a web of crisscrossing lines. It has a huge scope, one that often feels like it is overwhelming and devouring the cast (thanks to some impressive matte painting work). The Cygnus could very well pass as a futuristic Flying Dutchman – a ship destined to journey into hell and take you with it.

What the drone sees.

Finally there are the robots. The Cygnus has its private army of robot enforcers. These guys serve as your Stormtroopers, with all the same look and movement. I do like their two barreled laser guns (which reappear in Guardiansof the Galaxy as a kind of homage). Those suckers always looked cool. I was always a bit disappointed that S.T.A.R., their leader, got taken out like a punk, but it was to show off how cool V.I.N.CENT. and B.O.B (Slim Pickens) were . But before I talk about them, I have to mention the creepy looking Drones that populate the ship. These robed figures with reflective faces really gave me the chills when I was a kid, and they move around the ship almost like ghosts. We are told early on that they are robots, but the crew of the Palomino discovers a horrible secret about them.

The two hero robots of The Black Hole are V.I.N.CENT. and B.O.B. These two little guys float around, crack wise and at times V.I.N.CENT. is smarter than most of his companions. In many ways these guys are obviously inspired by R2-D2, but actually manage to be different enough to keep Lucasfilm from coming after anyone.

Nothing sinister here.

But the most distinctive robot from The Black Hole is the red devil Maximilian. He is a hulking monstrosity, all angles and sharp points. He hovers over the ground just above all the other characters in the film. His single red eye glows a fearsome red and pulses when he is angry (harkening back to original Cylons form Battlestar Galactica). He also has whirling blade appendages that he uses to cut down anyone he feels like. Reinhardt claims to have created Maximilian, but at times he seems fearful of the giant, and it doesn’t always obey him. Why would you create a robot with whirling death blades if you weren’t interested in butchery? Maximilian is a fearsome and disturbing puzzle, and adds to the feel of dread that the movie attempts to capture.

THE scene from The Black Hole.

One more word about the visual effects. No matter how scientifically inaccurate the movie is (and yeah it really goes off the rails at times), the special effects are visually stunning and impressive. The black hole is a whirling vortex of blues, blacks and greens. It is always spinning outside the Cygnus and looks sinister enough to increase the disquieting feeling of horror. The Black Hole looks evil, something that plays into the themes of the film. But I also have to mention the meteor shower that comes crashing into the Cygus during the finale of the film. Asteroids are a staple of space adventure films from The Phantom Planet to The Empire Strikes Back. But never before have hurtling asteroids looked so diabolical. These suckers are flaming balls of death that come crashing down and destroy everything in their path. If one image has remained from The Black Hole over the years, it is of our heroes crossing a thin bridge in front of the rolling ball of flames.

The sound work does a fine job of supporting the visuals. Dialogue is crisp and clear and never overpowered by the sound design. The audio work for the sci-fi gadgets, ships and robots is unique to the film and helps build the world we see. I especially like how the interiors of the Cygnus sound cavernous and disturbingly quiet further adding to the disquiet the audience and Palomino crew feel.

The music certainly adds to the bizarre finale.

I posted a blog about John Barry’s score to The Black Hole and focused on the main theme, a swirling tune that captures the relentless power of the black hole. But the score has several other elements that work within it. There is a heroic theme for the action scenes, especially when Captain Holland or V.I.N.CENT. are battling the enforcer robots in the final third of the film. It’s a bit brash and maybe even a bit corny, but it works. To me the moments where Barry’s music really takes flight is when he’s building suspense in the first portion of the film. His music captures and enhances the majesty of the Cygnus and scope of the Reinhardt’s ego very well. As the movie continues, he builds this relentlessness of power in the score. The final third is equal parts action music (based on the heroic theme) and driving intensity as the Cygnus attempts to dive into the Black Hole. Barry keeps things slowly but steadily climbing. The crescendo is the finale piece as both crews discover the existential reality within the Black Hole. This piece combines the diabolical and hopeless with the triumphant and angelic. It brings unity to a sequence that would be quite baffling without music. But it is also one of the best tracks in the score. And yes, I have to mention that Barry uses the Blaster Beam in this score, as a part of the baseline. It isn’t as obvious as Goldsmith’s work in Star Trek: The Motion Picture or even it’s use in Rosenman’s Lord of the Rings in 1978, but its synthetic tones add dimension to the score.

A genius or a madman? Can Durant really tell?

The cast for The Black Hole does a fine job with the roles. Maximilian Schell gets all the scene stealing moments, and his performance is a combination of ego and madness. He is a joy to watch, even if he gets a bit theatrical. While his performance overwhelms the rest of the cast at times, you also get a great pair of vocal performances by Roddy McDowall as V.I.N.CENT. and Slim Pickens as B.O.B. Yeah they are scripted a bit too cute, but both men give a lot of humanity to the robot roles and you actually care about the little guys. Robert Forester and Joseph Bottoms as LT. Pizer fit the heroic mold well, and are pretty straight-laced in the film. Bottoms gets a slightly more interesting part, as he’s rash youth that rushes in, and sometimes gets overmatched. Yvette Mimeux as Dr. McCrae is solid in her role, but it is one that doesn’t have a lot to do in the story, other than tie her to the crew of the Cygnus and be the object of rescue late in the film. Ernest Borgnine plays a street-smart reporter Harry Booth, who is out to get a good story, but also not willing to risk his life when things get too dangerous. He does a good job with the part. Anthony Perkins really throws himself into the interesting role of Dr. Durant. His character is seduced by the Cyngus’ power and scientific advancements. He sees a real boon to human knowledge if Reinhardt’s plan is successful. We can see his doubts as things start to get darker, but his struggle is very clear. We like him, and want him to make the right choice, but things turn out a bit differently when the robot Maximilian takes matters into his whirling blades.

Hell is unleashed!

Where The Black Hole falters is in the script and the final execution of the movie. As it is written, the Black Hole is a gothic mystery set in space. Our heroes are investigators who stumble upon a haunted mansion inhabited by a mad man. As they explore the mansion they realize that their lives and their souls are in danger and try to escape. But like any good horror story, several characters are unable to leave the fall of the house of Reinhardt. The madman and his servants are destroyed and consigned to hell. While our heroes remain pure and retain their souls, leaving darkness behind them.

Yeah I simplified it, but that is the basic structure of the story. This is Disney trying to make a horror film a few years before TheWatcher in the Woods.

Damnation eternal?

It is actually fascinating to dig into the script and identify all the little nods to gothic horror. I’d hazard that the characters name drop hell, the devil and evil more than any scientific concepts. Reinhardt is a the classic crazed noble, who literally sacrifices the souls of his people to obtain more and more arcane knowledge. He crafts a monster of his own design, the hulking red Maximilian, and grows to fear that creation. His fascination with the Black Hole is like a man fascinated with seeing into hell or perhaps sharing more with Belloq from Raiders of the Lost Ark who is convinced the Ark can be used to speak with God. What we come to understand is that Reinhardt is the Dr. Frankenstein of this tale. He destroys nature and the pure souls around him to aspire to meet God, and in doing so, damns himself.

Kate fights fire with lasers!

We have the makings of an interesting film, something along the lines of Event Horizon actually. But Disney never commits to the horror concept. Instead we have too many cute robot moments that break the tension, but in a way that is distracting instead of entertaining. The laser battles are all fun and exciting, but they seem shoehorned into a film that attempts to plumb into the depths of a mad man’s quest for God. When The Black Hole works best it is when it embraces its core of gothic horror. The crew of Palomino being pursued by Reinhardts robots, attempting to escape before the Cygnus is destroyed by flaming asteroids and then ripped apart by the spinning eye of a demon should have provided enough thrills for everyone. But this half and half approach ends up diluting the film as a whole, and confusing some viewers who came into the film expecting Star Wars or Star Trek and instead got a twisted take on Poe's Fall of the House of Usher.

Nothing sinister here either.

While I see some folks complain about scientific accuracy in The Black Hole I think they are missing the main theme of the story. It is not about the black hole at all. It is about one man’s drive to become more than human and how he destroys everything, including himself, to do it. Heavy stuff for a Disney movie. I end up appreciating the film’s many merits and its attempt at something greater. But I always wish that Disney had stuck to their core script and went for gothic horror in space. Combined with Alien also released in 1979, we could have had one hell of a terrifying combo of horror from beyond our stars.

The functional Palomino comes in for a landing.

The robot enforcers move in for the kill.

The massive control room for the Cygnus.

"You can trust me, my eyes are only lit this way for
dramatic effect.

Harry's nose for news tells him something is up.

V.I.N.CENT. and B.O.B. discuss Tigerbot magazine.

You know, Reinhardt spoiled Maximilian when he was
a little robot, and now he can't control him!

The red eye of doom in the center of the Black Hole.

And Then This Happened... The Black Hole

Just because Maximilian Schell is playing the part with a bit of extra color doesn't mean it isn't a blast to watch. He has some great lines in The Black Hole and by the end of the movie you wonder just how much lead was in the scenery painting, because he is chewing a bit of it. But I tease Schell a little bit. The movie is much more fun because of his performance (and at least he isn't attempting Hamlet again). What caption do you have for this moment?

And then this happened...

Enjoying caption craziness, click an ad before you go.

Score Sample: The Black Hole

So if you mention the name John Barry to a film score fan you'll probably hear about James Bond or Dances with Wolves, maybe even Out of Africa, The Lion in Winter or Somewhere in Time. But Barry actually scored a couple of science fiction films in the late 70s. I'm not sure if it is because he worked on Moonraker and that movie was a huge hit. Or maybe it was just the fact that Barry wrote some lovely orchestral scores over the years, and when John Williams brought orchestral scores back into vogue with Star Wars and Superman, guys like Barry were getting called on to handle science fiction.

In any case, Barry got to score the hilariously wonderfully bad space adventure Starcrash! I'm sure he made sure to mention that to all his friends. In 1979 he got a chance to work with my favorite electronic instrument - the Blaster Beam for the score to Disney's space adventure, The Black Hole. Barry's score is typical of his work at this time. It is very melodic, and has a slower pace that actually works great in the first half of the film, as mystery and tension is heightened. He creates a heroic theme that was used as the overture. But my favorite theme is the one he used for the power of the black hole. It is the Main Title and appears several times in the score. If you listen close you can hear the Blaster Beam working as the bass line. The strings creating a swirling effect and Barry keeps the pacing steady but relentless. Throw in some 1970s synths and you've got a classic main theme.

The Warriors (1979)

Introduction:

I vividly remember seeing this VHS box art at the video store and wondering what it was all about. I never got around to actually watching the film back in the day. In the last five years of so, I started hearing about this film again. First it was a few folks putting it on top ten lists of 1970s films and then John Muir covered it in his book Science Fiction and Fantasy Films of the 1970s. That is where I learned it was based on Anabasis by Xenophon. So now I knew I had to watch it.

Summary:

Cyrus (Roger Hill) has a grand plan, to unite all the gangs in New York city, and take over the whole thing. United, there is no way the police or politicians can stop them. He asks nine reps from all the gangs of New York together for a summit meeting, and in attendance are key members of The Warriors, whose turf is Coney Island. As the summit progresses, the gangs begin to see the benefits of joining up with Cyrus. Then everything goes to hell when Cyrus is assassinated. The Warriors are incorrectly blamed.

Swan (Michael Beck), the leader of the Warriors, must now lead his crew of eight men through hostile territory.  Various gangs are hunting them down, after Cyrus gang puts a bounty on their heads. The police are searching for them too. Within the ranks, Ajax (James Remar) starts to question Swan’s leadership. Along the way they meet Mercy (Deborah Van Valkenburgh) a woman who may help or hinder them. They also have to watch out for Luther (David Patrick Kelly) the man who actually knows who killed Cyrus, and who wants to make sure The Warriors are the ones that pay.

Good Points:

• Rolls along with a fierce intensity that keeps you watching
• Has some fun and explosive action scenes
• Some solid acting helps pull you into the story

Bad Points:

• Some of the fight choreography is lacking in places
• If 70s style and slang annoy you… avoid this movie
• Not much depth to the plot and some of the characters are shallow 

Overall:

Walter Hill brought the intriguing yet flawed Streets of Fire to the big screen, but before that he crafted this action tale. The Warriors does a great job capturing the desperation, intensity and anxiety of the original tale. The cast handles the roles well providing a mix of personalities that play off each other. The rival gangs are bizarre and colorful (love the baseball themed thugs) and the whole film moves at a great pace. Plenty of action and tension make this great for a 1970s action fix.

Batter up!

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 4

Sound: 3

Acting: 4

Script: 3

Music: 4

Direction: 4

Entertainment: 4

Total:  4

Curious about a full review, sent me an email and I’ll make additional thoughts to this review.

Castle of Cagliostro (1979)

Introduction:

What happens when you take one of the most popular anime franchises of the time, and put a legendary animation director at the helm? You get a movie that is filled with action, adventure, humor and even a bit of pathos. But fans of Hayao Miyazaki’s other work may find only hints of the director’s voice in this film. After all this was his first crack at helming a feature film, and with a character as well established as Lupin III, his creativity was a bit limited. But sometimes boundaries make the final product even more impressive.

Summary:

Lupin III (Yasuo Yamada) and his partner in crime Jigen (Kiyoshi Kobayashi) pull off an amazing heist of a casino in Monte Carlo. After a crazy escape, the two realize that all the money they just stole is counterfeit. Lupin decides to use his unparalleled skills of thievery to hunt down the source of the bills and put a stop to operation. The thing is, Lupin tried this little gambit once before, and failed!

The counterfeit money comes from the independent kingdom of Cagliostro, where a mysterious Count (Taro Ishida) is currently ruling as a regent. When Lupin arrives in the kingdom, he happens across a car chase in which a lovely young woman, Lady Clarisse (Sumi Shimamoto) is being pursued by goons. Turns out she’s engaged to marry the sinister Count as part of mysterious dark ritual. Before you know it, Lupin is infatuated with Clarisse and is doing his best to thwart the Count and his plans. Of course all your favorite characters from Lupin III will make an appearance before the film ends. But do any of them have a chance of escaping the Castle of Cagliostro alive?

Good Points:

• Some amazing animated action and settings
• The story uses fairy tale tropes in some interesting ways
• Moves along at a brisk pace keeping the viewer engaged in the fun

Bad Points:

• Lupin and his pals have been mellowed a bit from their original versions
• Some of the humor doesn’t quite click
• The classic animation style may not be slick enough for some viewers

Overall:

If you are looking for a fun adventure flick, you can’t go wrong with this movie. Miyazaki focuses on keeping everything moving forward and keeping things light and humorous. Some fans of Lupin may find the whole thing being a bit too light, and the criminals to be less fearsome than their television versions. But Miyazaki is essentially telling a fairy tale with Lupin playing the dashing rogue and the Clarisse the trapped princess. In that vein, the film is a lot of fun, maybe too silly at times, but worth checking out.

Scores (out of 5)

Visuals: 4

Sound: 3

Acting: 4

Script: 4

Music: 3

Direction: 4

Entertainment: 3

Total:  3

In Depth Review

Lupin. The helpful neighborhood thief. 

When I took a look at the work of Mamoru Oshii’s work in anime it was interesting to see that he got his first directorial film job tied to a major franchise: Urusei Yatsura. But after that film he branched out into his own stories or adapting stories that fit closer to his own worldview. Interestingly enough, Hayao Miyazaki followed a similar career path. His directorial debut for a film was tied to the incredibility popular franchise for Lupin III, but his true passions and storytelling would be unleashed in his following films. So how does Castle of Cagliostro fit into his filmography?

Even surrounded by murderous ninjas, Lupin isn't phased.

Miyazaki actually directed some episodes of the first couple seasons of Lupin III so the character and the world were not new to him. But with full creative control of the film he decided to take the series in a slightly different direction. He kept true to the basics, a caper film with a dash of humor and plenty of action. But he made Lupin and his pals less miscreants and more like chivalrous rogues out to right wrongs. He toned down Fujiko Mine’s (Eiko Masuyama) overt sexuality, but made sure she still kicked plenty of butt (strong female characters would become a Miyazaki standard). Finally he introduced a character embodying innocence and youth: Clarrise . This character is unique among the women Lupin normally encountered, and may be a sticking point for some viewers.

But when it comes to visuals Castle of Cagliostro has some really impressive moments. The action scenes are a real highlight, with Miyazaki letting things go a bit crazy with some physics defying fun. This isn’t new for the Lupin franchise, but may seem a bit unusual compared to Miyazaki’s more realistic bend in his later films.

An amazing visual climax within the clock tower.

Some fun moments include an opening car chase in which Lupin attempts to save Clarrise from goons. Lupin’s little yellow Fiat takes a beating and it reminds me strongly of the escape early in For Your Eyes Only, where Bond is reduced to driving a ridiculous little car to evade gun happy enemies. Later in the film Lupin and Jigen infiltrate the castle using the elaborate aqueducts. There’s some impressive animation as the two hurtle down tunnels and into a room full of cogs and mechanical devices. But the highlight is the final confrontation between Lupin and the Count in the clock tower of the Castle. Here Lupin imitates classic comedy moments from both Charlie Chaplin (in Modern Times) and Harold Lloyd (Safety Last). It is a dynamic sequence with some real visual flourishes and intensity. This sequence has gone on to inspire other animators such as the team behind The Great Mouse Detective and Batman: The Animated Series.

Gyrocopter out of control!

But perhaps the most Miyazaki inspired visuals of the film come from the flying sequences. His love of flight and aerial visuals takes root here. While I think he really nails it in his next film, Nausicaa of the Valleyof the Wind, we see plenty of evidence for his skill here. A gyrocopter features in the plot. During Lupin’s first attempt to rescue Clarrise it hurtles all over the screen. Fujiko uses a hang glider to escape peril a little later, and then you have Lupin’s rooftop romps that both defy gravity and physics, but are so much fun to watch.

Nausicaa... I mean Clarrise encounters Lupin III.

For the character design, things stay pretty close to the established look of Lupin III. The biggest change is for the smoldering Fujiko, who is much more demure then normal. She doesn’t vamp it up or give any fan service, but she’s still tough and goes full Rambo on the bad guys in one great scene. But Fujiko just looks closer to Miyazaki’s character design for the “older sister” type characters we see in later films like Kiki’s Deliver Service or Spirited Away. Clarrise herself looks a lot like a Miyazaki heroine. In fact her resemblance to Nausicaa is uncanny. Her character is much more innocent than the princess of the later film, but they could be sisters.

Lupin and Jigen get their first look at the castle.

One last item to note about the animation of Castle of Cagliostro is the amazing attention to detail in the kingdom itself. Miyazaki loves old Europe, and here we get the first taste of visual elements we’ll see further developed in Kiki’s Delivery Service, Porco Rosso and Howl’s Moving Castle. You get a real sense of place in this film, with its gothic towers, bustling inn and Roman aqueduct. It is something that not all anime films get right, but can be very important and affecting for the viewer.

You know these two are listening to jazzy tunes.

Sound effects are handled well. There are a few moments where really cartoony sounds for jumping or falling are used. Once again, it fits the goofier feel of a more comedic Lupin III, but seems strange compared to the more realistic tone of later Miyazaki films. Music is composed by Yuji Ohno. He also composed the music for the second series of Lupin III, the one closest to the release of Castle of Cagliostro. As such, it sounds just like what you’ve heard from the previous series: jazzy, a bit silly, but energetic and even gothic when needed. Ohno’s music works well in the franchise scope, but Miyazaki would turn to a different composer for his next film.

The darkness and the light of Cagliostro.

I watched this in Japanese, and the cast does a fine job. Most of them were quite familiar with the roles having performed them on television.  Both Clarrise and the Count do a very good job with the good and evil in Cagliostro. While the acting is solid, some fans have complained about character changes. Lupin III is much less of a horn dog, and more suave. He also is less ruthless. Jigen is also toned down, coming across as a warmer cuddlier version (reminding me more of Jet Black from Cowboy Bebop). Even Goemon (Makio Inoue) seems to have a shimmering heart of gold when Clarisse appears. All these good friendly guys have caused some fans of classic Lupin III adventures a diabetic shock from all the sweetness. But Miyazaki is giving us a fairy tale adventure. For Clarisse the charming rogues are the heroes, and no shades of grey are really allowed. Lupin admires her purity, not her body, and that is how the story plays out.

Lupin on fire. Goemon posing... typical day for these guys.

It is Miyazaki’s shift of focus that makes Castle of Cagliostro stand out from other adventures featuring Lupin III. The playful spirit has been amped up. The romance (tame and pure as it is) between Clarisse and Lupin is more of a focus. The perils are fun and over the top. The count himself, while a despicable man for sure, never feels like a real threat. You never doubt that Lupin and his pals will get the upper hand in the end. Even Inspector Zenigata (Goro Naya) feels more toothless than usual. Because of that, the thrills seem less potent than Miyzaki’s later works. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind has some very powerful enemies featured, and Princess Mononoke is one of the least black and white entries in his entire filmography (and because of that, the danger always feels real).

Lupin sweeps Clarisse off her feet.

Also the over the top comedy and shenanigans are just going to rub some viewers the wrong way. While Miyazaki would often inject comedic moments in his later films, the humor was more organic and sweet. Here, things are more slapstick and farcical. It’s all in good fun, but it isn’t subtle and I know some people find it pulls them out of the more adventurous parts of the film.

But fun is the name of the game when it comes to Castle of Cagliostro, and that is what you get. It has some great characters, some amazing visuals and keeps you entertained throughout the run time. It is hardly the greatest of Miyzaki’s films, and may be least impressive. With that said, if Castle of Cagliostro is your least impressive film – well damn sir, you are well on the road to being a master. Hayao Miyazaki is a master.

A fairy tale ending.

And no I wasn't kidding. Fujiko goes John Matrix
on the Count's goons. Did I mention I love
Fujiko?