I am a huge John Williams fan. His scores have always moved me and he has this wonderful skill of amercing you deeper into a film with his music. Any number of the films he has composed for just would not be the same... Of course, I'm not saying that Steven Spielberg is a terrible director without the incredible "film improving" powers of John Williams, but there's definitely a different level of excellence when the soundtrack blends so smoothly with the visual elements of the movie. It has often been said by many that John Williams' scores are more of an additional character in the movies than just music in the background.
Case in point: Check out this scene from Star Wars Episode IV - A New Hope without the sound first and then play it again with the sound on.
It's an entirely different feel. Which is true for just about any scene in an film or piece of visual art, but without that extremely familiar piece of music, that scene wouldn't have the same amount of gravitas. Without saying a word, the look on Mark Hamill's face and his body language, mixed with the soundtrack, expresses longing for more and a feeling of being trapped better than any dialog could possibly attempt to match.
With his status as one of the greatest film composers of our time, I was concerned for a long time that when we do lose this man and his talents because of retirement or anything worse that we would not have a proper heir to the title. When the grossly-underrated Superman Returns came out and composer John Ottman took over scoring duties, I thought we had finally found our crowned prince. I even went as far as to draft a "Dear John" letter to Mr. Williams, stating that the Superman Returns soundtrack was everything that the original Superman soundtrack should have been.
Sadly, I was let down after John Ottman's other films because they lacked the same heart, energy and general appeal that Superman Returns had on me. The search continued...
Oddly enough, it wasn't until last year when a little film called Star Trek came out that I realized that a proper inheritor had been around some 15 years! And that I'd been a fan for about 5 years.
Michael Giacchino began his professional career as a video game soundtrack composer and was able to parlay this experience onto film and television. I've said for a long time that video game music was due some just credit, and to see someone prove himself in such a media so to move onto the "big leagues" is proof that I'm right.
My first time experiencing Mr. Giacchino's work, like most people, was the first time I saw the Lost pilot. Not only was that first episode incredible because it was basically a movie, but like John Williams, Michael Giacchino was able to make his score weave in and out of every aspect of that show. As if that wasn't enough, we were treated with a one-two punch in the last part of 2004...
The biggest problem with most Disney Pixar movies at the beginning, in my opinion, was the scores were by Randy Newman. Yes, Randy Newman has his distinct style that works for certain films, such as the Toy Story series, however, the fact that he was Pixar's "Go-To" Guy was a bit discouraging. He's kind of a one-note act. He makes songs about what he sees, like Family Guy joked about... But his compositions don't hold up to the scale that Pixar was quickly climbing to.
But in November of 2004, The Incredibles came out and it was, for the lack of a better term, incredible! It took Pixar to a whole new level. And Michael Giacchino became the new "Go-To" Guy for Pixar films. He's done every film of their's, except Toy Story 3, and he's moved onto other fantastic projects. And everything is so different from his previous work! Of course, he has his "signatures" that a trained ear can pick out, but overall, he is a very diverse and talented musician.
The next time you get a chance to sit down and watch a couple different movies, really pay attention to the music. And in your queue of movies to watch, get on IMDb and pick up a few of Michael Giacchino's pieces. You will not be disappointed, I can almost guarantee it! You will be treated to a wide array of musical tastes and influences. Enjoy!
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