The Film
From the many adaptations of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol to such popular releases as Beetlejuice and the Poltergeist films, stories about haunting have long fascinated viewers and elicited both fright and laughter. But seldom has the ghost story been a genre for romance. One good example is R. A. Dick’s 1945 novel The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, which was brought to the screen by director Joseph L. Mankiewicz.
Gull Cottage is a seaside house formerly occupied by Captain Daniel Gregg. Despite being warned of its haunting, a widow named Lucy Muir (Gene Tierney) rents the place and moves in with her young daughter, Anna, and her servant, Martha.
The ghost of Captain Daniel Gregg (Rex Harrison) fails to scare her away. Over time, they become friends, and he helps her financially by becoming the “ghost writer” of a sensational memoir. When Lucy falls in love with Miles Fairley, a writer of children’s books, Daniel departs and thus gives her the freedom to choose love among the living. But she soon learns that Miles is already married. Lucy subsequently remains at Gull Cottage as if waiting for Daniel to return.
The Music
Although Bernard Herrmann was never under contract at 20th Century Fox, his long-standing friendship with Fox’s music director, Alfred Newman, led to many scoring assignments for that studio. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir represents the fourth of those films.
One of Herrmann’s many creative gifts as a composer was his uncanny ability to utilize unusual combinations of orchestral sounds. In Mrs. Muir Herrmann’s ingenious use of woodwinds, from the lowest contrabass clarinet to the high piccolos, helps to convey the mysterious sea that plays a significant role in the film. This mysterious aura is evident in the opening credits, where pairs of woodwinds sound the first of three distinct ideas that serve as important thematic motifs. These fast-moving rising tones are followed by a slower-paced four-tone string idea that begins with an ascending leap. Herrmann’s combining of these motifs suggests the continual ebb and flow of the incoming waves. There is also a motif for strings and harp with four melodic tones that smoothly descend in pitch. This third idea is used as the basis for Lucy’s theme, which arrives immediately following the credits. The lilting music represents both Lucy’s loving nature and an inner strength that allows her to confront ghosts.
Lucy Muir (Gene Tierney) and the deceased Captain Gregg (Rex Harrison). 20th Century Fox Film Corporation / Photofest © 20th Century Fox Film Corporation
Among the most prominent of the score’s other ideas is a jaunty flute tune played in the style of a sea chantey that represents the ghostly presence of Daniel. It is prominently heard in a scene where Lucy is typing Daniel’s reminiscences and she objects to Daniel’s salty vocabulary.
Another melodic idea that makes a couple of appearances is the theme for Mr. Coombe, the realtor who tries unsuccessfully to keep Lucy from renting Gulf Cottage. The bassoon is featured in this theme, which begins with a simple ascending pattern of five tones. There is also a lilting idea for solo violin and strings that represents Martha, Lucy’s devoted maid.
A romantic theme for strings and woodwinds is associated with Miles Fairley, the deceitful writer who temporarily wins Lucy’s heart. The six-note motif heard in this music provides the basis for some of the score’s most romantic moments.
There are several short cues in the score that serve as connective tissue between scenes. One example is a short cue for solo oboe heard as Lucy arrives in the seaside town of Whitecliff, where she has decided to live. This idea returns later in the film when Lucy is aboard a train returning from London, where she has gone to get Daniel’s memoir published.
There is a prevailing sense of melancholy about much of the score, which helps to convey both Lucy’s loneliness and the mysterious aura of the haunted cottage. There is also a powerful presence of sea motifs in two late scenes of waves crashing over rocks, serving to indicate the passing years in which Lucy moves gradually from her youth into old age.
Two scenes deserve special mention. One occurs when Daniel tells the sleeping Lucy that she has only dreamed about him and that she must find happiness among the living. As he speaks, the music features soft strings and woodwinds in motifs from earlier in the film. Brass instruments add a boldly dramatic sound when Daniel wishes they could have seen the world together.
The other standout scene comes when the elderly Lucy sits in a chair holding a glass of milk. When the glass tips over, it is evident that she has died. Daniel then reappears, and for the only time in the film, he touches her, taking her hands and she rises from the chair as a young woman. Lucy’s theme then returns in a beautifully romantic arrangement for strings and harp as Lucy and Daniel leave Gull Cottage and walk into eternity. A triumphant return of the descending four-note motif from the opening scene accompanies the film’s wondrous ending.
Herrmann’s score is remarkable from beginning to end, with a subtlety of style that perfectly captures both the fantasy and romantic elements of the film’s story. It is one of the composer’s most unique and memorable creations and richly deserves a place of distinction in this book.
Recognition
Oscar nomination for the beautiful black-and-white photography by Charles Lang.
Number eighty-nine on the American Film Institute’s list of 100 years of film scores.
Recording
Elmer Bernstein, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, Elmer Bernstein’s Film Music Collection, 1975. Reissued on a Varése Sarabande CD in 1985. Excellent sound. ****
Bibliography
Geist, Kenneth L. Pictures Will Talk: The Life and Films of Joseph L. Mankiewicz. New York: Da Capo Press, 1978.
Steiner, Fred. Liner notes. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir: Original Motion Picture Score. Varése Sarabande VCD 47254, 1985, CD.
—LEM
The Film
Many of Edna Ferber’s novels about life in particular regions of America became successful films. While Cimarron was set in Oklahoma, So Big took place in the fertile farmland of Illinois, and Show Boat was largely set along the Mississippi River, her 1952 novel Giant took readers to the sprawling plains of central Texas, a region that director George Stevens vividly depicted through many weeks of location shooting for his 1956 film adaptation.
In Giant’s opening scenes, Bick Benedict (Rock Hudson), owner of a huge Texas cattle ranch named Reata, travels to Maryland to buy a horse. He returns with both the horse and its rider, Leslie (Elizabeth Taylor), daughter of the horse’s previous owner.
From the moment Leslie arrives in Texas, she turns the lives of Bick and his sister, who lives with him in a large Victorian mansion, upside down. The film depicts several clashes, most of which concern Leslie’s negative response to her husband’s condescending treatment of their Mexican servants. Leslie also rejects the idea that Texas women do not discuss politics.
By the end of Giant, not only has one of the Benedict children married a Mexican woman, but Bick has come to the defense of a Mexican family that is refused service at a local restaurant.
Bick (Rock Hudson) and Leslie Benedict (Elizabeth Taylor) are “welcomed” by Luz Benedict (Mercedes McCambridge). Warner Bros. / Photofest © Warner Bros.
The Music
As with everything else in George Stevens’s lengthy film, Dimitri Tiomkin’s score is large in scale, with a full orchestra employed in many of the cues. Three themes predominate, the first of which is heard during the opening credits. This theme, which begins slowly with a melodic ascent that mirrors the start of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” serves as a call to attention for the family saga that is about to begin. The tempo then increases, with the added sounds of brass instruments supplemented by the wordless singing of a choir. The high soprano notes add a thrilling sound to this music, which represents the film’s main melodic idea.
Although the score does not include leitmotifs, the main title theme serves as a musical reflection on the sprawling Texas landscape. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the scene where Bick returns to Texas with his bride. After arriving by train to the area where the Benedict cattle are shipped, Bick drives Leslie the last fifty miles to his home. As the car is seen from a distance with trails of dust that crisscross the screen in cleverly edited panoramic shots, the Giant theme returns in a dramatic brassy orchestration enhanced by the pounding of drums.
The score’s second theme is a romantic idea for strings that serves as the film’s love theme for Bick and Leslie. It is introduced in the early scenes when Bick is immediately smitten by the sight of Leslie. Small portions of the theme occur as Leslie becomes infatuated with Bick and spends hours reading about Texas. When Bick is supposed to catch a train to take his newly purchased horse back to Texas, the strings produce a version of the love theme that soars as Bick and Leslie look ardently at each other. The music fills in the blanks for this scene, in which words of love are never spoken.
The third principal theme is associated with the ranch hand Jett Rink (James Dean), who is first seen from a distance as Bick arrives at Reata with his bride. A harmonica provides the melody for this theme, which begins with a number of short melodic phrases. Its most prominent appearance occurs in a wordless scene that follows the accidental death of Bick’s sister, who wills to Jett a small parcel of land on Reata. As Jett walks off the margins of his parcel and then climbs a water tower to have a better look at his inherited property, the theme builds steadily in volume as Jett contemplates the possibility of drilling for oil. The strumming of a banjo often adds a folksy flavor to this theme.
There is much source music in the film, including “The Eyes of Texas Are upon You,” which is heard at a banquet held in celebration of a new hotel that Jett has built using his newfound wealth as an oil prospector. “The Yellow Rose of Texas” is prominently featured toward the end of the film as Bick defends his family’s honor at Sarge’s Diner when the restaurant owner challenges him to a fistfight. When they plow into a jukebox, the song starts to play. It is worth noting that when Giant was being filmed in 1955, the Mitch Miller rendition of “Yellow Rose of Texas” was the Billboard chart’s number-one song. Curiously, the Mitch Miller recording was not used in the film. Instead, a facsimile of the Mitch Miller recording by Warner Bros. music head Ray Heindorf was utilized for this scene.
The brassy orchestrations of Tiomkin were a mainstay in many of his film scores in the 1950s and 1960s, but nowhere are these brassy sounds more relevant to the story than in Giant. Tiomkin produced music that gives the film a larger-than-life quality. As such, this music is not only memorable, but it represents one of the high points of his career.
Recognition
Giant became one of 1956’s top box-office hits and was awarded ten Oscar nominations, including a citation for best picture. Despite best-actor nods for Rock Hudson and James Dean, plus a scoring nomination for Tiomkin, Giant’s only Oscar win was for George Stevens’s direction.
Over the years Giant has achieved distinction through the cultish lionization of Dean, who died before the film’s release. It is also recognized as a breakthrough film in the feminist movement and a noteworthy example of socially conscious cinema regarding Mexican immigrants.
Recording
Dimitri Tiomkin, Giant, Capitol, 1955. Reissued on CD in 1989 and mp3 in 2013. Contains forty-two minutes of music. Good monaural sound. ***½
Bibliography
Palmer, Christopher. Dimitri Tiomkin: A Portrait. London: T. E. Books, 1984.
Moss, Marilyn Ann. Giant: George Stevens, a Life on Film. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 2004.
—LEM
The Film
Directed by Ridley Scott and starring Russell Crowe in his breakthrough role, Gladiator was a resounding critical success. The film garnered five Academy Awards and was nominated for seven more, making it the joint third-most-nominated film in history with twelve. Commercially, the worldwide returns of $457 million place it outside the top-grossing films of all time, but it was still a success in movie theaters around the globe.
Set in AD 180, the film focuses on General Maximus Decimus Meridius (Crowe) and his journey through tragedy and betrayal. After leading the Roman army to victory against Germanic tribes, the reigning emperor tells him that he is to be his successor, as Commodus, the emperor’s son, is deemed unfit by his father. In a fit of rage, Commodus murders his father and declares himself emperor. After Maximus refuses to pledge his loyalty to Commodus, he escapes captivity, but on his return home finds his family murdered. Maximus is captured by slave traders and sold to a gladiator trainer. After building up his skills as a gladiator in local fights, he enters the Colosseum in a masked helmet and surprisingly wins the gladiatorial combat. Commodus, in attendance, is pleased by this and offers congratulations but is shocked to see Maximus when the helmet is removed. The narrative eventually leads to Commodus and Maximus facing each other in a duel, which ultimately kills them both. Commodus is left dying on the floor, while Maximus, already dead, is carried in a respectful procession to his final resting place.
The film was responsible for an upsurge in interest in the Roman period, and aside from the occasional anachronism or fictional character, it is regarded as a faithful adaptation of life in the historical period it depicts.
Maximus (Russell Crowe) and Juba (Djimon Hounsou) in the Colosseum. DreamWorks SKG / Photofest © DreamWorks SKG
The Music
The score to Gladiator was composed by Hans Zimmer and features the contralto Lisa Gerrard. The score has several prominent themes, including “Barbarian Horde,” “The Might of Rome,” and “Now We Are Free.”
“Barbarian Horde” underscores the reenactment of a battle in the Colosseum, the one that Maximus surprisingly “wins,” in opposition to historical accuracy. The music is a tempestuous, relentless stomp through time signatures of 3/4 and 2/4, giving the feeling of an uneven, off-kilter beat. The melody, such as it is, is occasionally accompanied by a rhythmic ostinato in the strings and brass on the same note, a rhythm mimicked by the snare drum. It is an uncomfortable, oppressive musical cue, which represents effectively the chaos in the gladiatorial arena.
“The Might of Rome” cue underscores the scene where the new (self-appointed) emperor, Commodus, returns to the city. The influence of Richard Wagner’s epic Ring cycle is evident here, with the visual imagery also linked heavily to those found in propaganda films of the Third Reich. The composer himself admitted that the nod to Wagner was deliberate, claiming, “Yes, the Wagner was a very conscious choice. The scary thing for me was when after I saw the entry into Rome it seemed so apposite. I managed to assume the style of Wagner so easily that I was able to write that piece in an hour.” However, the composer has been known to become frustrated by the comparisons to Wagner, complaining “Yeah, I get a lot of shit about this Wagner thing, and so what if it does? I wanted to be Little Richard Wagner. I wrote that theme in about ten minutes. I’m not saying it is any good, but it was a lot of fun.” It is undoubtedly good, and it is a striking audiovisual moment in the film, which, yes, is Wagnerian in style. But it fits the majestic style of the remainder of Scott’s film, so it does not in any way feel out of place.
“Now We Are Free” is perhaps the most famous of the Gladiator musical cues and is also the gentlest. The most prominent instance of this cue in the film is after Maximus’s death. His transition into the afterlife is shown as he runs toward his wife and son, murdered earlier in the film, but seen here greeting him home. Lisa Gerrard vocalizes the melody with wordless singing during this scene. The musical cue continues to build up the levels of poignancy during this emotional climax to the film and transitions into the final credits, where we hear Gerrard performing the song version of the theme.
The score to Gladiator is widely regarded as one of Zimmer’s finest. The scope of it, ranging from Wagnerian influences to barbaric-sounding battle music and to the emotive, tragic undertones of “Now We Are Free” result in an effective score in a well-respected historical epic.
Recognition
2000 Golden Globe for Best Original Score.
Nominated for Academy Award for Best Original Score.
Nominated for BAFTA Award for Best Score.
Recordings
Hans Zimmer, Gladiator, Decca, 2000 (rereleased 2003). The official soundtrack and the first choice for any listeners interested in the score. ****
Hans Zimmer, Gladiator: More Music from the Motion Picture, Decca, 2003. An additional release of previously unpublished music from the film. Recommended for hardcore fans only, as this is a compilation of unfinished cues, clips of dialogue played over musical cues, and music deemed not required in the final film. **
Bibliography
Lace, Ian. “Hans Zimmer and the Gladiator: An Interview with the Film Music Composer.” Film Music on the Web, May 2000. http://www.musicweb-international.com/film/Zimmer.html.
Synchrotones. “Interview with Hans Zimmer.” Synchrotones’ Soundtrack Reviews, May 1, 2013. https://synchrotones.wordpress.com/2013/05/01/interview-with-hans-zimmer/.
—ML
The Films
Directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino, The Godfather is an American crime drama that spanned the years 1945–1955. The Godfather Part II was released two years later and stars Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. In The Godfather, set in the years 1945–1955, the infamous Five Families erupt into open warfare while Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) ascends from relative obscurity to mafia boss. The film is a bloody representation of life in the mafia, with a series of murders and betrayals forming a backdrop to the stories of several individuals whose fates are decided by the feuding families.
Part II is both prequel and sequel to the original film, spanning 1901–1958. It ties up loose ends from Michael Corleone’s narrative but also acts as an origin story for some key characters from the first film. Both films set the scene for Part III, which covers the period of the late 1970s and 1980s.
The Godfather was nominated for eleven Academy Awards, of which it won three for Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role, and Best Adapted Screenplay. It also won five of seven Golden Globe nominations. Finally, it won one of five BAFTAs. The Godfather Part II was again nominated for eleven Academy Awards, of which it won six for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Art Direction, and Best Music. It received six Golden Globe nominations and won one of five BAFTA nominations. No other film series has ever won two Academy Awards for Best Picture.
The Corleone clan: Sonny (James Caan, left), Don Vito (Marlon Brando), Michael (Al Pacino), and Fredo (John Cazale). Paramount Pictures / Photofest © Paramount Pictures
The Music
The music for both films was composed principally by Nino Rota, best known for his scores of Fellini’s films. The main themes from the first film have become two of film music’s most recognizable melodies. The first theme is described by Kristopher Spencer as “nostalgic, tragic” music. The theme opens on a solo trumpet. It is simple, unassuming, but unmistakably, to audiences today, the start of a venture into the shady underworld of the mafia. This trumpet melody is joined by dissonant piano chords and string interjections. The sweet, lilting trumpet is suddenly far more sinister. The solo violin takes over the melody after the harsh piano and strings have seemingly silenced the trumpet. Now, the theme is sad and mournful, before transitioning seamlessly into the waltz, with quirky, almost playful, off-beat accompaniments very clearly letting us know we are in 3/4 time. The clarinet takes on the melody accompanied by French horn, as the music continues to evolve, representing differing emotions and moods.
The second theme, arguably even more famous than the first, is the “Love Theme.” This is an evocative, longing melody that oozes with Italian romance. It is haunting and heartbreaking, signifying a tragic romance more than a perfect Hollywood love story. One musical reason for this is that it is in a minor key, whereas many famous, traditional love themes will be in the happier major. Ironically, but certainly intentionally, the love theme is not used for either of the weddings found within the film.
The second film recapitulates the two main themes from the first film, but adds three memorable cues. The most successful of these is often referred to as the “Immigrant Theme,” representing musically a young Vito Corleone.” It adapts the love theme from the first film and morphs into a symphonic signifier of hope. It is likely that this theme, which was used to open the second film, as well as the reuse of the two successful themes from the first film, contributed to Rota and his associate Carmine Coppola both winning the Academy Award at their second attempt.
The films are not unusual in relying on the same musical themes, but it is unusual that the themes rarely do anything drastically different each time they are heard, yet they do not lose any impact. They are used sometimes subtly, sometimes explicitly, but they are always, generally, the same musically. The interweaving of the key themes throughout the Godfather series works in a Wagnerian manner and can be compared to his use of leitmotifs throughout the Ring cycle. The music unites the films in the series as one narrative through the repetition of key themes, becoming as memorable to the audience as the characters and locations.
Recognition
The Godfather:
Golden Globe for Best Original Score.
BAFTA for Film Music.
Nominated for Academy Award for Best Original Score.
The Godfather Part II:
Academy Award for Best Original Score
Nominated for Golden Globe for Best Original Score
Nominated for BAFTA for Film Music
Recordings
Nino Rota, Carmine Coppola, The Godfather, Geffen Records, 1991/2010. This twelve-track CD, lasting a little over half an hour, is recommended if you only require the first score. ***
Nino Rota, Carmine Coppola, The Godfather Part II, Geffen Records, 1974/2020. This thirty-eight-minute album contains fourteen musical cues from the second film. ****
Nino Rota, Carmine Coppola, The Godfather Trilogy: New Recordings from the Classic Scores, Silva Screen Records, 2005. This is a selection of seventeen cues from the three films. ***
Bibliography
Hewitt, Ivan. “Nino Rota: A Musical Offer Coppola Couldn’t Refuse.” Telegraph, November 17, 2011.
—ML
The Film
Immediately upon its arrival in bookstores, Margaret Mitchell’s Civil War novel Gone with the Wind became a huge best seller and won the 1936 Pulitzer Prize. Producer David O. Selznick bought the film rights and spent three years creating a film version of Mitchell’s massive 1,037-page book. Despite a host of production difficulties, Selznick’s film premiered in Atlanta on December 15, 1939, and became one of the most acclaimed motion pictures of all time.
The film, which covers a ten-year period from the start of the Civil War to the Reconstruction era, revolves around Scarlett O’Hara (Vivien Leigh), the willful eldest daughter of a prominent Southern family that lives on Tara, a cotton plantation near Atlanta. The plot centers on Scarlett’s relationships with several men, including Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard), the son of a nearby plantation owner, and Captain Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), a dashing visitor from Charleston, South Carolina. Although Rhett believes the South cannot win the war, he thinks he can win Scarlett, despite her infatuation with Ashley. The film also depicts her love/hate relationship with Ashley’s wife, Melanie Hamilton (Olivia de Havilland).
Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) and Scarlett O’Hara (Vivien Leigh). MGM / Photofest © MGM
The Music
Selznick felt that Max Steiner was the only composer who could give Gone with the Wind the musical score it deserved. Since Steiner was then under contract at Warner Bros., Selznick’s film had to be scored while Steiner was working on other films. Problems emerged when Selznick moved up the release date so that the film would be eligible for the 1939 Oscars. As a result, Steiner sought help from Adolph Deutsch and Hugo Friedhofer in writing a few of the cues. Two cues were lifted from preexisting scores, including Steiner’s 1938 score for The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and a short piece by Franz Waxman from the 1936 film His Brother’s Wife.
The lavishly orchestrated score, which accompanies almost three hours of the film’s 222-minute running time, utilizes the Wagnerian leitmotiv method that Steiner and Erich Wolfgang Korngold often utilized for Warner Bros. films. Steiner composed themes for the prominent characters as well as motifs for several of the supporting roles. Rhett’s theme is a stately march-like tune, while Melanie is represented by a serene three-note motif, and Ashley is musically represented by a lyrical melody based on a descending-tone idea.
The only major character without an original theme is Scarlett, who is musically identified by a lively melody that begins with a motif of seven tones based on Stephen Foster’s “Katie Belle,” which Steiner may have used because Katie is Scarlett’s first name.
Mammy (Hattie McDaniel) is identified by a piece with a jaunty ragtime flavor, while Scarlett’s father, Gerald O’Hara (Thomas Mitchell), is accompanied by an Irish jig-flavored melody based on a seven-note motif in a “long-short-long-short” rhythmic pattern. The Tarleton twins, who flirt with Scarlett in the opening scene, are represented by a frolicsome idea that includes an ascending major-scale tonal pattern.
There are also love themes, a descending five-tone idea associated with Scarlett’s flirtation with Ashley, and a soaring five-note motif that identifies the relationship of Ashley and Melanie.
Beyond all of these melodic ideas, the most famous theme in the score is “Tara,” which represents the O’Hara plantation. The theme’s basic four-note motif, with an ascending octave between the first two tones, heroically proclaims the importance of the land.
Over a dozen borrowed melodies, many of which reflect the Civil War era, are in the score, including “Bonnie Blue Flag,” “When Johnny Comes Marching Home,” “Cavaliers of Dixie,” “Tramp, Tramp, Tramp,” and especially “Dixie,” which is heard several times. Other borrowings include Stephen Foster’s “Louisiana Belle,” “Ring de Banjo,” “Beautiful Dreamer,” “Camptown Races,” and “My Old Kentucky Home.”
A good example of Steiner’s mixing of the new and the borrowed comes as the film begins. After bells intone the start of Alfred Newman’s motif for the Selznick company logo, a brief quotation of Mammy’s theme is heard, followed by a majestic rendition of “Tara.” The title music also includes a brief bit of Rhett’s theme, followed by a repeat of “Tara” and then a slow-paced wordless vocal rendition of “Dixie.”
Of the many key scenes in which “Tara” is featured, two stand out. In the first, Scarlett sulks over Ashley’s decision to marry Melanie and then is told by her father that land is all that matters. At this moment, “Tara” begins to crescendo and their silhouetted figures become dwarfed by a huge tree with the facade of their home in the distance.
When Scarlett, hungry and exhausted from trying to run the plantation following the war, pulls a radish from the garden and tries to eat it, “Tara” begins to soar as Scarlett, invoking God as her witness, vows that she will never be hungry again.
Steiner’s score also includes lilting dance tunes and moments of highly dramatic music, especially in the wartime scene when Atlanta’s munitions depot is being detonated.
A noteworthy use of borrowed music occurs in an emotional wartime scene when Scarlett is in Atlanta with Melanie, who is about to give birth. As Scarlett hurriedly walks to a makeshift hospital located at a train station to find Doctor Meade, a panoramic shot reveals a massive number of wounded soldiers lying in the train yard. This scene features a minor-key rendition of “Dixie,” a slow trumpet version of “Taps,” and a string arrangement of “Maryland, My Maryland” and “Old Folks at Home.”
This score, with its now-famous “Tara” theme and all its other noteworthy motifs, is one of Steiner’s best and deserves to be listed among the best film scores of all time.
Recognition
Ten Oscars, including awards for Best Film, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress (McDaniel), Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Steiner was nominated for Best Original Score (the Oscar went to Herbert Stothart for his musical contribution to The Wizard of Oz).
Recordings
Charles Gerhardt, National Philharmonic Orchestra, Gone with the Wind, RCA, 1973, 1990. Rerecording with Charles Gerhardt conducting the National Philharmonic, released again by Sony in 2010. Includes forty-three minutes of music. ***½.
Max Steiner, Gone with the Wind: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, Rhino, 1996. Digitally remastered two-disc soundtrack. Includes over two hours of music. ****
Bibliography
Behlmer, Rudy. Liner notes. Gone with the Wind, in RCA Classic Film Scores Series. RCA 0452-2-RG, 1990, CD.
———. Liner Notes. Gone with the Wind: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Rhino Movie Music R2 77269, 1996, CD.
Brooks, Herb, and Terryl C. Boodman. Gone With the Wind: The Definitive Illustrated History of the Book, the Movie, and the Legend. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989.
—LEM
The Film
Directed by John Sturges and starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough, The Great Escape is based on one of the all-time great prisoner-of-war escape stories. It focuses on an Allied escape attempt from a German POW camp during World War II. The first half of the lengthy film deals with the digging of three secret tunnels, “Tom,” “Dick,” and “Harry.” After over seventy prisoners escape, the latter half of the film shows the Gestapo tracking them down as they try to make their way to either neutral countries or England. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Editing, and a Golden Globe for Best Picture.
The Music
The music to The Great Escape was composed by Elmer Bernstein. The score is quite extensive, in a film that runs to nearly three hours in length. However, it is the main theme, in the form of a march, that has placed the film firmly in the soundtrack canon and propelled it into the top 100 soundtracks of all time.
Jeff Bond, in the notes for a soundtrack release, states: “Bernstein’s march from the film, a quirky tune taken up by flutes and woodwinds over a low rhythm of tuba and basses, is one of the most instantly recognizable in a long tradition of military marches from war films, and in fact has outlived many of its contemporaries.” The score is dominated by the march, with variations and fragments of the famous theme appearing and reappearing at different moments in the film. The instrumentation, tempo, and pitch of the melody is altered to represent excitement, nervousness, and other moods endured by the characters in their brave quest for freedom. The march has a mischievous, playful undertone that well represents the love-hate relationship between the prisoners and the guards. There is a feeling of mutual respect between the Germans and the prisoners—that is, until the escape attempts begin. At this point, the music takes a darker turn, and scenes that include the mass execution of rounded-up prisoners move well away from the jovial nature of the march. There are darker and more tender moments in the score, reinforcing the fact that despite the main theme’s astonishing popularity, Bernstein produced a score of great variety and emotional depth. The cue “The Scrounger/Blythe” is a musical representation of the bonding between prisoners that offers a reprieve from the “overt testosterone and masculinity” of Bernstein’s score. The gentle woodwinds in this scene show empathy with Blythe, who is visually impaired. He has a comfortable life in the camp, so escaping for him is full of peril. This almost cozy, gentle, homely musical interlude between the militaristic themes found elsewhere in the film seems out of place initially, but actually humanizes the prisoners and offers an alternative to escape, namely sitting the war out in peace and not risking their lives attempting to flee.
Captain Virgil Hilts (Steve McQueen) attempting to cross into Switzerland. United Artists / Photofest © United Artists
The Nazis have their own theme, which is scored for strings. Every time they are close to discovering the tunnels, or suspect the prisoners, the mysterious cue rears its head. The latter half of the film and latter third of the score combine to create high anxiety as the escape succeeds and the prisoners find themselves well and truly behind enemy lines. The infamous moment where a German says, “Good luck” in English to an escaped prisoner about to board a train, who absent-mindedly replies “Thank you!” is scored by tense, unsettling music. So while the score may be accused of being a one-trick pony by some, it truly is a varied score to a long film, although one that even in its darker moments always returns, eventually, to the march that has become a staple of the film music world—and of British television at Christmas. The score pervades popular culture too.
Such is the catchy nature of the melody and the patriotic nature of the film in which it is found that it has become a regular feature of England soccer matches, with England fans singing the main theme as part of their repertoire of chants. Later films such as Chicken Run (2000) also pay homage to the film and music.
Bernstein’s score, while not winning any awards, is highly effective at keeping the film’s narrative moving forward. Certain films that push three hours might be accused of slowing to a walking pace, but the use of the march as a leitmotif for the ongoing saga helps the audience to bond with the characters and their plight. The payoff is in the final chase scene and escape over the barbed wire at the end, when the theme returns with all its might and militaristic pomp to celebrate the end of a war film classic. Whether you hear it in the film or in a stadium, there is no “escaping” this “great” film score, in all its jaunty, ironically Germanic glory.
Recognition
Nomination for International Film Music Critics Award (IFMCA) for Best Re-Release of an Existing Score in 2004.
Recording
Elmer Bernstein, The Great Escape, MGM Soundtracks, 1998. This is a rerelease of the official soundtrack, spread across sixteen tracks. Recommended. ***
Bibliography
Hall, R. “Elmer’s Magnificent 7: Essential Elmer Bernstein Scores from the 1960s.” Film Score Monthly 9, no. 9 (2004): 26–28, 47.
MacDonald, D. “Score: Reviews of CDs: ‘The Great Escape.’” Film Score Monthly 9, no. 9 (2004): 33.
—ML
The Film
Directed by Frank Darabont and starring Tom Hanks and Michael Clarke Duncan, The Green Mile is often considered one of the greatest tearjerkers of recent times. Based on a Stephen King novel, the film begins with an elderly man, Paul (Tom Hanks), weeping while watching the 1935 film Top Hat in his care home. The film reminds him of something that happened while working as a prison officer in the 1930s. The film flashes back to 1935, where the imposing, intellectually challenged but gentle John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan) is under supervision from Paul. Sentenced to death for the crimes he allegedly committed, he begins to gain supernatural powers and passes these on to Paul. The two grow to be very fond of one another, and the execution upsets Paul tremendously. Before his death, Coffey reveals he has never seen a film, and so he and Paul sit and watch Top Hat together, linking the story to the introduction of the film. The narrative is one of friendship, hope, and redemption against one of cruelty and pain caused by the sadistic officer Percy. This is reflected in Coffey using his supernatural powers for good by resurrecting a mouse in his prison cell and using it for bad by passing on a brain tumour to Percy, which ultimately drives him mad. The end of the film reverts back to the present, where Paul reveals he is well into his 100s, a result of the supernatural powers passed to him by Coffey. The Green Mile was nominated for four Academy Awards and one Golden Globe.
The Music
The score to The Green Mile was composed by Thomas Newman and was his second collaboration with Frank Darabont after the equally successful The Shawshank Redemption (1994).
The main theme to the film is a haunting interplay between woodwinds and piano. A slow, drone-like string accompaniment results in a slow-moving, poignant, yet thoughtful musical introduction to the narrative. It is not a typical Hollywood orchestral main theme. There is no sweeping melody, there are no percussion crashes, and there is no overt emotion. It is withdrawn, subdued, yet extremely contemplative. It is music made for thinking, not for being overwhelmed by.
The most emotionally intense the score becomes is during Coffey’s slow march to the electric chair and his execution. For a brief thirty-second spell, the strings do swell, and the orchestra does rise in volume, but this soon withdraws into a smooth, relaxed string accompaniment, with the piano performing the solo arpeggiated melodic line. It is to Newman’s credit that he decided against melodramatic excess. The nature of the film, and of Coffey being perceived as a physically imposing gentle giant, seems to call for a more introverted musical score.
Death row guard Paul Edgecomb (Tom Hanks) and inmate John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan). Warner Bros. / Photofest © Warner Bros.
There are also darker cues, such as “The Bad Death of Eduard Delacroix.” Here, an electrocution sequence lasts for over four minutes, and Newman, perhaps for one of the only times in the whole score, turns to aggression and percussive, dark orchestral scoring. It is a rare moment where Newman threatens to lose control of the tenderness and restraint of the score, but it is a justified exception. Compared to Coffey’s death, this disturbing execution would not have been served by a subtler musical accompaniment.
There are moments that represent the Deep South in the interwar period. Banjos and guitars occasionally make an appearance to give some chronological and geographical context, but these moments do not outshine the sensitive orchestral scoring that accompanies the most heartrending moments of the film. The placement of popular songs in the soundtrack does nothing to boost Newman’s score, but they are appropriate to the time the film was set. The song “Cheek to Cheek,” performed by Fred Astaire in Top Hat, plays a large part in the film. It is the only film Coffey has ever seen. After he tells Paul he has never seen a movie, the guards let him watch it, and Coffey becomes very emotional. This links back to Paul’s reaction in 1999, as it bring back intense memories of Coffey.
Comparisons are often made to The Shawshank Redemption, a film that appears elsewhere in this book, but those comparisons are perhaps unfair. The Shawshank Redemption may be a more memorable score, but The Green Mile matches it for effectiveness and emotional impact. The two films, while both being set in prison, are very different in nature, and Newman’s music reflects this. It is for the sensitivity and thoughtfulness of The Green Mile that Newman earns his second entry in this top-100 list. He resisted the temptation to exploit often-used Hollywood orchestral excessiveness in favor of an almost hypnotically ambient score. And to continue this style of composition through one of the most upsetting deaths in cinema history was a brave decision that ultimately paid off.
Recognition
Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films Award for Best Original Score.
BMI Film & TV Award for Best Film Music.
Recording
Thomas Newman, The Green Mile, Warner Bros., 1999/2010. This thirty-seven-track soundtrack consists of all of Newman’s orchestral cues, as well as the popular songs featured in the film. As the only official soundtrack release, it is well recommended. It is also conducted by the composer. ***