Comments on: Keeping Score – Scary Music for Scary Movies http://parallax-view.org/2008/10/22/scary-music-for-scary-movies/ Smart Words About Cinema Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:32:14 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Bob Cumbow http://parallax-view.org/2008/10/22/scary-music-for-scary-movies/comment-page-1/#comment-617 Bob Cumbow Mon, 27 Oct 2008 19:33:16 +0000 http://parallax-view.org/?p=706#comment-617 I'm with you both on Badalamenti. I wrestled with including him, but finally decided that all of his scores for Lynch--and all of the movies they accompany--are more than worthy, but none of the films are, by intent, horror movies. There are a lot of scary scores for movies that, though scary in places, aren't flat-out scary movies, and I decided to draw an admittedly gray and jagged line there. Actually, I started out with this being a list of 10 and just couldn't do it, so 13 seemed permissible in keeping with the season. Any more than that would have been stretching too far; so I invited commentors to suggest additional titles for perhaps a second list, and it looks as if we have one well under way. I’m with you both on Badalamenti. I wrestled with including him, but finally decided that all of his scores for Lynch–and all of the movies they accompany–are more than worthy, but none of the films are, by intent, horror movies. There are a lot of scary scores for movies that, though scary in places, aren’t flat-out scary movies, and I decided to draw an admittedly gray and jagged line there. Actually, I started out with this being a list of 10 and just couldn’t do it, so 13 seemed permissible in keeping with the season. Any more than that would have been stretching too far; so I invited commentors to suggest additional titles for perhaps a second list, and it looks as if we have one well under way.

]]> By: Bruce Reid http://parallax-view.org/2008/10/22/scary-music-for-scary-movies/comment-page-1/#comment-586 Bruce Reid Sun, 26 Oct 2008 17:39:20 +0000 http://parallax-view.org/?p=706#comment-586 Too fun a topic (and original list) not to play. Halloween is a masterpiece, but I'd add Christine to the list of Carpenter's exceptional scores--it's possibly even my favorite. The piercing electronic drones have an appropriately metallic sheen to them, the keyboard figures play as nostalgic, romantic, and haunting all at the same time. And the action scenes add a pulsing drum as perfect accompaniment to roaring engines and angry, screeching tires. The interplay of Badalamenti's score and Lynch's sound design for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me is profoundly unnerving; in particular, the lugubrious bump-and-grind they came up with for the Canadian bar is as hypnotically disturbing a piece of music as I've heard. (Though it's something of a lift from Leroy Jenkins's "Looking for the Blues".) Like I said, a nice list, but I had to triple check to confirm you'd left off Howard Shore. Too fun a topic (and original list) not to play.

Halloween is a masterpiece, but I’d add Christine to the list of Carpenter’s exceptional scores–it’s possibly even my favorite. The piercing electronic drones have an appropriately metallic sheen to them, the keyboard figures play as nostalgic, romantic, and haunting all at the same time. And the action scenes add a pulsing drum as perfect accompaniment to roaring engines and angry, screeching tires.

The interplay of Badalamenti’s score and Lynch’s sound design for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me is profoundly unnerving; in particular, the lugubrious bump-and-grind they came up with for the Canadian bar is as hypnotically disturbing a piece of music as I’ve heard. (Though it’s something of a lift from Leroy Jenkins’s “Looking for the Blues”.)

Like I said, a nice list, but I had to triple check to confirm you’d left off Howard Shore.

]]> By: Peet Gelderblom http://parallax-view.org/2008/10/22/scary-music-for-scary-movies/comment-page-1/#comment-498 Peet Gelderblom Thu, 23 Oct 2008 22:18:35 +0000 http://parallax-view.org/?p=706#comment-498 Quite a list, Bob! Besides the classics you mention, I'm quite fond of Philip Glass's minimal choir/organ music for Candyman, Pino Donaggio's eerie-romantic score for Carrie, James Newton-Howard's lyrical soundtrack for The Village and, well... you gotta love Danny Elfman's The Nightmare Before Christmas. We haven't even mentioned Angelo Badalamenti. Quite a list, Bob! Besides the classics you mention, I’m quite fond of Philip Glass’s minimal choir/organ music for Candyman, Pino Donaggio’s eerie-romantic score for Carrie, James Newton-Howard’s lyrical soundtrack for The Village and, well… you gotta love Danny Elfman’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. We haven’t even mentioned Angelo Badalamenti.

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