This week I will start the next course toward my Language of Film Certificate through the University of Chicago’s Graham School. My anticipation and excitement grows with each class I take (having already taken the Language of Film and History of Film classes, which were both great). This fall I’ll be taking a “Point of View” course taught by Chicago Tribune film critic, Michael Phillips entitled “Great Music, Great Films.” When I read the course offering for the fall term, this course immediately leapt out at me!Over ten weeks, we’ll explore an integral part of movies that is rarely analyzed or discussed: the relationship between films and music. During the first five weeks, we will focus on music, examining famous uses of music in films, including Bernard Herrmann’s collaborations with Orson Welles and Alfred Hitchcock, Nino Rota’s indelible Fellini scores, and the symphonic raptures of Eric Korngold.
In the last five weeks of class, Mr. Phillips will showcase films that use music in extraordinary ways, including full screenings of Laura, King’s Row, Spartacus and Vertigo.
During the 10 weeks, we’ll explore and discuss such master film composers and films (in addition to those mentioned above) as Elmer Bernstein and The Magnificent Seven; Miklós Rózsa and Ben-Hur; Ennio Morricone and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly; Maurice Jarre and Lawrence of Arabia; and John Williams and Jaws.
One of the more interesting classes on the syllabus will have us delving into the uneasy times many film composers faced in the 1960s, when scores by Bernard Herrmann (for Torn Curtain), Alex North (for 2001: A Space Odyssey) and William Walton (for Battle of Britain) were largely or out rightly rejected and replaced. The class will listen to the original scores and the music the films ended up using, and make our own comparisons.
I find this course and its topic so appealing, because a movie’s music can enhance the tone of the film, the emotional impact of the audience and greatly affect the overall movie experience, as with the shrieking violins in Psycho or the mystifying theremin in The Lost Weekend. Through this course I hope to gain a greater perspective and appreciation for film scores and a better understanding or their relation to what is seen, as well as the influences of film music on viewers’ responses to cinematic situations.
The film geek inside me is just shrieking with anticipation!
Who are some of your favorite film composers or your favorite pieces of film music?
Mancini. Definitely Mancini. Moon River. Pink Panther (I just love that da dum da dum clik clik clik da dum da dum clik clik clik ... )
ReplyDeleteI like film scores to be supportive but not obtrusive. I like to be able to concentrate on the dialogue, while remaining fairly unaware that the music is building emotions and suspense.
I also like it when classical music is used in a new way, such as the theme for Elvira Madigan, or Also Sprach Zarathustra in 2001: a Space Odyssey (love that tympani!)(And thanks to YouTube, I'm enjoying that lovely music now!)
I'm not versed enough in film to be able to answer more intelligently, but I'm soooo looking forward to hearing about your class as it progresses!
P.S. just wanted to add that I loved the Mancini scores before I realized how very much I admire Blake!
ReplyDeleteMancini was great (especially his collaborations with Blake Edwards)! I loved the way he infused jazz into his scores.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree about film scores being unobtrusive. For example, I wasn't a fan of Rózsa's use of the theremin in Spellbound (it almost seemed hokey to me), but found it very affective in The Lost Weekend. At the same time, some scores complement a film so perfectly, as with Bernstein's score for To Kill a Mockingbird or Herrmann's score for North by Northwest (at least IMO).
And then there are those films whose scores are more memorable and moving than the film itself, as with Nicholas Nickleby (2002).
Oh my gosh Addie- this is great!!! Congrats and I'm happy to have another blog to read!
ReplyDeleteOh my fucking god, i love Philip Glass. Do I have all of his albums? Yes. Are they mostly the same? Yes, but I don't even care. The Hours, Notes on a Scandal, Mishima...beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. A close second: Maurice Jarre, not just for Lawrence of Arabia, but also Ghost. Which rocks.
ReplyDeleteHey Meghan -- thanks for coming by to read! I salivate over all of your recipes, but alas, am terrible in the kitchen! ;)
ReplyDeleteWalter -- I'm not all that familiar with Philip Glass, though I did like his work for 'Notes on a Scandal.' Maurice Jarre is fantastic. 'Ghost' is great, as is 'Doctor Zhivago' and even 'A Walk in the Clouds' (another case where the score outshines the film).