Star Wars. The '78 Superman. Indiana Jones. Aside from being pop culture classics, all of these films share one other similarity (two if you count that John Williams composed all the music), their musical themes are just as iconic as their characters. Even if you've never seen Stars Wars, Superman, or Indiana Jones odds are that you would know the theme music when you hear it. In fact, some of you are already playing the music in your head and you don't even realize it. Iconic and as central to the 80's as any other piece of music (In my humble opinion), these films not only started the trend of having a musical theme, but also continue to be the gold standard for what we look for in all other similar films.
With that being said, there are some people who believe that the "movie theme" not only started with these films but also died with them. Last week, as I scoured the Interweb for reviews of the recently released film, Man of Steel, I came across a rather critical review with a very interesting take on the film's score. In the article, the reviewer stated that the score of the film was lackluster and forgettable before jumping into a nostalgia-driven diatribe* about the lack of good musical themes (he cited the current Star Trek films and Iron Man 3 as being the only current films with a musical theme on par with the three mentioned above, which I will hereafter refer to as the Mount Rushmore of Movie Themes or MRMT.)
Now, I have been raised in a fairly musical family and consider myself to be a connoisseur of the OMPS (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack). I currently own all or part of thirty three different film scores and have fifteen others as Spotify playlists. After reading the previous article, it took me all of seventeen seconds to come up with an alternate conclusion to the previous article's argument. One of the main criticisms that the reviewer had about current movie scores was that he couldn't hum them like he could the Mount Rushmore of Movie Themes. There is some truth to this statement; of all the movies that have come out in the past twelve years that have had a central theme, only a handful are as hummable** as Mount Rushmore. I would say that LOTR, Captain America: The First Avenger, The Chronicles of Narnia and a few other soundtracks (namely Jurassic Park) have main themes that a person can hum.
However, it would be a mistake to make a theme's hummability*** the main criteria for comparison with the Mount Rushmore of Movie Themes. The fact of the matter is that movie themes haven't died since the 1980's, they've evolved. Modern movie themes, especially those in movies that are part of a series ( Pirates of the Caribbean or Star Trek for example), are becoming more complex as composers are taking advantage of the fact that they have multiple films to slowly develop the theme throughout the film. Essentially, the movie theme goes through development that mirrors the character development of the protagonist/s. I believe that a movie theme has at least two of these 3 qualities: Its played either in the opening or closing credits (or both), it is heard throughout the film, and it evolves/develops throughout the film (or throughout out multiple films in the case of a series).
I am going give three examples of what I believe are high quality modern movie themes that are just as important to their respective films as any of the MRMT's (I will also include a couple other movie themes that I like at the bottom of this post, but I won't analyze them). First I will use The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. There is a piece of music that plays when the Pevensies arrive at Aslan's camp that I would call the "destiny" theme. On the OMPS this track is called" To Aslan's Camp "(Theme starts at 1:30). This theme is then repeated during the Pevensies' coronation in "Only the Beginning of the Adventure"; with what I consider to be a more majestic and royal tone Finally, this theme is repeated in the sequel Prince Caspian in the track "Arrival at Aslan's How", this time with a nostalgic feel.
My second example is the music from the Dark Knight Trilogy, composed by Hans Zimmer. In the Batman Begins OMPS we are introduced to a Bruce Wayne theme and we hear the development of a Batman theme throughout the film. The Bruce Wayne theme is present in the first two minutes and forty-five seconds of "Barbastella" (his parents death) and the first three minutes of "Corynorhinus" (Rachel visits the burned down Wayne Manor); the Batman theme is present in the second half of both tracks (Bruce overcoming his fear of bats and Gordon revealing the Bat-signal, respectively) and provides a foundation for the Batman theme that appears in the subsequent sequels. In Batman's first scene in The Dark Knight we get a more developed Batman theme (" I'm Not A Hero" 0:00 to 1:40 then from 5:10 on), a reflection of Batman's experience. The last track of the film, "A Watchful Guardian" , which leads into the credits, revisits both the Bruce Wayne theme and further develops the Batman theme. The Dark Knight Rises continues this evolution, altering the Batman theme from "I'm Not A Hero" in the track "Despair", while also providing a slightly different version of the music present in "A Watchful Guardian", in the final track "Rise". "Rise" features a fully developed Bruce Wayne theme in conjunction with a powerful version of the Batman theme.
My last example will be the film Man of Steel, the film score that started me down this path. Man of Steel is also composed by Hans Zimmer and will be followed by a sequel; therefore, a similar pattern of developing a Superman theme throughout the film instead of starting with one (like the '78 Superman) is used.
**spoiler alert, I reveal the first scene of the film**
Now, here's what I think is the really cool thing. Hans Zimmer takes the "Clark Kent" theme and combines it with a more majestic version of the new piece of music introduced in the second half of the song "Flight". This my friends is the Superman theme and it is in the track What Are You Going To Do When Your Not Saving The World? (49:43 - 54:29). This new theme represents how Superman is a combination of Kal-el's Krytonian ability with Clark's moral upbringing. I would look for this theme to be developed and expounded in any sequels to the film.
To conclude, I would like to clarify and reiterate my position. I will always love the Star Wars, Superman, and Indiana Jones' themes. With that being said, I believe that there are an abundance of modern movies that have chosen to have a theme like these classics but the execution and presentation of these new themes are not the same as the old ones. In addition, ease of humming should not be the main criteria of whether or not a movie has a good theme ( I personally prefer to drum on the table whilst humming to get that multi-layered affect that most modern themes have). Hopefully I have articulated myself clearly enough so that you all could understand my argument.
So...... what do you think? Is the movie theme dead or has it merely evolved into something that is different but still memorable? And what's your favorite movie theme? Sound off in the comments if you have an opinion and take a peek at some of the additional themes below if you have time. That's all for now and remember, if you fellow my advice, success shall follow you like a stray dog.
Here a few additional examples of movies with great themes. LOTR is bit unconventional but I feel Captain America is a great tribute to the Mount Rushmore of Movie Themes.
The Lord of the Ring: The Fellowship of the Ring- The Ring Goes South (specifically from 1 minute on).
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring- Many Meetings (from ~40 seconds on but you really should listen to the whole thing)
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring - The Breaking of the Fellowship (From 1:30 on but again, I love the entire thing)
Captain America: The First Avenger - Main Titles
Captain America: The First Avenger - Triumphant Return
* SAT word
** or hum-able
*** or hum-ability
Upcoming posts:
Man of Steel Review
Vacation Recap
