Best John Williams Score

[ShyViolet]

Jerry Goldsmith scored the Kick The Can segment of Twilight Zone: The Movie, since he was the listed composer for the entire film. Again, one can hear a very Williams/Spielberg connection in the music. Did you also know that it was directing a segment on this film that gave Stevie the initial idea to make the Amazing Stories anthology series?

I always liked this segment even though I know critics bashed it. Spielberg also produced the Twilight Zone movie with John Landis (who directed the prologue and the first segment with Nazi Germany) I think originally Spielberg was supposed to direct "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" where people think there's aliens invading and get so paranoid that they become like monsters. But for some reason he didn't...

I've only watched a few of the Amazing Stories but I did like them, especially this one where a little girl is killed and goes to heaven or something...I THINK that was Amazing Stories. I might be mixed up. Anyway, Spielberg didn't really direct a whole lot of Amazing Stories, did he? I think that was Robert Zemeckis' territory?

I liked Kick the Can, Scatman Crothers (he was in the Shining too) did a great job. I think next to that my fave segment was "It's a Good Life" the update on the psycho little boy who can do anything he wants. It scared the daylights out of me the first time I saw it. I like the original TZ version of it too.

Was it Alan Silvestri who did the Amazing Stories theme music?

[Ben]

Being Steven's baby, the Amazing Stories theme was written by John Williams too, and is a great compact version of all his styles in about 1-minute-30.

Spielberg directed the extended season opener, The Mission (sure I've told you all this before somewhere!) and the regular half-hour closer, Ghost Train, both scored by Williams. Zemeckis only did one, the extended opener for season two, Go To The Head Of The Class (which Silvestri did score).

Zemeckis liked the format and wanted to do more TV, so collaborated with Richard Donner, Joel Silver and Walter Hill on the Tales From The Crypt series, which were like Amazing Stories, but much darker and playful in tone.

Tales From The Crypt led to another show, the short-lived Two Fisted Tales, and two movies, Demon Knight and Bordello Of Blood, which didn't do too well. The producers still liked the style of the films though, so Zemeckis and Silver set up Dark Castle Entertainment, named for legendary schlock-producer William Castle, which so far has had success with Castle-inspired films such as House on Haunted Hill, Thir13en Ghosts, Ghost Ship, Gothika and House of Wax.

Looks like things are coming full circle in a way, since the upcoming motion capture horror-inspired Monster House is being produced by Zemeckis and Spielberg.

[ShyViolet]

Dark Castle Entertainment, named for legendary schlock-producer William Castle, which so far has had success with Castle-inspired films such as House on Haunted Hill, Thir13en Ghosts, Ghost Ship, Gothika and House of Wax.

Didn't William Castle produce Rosemary's Baby?

I'm willing to bet anything that they'll remake that too.

[Ben]

Yep, among MANY other things, and he was a director too.

I'm sure I've heard talk of a Rosemary's remake or sequel being written up somewhere at Paramount. Maybe it's been shelved before it got anywhere.

I know that Hitch... sorry, De Palma is basically so starving for any kind of hit that he's going back to The Untouchables (his biggest money maker) to do a prequel (how original), called "Capone Rising", on how Al Capone came to power and his first run-in with the character Sean Connery played in the original. There's also a Carlito's Way follow-up thing, which he's not involved in, but it's also a prequel thing, called "Rise To Power". Ugh...

[ShyViolet]

Plus they bascially re-did the Excorcist with that Emily Rose movie. I hope to see it though....looks SCARY!

[James]

John Williams, 90, steps away from film, but not music

After more than six decades of making bicycles soar, sending panicked swimmers to the shore and other spellbinding close encounters, John Williams is putting the final notes on what may be his last film score.

“At the moment I’m working on ‘Indiana Jones 5,’ which Harrison Ford — who’s quite a bit younger than I am — I think has announced will be his last film,” Williams says. “So, I thought: If Harrison can do it, then perhaps I can, also.”

Ford, for the record, hasn’t said that publicly. And Williams, who turned 90 in February, isn’t absolutely certain he’s ready to, either.

“I don’t want to be seen as categorically eliminating any activity,” Williams says with a chuckle, speaking by phone from his home in Los Angeles. “I can’t play tennis, but I like to be able to believe that maybe one day I will.”

(Thought about creating a new thread for this. But there aren’t many websites out there with forums from 17 years ago still running, so thought I’d take advantage of it!)

[Ben]

Wow…when I saw this thread had popped back up, I actually remembered it! Had no idea that it was from that long ago; I’d have maybe said six or seven years maybe! Wow.

I hope JW is scoring Spielberg’s Fablemans. It would kind of make for some sweet endings if his last film score was that particular project, even if he did continue writing music for other things. Indy 5 would also be a nice one to go out on, but a true Spielberg directed movie, and a personal one too, would have been really nice. I guess that’s ready to come first, making his 29th film with EL Spielbergo, and Indy 5 would have been a thirtieth if he had directed it. Still pretty cool!

[James]

Wow…when I saw this thread had popped back up, I actually remembered it! Had no idea that it was from that long ago; I’d have maybe said six or seven years maybe! Wow...

There was a technically similar one last year: Best Spielberg movie score?

...I hope JW is scoring Spielberg’s Fablemans. It would kind of make for some sweet endings if his last film score was that particular project, even if he did continue writing music for other things. Indy 5 would also be a nice one to go out on, but a true Spielberg directed movie, and a personal one too, would have been really nice. I guess that’s ready to come first, making his 29th film with EL Spielbergo, and Indy 5 would have been a thirtieth if he had directed it. Still pretty cool!

You're in luck! From the article:

Williams’ enduring partnership with Steven Spielberg has, of course, helped the composer’s odds. Spielberg, who first sought out a lunch with Williams in 1972 after being captivated by his score to “The Reivers,” has called him “the single most significant contributor to my success as a filmmaker.”

“Without John Williams, bikes don’t really fly,” Spielberg said when the AFI honored Williams in 2016.

They remain irrevocably linked. Their offices on the Universal lot are just steps from one another. Along with “Indiana Jones,” Williams recently scored Spielberg’s upcoming semi-autobiographical drama about growing up in Arizona, “The Fabelmans.” The two movies make it 30 films together for Spielberg and Williams.

“It’s been 50 years now. Maybe we’re starting on the next 50,” says Williams with a laugh. “Whatever our connections will be, whether it’s music or working with him or just being with him, I think we will always be together. We’re great, close friends who have shared many years together. It’s the kind of relationship where neither one of us would ever say no to the other.”

[Ben]

Great! Lovely!

[ShyViolet]

I’m excited too!

[Daniel]

Documentary in the works. Scored by Randy Newman!

[Ben]

Should be good. Imagine Docs were behind the ILM series on D+.

[Randall]

Looking forward to this one! (I watched the ILM doc series when I was in bed with Covid in December, and loved every bit of it - the doc, that is.)

[Ben]

We watched one last night, two today, and will polish off tomorrow. Loving the pace and how relatively honest and in-depth it is. Biggest takeaway was that the blockade ship at the start of Star Wars was the original Millennium Falcon. And also that they keep showing scenes from the untouched original Star Wars, proving once again that the originals still do actually exist.