The Score: If not Franke then who?

[NivenPournelle]

Hi. After watching the utterly-uninspired Fortress 2: Re-Entry (scored by Chris Franke) i began to consider who the Director/Producers would choose (and i guess there is no reason to assume that he is) if Chris Franke wasn't involved with the film?

My personal choices would be Alan Silvestri (Forrest Gump, The Mummy Returns, Judge Dredd), James Horner (no chance with his Trek work) or perhaps Klaus Badelt (Equilibrium.)

Your thoughts?

[mercurius420]

I think Franke is the only one who should do the music for a b5 movie, but if I had to choose someone else, it would have to be Harry Gregson Williams. I love his work on the two metal gear solid games, but thats just my pick.

[alex_t]

Please, no Howard Shore...

[Capt.Montoya]

If not Franke (obvious and excelent choice) then what about...
Evan Chen?


I guess that if left to the studio we'd get a "rock" soundtrack with flash-in-the-pan bands and much hip-hop (urgh!! ) to try to make it a big selling disc...

[David Panzer]

A couple of suggestions to show my status as a gaming geek

Yasunori Mistuda- If you've played the game Xenogears, the music is brilliant. This was the first game where I had to get a copy of the music.

Jesper Kyd- I still remember popping a copy of Hitman 2 into my gaming console and then picking up my jaw from the floor when I heard the music.

I would definitely want Franke involved with the music, but my 2 choices as coming true only exist in my dreams. Though I do suggest to all reading this (posters, mods, as well as the lurkers) to check out the Xenogears Soundtrack, the Creid album with pieces from the aforementioned game expanded upon, and the Hitman 2 soundtrack. I apologize for the shameless plugs, but both are my favorite music from video games.

Obscure picks? ...definitely.

[colonyearth]

Never judge a composer with the talent of Franke on one low-budget film where he most likely didn't get a lot time or money to work with.

Franke has been an inspired composer, not just for B5, but for other great films such as LEGEND (with his fellow members of Tangerine Dream).

No...Franke is the one choice. He is the musical voice of B5, and given a good amount of time to compose and a larger orchestra, I know his score would blow people away.

As for your other choices...don't hold your breath. Those folks are fairly high-priced composers...and given that these morons producing TMoS seem to want to cut corners as much as they do, I'm not expecting someone with big industry recognition...that is if it isn't Franke.

And...BTW...what's wrong with Howard Shore?! He's only one of the best composers in film business today. His scores for LOTR were a large part of the scope and depth of those films. I cannot imagine them without his music...which is the sign of a great score.

Don't expect any gaming composers either. As for Klaus...he is a good composer and his score for EQUILIBRIUM was wonderful. But if they're going for someone who isn't top-money, then they'll go for Franke if they're smart.

Then again, the idiots running things haven't shown much in the way of intelligence so far.

CE

[alex_t]

Originally posted by colonyearth
And...BTW...what's wrong with Howard Shore?! He's only one of the best composers in film business today. His scores for LOTR were a large part of the scope and depth of those films. I cannot imagine them without his music...which is the sign of a great score.
CE

Can you imagine something similar to LOTR score together with B5?
Yes, it fits LOTR but not B5 (in this context LOTR is not "Legend Of The Rangers" ).

[RubberEagle]

Originally posted by alex_t
Can you imagine something similar to LOTR score together with B5?
Yes, it fits LOTR but not B5 (in this context LOTR is not "Legend Of The Rangers" ).

excuse me, but what you are saying would be pretty offensive to him (or any artist).
It's the equivalent of saying to a painter who just painted a Tree "You can't paint a car, because you can only paint trees".
Or labeling JMS as cartoon writer because he did "He-Man", "She-ra" and TRGB in his early career.

That said, no, Howard Shore probably wouldn't be my first choice either. If we can't get Chris Franke, than i'd be interested what younger composers like Brian Tyler or Michael Giacchino would make with B5. Or maybe Joel Goldsmith or Danny Elfman.

[alex_t]

Originally posted by RubberEagle
excuse me, but what you are saying would be pretty offensive to him (or any artist).

I've heard a lot of soundtracks by Howard Shore and they are mostly in the same musical "area" (I don't know any better term). He may be capable of making something completely different, but he already established himself in that "area". And when he's invited to make score for some film, it almost automatically means that film producers want exactly *that* kind of score.

That's what I meant, and this is not an offense. I don't think that producers (and other "suites") will take any risk of allowing someone to do something really new.

[WurkananTyes]

hmmm... i believe that to use alan silvestri for thiskinda production (when thinking long terms) would be not very practical/usable idea...

(u know, still waiting desperate for that new b5-series... and this new movie as its pilot...)

franke would be the most obvious choise and the best one, if he still does such big/long projects(?)

but what i was thinking was JESPER KYD.
he could be quite good replacement (and practical) if c. franke will not do the music.

kyd would be interested in long projects
(couse he is yanger/new composer) and using him would cost so much.

anyway; i am sick of waiting for the NEW series after 10-years... let the channel corp ppl put those new ppl to this movie (if we would get some of old actors to the new series after that) i was/am still jms' side on that crusade -fiasco, but so much time has soon passed...

[NivenPournelle]

Danny Elfman could be an interesting choice, as his score for 'Hulk' was a superb departure from his usual 'Burton-esque' brass style. For a mid-level composer, i would look perhaps at the likes of Christopher Young or Randy Edelman. Anyone who has heard the score for Hellraiser 1 will know what i'm talking about...

[Michael Malloy]

I would love to see Evan Chen given another chance. I still say his score for "A Call to Arms" was his best, better than Crusade which I also like very much. Chen's music requires repeated hearings and an open mind to hear his talent.

If not Chen, my suggestion would be Cliff Eidelman. He made an excellent score for Star Trek VI, very dark and well designed for the action on the screen.

I like a full orchestra in film music. Rock bands are always too loud and only a handfull: Cream, Queen, of course, The Beatles, etc. come close to producing a clear thinking score with any form to it. The "wall of sound" is like a brick wall, in my opinion.

[RubberEagle]

Originally posted by alex_t
I've heard a lot of soundtracks by Howard Shore and they are mostly in the same musical "area" (I don't know any better term). He may be capable of making something completely different, but he already established himself in that "area". And when he's invited to make score for some film, it almost automatically means that film producers want exactly *that* kind of score.

That's what I meant, and this is not an offense. I don't think that producers (and other "suites") will take any risk of allowing someone to do something really new.

See, with that i have no problem, i do in fact concur My problem was that your post sounded to me like everything Mr. Shore did sounds like LotR. (His Ed Wood Score sounds quite different, if i remember it correctly, with LotR beeing much bigger, much more present throught the movie(s)).

[alex_t]

Originally posted by RubberEagle
His Ed Wood Score sounds quite different, if i remember it correctly, with LotR beeing much bigger, much more present throught the movie(s)).

I need to watch "Ed Wood" again. Apart from theremin I don't remember anything else from the soundtrack. And theremin wasn't Howard Shore's

[DoctorManbot]

This thread leaves me wondering if anybody from the original series will have any involvement in the movie, if it ever does leave pre production. At that point, they might as well call it something else.