SHERLOCK, JR. Kino Score
Frank Gruber
Just curious...
Was anyone else besides me put-off by the pseudo-James Bond score Kino
tagged onto their release of SHERLOCK, JR.?
I was so annoyed I turned off the volume and popped on my Biograph cd of
fairly generic sprightly Joplin piano roll tunes--which worked a heckuva
lot better to my mind.
Frank
Yair Solan
Yes, I was pretty disappointed with KINO'S musical score of
"Sherlock Jr." overall. It is not that "traditional" indeed. I like the
musical score for "Sherlock Jr." provided by Vince Giordano's Night Hawks
a lot better.
Even though the musical score for "Sherlock Jr." was the most annoying
I've heard in the collection, did anybody else think that the musical
score for "Cops" was a little disappointing as well?
Yair
Vincent
>Just curious...
>
>Was anyone else besides me put-off by the pseudo-James Bond score Kino
>tagged onto their release of SHERLOCK, JR.?
>I was so annoyed I turned off the volume and popped on my Biograph cd
>of fairly generic sprightly Joplin piano roll tunes--which worked a
>heckuva lot better to my mind.
When the laserdiscs came out originally there was a long heated
back-and-forth regarding the merits of this score. I'll say now what I
said then: Although the score is interesting musically, although the
score is , at times, as magically inventive (and surreal) as the film
itself, ultimately it fails because it is not a valid audial
accompaniment to the images that Keaton provides for us. Not valid
because a silent film's score is meant to provide musical sounds that
"go with" and "add to" the images themselves. In this highly
subjective argument, I'll say that the sounds don't go" with the images
and don't add anything positive to the film.
--
Vincent
vr...@ix.netcom.com
http://users.aol.com/VRV1/index.html
Paul Penna
In article <53mh2c$b...@mtinsc01-mgt.ops.worldnet.att.net>, Yair Solan
<phe...@worldnet.att.net> wrote:
> Frank Gruber <fj...@mail.idt.net> wrote:
> >Just curious...
> >
> >Was anyone else besides me put-off by the pseudo-James Bond score Kino
> >tagged onto their release of SHERLOCK, JR.?
> >
> >I was so annoyed I turned off the volume and popped on my Biograph cd of
> >fairly generic sprightly Joplin piano roll tunes--which worked a heckuva
> >lot better to my mind.
>
> Yes, I was pretty disappointed with KINO'S musical score of
> "Sherlock Jr." overall. It is not that "traditional" indeed. I like the
> musical score for "Sherlock Jr." provided by Vince Giordano's Night Hawks
> a lot better.
>
> Even though the musical score for "Sherlock Jr." was the most annoying
> I've heard in the collection, did anybody else think that the musical
> score for "Cops" was a little disappointing as well?
I've yet to show "Sherlock Jr." with the Clubfoot Orchestra score to an
audience who hasn't loved it all: the film, the music and the total
experience. This has got to be one of the most YMMV-iest topics I've ever
seen.
Paul Penna
VladW
<<I've yet to show "Sherlock Jr." with the Clubfoot Orchestra score to an
audience who hasn't loved it all: the film, the music and the total
experience. This has got to be one of the most YMMV-iest topics I've ever
seen.
Paul Penna>>
I have yet to see a group that does love it, at least when compared to
scores like those done by Carl Davis for The General and Our Hospitality.
It's all subjective, I believe, to your opinion and experiences of other
musical scores for silent films. There has been some debate as to the
nature of "digital" scores like those on Paramount's "The Sheik" and
Lumivision's "Birth of a Nation." I believe that they can range from good
to awful (The Lost World). I respect their attempt to make the score more
"relevant" and familiar to modern audeices by using more contemporary
themes, but I personally prefer a more traditional approach.
For me, at least, what doesn't work with the Kino score for Sherlock Jr is
that it has it's own glib, contemprary spin which can be very funny, but
is a distraction from the film. I'm glad that AMC had an alternate
version done for their screenings which at least gives fans a choice as to
musical accompaniment.
I'm sure many will disagree.
Ken Regez
Frank Gruber wrote:
>
> Just curious...
>
> Was anyone else besides me put-off by the pseudo-James Bond score Kino
> tagged onto their release of SHERLOCK, JR.?
>
> I was so annoyed I turned off the volume and popped on my Biograph cd of
> fairly generic sprightly Joplin piano roll tunes--which worked a heckuva
> lot better to my mind.
>
the what is happening on the screen. I hate to criticize because Kino
does such a terrific job of presenting very high quality prints, but I
think they missed the mark on the "Sherlock, Jr." score.
Ken Regez
Yes, I was also annoyed. It is distracting and has nothing to do with
the what is happening on the screen. I hate to criticize because Kino
does such a terrific job of presenting very high quality prints, but I
think they missed the mark on the "Sherlock, Jr." score.
Ken
JaySchwart
I've not seen those videos, but when I've seen the Club Foot Orchestra
live, I certainly did not love their work.
Like many new combos who are making a new career for themselves on the
backs of silent films, they were very loud and splashy -- or should I say
show-offy and cacophonous -- to the detriment of the film. I found I
couldn't concentrate on the film for the first 20-30 minutes. Is that what
a good soundtrack should do?
On the other hand, without the appearance of a live band doing an
"exciting new score," there probably wouldn't have been more than 20-30
people in the theater. As it was, they sold out a couple hundred seats.
So as not to sound like an old curmudgeon, I'll add that I really did like
the Metal Alloy Orchestra (or whatever they were called) when they played
behind "Lonesome."
JHarw91601
Unfortunately, the only way I can watch this version of SHERLOCK, JR is
with the sound off. Just a generic piano score would have been preferable
to this.
I think this one ranks down there with the rock score done for METROPOLIS
some years back.
Hopefully Kino will re-issue the cassette and laserdiscs with a more
appropriate score, like the one used on AMC.
Tom Moran
>jharw...@aol.com wrote:
This is very old news.
Look on Deja News and I'll bet you'll find me saying the same thing a
year and a half ago.
The ghastly score for "Sherlock Jr." has been universally reviled.
Usually Kino can be counted on to do things well. This is one of the very
few instances when somebody was asleep at the switch.
Ideally, a music score for a silent film should not be constantly trying
to compete with the film.
Tom Moran
mary virginia burke
>>Hopefully Kino will re-issue the cassette and laserdiscs with a more
>>appropriate score, like the one used on AMC.
>The ghastly score for "Sherlock Jr." has been universally reviled.
>Usually Kino can be counted on to do things well. This is one of the very
>few instances when somebody was asleep at the switch.
I think that _Go West_ should be ahead of _Sherlock_ in the replacment-score
line. What were these guys THINKING? That beautiful little moment where
Brown Eyes like Friendless's hand and he gazes at it in wonderment is
effectively shrugged off by that raucous jazz score. Hmph. And if I
remember right, the credits for this wretchedness run about twice as long as
the credits for the movie itself. I guess that Kino must have owed the
band a favor or something....
Cheers--MVB
mary virginia burke
'Scuse me, that's _licks_ Friendless's hand...