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What if Goldeneye had an amazing score?

Junglist_1985Junglist_1985 Los Angeles
edited June 2020 in Bond Movies Posts: 1,006
What if Goldeneye has a classic, Barry-esque score? For me it’s the most glaring weak spot of the film, which I have at roughly 6/24 in my rankings. I’ve always said a stellar score would likely elevate it to 3 or 4. Thoughts?
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Comments

  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,021
    It already has an amazing score.
  • RichardTheBruceRichardTheBruce I'm motivated by my Duty.
    Posts: 12,988
    It would improve the film.
  • NickTwentyTwoNickTwentyTwo Vancouver, BC, Canada
    Posts: 7,526
    The two only answers to this question have been posted already :)) I was going to go with option 1 personally: it already has an amazing score.
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,330
    But it does have one.
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,021
    Murdock wrote: »
    But it does have one.

    The resident Brosnan fan has spoken. Thread closed. :D
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,330
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  • NickTwentyTwoNickTwentyTwo Vancouver, BC, Canada
    Posts: 7,526
    Murdock wrote: »
    tenor.gif

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  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 6,778
    I can go on days and days about the wonders of the electronic genius that is Eric Serra but I'll just gladly redirect you to this thread:

    https://www.mi6community.com/discussion/19705/dish-out-of-water-eric-serra-appreciation/p3

    My pleasure ;)
  • suavejmfsuavejmf Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England
    Posts: 5,131
    RichardTheBruce wrote: »
    It would improve the film.

    Agreed. The score (bar the pre title sequence, love scenes and tank chase) is awful. The car chase is one of the worst, Ill advised scoring in the entire series (including NSNA).

    A Barry score would have elevated GE from being an already mediocre entry in the series.
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,021
    The best part of it all is that Eric Serra got the gig was because John Barry actually recommended him to EON based on his score for LEON: THE PROFESSIONAL.
  • suavejmfsuavejmf Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England
    Posts: 5,131
    MakeshiftPython wrote: »
    The best part of it all is that Eric Serra got the gig was because John Barry actually recommended him to EON based on his score for LEON: THE PROFESSIONAL.

    Wow!

    Interesting article too;

    http://jamesbondradio.com/composer-john-altman-explains-what-went-wrong-with-goldeneyes-score-exclusive-by-matthew-chernov/
  • GadgetManGadgetMan Lagos, Nigeria
    edited June 2020 Posts: 4,247
    GE's score is a personal favourite of mine....Just that 'A Pleasant Drive In St. Petersburg' did not fit the action it was paired with, sounds game-like....but still a great listen on its own. Love the Gunbarrel music, Love the Romantic and Love themes, The Goldeneye Overture, etc. It's not really an action Bond score, but it still works.

    The score still has the Bond DNA(albeit in a subtle way) but its sound is more European, Atmospheric & Modern. Another Amazing thing is, Serra didn't have to use the title song or even his beautiful 'The Experience Of Love' to make the score brilliant. That's how a Composer should score a Bond film, if he doesn't want to use the title song, or any song, or sound like Barry.
  • OctopussyOctopussy Piz Gloria, Schilthorn, Switzerland.
    Posts: 1,081
    MakeshiftPython wrote: »
    It already has an amazing score.

    +1

    Eric Serra's score may be the most underrated soundtrack of the series, IMO. It completely encompasses the Cold War tone of the film.
  • CraigMooreOHMSSCraigMooreOHMSS Dublin, Ireland
    edited June 2020 Posts: 8,026
    Yeah, I quite like most of Serra's work. There are some serious dud cues that have been mentioned ad nauseam, of course, but for the most part it works well enough. It's still probably the least enjoyable of the Bond scores from the last twenty-five years, though. It's more effective than entertaining; in that sense it's hard to imagine the film without it.
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    edited June 2020 Posts: 6,778
    MakeshiftPython wrote: »
    The best part of it all is that Eric Serra got the gig was because John Barry actually recommended him to EON based on his score for LEON: THE PROFESSIONAL.

    I seriously recommend listening to Serra's work on several Luc Besson films, like the above-mentioned Léon, but also for Le grand bleu (for which he won a César Award), Le cinquième élément, Nikta and Jeanne d'Arc.

    Sometimes I think I might not like GE as much without the Serra score...
  • CraigMooreOHMSSCraigMooreOHMSS Dublin, Ireland
    Posts: 8,026
    GoldenGun wrote: »
    MakeshiftPython wrote: »
    The best part of it all is that Eric Serra got the gig was because John Barry actually recommended him to EON based on his score for LEON: THE PROFESSIONAL.

    I seriously recommend listening to Serra's work on several Luc Besson films, like the above-mentioned Léon, but also for Le grand bleu (for which he won a César Award), Le cinquième élément, Nikta and Jeanne d'Arc.

    Nikita is an awesome score.
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    edited June 2020 Posts: 8,021
    GoldenGun wrote: »
    MakeshiftPython wrote: »
    The best part of it all is that Eric Serra got the gig was because John Barry actually recommended him to EON based on his score for LEON: THE PROFESSIONAL.

    I seriously recommend listening to Serra's work on several Luc Besson films, like the above-mentioned Léon, but also for Le grand bleu (for which he won a César Award), Le cinquième élément, Nikta and Jeanne d'Arc.

    Sometimes I think I might not like GE as much without the Serra score...

    I get what you mean. I've always been a fan of Serra's work. He was one of the main reasons I went out in theaters to see LUCY and the recent (and pretty mediocre) ANNA because he's one of those few composers that for me enhances what's on screen.

    My understanding over the behind the scenes stuff on GE was that EON just did a terrible job of trying to communicate with what they wanted because even they were not totally sure. According to Serra, when they hired him they said they wanted him to deliver a new sound for Bond in the 90s, so he basically approached the film in a way that he normally would score but with a few Bond twists. That's when they would start telling him "no, you need to do the Bond sound". I assume EON genuinely did want a new sound for Bond, but when Serra was actually delivering on that, EON then started second guessing things and panicked over his work.
  • GadgetManGadgetMan Lagos, Nigeria
    edited June 2020 Posts: 4,247
    Yeah, EON got scared of the Score sounding too modern and Martin Campbell wasn't really sure about what kind of score he wanted, So he gave Serra freedom to create....I find that strange, considering Campbell is quite knowledgeable about Bond, but thank Goodness Serra Delivered a score I like.

    Below is the Eric Serra interview that reveals some rare info about GE's scoring Process....and Serra's favourite Bond film and all.

    http://elsew.com/serra/interv.htm
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,021
    Campbell never struck me as a Bond fan, just a filmmaker who approaches the work he’s given and makes the best film he can out of it. I do think fans truly didn’t appreciate Campbell until CR, which by then made him two for two, which amped up his credentials as a popular Bond director that fans want to see come back.
  • GadgetManGadgetMan Lagos, Nigeria
    Posts: 4,247
    Yeah, with CR....he proved GE was no fluke, still him not knowing what kind of Music suits Bond, surprises me, considering he knows Bond back to the days of Terence Young.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 14,933
    CraigMooreOHMSS wrote: »
    Yeah, I quite like most of Serra's work. There are some serious dud cues that have been mentioned ad nauseam, of course, but for the most part it works well enough. It's still probably the least enjoyable of the Bond scores from the last twenty-five years, though. It's more effective than entertaining; in that sense it's hard to imagine the film without it.

    Yes that's a good way of putting it. I was going to say 'if it had an amazing score it wouldn't really change anything' because as you say, the score it has does everything it needs to. It's romantic and lush when it needs to be, and it's exciting and vibrant when it needs to be. Even the tank chase, which is one of the more perfunctory bits of scoring in the Bond series since Dr No, works perfectly well and provokes the desired effect in the audience. An amazing (or what the OP actually means: traditional) score wouldn't really do much more.

    What happened to Serra? You don't hear much of him nowadays.
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    edited June 2020 Posts: 8,021
    mtm wrote: »
    What happened to Serra? You don't hear much of him nowadays.

    He only works with Luc Besson these days. His most recent score was for the 2019 action thriller ANNA. He hasn't worked on a Hollywood film since 2003's BULLETPROOF MONK.








  • suavejmfsuavejmf Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England
    Posts: 5,131
    MakeshiftPython wrote: »
    Campbell never struck me as a Bond fan, just a filmmaker who approaches the work he’s given and makes the best film he can out of it. I do think fans truly didn’t appreciate Campbell until CR, which by then made him two for two, which amped up his credentials as a popular Bond director that fans want to see come back.

    To me Campbell has made one brilliant Bond film in CR and another decidedly average Bond film with GE.
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,021
    Sure, but I think it's safe to say most fans adore both of his films.
  • suavejmfsuavejmf Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England
    edited June 2020 Posts: 5,131
    MakeshiftPython wrote: »
    Sure, but I think it's safe to say most fans adore both of his films.

    I totally agree and I’m still surprised by that fact.

    GE was the first Bond film I saw at the cinema. I’d been a Bond fan since 5 and I was 13 in 95. I remember liking the film, but being disappointed in the plot and Brosnan. After the thrill of Licence to Kill on Sky Movies I felt GE was a step backwards in plot and performance quality. I was also very confused at the lack of the Bond theme in the ‘weird’ score.

    In my opinion there is nothing wrong with GE as a film, I just find it all very ‘middle of the road’.

    Not a common view I’ll admit.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    edited June 2020 Posts: 23,528
    GE has the right score for the film. It's a '90s techno-thriller, dark and "serious". Serra's electronics, in the spirit of his Léon score, were fitting for the tone, subject matter and era. Barry's music might have brought too much "light" to this film and Arnold's big and loud music might have worked against the film.

    When Ourumov learns about the two missing programmers, a thunderous sound starts playing in the background. When he and Xenia begin their process of stealing the GoldenEye, the metallic beats are cold and threatening. This is good stuff for the mood of the film. 2008's Arnold might have pulled it off too; 1995's Arnold was too brassy for that.

    The premise of the question is false. An "amazing" score? It's about finding the proper score for the film. Even if people resent the score when listening to it in isolation, for the movie, it works. The score speaks the exact same language as the rest of the film. It's an adequate score. "Amazing" has nothing to do with it. GE took the risk of being outdated by new technology fast. Look at the OS they have on their computer screens. So if it is to be viewed in a time capsule, every aspect of the film might as well exist in a time capsule. Serra's score screams early to mid '90s. It's not timeless, but hey, this Bond film clearly wasn't intended to be timeless, at least not in its presentation of technology, on which this film heavily relies.

    It's still one of my absolute favourites. And I wouldn't want this dish served with any other score.
  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,021
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    GE has the right score for the film. It's a '90s techno-thriller, dark and "serious". Serra's electronics, in the spirit of his Léon score, were fitting for the tone, subject matter and era. Barry's music might have brought too much "light" to this film and Arnold's big and loud music might have worked against the film.

    When Ourumov learns about the two missing programmers, a thunderous sound starts playing in the background. When he and Xenia begin their process of stealing the GoldenEye, the metallic beats are cold and threatening. This is good stuff for the mood of the film. 2008's Arnold might have pulled it off too; 1995's Arnold was too brassy for that.

    The premise of the question is false. An "amazing" score? It's about finding the proper score for the film. Even if people resent the score when listening to it in isolation, for the movie, it works. The score speaks the exact same language as the rest of the film. It's an adequate score. "Amazing" has nothing to do with it. GE took the risk of being outdated by new technology fast. Look at the OS they have on their computer screens. So if it is to be viewed in a time capsule, every aspect of the film might as well exist in a time capsule. Serra's score screams early to mid '90s. It's not timeless, but hey, this Bond film clearly wasn't intended to be timeless, at least not in its presentation of technology, on which this film heavily relies.

    It's still one of my absolute favourites. And I wouldn't want this dish served with any other score.

  • GadgetManGadgetMan Lagos, Nigeria
    Posts: 4,247






    Some very good tracks from Serra's 'La Femme Nikita'....Unique tracks that further unveils this guy's Unorthodox Awesomeness.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    edited June 2020 Posts: 23,528
    Not to mention Le Grand Blue, The 5th Element and Léon. It's perhaps a little tragic that many of the scores he wrote for Besson are more enigmatic and powerful than his GE score. In fact, much like Barry's The Specialist had, in places, a lot of Bond potential, so had Serra's Léon.
  • ResurrectionResurrection Kolkata, India
    Posts: 2,541
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    Not to mention Le Grand Blue, The 5th Element and Léon. It's perhaps a little tragic that many of the scores he wrote for Besson are more enigmatic and powerful than his GE score. In fact, much like Barry's The Specialist had, in places, a lot of Bond potential, so had Serra's Léon.

    No wonder Barry suggested him.
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