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Author	Topic: The Fury rediscovered!

BobaMike Goldmember	I had the Fury on an old Lp that I had not listened to in years, and I recently bought it on cd. I remembered it as a good Williams score but that was about it. Boy, was I missing out on a great score! I think the Fury is one of John Williams best scores. The main theme, a waltz-like piece of music, is full of darkness and foreboding. Much better than Dracula in my opinion, which simply repeats the main theme over and over. The Fury theme is played differently every time Williams uses it, bearing down on you until the final track, which is a sort of release. The 2nd track, To Gillian, is a little scherzo, a fun track. I wish Williams had a chace to write like this more often. The the epic carosel track with the evil calliope music is chilling, spinning faster and faster until its out of control. The Fury is a very dark score, which is a rarity for Williams. It has influences of Herrman in it I think, and I bet it infulenced Elfman. THe sound on this older Varese cd is fine, with a bonus track not on the LP. An expanded cd would be great, but this is still a wonderful album, full of classic tracks! BobaMike np: Jerry Goldsmith in Concert (2 cd bootleg)
posted 04-10-2001 07:50 AM PT (US)

Matt Perkins Goldmember	I couldn't agree more - THE FURY is perhaps Williams's finest score, and the album presentation is truly stunning (a re-recording done with the LSO around the time of the film's release, with fuller orchestrations and more developed cues than are heard in the actual film soundtrack itself). Definitely one of the finest "soundtrack" albums ever done - and I disagree that an expanded edition would be better, since it would disrupt the breathtaking ebb and flow of the current album as sequenced specially by Williams - it's a perfect album just as it is (the "extra" carousel track on the CD is unnecessary I feel) Seeing this film on TV many years ago and being immediately struck by Williams's darkly haunting opening title music made such an impression on me - that's when I really startedto realise what this magician of a composer is capable of.
posted 04-10-2001 08:06 AM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Goldmember	One of the very best scores ever. I can't remember important music in the film that's missing on the album, and I'm perfectly happy with he existing re-recording - for example, Gillian's Escape is much slower still than the already slow album version. I think Williams was right to re-record it for the album, because the score is so closely related to the visuals that in many places the film tempi wouldn't work too well on CD. The film, although over-the-top and a bit trashy, is in my opinion simply a masterpiece of direction, visuals and score. Williams' music, as great as it is on CD, has to be heard in context with the film to fully realize his genius. If you don't get shivers down your spine during the vision sequences, you should consult a doctor. Give me a DVD release, dammit! NP: Ben Hur (Miklos Rozsa)
posted 04-10-2001 08:16 AM PT (US)

HAL 2000 Goldmember	Agree completely!
posted 04-10-2001 08:30 AM PT (US)

BobaMike Goldmember	Matt, I didn't realize that the Fury was a rerecording and not the score as heard in the film. I should have known, since most of Williams' scores were rerecordings during this period. So I guess the real score isn't needed, as William's album selections are usually wonderful I've never seen the movie. I was intruiged by the score ever since I read that Elfman's Batman theme was similar to the Fury. Since I loved Batman I assumed the Fury would be an action score...boy was I suprised! BobaMike np: nothing. Stupid Mac computer lab.
posted 04-10-2001 09:36 AM PT (US)

Mark Olivarez Goldmember	If I'm not mistaken Williams had some extra time after scoring Superman with the LSO. So he decided to do an album for The Fury since there never was an official release of a soundtrack for the film. That's the story that I've heard regarding the re-recording. The opening moments of the main title sound a little like Elfman's Batman or actually the other way around.
posted 04-10-2001 09:55 AM PT (US)

JJH Goldmember	been a couple years since I said this, but you can hear the very opening of his Duel of the Fates theme in The Fury. I think it's in track 9, it's a little string motif, but it's right there. If you're at all familiar with DoTF, you'll notice it. NP -- nothing
posted 04-10-2001 10:43 AM PT (US)

HAL 2000 Goldmember	quote: I was intruiged by the score ever since I read that Elfman's Batman theme was similar to the Fury. Since I loved Batman I assumed the Fury would be an action score...boy was I suprised! I've never thought of that but now that you mention it... But you should really check out "Sunrise" from Herrmann's Journey to the Center of the Earth. It is obviously the inspiration, not only for the Batguy theme but also, of the mood in Elfman's opening phrase to the Batman Main Title.
posted 04-10-2001 11:38 AM PT (US)

Scott Goldmember	Yes, an unbelievable score. The last track (I think it is) is most memmorable in that it was soley orchestrated for strings. Williams is the master no doubt. Scott the priss
posted 04-10-2001 04:38 PM PT (US)

Matt Perkins Goldmember	Yes Mark, I think you're right about Williams having some extra time left over from the SUPERMAN /LSO recording sessions, which is why we are so lucky to have this masterpiece of an album - can you imagine that happening today? As for the movie itself, Marian is right: it is a deliriously over-the-top DePalma trash-fest. Like a lot of DePalma's work (especially his horror movies) it sort of veers between risible and utterly compelling, but is certainly never dull. Williams's score works wonders and superbly complements DePalma's wildly stylised setpieces and shock moments. I wonder why DePalma never hired Williams again? I suppose he (Williams) was too busy - at that time he was charging through probably the most amazing period of his career. I seem to recall an interview with Williams (can't remember where) in which he describes his main theme (particularly as heard in the opening titles) as a sort of inversion of Bernard Herrmann's VERTIGO title music - so it's safe to say that Herrmann was a definite influence here.
posted 04-11-2001 01:42 AM PT (US)

Laurence Page Goldmember	The Fury has always been one of my favourite of Williams (or anyone's) scores. I've always thought of it as Williams' "hommage" to Herrmann - perhaps that is what DePalma asked for as his previous composer/collaborater had died a couple of years before. The ominous rising chord at the end of "Gillian's Vision" just before the Carousel music is amazing.. I can't wait for "The Towering Inferno" to arrive! It's going to be at least another week...
posted 04-11-2001 02:10 AM PT (US)

Lou Goldberg Goldmember	The Fury is one of Williams' best scores. I also think this is DePalma's best film, although what happens to Andrew Stevens and Kirk Douglas is a the wrong solution after so much has happened in the film to get them reunited.
posted 04-11-2001 03:53 AM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Goldmember	From what I've heard, DePalma wasn't very happy with Williams' score, and that's the reason why he never worked with him again. But as much as I like Donaggio's works on the various DePalma films, I still find The Fury to be the best score for one of his films (and most others, too). NP: Moby Dick (Christopher Gordon)
posted 04-11-2001 06:53 AM PT (US)

Matt Perkins Goldmember	If that's true, then DePalma is obviously a difficult man to please! Yes Donaggio has done some superb work for DePalma, as has Ennio Morricone, but I too would rank Williams's THE FURY at the top of the tree, along with Bernard Herrmann's monumental OBSESSION.
posted 04-11-2001 09:24 AM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Goldmember	Yet, he has always picked great composers, I add to the list Patrick Doyle and his wonderful score for Carlito's Way (still the best DePalma movie I've seen, followed by The Fury). NP: Bernard Herrmann: Concerto Macabre for piano and orchestra (Joaquin Achucarro, National Philharmonic Orchestra, Charles Gerhardt)
posted 04-11-2001 10:10 AM PT (US)

H Rocco Goldmember	Williams was the studio's choice, and I think De Palma might have resented having the composer foisted on him. Objectively, I doubt very much he was displeased with the score, which is phenomenal. And it's still my favorite De Palma movie, INCLUDING (sorry Lou) the father/son trajectory. It's completely in keeping with the director's overwhelmingly fatalistic view of the world. (The picture only bears general, superficial resemblance to the misbegotten John Farris novel that "inspired" it -- Farris got sole screenwriting credit, but I can't help sense De Palma's ghostly thumbprints all over it.) It's not as if De Palma dislikes Williams personally or professionally -- after Bernard Herrmann died while De Palma was preparing CARRIE, the director thought he would hire either Pino Donaggio -- or Williams. He wanted Donaggio for THE FURY as well, but in the wake of STAR WARS, Williams was the man of the moment. And as Donaggio did with CARRIE and DRESSED TO KILL in particular, Williams managed to evoke something Herrmannesque, while still very much retaining his own personal approach.
posted 04-11-2001 10:30 AM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Goldmember	By the way, the German title of The Fury is (translated back to English) Vicious Circle Alpha. Not that this title does have anything to do with what's going on in the film. Unfortunately, lots of movies get such stupid titles when they're released here. NP: Journey to the Center of the Earth (Bernard Herrmann)
posted 04-11-2001 11:47 AM PT (US)

Richard Street Goldmember	I like the score to The Fury a lot. I too invested in Varese's CD after years of having a clapped-out cassette and the old LP version (which is shorter). One of my favourites of John Williams' scores. NP: THE MISSION (Ennio Morricone)
posted 04-11-2001 11:54 AM PT (US)

Lou Goldberg Goldmember	Rocco--I didn't want to go into it because it was such a spolier to what I think is a great film. But Douglas goes through so much to get his kid back, really that is the story even though there is a lot that takes place with Gillian. Once his son has become so corrupted that he's committing crimes, it's obvious how the story will turn out. It's not so much the son's demise but Douglas's fall from the roof that seemed off to me. Certainly that opens things up for the confrontation between Gillian and the Casavettes character, but dramatically Douglas should be around for the finale. But that's just my own take on it. If you like it as it stands, I can respect that (wow, there's a change, normally I'd be calling you names at this point). It's still DePalma's best film to date, just because it's so stylized and because it's so fast and moves everywhere and you really don't know what's going to happen next. The Fury score is great and works really well in the film, but I much prefer Herrmann's DePalma scores, even if they seem less full orchestra.
posted 04-11-2001 09:27 PM PT (US)

JJH Goldmember	consarnit. this thread is reminding me that I left my Fury CD back in Texas. dagnabbit!
posted 04-11-2001 11:16 PM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Goldmember	Info for German posters (Austrians, too, but I'm the only one ): ZDF is showing The Fury at 0:35 this Saturday. Probably just Pan&Scan (a sin, especially for a DePalma film), but better than nothing. NP:Elizabeth and Essex: The Classic Film Scores of Erich Wolfgang Korngold (National Philharmonic Orchestra, Charles Gerhardt)
posted 04-12-2001 09:39 AM PT (US)

Christian Reiffenrath unregistered	You are right Marian, better than nothing but on the wrong channel. The ZDF used to cut the very end (Explosion of Childress) whereas the Version shown on PRO7 has it. The Pan & Scan Factor is not very important because its only 1.66:1. Doesn`t make much of a difference... BTW: Schoene Gruesse aus dem Siegerland.
posted 04-14-2001 03:54 PM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Goldmember	Actually, I'm rather glad it was pan & scan, because I missed it. Can't remember from which channel I recorded by tape, but while it has the ending (did they cut it completely??), several parts looked cut. Didn't know the original ratio is 1.66:1, I'd still buy a DVD.
posted 04-14-2001 05:42 PM PT (US)

Christian Reiffenrath unregistered	hi Marian, you should have seen it because this time it was uncut and it even felt longer than the english tape i have. The explosion was there in full and the death of susan too. But you are right: The DVD is (will be) a must buy because this is william's best and de palma's too... BTW: Read the Novel (not available in German) Bought it about ten years ago and it has a lot of information about the background of the characters.
posted 04-15-2001 02:12 AM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Goldmember	quote: Originally posted by Christian Reiffenrath: you should have seen it because this time it was uncut and it even felt longer than the english tape i have. Damn. NP: Rambo First Blood Part II (Jerry Goldsmith)
posted 04-15-2001 06:40 AM PT (US)

PeterK FishChip	Rediscovered in April 2001.... try rediscovering this today in August 2002! The new Varese club release might snag "Best Deluxe Edition" this year. Wait... The Sand Pebbles was a deluxe ed too. Agh, well. The Fury club release is fantastic. Great liners by Nick Redman as well. The schtuff that makes collecting fun!
posted 08-03-2002 09:38 PM PT (US)

SFT Goldmember	Just ordered the new deluxe edition of "The Fury" and I cannot wait to get it! I've never actually heard the score but Williams doing an homage to Herrmann is something I MUST hear! And since these limited editions are cheaper now than later, I don't mind having spent $40 more than I should have this month SFT NP: E.T. John Williams ***/*** (His best score!...so far.)
posted 08-04-2002 05:28 AM PT (US)

JEC Goldmember	I have wanted the OST version of the Main Title for years!!! Come on UPS!!!!
posted 08-04-2002 06:33 AM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Goldmember	And I still don't have the DVD. Just ordered the Deluxe Edition score though, along with Heartbeeps. Couldn't order Sand Pebbles - not enough money.
posted 08-04-2002 02:57 PM PT (US)

Bulldog Goldmember	The Fury is easily one of Williams' best.
posted 08-04-2002 04:10 PM PT (US)

Ken S Goldmember	Marian, in Finland THE FURY was released in Finnish as "THE POWER OF EVIL" - a better translation than the usual ones here... I still prefer Williams' DRACULA over THE FURY (although THE FURY is definitely not a bad score). KEN
posted 08-05-2002 04:24 AM PT (US)

Mark Olivarez Goldmember	With the original tracks it's like I'm listening to The Fury for the very first time. I had the same feeling with the expanded CE3K, Jaws and E.T.. The original tracks present the film in an entirely new and different form. Thank you Varese.
posted 08-06-2002 09:11 AM PT (US)

JeffBond Goldmember	The Fury ALBUM is one of Williams' best--having seen the movie on DVD recently and listened to the expanded score, neither of the latter holds up too well. There are really only a couple of cues on the expanded album of real interest; I think Williams distilled (and expanded on) the score perfectly on the original album.
posted 08-07-2002 10:46 AM PT (US)

TV's Frank Goldmember	I gotta agree with Jeff here, the album version is a better, fuller representation of the score. I caught the film on TV a few years ago and was surprised at how some of the cues sounded, underdeveloped. Williams did a wonderful job with the LSO in shaping this score into a symphonic masterpiece, worthy of concert halls even. I might wait on getting this new release from Varese...
posted 08-07-2002 11:42 AM PT (US)

JeffBond Goldmember	At least Varese provides the album version too for people who don't have it--the score-only presentation is really incomplete without the album development. Sand Pebbles is the one I'm going to be spinning for the next few months!
posted 08-07-2002 01:30 PM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Goldmember	quote: Originally posted by TV's Frank: I might wait on getting this new release from Varese... It's remastered. Have you heard the DE of The Omen? I would have ordered the new Fury even if it didn't contain any new music.
posted 08-07-2002 01:46 PM PT (US)

OHMSS76 Goldmember	Soooooo....a vote of no confidence for the Club FURY is it? Can anyone tell me how long the film version cd runs? Still plan to buy it anyway, if only for Nick Redman's notes, but I'm curious how much music is on the OST that's not on the concert version. Youse guys should run this by Ed at Fox over on Filmus....he swears by the film tracks, or at least did a year ago.... Sean
posted 08-07-2002 01:47 PM PT (US)

TV's Frank Goldmember	Hey Sean, what's up? Did you get my last email, sent during your vacation? Anyway, I will probably still end up buying this FURY, but after I get SAND PEBBLES and THE BRIDE. The point made about the difference in sound quality is valid, considering the notable improvement made in Varese's OMEN releases. I guess I think that I will still listen to the re-recording more often than the film tracks. Or I could be surprised!!
posted 08-07-2002 02:23 PM PT (US)

OHMSS76 Goldmember	quote: Originally posted by TV's Frank: Hey Sean, what's up? Did you get my last email, sent during your vacation? Anyway, I will probably still end up buying this FURY, but after I get SAND PEBBLES and THE BRIDE. The point made about the difference in sound quality is valid, considering the notable improvement made in Varese's OMEN releases. I guess I think that I will still listen to the re-recording more often than the film tracks. Or I could be surprised!! Hey Brian! I did get your email, and one of these days will write ya back Had too many trades going down, taking up every waking moment Anyway, I have Joe Vs. The Bride of Sand Pebbles waiting at home to pick up today, cannot wait to hear them all. I do recall from the film that the main title brisks by rather quickly.... Ciao, Sean
posted 08-07-2002 02:56 PM PT (US)

PeterK FishChip	Sean, disc one (original tracks) runs 55 minutes. The remastered sound of the original album tracks (disc two) is fantastic. I think I've listened to disc one 3 times and disc two 3,323,232 times since this one arrived.
posted 08-07-2002 02:58 PM PT (US)

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