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Author	Topic: Jurassic Park

Hasta Standard Userer	Been a good while since I pulled this guy out, and low and behold it's not really that good a listen. What are your thoughts on this Williams' composition. I think, outside of the "Journey to the Island" theme, the score has little going for it. Granted, it did spark something in me when I was a child, but today I just don't find it overly interesting. OH, and I gave Sneakers a good listen last night, and it really was a freaking brilliant experience. Horner can write the most amazing music sometimes.
posted 04-11-2004 12:46 PM PT (US)

BobaMike Standard Userer	Hasta, Jurrassic Park is one of Williams's better scores... High Wire Stunts is a great suspense track, and worked really well in the movie. Not to mention that fantastic ending to T-Rex Rescue (too bad Speilberg crapped it up in the editing room). The quieter music works well in the movie, especially the "Remembering Petticoat Lane" track. Remember back in 1993 when this came out, noone had ever seen FX like the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park....Williams' music really added to the sense of wonder everyone in the audience had. Nowadays it might not play so well, since the FX are commonplace. Try and listen to the score as we did back then. BobaMike (The Lost World is also just as good, except the editing in the film is awful, and on the cd some great music is missing :/
posted 04-11-2004 01:11 PM PT (US)

Crono/Kyp Standard Userer	I agree with ya Mike. JP was one of the first scores I got...I still have the original tape and it WAS the very FIRST audio CD I ever got. --Brian
posted 04-11-2004 01:14 PM PT (US)

Southall Standard Userer	I must admit that I'm a bit hit and miss with a few of Williams's so-called "classics" but I do love Jurassic Park. Sometimes with Williams, particularly in his "golden" period, I just got the impression he was writing a big theme and repeating it ad nauseum without doing much with it (Superman?) but Jurassic Park is so much more than its theme(s). Both of the main themes are exceptional, but they aren't just stated and restated, there's real meat and bones to it as well. I love the aggressive action music. Arguably The Lost World is even better: the action music is extremely detailed, which I love, and Williams came up with yet another great theme. Pity the way it was used in the film was seemingly so slapdash, but it makes a great CD.
posted 04-11-2004 01:25 PM PT (US)

Hector J. Guzman Standard Userer	Jurassic Park for me is a great score by Williams and in general, and I still think ti should have been nominated, although if this might have been the case, it would have happened the same thing from 2001, when John Williams should have won.
posted 04-11-2004 01:56 PM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Standard Userer	One of Williams' best scores. The two main themes are excellent, but once you get used to them, there's plenty of great and complex action writing too. Certainly one of my favourites of his scores. And as for Sneakers, I keep saying what I've been saying for a long time: It's Horner's very best score.
posted 04-11-2004 01:58 PM PT (US)

scoreguy16 Standard Userer	I think the themes are great, but other than that, the score is just kind of not to great. It deffinately have moments of greatness, but to me it just works best in the film instead of alone on CD. I like The Lost World better. Clayton
posted 04-11-2004 03:48 PM PT (US)

Dave Standard Userer	Krono/Kyp, JP was my first CD also! OMG WE ARE NOW TEH BESTEST OF FIENDS!!!111
posted 04-11-2004 07:41 PM PT (US)

James Standard Userer	Jurassic Park was my first as well, and it still holds me in rapture every time I listen to it. The themes are glorious, the action and suspense writing is among the best Williams has ever done, and it forms such a wonderful, cohesive whole that it all sounds like it couldn't have possibly come from any other film. quote: Originally posted by BobaMike: Remember back in 1993 when this came out, noone had ever seen FX like the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park....Williams' music really added to the sense of wonder everyone in the audience had. Nowadays it might not play so well, since the FX are commonplace. Try and listen to the score as we did back then. Contrariwise. Go back and watch Jurassic Park again...to my eyes the CGI in that film actually looks a good deal better than much of what's being done today, despite the fact it's now nearly 11 years old. I always expect it to look dated when I watch it, but I'm continually blown away by it. I can't possibly explain why...maybe the techniques have become so commonplace that less effort is put into it, and the audience has been exposed to so much of it that they just accept it. I have no idea. quote: Originally posted by BobaMike: (The Lost World is also just as good, except the editing in the film is awful, and on the cd some great music is missing :/ There's also some great music on the CD that's not in the film, like "The Hunt." Kirk [Message edited by James on 04-11-2004]
posted 04-11-2004 10:08 PM PT (US)

ESB Standard Userer	quote: Originally posted by Hasta: Been a good while since I pulled this guy out, and low and behold it's not really that good a listen. What are your thoughts on this Williams' composition. I think, outside of the "Journey to the Island" theme, the score has little going for it. Granted, it did spark something in me when I was a child, but today I just don't find it overly interesting. OH, and I gave Sneakers a good listen last night, and it really was a freaking brilliant experience. Horner can write the most amazing music sometimes. You don't think Jurassic Park is any good?! I think you should see a doctor. Big bold and beautiful themes. They don't make em like that anymore. I guess you're one of the new "textural listeners" who doesn't care for good themes and mainly wants to clinically study abstract scores? Come on Sneakers better than Jurassic Park. That is ridiculous. It honestly bored me to death. Maybe if you study music something interesting can be found when you scrutinize the score. But I don't listen to music to study it.
posted 04-11-2004 11:54 PM PT (US)

Hasta Standard Userer	To study? No way! Sneakers > Jurassic Park
posted 04-11-2004 11:59 PM PT (US)

Mark Olivarez Standard Userer	Had Schindler's List not been released that year Jurassic Park would have snagged Williams an Oscar nod and quite possibly his 5th award. It remains one of Williams best, it makes for a great listen as well. [Message edited by Mark Olivarez on 04-12-2004]
posted 04-12-2004 06:52 AM PT (US)

Quill Standard Userer	While the themes are excellent...as a whole the score doesn't do much for me. It works in the film (which is enough for me to consider it a good score) but I rarely pull the CD out for a spin.
posted 04-12-2004 07:19 AM PT (US)

nightwing Standard Userer	Regarding the FX and how they still stand up: It's the same with T2. That movie still has some of the best FX and is the best SciFi film of all time.
posted 04-12-2004 09:55 PM PT (US)

sean Standard Userer	Man, Hasta has really put everyone in a spin. This isn't surprising though: If my surmize is correct, this user likes to say dumb things about great efforts � ex. Hasta says he really loves Hans Zimmer music, but likes nothing of his beyond The Thin Red Line; and that's a bit narrow, IMO; Gladiator and Black Hawk Down certainly rank with TTRL. That said, Jurassic Park is an excellent score! And it was certainly the first score I ever bought (and on tape)! (and only last year got it on CD, figuring my tape wouldn't last forever) I remember my mum taking me out of school early to go see that film at the premier (damn, that musta been in Grade 3 or 4) and its one of the most memorable film experiences of mine to date, and the score one of my favourites from John Williams. [Message edited by sean on 04-13-2004]
posted 04-13-2004 09:33 AM PT (US)

Hasta Standard Userer	Hey Sean, TTRL is easily Zimmer's best,yo! But, I do agree, Black Hawk Down is excellent, certainy one of his best. Gladiator... Actually pulled this one out the other day. Surprisingly, I (now) think some of the softer, more ambient moments are brilliant, but don't care for the action music. The orchestrations just aren't interesting enough. Anywho, I love some of his more recent effort as well; Mission: Impossible 2 and An Everlasting Piece being two of 'em. So watch what you be saying. I think I'm going to give JP another listen sometime today.
posted 04-13-2004 11:16 AM PT (US)

Quill Standard Userer	I'm sure I will be crucified for saying this, but my biggest gripe with many of Williams' scores, especially his more recent efforts is that they feel like scores of moments. Unequivocally, JW has written some of the greatest themes of all time...and at times I feel he flaunts it. I can't help but think when watching a film with a Williams' score that the music is screaming, "Listen to me...yep, that's right...I'm John Williams." I honestly don't care much for his underscore work, those moments between another rousing renditions of one of his themes. I guess that's my take on Jurassic Park as well. In contrast I don't feel Jerry Goldsmith, among others, has allowed his music to overshadow the film. Likewise, Shore's LOTR scores, while featuring prominent themes that might not be as strong as JW at his best, were more cohesive scores that most of JW's. Don't get me wrong...I still love the guy's work...with come caveats.
posted 04-13-2004 12:18 PM PT (US)

Alex Non-Standard Userer	You're not alone, I also consider Jurassic to be one of Williams' weaker scores.
posted 04-13-2004 01:31 PM PT (US)

sean Standard Userer	LOL! Well, Hasta, I got that wrong. Sorry, dude. But what's wrong with the action music from Gladiator? I think it's great and certainly appropriate to the film. Some of it sloppy, as Zimmer admits, like the scene where Russell Crowe races home to his doomed family (why on earth is there dialogue on that track?????).
posted 04-13-2004 03:06 PM PT (US)

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