Lost in the Shuffle XIV

From war-torn London and the war-torn South to south of the border, Shangri-La and back to the future, and Shangri-La. That’s the journey in this week’s Lost in the Shuffle.

HOPE AND GLORY (1987) – Railway Station

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In 1987, in a whirlwind couple of days of movie-going, my best friend (and fellow Oscar nerd) and I crammed what were expected to be four massive Oscar contenders into two days, including EMPIRE OF THE SUN, THE LAST EMPEROR, and BROADCAST NEWS. All of them had their good points but many of our hopes had been dashed. We didn’t know that the glory still awaited us. John Boorman’s autobiographical HOPE AND GLORY tells the nostalgic story of a young boy during World War II who sees the war as an adventure. Peter Martin’s score captures the poignancy of war-torn London without ever overplaying the emotions. This emotional track is missing the melody for the main title song that provides the impetus for much of the score. But you can feel the love, fear, and potential loss as the boy’s sister Dawn (Sammi Davis) says goodbye to her soldier sweetheart. This has been a score I’ve returned to over and over through the years. It was a strong score year so Martin’s score stood little chance of an Oscar nomination, but the song should have at least copped a nod.

LOST HORIZON (1937) – Maria

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LOST HORIZON put Dimitri Tiomkin on the map and, over 70 years later, it still holds up as a marvelous piece of film music. James Hilton’s adventure story in the mountains of Shangri-La provides Tiomkin with numerous opportunities for orchestral and choral color. This brief, wandering track features Asian flavor in the oboe and celeste while a pentatonic feel can be found in the quiet harmonies.

NORTH AND SOUTH: BOOK II (1986) – Orry, Jr.

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ABC hit the miniseries jackpot with their adaptation of John Jakes’s Civil War drama, LOVE AND WAR. The story of best friends and their families on opposite sides of the war spawned not one but two successful miniseries. BOOK II took the characters through the war and Bill Conti continued the excellent themes he composed for the first miniseries. This charming track turns the rousing main theme into a tender lullaby for flute and strings at the birth of Orry Main’s (Patrick Swayze) son. If you don’t know the NORTH AND SOUTH scores, I highly recommend them.

RUNAWAY (1984) – The Bullet

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Pure electronic scores limit film composers, distancing you from the characters onscreen. Jerry Goldsmith succeeded at it more than most, but I prefer his scores with a mixture of electronic and acoustic instruments, such as HOOSIERS and LOGAN’S RUN. His electronic score for the Tom Selleck starrer RUNAWAY may fit the sci-fi milieu of the film but it doesn’t do much for me as a listening experience.

BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA (1974) – Gathering Information

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After Alex North, no one tapped into the Mexican culture in film music like Jerry Fielding. In scores like THE WILD BUNCH, Fielding caught a Mexican musical flavor whether it was source music or underscoring. The melodies and harmonies in this track’s guitar, muted trumpet, and percussion give you an authentic Mexican energy without the music feeling like cheap pastiche.

Have you discovered any film scores “lost in the shuffle?”