Bill Wrobel's DVD - Film Score Rundowns

were just too many errors of judgment made in this production. First, Tea Leoni was
given a major cast role. Her languid acting depressed the needed tone of urgency for this
type of movie. Her MSNBC anchor shots during the astronaut mission on the comet was
nearly unwatchable! Too bad they didn’t consider Jodie Foster, say, or someone else of
acting caliber with a deeper emotional impact on the role! Second, while I appreciate
Mimi Leder’s woman’s touch in her directorial role, I wish she had been wiser in her
decisions. She made the movie way too slow in many spots, kept in several unnecessary
emotional complexities of a minor nature, and did not adequately tighten up the story.
Even after the President gave his reveal speech about ELE, Leder inserts that silly high
school rally praising Leo Beiderman (Elijah Wood) and the juvenile “more sex”
statements. Then you have that astronaut cookout with beer and laughter—just a bit too
out-of-place casual or happy (under the circumstances). I won’t but I can go on and on
with all the needing deletions or tightening up. Leder is no Frankenheimer! I also did not
like the way the movie was cut in various sections such as about 59 minutes into the
movie when the nuclear bomb was ignited on the comet. Too many annoying cuts back &
forth from earth to the wave impact on the spaceship.
There are, however, definite plus factors in this movie. Casting Robert Duvall as
the aged astronaut with the unlikely name, Spurgeon Tanner, was quite fortunate,
especially in those scenes in the spacecraft after the initial mission failed. Morgan
Freeman plays a very good President (but a better God!). I like Maximilian Schell here.
The James Cromwell scene was very nice—that scene should be kept. I like the special
effects provided by Industrial Light & Magic—the real draw of a movie like this.
James Horner’s music is also oddly muted, like the movie! He provided many
drone effects for suspense scenes as in the beginning, then scoops of syrupy espr strings,
piano passages for some “touching” or human connection scenes, and then doses of brass
for the comet scenes, and a solo trumpet for the poignant isolation scenes, and so on. I
guess the score serves its purpose but only barely. I was not very impressed by Horner’s
music here. I’ll give it a two and a half star rating for basically an “okay” but nothing
higher.
-Soylent Green (1973) ** 1/2 [music *]
http://www.amazon.com/Soylent-Green-Charlton-
Heston/dp/B00009NHBM/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1292886694&sr=1-2
The year is 2022 for this movie. Welcome to extreme overpopulation, extreme
population, and soylent greenhouse perpetual heat! Unfortunately the entertainment
factor is not over-crowded in this movie. There are one or two impressive sections –
especially the “going home” death scene of the Edward G. Robinson character and the
beautiful classical music—but overall the movie is not green for “Go!” The music by
Fed Myrow (????) is forgettable. Where’s Jerry Goldsmith when you need him?!
-Adam-12 Season One *** 1/2 [music ***]
http://www.amazon.com/Adam-12-Season-One-Martin-
Milner/dp/B0009UC80Q/ref=sr_1_3?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1292886779&sr=1-3
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