Bill Wrobel's DVD - Film Score Rundowns

Now: I liked the movie but it’s not the kind of movie that I would watch
repeatedly over the years. A one or two-time watching experience suffices for me. I give
it a favorable rating but there are too many standard clichés in the script: Selfish,
ambitious boxer falls in love, soon attains the heights of boxing, falls for a blonde vixen
(despite being in love with Peg, the Lili Palmer character), sells his soul for money but
redeems himself at the very end. Been there, seen that already lots of time in movies. The
black & white film noir aspects were even paid homage to in Martin Scorsese’s black &
white 1980 brutal boxing movie, Raging Bull. That was a “good” film as well in terms of
movie-making but I personally don’t care to watch it anymore than once or twice! These
kinds of gritty-content movies normally don’t appeal to me. Too much violence and
depiction of baser human emotions and conduct tend to turn me off—no matter how
adept a particular director is. I watched part of Scorsese’s Gangs of New York and
stopped watching it. Shutter Island kept my attention, however.
Anyway, Friedhofer did a highly competent job on Body and Soul although the
music did not particularly strike an active resonant chord within me. The “Main Title”
was very briefly discussed above in the first two bars. The tonality initially is C min
(C/Eb/G) to Bb maj (Bb/D/F) to (Bar 2) Ab maj 7 th (Ab/C/Eb/G). The key signature
changes in Bar 5 to Eb major/C min (3 flats) After an 8 th rest on the top staff, the high
strings play Line 2 F-G-F 8ths legato to G quarter note to F quarter note up to (Bar 6)
Line 3 C sustained note. The second staff shows Line 1 Eb/Ab/Line 2 C (C min 1 st
inversion) whole notes to (Bar 6) Ab/Line 2 F/Ab half notes, and so forth. The bottom
staff shows Great octave F/small octave Eb/Ab/middle C (F min 7 th inversion) whole
notes.
“Charlie Goes Home” (Reel 1/part 2) is located on the dvd at 00:02:07.
Misterioso in � time, the music starts immediately after Charlie shouts “Ben” in his
disturbed sleep. The third staff shows some instruments (not identified) playing Line 1
Db/F dotted half notes tied to next two bars at least, while other instruments are fingered
trem between between those dotted half notes. After a quarter rest in Bar 2, the second
staff shows instruments sounding pp Lines 1 & 2 Bb tenuto half notes tied to quarter
notes next bar and also tied to 8 th notes (followed by an 8 th and quarter rest). Etc.
The next cue is “Charlie and Mother” (R 1/3) located on the dvd at 00:04:50.
Modto (triste) in C time, the music starts when Mom says, “Peggy’s sleeping here,
Charlie.” The third staff shows the violas and violins playing p small octave F tenuto half
note to G 8 th up to Bb quarter note up to Line 1 Db 8 th legato to (Bar 2) C half note to Db
8 th to F quarter note up to Ab 8 th note tied to (Bar 3) dotted half note. The VC in the
bottom staff show small octave F whole note to (Bar 2) F/middle C whole notes to (Bar
3) F/Cb whole notes tied to whole notes next bar. In Bar 4, the trombones in this bottom
staff take over to play Great octave G/small octave Db/F whole notes tied to whole notes
next bar. Bar 5 (:15 � in the cue) is when Charlie “fondles lingerie” (according to the
conductor sheet). The third staff (I believe just the violas) shows in Bar 5, after an initial
8 th rest, Bb 8 th to middle C “3” triplet value quarter note to Bb triplet value 8 th to C
normal value quarter note to Bb quarter note tied to whole note next bar (and also playing
Line 1 F whole note). Violins (second staff) in Bar 6 repeat the notes given by the violas
in Bar 5 but an octave higher register up to (Bar 7) Line 2 F dotted half note legato to Gb
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