[Thor Joachim Haga]

FSM # 19: March 19, 2019

OK, so here’s the issue:

I’m the guest editor of an upcoming issue of a Norwegian film magazine, and the topic is composer/director relationships. I’ve written a long article on the Altman/Williams collab myself, and have many other great contributors as well.

I wanted to do a shorter article/list on top 10 underrated collaborations — meaning they shouldn’t be the most famous collabs (so no Williams/Spielberg, Herrmann/Hitchcock etc.), and they should have done at least 5 films together.

I already have a long list myself, but I wanted your input as well, in case I’ve overlooked someone. Female composers and/or directors are especially wanted.

[Jon Aanensen]

So you are NOT doing an article, since this thread is from 2019?

For me it will always be Bobby Roth and Tangerine Dream. 6 movies together.

[Thor Joachim Haga]

So are NOT doing an article, since this thread is from 2019?

The article was published in the issue later that year. Unfortunately, it’s not available to view online, only in the physical magazine. I’ll see if I can dig it up from a cupboard, to see what 15 couples I eventually landed on.

Roth + TD is an interesting one, for sure. And definitely underrated in the scheme of things.

[Tall Guy]

I wouldn’t look much further than Tarr and Vig. Wonderful, wonderful stuff and, as far as I can discern, almost completely unknown outside specialist circles.

[GerateWohl]

Anyway, I wonder who is rating director/composer collaborations, so that they can be underrated. Usually something like that is only done by film music nerds who are well aware of the value of such relationships.

[Thor Joachim Haga]

That’s right. There are really only a handful of pairs or so that are famous enough to be “properly rated” amongst the culturally aware population. The rest are pretty much all underrated in the scheme of things.

[GerateWohl]

One director/composer collaboration (on exactly five movies) that I found particularly fruitful musically is Joe Wright and Dario Marianelli. But that’s for sure not underrated.

Worth mentioning is for sure (probably one of those five you have in mind) is David Cronenberg and Howard Shore. I think, apart from Dead Zone they collaborated on every Cronenberg movie since The Brood. Until today. That’s remarkable on its own.

[Jon Aanensen]

I think the Tony Scott/Harry Gregson-Williams collaborations are interesting. Seven movies, many good scores.

[Nick Zwar]

Anyway, I wonder who is rating director/composer collaborations, so that they can be underrated. Usually something like that is only done by film music nerds who are well aware of the value of such relationships.

That’s how I see it too…
There are the “famous” collaborations, such as Herrmann/Hitchcock, Williams/Spielberg, Morricone/Leone, Goldsmith/Schaffner, Doyle/Brannagh, Donaggio/De Palma, Cronenberg/Shore, Carpenter/Carpenter, etc…. but how are they rated and by whom?

I always thought Jerry Fielding produced some his best scores for Michael Winner, so there’s a director/composer collaboration not mentioned that often. I also like James Horner/Michael Apted, but they haven’t done five movies together.

[GerateWohl]

Don’t forget John Carpenter/John Carpenter. 🙂

[Nick Zwar]

I actually didn’t, though not sure if that happened simultaneously with your post. I know a number more director/composer collaborations (I have not even mentioned Elfman/Burton/Raimi… well, now I have, ok, but I did not mention Chrichton/Goldsmith…), but just mentioned examples…

[GerateWohl]

And we must not ommit Ozon/Rombi.
So much great music from that partnership!
And of course Shyamalan/Newton Howard.
And Miyasaki/Hisaishi and Kitano/Hisaishi.
Edwards/Mancini.
But none of these underrated, I would say. All highly acclaimed.

But I could also name some overrated ones:

Abbrams/Giacchino
Nolan/Zimmer

By the way, as Shore scored all six LotR movies does Peter Jackson / Howard Shore count in this category?

John Williams and Chris Columbus had 4 1/2 together.

[GerateWohl]

I actually didn’t

Right! Sorry. I didn’t notice.

Zemeckis/Silvestri hasn’t been mentioned yet. But I personally might find that partnership overrated. But probably just because I find most of Zemeckis’ movies overrated. Has little to do with the scores.

[Malte Müller]

I would understand “underrated” as not so known for the general public which we surely don’t count as 😉 Since here are quite well known ones listed I name a few more of those:

– Fellini/Rota
– Sautet/Sarde
– Lautner/Sarde
– Polanski/Komeda
– Truffaut/Delerue
– Leone/Morricone (only 6 if you don’t count Leone produced ones)
– Besson/Serra

Also rather well known:

– Angelopolous/Karaindou
– Lee/Blanchard
– Avildsen/Conti
– Singer/Ottman
– Kurosawa/Sato
– Gerry & Silvia Anderson/Barry Gray

A few German ones:

– Petersen/Doldinger (7 movies unless I missed one)
– Schlöndorff/Doldinger (3 only)
– Schlöndorff/Henze (3 only)
– Wim Wenders/Jürgen Knieper
– Joseph Vilsmaier/Enjott Schneider

And for fun a director itself underrated for a reason 😉
– Uwe Boll/Jessica de Rooji

[GerateWohl]

Wow! Seems there are a few more than five.

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