49 replies to this topic

[Qwerty]

The theme to Moonraker is a hauntingly beautiful, very romantic tune that I love listening to on a starry night.  The love theme is kinda sad, but still achingly tender and, again, romantic.  The action cues are somber, very realistic, and brutal.  The snake fight is a good representation of this.  Don't care much for the oo7 Theme this time around.  You all are correct in it being too slow.  It's like oo7 after he's had way too many vodka martinis. 
Typical Barry.  Fabulous score, lousy film.

With respect, the 007 theme here works so well because it is so different from the other four versions that there are. It has a much slower pace, but it only adds to the smaller battle sequence on the river.

[Turn]

I agree with Qwerty, this version of the 007 theme is more in keeping with the tone of the film, whereas much of the rest of the score seems too grand for much of it. Not necessarily better than the other versions of 007, but different, just like Chinese girls taste different from all other girls.

[Brian Flagg]

Heck, I'm just happy to be able to hear the "007" theme at all in the Moore era! It sounds great to me. Any variation by Barry on such a classic piece is heavenly. I also love the "Bond Arrives in Rio" version of the Moonraker theme. Top notch, that. (as our Anglo friends would say... )

Edited by Brian Flagg, 10 December 2004 - 09:34 PM.

[Qwerty]

Heck, I'm just happy to be able to hear the "007" theme at all in the Moore era!  It sounds great to me.  Any variation by Barry on such a classic piece is heavenly.  I also love the "Bond Arrives in Rio" version of the Moonraker them.  Top notch, that. (as our Anglo friends would say... )

Quite. It's really not all that bad, even if being somewhat camp at times. It flows pretty well into the 007 theme.

[Brian Flagg]

I'll also admit to more than a touch of nostalgia when I hear the music and see the film, as it was released during the post-"Star Wars" Sci-Fi craze. For some reason, the lyrics of the title song I forgot about, but not the melody or the underscore. Strange but true. This score needs to be re-released in it's entirety, but who knows where the master tapes are?

[Qwerty]

I'll also admit to more than a touch of nostalgia when I hear the music and see the film, as it was released during the post-"Star Wars" Sci-Fi craze.  For some reason, the lyrics of the title song I forgot about, but not the melody or the underscore.  Strange but true.  This score needs to be re-released in it's entirety, but who knows where the master tapes are?

I thought that were lost.

[Brian Flagg]

I've read that they may be in France, where the recordings were supposedly made.

[Qwerty]

That's what I've heard also.

[Moonraker]

The score saved the film for me. It could have been very campy, but Barry made the outer space seem mysterious and dark and interesting.

[Brian Flagg]

I guess one can consider "Moonraker" and "The Black Hole" as sibling scores, both being released that same magical year, 1979. "Moonraker" sounds "warmer", despite Khan's assertion that "it is very cold in space." "The Black Hole" is colder, more sinister and not without a touch of madness. Love that score, too.

[TGO]

Moonraker has its cold moments. Especially Snake Fight, Centrifuge, Corrine Put Down, and Bond Smells A Rat.

[Qwerty]

Moonraker has its cold moments. Especially Snake Fight, Centrifuge, Corrine Put Down, and Bond Smells A Rat.

Definitely. It's a very cold, mysterious score at times.

[Kingdom Come]

I agree Brian, the score to Moonraker does seem to be at odds with such an outlandish film. Maybe Gilbert and Barry needed a score that pulled away from these things. Sometimes scores have to do the opposite to what the film is telling us. I think Moonraker is not only one of the best scores but one of Barry's best. His love themes are up there with Out Of Africa / Somewhere In Time / Chaplin / Dances With Wolves and The Scarlet Letter.

[Donovan]

Although Barry's score for Moonraker seems unique among his Bond scores, if you are a fan of his and listen to his non-Bond scores of the time, you'll notice a certain similarity. John Barry's career has evolved through the times. You can hear his score for "The Chase" or a Harry Palmer film, and detect many similarities to the early Bond scores. Same goes for the seventies. "King Kong" and "The Black Hole" sound very Moonrakerish, so-to-speak. I like the low haunting themes. Some of the romantic themes are nice. He hit his romatic-obsession peak with "Somewhere in Time".

I like the title song on its own merits, but I prefer rousing Bond songs that follow an exciting pre-title sequence. I have a problem with the way "Moonraker" severely downshifts the pace of the film after the amazing sky diving stunts. Slow romantic songs that plod along forced Maurice Binder to create visuals that move in slow motion. I prefer the title songs with energy and keep the audience in a . And I think someone earlier questioned the appropriateness of the title song for this type of film. A love story such as On Her Majesty's Secret Service would have better use for a song like "Moonraker". In a Roger Moore film, particularly this one where he smirks out his double-entendres, it doesn't quite succeed.

Finally, I've felt a bit sorry for John Barry regarding the Roger Moore Bond films. At this time, he was scoring basically every other film. The ones he didn't score all had Oscar-nominated title songs and were huge lasting hits beyond the Bond realm. The title songs he came back to do were largely forgettable among the mainstream. At least he stayed for A View To A Kill and had a huge hit with that song.

[hrabb04]

I dragged out the Moonraker score again recently, and have been listening to it a lot these past few nights. Very dark, haunting, and romantic. The score really doesn't fit the movie very well. Is the new re-release any better in terms of sound? I still have my old EMI CD.

[Qwerty]

I haven't listened to it in a little while, but I seem to recall it not being all that drastically different.

Perhaps time to pop it in.

[00Nothing]

John Barry's score for Moonraker can be summed up in one word. Bloody fantastic. Well that's two, but you get my point. It is one of the most lovliest scores ever composed for a film, lush and romantic and haunting (especially the music during the outer space sequences). Just my own humble opinion.

[Qwerty]

Listened to it again yesterday/today. That score seems to just get better and better each time.

[00Nothing]

Listened to it again yesterday/today. That score seems to just get better and better each time.

Wholeheartedly agree. It's right up there with his scores for OHMSS, TLD and GF if you ask me.

[Qwerty]

It's the best.