473 replies to this topic

[DCI_director]

From the beginning, I was never happy that Thomas Newman was returning to the series.  I felt his score for Skyfall was just plain boring.  I'm a fan of David Arnold and of course John Barry.  I was not a fan of Arnold's last score for QOS, but I would have taken him or anybody else over Thomas Newman.  I'm a firm believer that a composer and a title song artist must come into Bond's world and not the other way around.  To me, his score for Skyfall was just background noise and was forgettable and unfortunately ,I think the score for Spectre will be the same.  Anybody else feel that way?  I do like Sam Mendes, but I think the only way Newman will not return is when Mendes bows out.  If you are a fan of his, you need not reply. 

[Jim]

Not sure this place is built on "need not".

 

Poll added, for the hell of it.

[Guy Haines]

The score for Spectre may not be similar to that of Skyfall - the John Barry scores of the 1960s in particular were not carbon copies of each other. OHMSS in particular is in some ways strikingly different to previous Bond scores. Thomas Newman is a very experienced film composer, so I wouldn't assume one will be listening to a re-run of the Skyfall score in November this year.

[SecretAgentFan]

I loved Newman´s SKYFALL score - so I´m thrilled to see him return.

 

And I also loved Barry, Martin, Hamlisch, Conti, Kamen, Serra and Arnold.

 

Hmm - I obviously love everything.

[Walecs]

Agreed. Skyfall's score was terribly unbondian. I hope Arnold will be back for Bond 25.

Edited by Walecs, 25 January 2015 - 10:49 AM.

[sharpshooter]

Given Skyfall is my favourite non-Barry Bond score, I would have been disappointed if Newman didn't return. 

[Harmsway]

I liked the Skyfall score a great deal in the context of the film (one of the nice things about Newman is that his action cues aren't as overbearing as Arnold's), so I'm fine with him coming back.

Newman's not the second coming of John Barry or anything, though.

[Dustin]

I suppose film scores in general underwent some kind of evolution since the days of Barry. Today they have to stand up against so much other noise. Maybe that's what makes them more controversial than in the past. Personally, I liked Newman's but I didn't go out of my way to buy the OST. I seldom do nowadays,

[Vauxhall]

I liked Newman's SKYFALL score, and found some tracks to be particularly memorable (Severine, Tennyson, The Moors), and he's always good for a bit of awards action.

Having said that, I felt Arnold did well on CASINO ROYALE and QUANTUM OF SOLACE, so I'd have been fairly relaxed with a change. I'm easily pleased.

[DamnCoffee]

I felt Newman's efforts were refreshing. I just wish he composed Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace, because I found Arnold much more suited to the Brosnan era, really. A lot of his stuff felt a bit too TV-ish for me, especially Casino Royale. Newman I find, is a much more solid choice. He's a very talented composer with a lot of fantastic work under his belt. We are lucky to have him. 

[Harmsway]

Yes, a Newman-scored Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace does sound appealing. Not that I entirely dislike what Arnold did with those scores. In fact, Quantum of Solace is arguably Arnold's best work. But Arnold does typically have a heavy hand in regards to underscore. He puts it on a bit thick. That approach was generally better-suited to Brosnan than Craig.

 

Newman's scores are less overbearing, more precise in the way that they accentuate a scene. I'd be interested to see how Newman's approach would have altered the emotional content of the first two Craig entries (probably quite well, would be my guess). My only real concern about his return to the Bond franchise is whether or not he'll be able to sufficiently differentiate his SPECTRE score from his Skyfall score. Because Newman doesn't rely on clear thematic motifs in the same way Barry did, it's possible that SPECTRE could just sound like Skyfall: Part 2.

[DamnCoffee]

To be honest, I'm not expecting that many cues from the Skyfall soundtrack to make it into the one for Spectre. I think 'Mother' has a high chance of cropping up though, and maybe the variation of the Bond theme towards the end of 'Breadcrumbs', which also appears when Bond toasts the henchman in The Floating Dragon. Really cool little rendition that suits Craigs swagger. Really hope that makes some kind of appearance. i wouldn't be at all surprised if there were little nods to Casino Royale though, maybe a few notes of Vespers theme or (less than likely) You Know My Name, which in instrumental form, throughout Casino Royale's soundtrack, made a nice little theme for Quantum. (Le Chiffre / White / etc)

[Admiral Messervey]

Don't call me Shirley!

 

I'm not too fussed about Newman returning. It's not like Babs and Mike will keep him on beyond Mendes.

[x007AceOfSpades]

Arnold's loud, overbearing style fit Brosnan's era well, because that's pretty much exactly what those films were. As much as Arnold tried to be different with CR and QOS, he still couldn't bring anything new to the table overall. His sound doesn't fit Craig's era at all, and is just a continuation of the annoying sounds presented in TND and onwards. Newman managed to create a score that fit Bond perfectly, and showed he can actually handle action cues as well. Newman is perfect for Bond, or rather Craig's Bond.

I never liked Arnold and I never will.

[Harmsway]

Newman is perfect for Bond, or rather Craig's Bond.

He's certainly perfect for Mendes' Bond, at any rate. His calculated, spare score perfectly suited the rhythms and visual landscape of Skyfall. I'm hoping the same will be true of SPECTRE.

[x007AceOfSpades]

 

Newman is perfect for Bond, or rather Craig's Bond.

He's certainly perfect for Mendes' Bond, at any rate. His calculated, spare score perfectly suited the rhythms and visual landscape of Skyfall. I'm hoping the same will be true of SPECTRE.

 

Couldn't agree more.

[Professor Pi]

Thomas Newman tends to blend in with the screen better, but for independent listening experiences, I'll take David Arnold.  The only Newman score I own is Skyfall, but I have all of Arnold's Bonds plus Stargate, Independence Day, and yes Godzilla (the 3 disc score version!)  But I'd rank Newman's SF better than TWINE or DAD. CR was the best at incorporating both title song and score (if only QoS's title were Shirley Bassey's "No Good About Goodbye.")

 

I'll be interested to see if Newman develops ideas and incorporates more of the Bond theme for SPECTRE, but I'd like to see Arnold return for Craig's swansong.

[Simon]

I love Newman's work in general.  Very lovely, very memorable.

 

That said, I was very underwhelmed by his Skyfall score.  It may be that we have been very well served by Barry where his scores thoroughly set a Bond atmosphere, and very memorably so.  And thus every person thereafter may pale by comparison.  But no, at this stage, I would prefer to see Arnold make a return.  Or, someone else.

 

(Not sure if the above fits the very specific criteria for response to this thread...?)

[tdalton]

Newman's work on SKYFALL was fine, much better than Arnold's work on any of the films that weren't QUANTUM OF SOLACE (his only really good Bond score).

[dtuba]

Not particularly happy as I thought the SKYFALL score was nice but not really memorable or suited for James Bond. That being said, I'm not sure if David Arnold is the answer. There are many other talented composers out there whom I'd love to hear take a crack at a Bond score.

[sharpshooter]

Arnold's best work is undoubtedly found in the Craig era, however I still don't think it's near the level of Newman. When I first heard his score back in 2012, I wasn't that impressed. However upon seeing the film and listening to the score again, I fell in love.

 

In fact, Newman's Bond score has been my main go-to for well over a year. Grand Bazaar, Istanbul and The Bloody Shot are a fantastic one-two punch. The M theme is spot on, capturing her sense of duty and coming fate. The Severine theme is lush, as are tracks like Brave New World and The Chimera. Though the real strength for me is in Newman's atmospheres. Komodo Dragon, Someone Usually Dies and Jellyfish to name a few. There's ambience but there's also elegance. For me it's a mix of Barry and Serra, with the distinct flavour of Newman sprinkled in.

 

A track like 'Skyfall' is evocative of fog parting to reveal an ancient structure - pitch perfect for the scene in question. His Bond theme uses are creative, and despite what some may say, is present throughout the score. New Digs is his most creative. Day Wasted is another good use, and the more frequent rendition heard in She's Mine. 

 

I'm looking forward to what he comes up for SPECTRE.

[seawolfnyy]

A track like 'Skyfall' is evocative of fog parting to reveal an ancient structure - pitch perfect for the scene in question. His Bond theme uses are creative, and despite what some may say, is present throughout the score. New Digs is his most creative. Day Wasted is another good use, and the more frequent rendition heard in She's Mine. 

 

I'm looking forward to what he comes up for SPECTRE.

That´s a great one, although my personal favorite is Brave New World. Personally, I was never really onboard with David Arnold until Casino Royale, which is my second favorite soundtrack after OHMSS. After a decent first entry (Tomorrow Never Dies), he had 2 poor entries (with admittedly poor films). But then he hit it out of the park with Casino Royale, especially with how he remixed You Know My Name rather than the Bond theme. However, Newman took it to another level with Skyfall. I´m 100% behind Newman for another few films.

[AgenttiNollaNollaSeitsemän]

I chose the third optiona but I'm glad he's back since his Skyfall score was stellar.

[thecasinoroyale]

I'm happy for Newman's return - he had some exceptional tracks in 'Skyfall' and loved the atmosphere he created. Can't wait to see what he does this time around.

[Walecs]

Just because Newman is better than Arnold, it doesn't mean he's good. So far I haven't seen a single comment about his score that wasn't "He's better than Arnold", rather than praising his music for its merits.

[Marcin]

I'm not a fan of Newman's work either. It's not just Skyfall, which in my opinion has rather medicore score, but I can't think of any film that really benefits from his music, except for Meet Joe Black and Road to Perdition perhaps. 

Not to mention he hasn't composed any unforgettable theme (or am I missing something?) so far. And that's one of things I missed in Skyfall. 

[Orion]

Loved his Skyfall score (and Newman's scores generally) so I'm an emphatic yes. Almost voted for "Don't Call Me Shirley" though, it made me laugh so hard.

[sharpshooter]

Just because Newman is better than Arnold, it doesn't mean he's good. So far I haven't seen a single comment about his score that wasn't "He's better than Arnold", rather than praising his music for its merits.

I think Newman stands on his own two feet just fine. However, I also think it's natural to judge Newman's immediate predecessor - especially after having five consecutive Arnold soundtracks. 

Edited by sharpshooter, 26 January 2015 - 11:55 PM.

[DaveBond21]

I am happy with it. I liked his score on Skyfall.

 

I am also a fan of David Arnold and I don't think Newman was that different.

[Orion]

I am happy with it. I liked his score on Skyfall.

 

I am also a fan of David Arnold and I don't think Newman was that different.

I'd agree. I think both went for a style that is more akin to the style of Bond scores that John Barry developed, but slightly modernised.