Dread
Dimitri Tiomkin‘s score for the The Thing From Another World was probably his all-time best. I happened across this music-isolated clip a little while ago, and heard it in a way I never had before. Play it on a good bassy sound system with the volume cranked up to 8 or 9.
Speaking of The Thing, some of y’all might enjoy this – a stop-motion homage to Carpenter’s version that someone sent me this morning…
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/01/26/zombie-zombie-video.html
A howling, crawling chaos of brass and strings, lurching awake and shuddering to blood-thirsty life from a ragged ice pit! And it couldn’t possibly be more different from the remarkable, minimalist desolation of the Morricone/Carpenter score from the ’82 remake.
Wonderful and rare – especially where a remake is concerned – that scores so vastly different each suit their respective versions of the story so perfectly. Still, I prefer the later version, with the oppressive inevitability of its dead-eyed, syntho-electronic dread-throb. It’s a favorite and about as good as ensemble sci-fi/horror has ever been, so I can’t help but think of it as I listen to this.
(the gi-joe version is great, btw)
I like both versions pretty well, but the first will always be a classic since I saw it as a small child. What were my parents thinking? It scared the bejeesus out of me and I’ve loved sci-fi ever since. It also has a metaphorical connection to the horrors of McCarthyism.
Great find, Jeff!
I thought Carpenter’s version captured the isolation and paranoia better than this film, not to mention those amazing, nightmarish effects. But the score for the Carpenter version is atrocious, the worst thing about that movie … especially when compared to this masterpiece.
i remember being maybe 8-9 when Carpenter’s THE THING came out and I saw atrailer for it at RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK and it scared the piss outta me. I didn’t see it for years later but it remains a classic for me. I love the score too and still istne to in LOSSLESS.
Theremin! That wobbly sound still makes me wanna poop my pants.
WOW! It’s rare that you get to hear isolated score, but this was a real treat! Thanks for sharing. A real classic.
This isolated score is a revelation… and so butt-thumpingly Theremin-heavy.
Tiomkin was really having his Metal Machine Music moment here, but the bigger question is, in regards to the Theremin, “who got there first?”… Herrmann’s DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL was the same year (1951).
God, how I hate the following the film this song iis from has gathered….
The film itself is mostly a lame attempt to trounce those of us who love such as the above mentioned… But dammit all to hell if this song doesn’t say a thousand words about those of us who love both the scores and sincereity of those who were involved… A true love letter:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9-r-2zz5C8&feature=channel_page
These 50s-60s sci-fi fantasy films produced some of the best film music ever created. As Marty pointed out, Bernard Herrmann was on fire during this period. His score for 1961′s Mysterious Island may be my favorite film score of all time.
Thanks for highlighting this Jeff…one of my fave scores.
I’m with MO on the music in the remake…that ain’t no slouch, either!
Funny timing with this post…I just finished watching Carpenter’s remake for the first time maybe half an hour ago.
I’ve been wanting to check out some 50s/60s sci fi…the clips always make them look like so much fun. Really haven’t seen any.
Breedlove, when watching a 50s sci-fi, you have to remember to watch them in context and take the then-state-of-the-art special effects in stride. If you can do that, you’re in for a treat.
A short list of must-sees (for me at least):
The Thing from Another World
War of the Worlds
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Them!
Forbidden Planet
This Island Earth
When Worlds Collide
The Time Machine (yeah, I’m a big George Pal fan)
20,000 Leagues under the Sea
Anything with Ray Harryhausen special effects.
I’m sure others will chime in with their personal faves.
Thanks for that, Rich. I’m keeping your list.
Uh, Rich – Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
My choice for the best ‘B’ movie ever made, and one of the finest, not to mention most paranoid, films of the ’50s.
Shame on you for forgetting this one.
I knew I was missing a couple. I also thought of Invaders from Mars after I posted my original list.
Invaders From Mars (’53) is no slouch in the music department… a truly bizarre, otherworldly score.
Invaders From Mars (’53) is no slouch in the music department… a truly bizarre, otherworldly score.
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