What Mr. Kennedy Said

... about soundtracks and music.

... The right music can make the difference between a moment working and not working. As an illustration of how true this is, check out this youtube video of the final scene of "Star Wars" with the score removed. This went viral a few months ago, but for those of you who haven't seen it, take a look. ....

Star Wars' music was a throwback to the scores of big-budget adventure films from the thirties and forties. Then, Max Steiner and Erich Wolfgang Korngold often did the honors. Note how Mr. Korngold punches up this action sequence (and imagine how an audience would react to all the action, as well-choreographed and nicely shot as it is, without the music):



When I was in elementary school, I devoured old Warner Bros. films that ran on local television during the weekends. They enthralled me, and I wasn't sure why. Later I figured out that a lot of it had to do with the music.

Decades later, the dynamics of blockbuster films haven't changed a hell of a lot. Much of the reason Frozen became such a monster hit was because of the songs and score.