Classical Music in Movies

Classical music has often been used to great effect in cinema since the advent of sound. It has certain advantages over bespoke compositions, in that it can imbue a scene with a sense of gravitas and emotionally connect with viewers who may already be familiar with the piece being played. Legendary director Stanley Kubrick famously rejected Alex North’s score for 2001: A space Odyssey after finding the classical tracks he used for the temporary soundtrack complement the visuals perfectly. Over the years, some particular pieces of classical music have proven to be very popular and flexible, thus appearing in a wide variety of films across multiple genres. Hence, I have chosen two well known tracks that demonstrate this. I would also like to highlight contemporary classical music and have also selected one example that I feel demonstrates how the genre sublimely compliments cinema.

Read More
Movies, The Tree of Life Roger Edwards Movies, The Tree of Life Roger Edwards

The Tree of Life (2011)

Having missed the film on its original theatrical release, I recently saw The Tree of Life as part of a retrospective of the director’s work. Contrary to what some may expect, I am not going to lambast Terrence Malick’s existential reverie. Frankly I applaud the fact that he has endeavoured to do something very different and more importantly very personal. Furthermore, the movie continues to polarise the wider cinematic community, which pleases me greatly. Sometimes there's nothing worse for contemporary cinema than popular consensus. The film certainly elicits an emotional response from viewers, often leading to a debate of the movies respective merits. Yet I consider this to be a good thing, compared to the overall indifference I often feel these days towards an increasing infantilised medium.

Read More