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Goldeneye Score by Eric Serra: Severely Underrated?

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  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    edited February 2013 Posts: 12,837
    In the film it works well enough and the cold, pots and pans type sound fits in very well for some of the Russia scenes.

    But I do think it's easily the worst Bond score and if you listen to it outside of the film it sounds awful. The original tank chase music would've ruined one of the best action scenes of the series.

    Shame because I really love the movie itself. You'd think since they were really pulling out all the stops for the movie that they'd bring John Barry back.
  • THEBond007THEBond007 Banned
    Posts: 91
    I think the worst one is Quatum of Solace. It just wasn't the type for it.
  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    I find that the GE soundtrack works very well for the movie and gives it an own identity, it was a great experiment. (for one time)
  • talos7talos7 New Orleans
    Posts: 8,217
    The "Drive in St-Petersburg" track was redone; by whom?. I've read various accounts but does anyone know for sure?
  • bondsumbondsum
    edited February 2013 Posts: 3,333
    It was composer-arranger John Altman that was asked to replace the "Drive in St-Petersburg" cue after Serra refused to change the music, @talos7
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    bondsum wrote:
    It was composer-arranger John Altman that was asked to replace the "Drive in St-Petersburg" cue after Serra refused to change the music, @talos7

    Not the same bloke who played Nick Cotton in Eastenders though!
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    Posts: 11,189
    I thinks a hefty chunk of the Serra score is actually good but Serra's Drive in St. Petersburg is easily the worse track IMO. Thank god it was changed.
  • W_PPKW_PPK
    Posts: 172
    Of course it is underrated. Soundtrack's darkness fits the film.
    And why lots of people complains about "A Pleasant Drive in St. Petersburg"?
    Maybe it would be even better.
    So, I like the GE's music. It's better then e. g. TMWTGG's one.
  • Boris_GrishenkoBoris_Grishenko
    Posts: 9
    I find the Goldeneye score to be a mixed bag. I think it has its moments (Goldeneye Overture, Run Shoot & Jump, Fatal Weakness, The Savernaya Suite, A Good Squeeze, The Scale to Hell), but also fails in alot of places (Ladies First, A Pleasant Drive in St. Petersburg, The Credits Song.) The Gunbarrel is...interesting. I don't like it nor do I dislike it at the same time. It's catchy, but I don't think it's what was best for the movie. The Cold War-style score was fine, but yeah...it had some bad moments too. Overall, I'd give the score a 6/10 on album, and a 8/10 in the movie, as it was very effective, and not distracting (except the car chase between Bond & Xenia.)
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,351
    I can't believe I'm the only one here who absolutely loves the GoldenEye score... :O That techno remix Gunbarrel was the most epic thing I ever heard when I first saw Goldeneye at the tender age of 5!
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    edited March 2013 Posts: 28,694
    Murdock wrote:
    I can't believe I'm the only one here who absolutely loves the GoldenEye score... :O That techno remix Gunbarrel was the most epic thing I ever heard when I first saw Goldeneye at the tender age of 5!
    You aren't as alone as you may think:
    Creasy47 wrote:
    Wow, people absolutely loathe Serra's GE score.

    I...I enjoy it. Bring on the love hate.
  • brinkeguthriebrinkeguthrie Piz Gloria
    Posts: 1,400
    a terrible letdown after a six year wait. nothing but synth. the worst overall score of the series IMO.
  • dramaticscenesofQOSdramaticscenesofQOS
    Posts: 1,282
    Two areas where Serra's score was done well were played in the end credits and also at times wen Bond was realizing or being told how irrelevant he had become.
  • FoxRoxFoxRox
    Posts: 12,474
    I liked a few songs in the soundtrack a lot - I really enjoyed 'Half of Everything is Luck/The Other Half is Fate/For England, James', 'Whispers/Two Faced', and 'Run, Shoot, and Jump'. There were a few other goods ones, but those are the ones I enjoy the most. Underrated to an extent for certain.
  • dramaticscenesofQOSdramaticscenesofQOS
    Posts: 1,282
    FoxRox wrote:
    I liked a few songs in the soundtrack a lot - I really enjoyed 'Half of Everything is Luck/The Other Half is Fate/For England, James', 'Whispers/Two Faced', and 'Run, Shoot, and Jump'. There were a few other goods ones, but those are the ones I enjoy the most. Underrated to an extent for certain.

    That's the thing about GE. It's underrated in certain areas and imo, overrated in many. The whole satellite fight and dish falling on the villain, bloodless fights...others may not care but this was all a denial to Dalton fans. Sure, the friendship betrayal story was Dalton-esque but the way censorship ruined the Ninja Turtle moves, Batman at the time had some effect on Bond too. I did like the way Bond was singled out at times especially in Russia. He was a stranger in Moscow, as they say. The world had moved on without him in a sense.
  • identigraphidentigraph
    Posts: 1,052
    The score is terrible and so dated, much more so than TSLWM or FYEO which often get criticised, it sounds more 80's than the actual 80's films.
  • MayDayDiVicenzoMayDayDiVicenzo Here and there
    edited May 2014 Posts: 5,080
    I don't mind it. In some places, it is severely dated, but I like it for what it is. At least it has some sort of identity, rather than the bland, generic scores that came after it...
  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    edited May 2014 Posts: 7,653
    MayDayDiVicenzo wrote:
    I don't mind it. In some places, it is severely dated, but I like it for what it is. At least it has some sort of identity, rather than the bland, generic scores that came after it...

    The score is not dated, I cannot see how that would be possible as it is a very airy kind of soundtrack, it is nothing like the Drum 'n Bass from the next fella that will be seen as dated much sooner.

    I like it as an identifiable sound for a good 007 movie, the next three movies sound mostly the same.

    That said I tend to like Serra's work.
  • MayDayDiVicenzoMayDayDiVicenzo Here and there
    Posts: 5,080
    SaintMark wrote:
    MayDayDiVicenzo wrote:
    I don't mind it. In some places, it is severely dated, but I like it for what it is. At least it has some sort of identity, rather than the bland, generic scores that came after it...

    The score is not dated, I cannot see how that would be possible as it is a very airy kind of soundtrack, it is nothing like the Drum 'n Bass from the next fella that will be seen as dated much sooner.

    I like it as an identifiable sound for a good 007 movie, the next three movies sound mostly the same.

    That said I tend to like Serra's work.

    ''Ladies First'' basically screams the early 90s. A product very much of it's time.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7CNGN0bWlU
  • ThighsOfXeniaThighsOfXenia
    edited May 2014 Posts: 1,596
    There are a few clunkers on the album but for the most part I think I actually really dig Serra's score. The cold, industrial sound really helps build the post-Cold War atmosphere. And it's definitely unique.

    Not my favorite Bond score by any means, but I like most Bond scores, and I think Serra's score is underrated by many.

    edit: Oddly enough, was just listening to this today...
    edit2: GoldenEye Overture is definitely, in my opinion, a classic Bond track.
  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    MayDayDiVicenzo wrote:
    SaintMark wrote:
    MayDayDiVicenzo wrote:
    I don't mind it. In some places, it is severely dated, but I like it for what it is. At least it has some sort of identity, rather than the bland, generic scores that came after it...

    The score is not dated, I cannot see how that would be possible as it is a very airy kind of soundtrack, it is nothing like the Drum 'n Bass from the next fella that will be seen as dated much sooner.

    I like it as an identifiable sound for a good 007 movie, the next three movies sound mostly the same.

    That said I tend to like Serra's work.

    ''Ladies First'' basically screams the early 90s. A product very much of it's time.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7CNGN0bWlU

    I am not sure what a '90's vibe is, but that piece of music is allright and even better with the movie.

  • LeChiffreLeChiffre
    Posts: 1,548
    Underrated? No. Especially the crappy end tiles Sting-wannabe song.Moving on.
  • jobojobo
    edited May 2014 Posts: 7,507
    SaintMark wrote:
    MayDayDiVicenzo wrote:
    ''Ladies First'' basically screams the early 90s. A product very much of it's time.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7CNGN0bWlU

    I am not sure what a '90's vibe is, but that piece of music is allright and even better with the movie.

    You think so? :O

    For me it's one of the worst pieces of sound ever produced in a Bond film.
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,351
    Yeah the score is underrated. People like to $#&* on the majority of the score just because of "Ladies First." While that's understandable, It doesn't make the entire score bad. The majority of the score is very good.
  • jobojobo
    edited May 2014 Posts: 7,507
    Murdock wrote:
    Yeah the score is underrated. People like to $#&* on the majority of the score just because of "Ladies First." While that's understandable, It doesn't make the entire score bad. The majority of the score is very good.

    I think a lot of the criticism is also aimed at Serra's handling of the bond theme. For me that's probably the only version of that legendary music that does not hit home with me.

    To be fair, though, I do like a lot of the film's instrumental music. Like the Casino scene, Bond and Natalya on the beach, etc...
  • WillyGaloreWillyGalore
    Posts: 6,396
    To think how much better GE would have been with a Barry score.
  • MayDayDiVicenzoMayDayDiVicenzo Here and there
    Posts: 5,080
    WillyGalore wrote:
    To think how much better GE would have been with a Barry score.

    dp9ric.jpg
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,351
    jobo wrote:
    Murdock wrote:
    Yeah the score is underrated. People like to $#&* on the majority of the score just because of "Ladies First." While that's understandable, It doesn't make the entire score bad. The majority of the score is very good.

    I think a lot of the criticism is also aimed at Serra's handling of the bond theme. For me that's probably the only version of that legendary music that does not hit home with me.

    To be fair, though, I do like a lot of the film's instrumental music. Like the Casino scene, Bond and Natalya on the beach, etc...

    True. This is my favorite piece of music from the score.
  • jobojobo
    edited May 2014 Posts: 7,507
    Murdock wrote:
    True. This is my favorite piece of music from the score.

    Agree. That is a good tune. My personal favourite is this one though. It took some time to find, as i thought the piece was associated with Natalya, but apparantly its proper name is "The Severnaya Suite"... For me this is on par with anything Davd Arnold wrote. This is "personal Serra style" in a good way:

  • fromswedenwithlovefromswedenwithlove
    Posts: 654
    Sorry, but I think the score for GE is horrible! I really wish that Newman or Arnold would re-score it! I know it will never ever happen, but still...
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