A.I: Artificial Intelligence" Score Discussion

This is the thread for discussion of John Williams' score to Steven Spielberg's A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, which opened today in the U.S. The soundtrack to the film will be in stores on July 3rd.

The film hasn't opened here in Puerto Rico yet (and probably won't for another week or two or three), so I haven't been able to see it and hear the score. I'm interested in finding out what those who have seen it think of the film and the score. Post your comments here, but please don't mention any spoilers.

 

To summarize:

Haunting. Doesn't try to be sappy and dramatic, and isn't overused.

Not one of JW's big thematic scores, but it serves the film well as background underscoring.

 

IronParrot, is it less thematic than saving private ryan? i felt that had one really good theme and he just played off that. anyway, did you like the film? i've read a couple reviews and the reviewers had mixed feelings about it.

 

The main theme that plays through the trailer only really appears in the finale. The rest of the score is like what IP has said, effective but not attention grabbing. For a colder than usual Spielberg film, this seems to be a nice fit. Because of the fullness of the audience, I could not stay and sit through the credits, something I usually do when trying to listen to ending credit scores.

be back later

 

Is it worth purchasing?

 

Let's see....

A.I. has much more music than Saving Private Ryan in my memory. Most of the film is full of underscoring, often with a solo piano. There really isn't a theme you can grasp onto during most of the film, at least in one viewing. In my memory, SPR never fully used its main theme much at all, only during the end credits when Hymm to the Fallen is it in full glory. As for a purchase, I would think real score junkies like SotS would purchase it, but if you're looking for a pure listening score and don't have some of Williams' more big, dramatic work, then you're better off looking for those first.

 

Well, I just listened to a portion of the score to A.I online, and I liked what I heard. While there were hints of Close Encounters, Empire of the Sun, Jurassic Park and Angela's Ashes, the bulk of what I heard sounded unlike anything John Williams has composed. I'm definitely getting the soundtrack when it comes out.

 

I just saw AI, and frankly, I was left a bit out of sorts.

The music was mediocre. It had a good haunting score, using a piano theme that tied the beginning and the end well, but I believe it was the movie that left me flat.

The movie seemed to be about 30 miutes too long, and I don't believe Kubrick left enough space for a muci score to grow from the film.

I wouldn't personnally buy it, but as a JW fan....I might get it if I see it at the used Cd shop.

 

I can't remember if the score was good or not because well....I can't remember it! I'm not saying it wasn't good, just that it is so subtle and unobtrusive that it is barely noticeable.

 

The score was not very memorable, but it was certainly effective. I don't think I'll be buying it, though.

 

I agree with everyone. No real theme and I wouldn't buy it, but it went well with the movie.

 

I just bought the A.I soundtrack. Once I listen to it, I'll post my thoughts here.

 

It's not a casually listenable score. It's minimalist. If you're familiar with the works of John Adams or Philip Glass, it's along those lines. JW's never really done anything quite like it before. The closest would be the score for Close Encounters.

It fits the movie well, but it's not something you can hum along to. I'd say it's an excellent score in that it does exactly what it's supposed to do in support of the film, but I can't really recommend buying it unless you appreciate minimalist music.

 

Check out the rest of my A.I. review.

What I said: This is John Williams?s greatest score in a long time. Not a single theme in this movie reminded me of any other work he?s done. When I heard the soundtrack for Phantom Menace, there were moments when I kept thinking; ?This sounds so much like ?Seven years in Naboo?? ahem? I mean Tibet.?. There isn?t a single theme in this movie that sounds like something else Williams has done in the past. The Sound Track is haunting and magical.

Mr Williams should make another space on his mantle for another statue come Oscar night. I really liked this Soundtrack!

 

Sorry to go barging in here, and interrupting the flow of the thread, but I need somewhere to have this little rant. In England, A.I doesn't come out until 21st September, but for some reason, the soundtrack is released on July 2nd! I think, and you can correct me if I'm wrong, but that's a day before it's released in America, so why on earth is the soundtrack being released over here, when no one in England has seen the film yet, a day before it's released in America, where people have seen it already? Also, why release it miles away from the release date of the actual film? If any awfully kind person could explain that to me, I'd be terribly grateful.

 

Dude, it's good music.

Here's what you do... you have a mate get the CD for you, and your mate takes the liner notes out and all the other paper work out... and then he gets some masking tape and puts it over the track listings on the CD if there are any.

Then you scream at the top of your lungs: "Renderking! You're and awesome Bloke! I owe you a pint!"

 

I really just noticed the music at the end of the film. It was nice though.

 

The score is very quiet and there's a lot of piano. It does its job, but there's nothing really memorable about it. Like many have said, it's very different from JW's usual work.

 

I doubt the score will win any Oscar. Nominated, possibly.

Two things to consider:

1. JW will probably only get one nomination. He also has Harry Potter coming out at the end of the year. It's a much more listenable, sweeping, adventurous score. It's casually listenable, as opposed to AI, which requires a more patient ear. If voters decide to pick one or the other, they'll probably go with Potter.

2. JW's never won the Oscar unless the film was also nominated for Best Picture: Fiddler on the Roof, Jaws, ANH, E.T., and Schindler's List were all nominated for Best Picture. AI may be nominated, but it's too early yet to say.

 

The music is dour and lamenting for the listener... A real turn away from Williams? usual style of music.
However, as the music plays in much longer sequences (hence the ending) it has a hint of his original epic style of music and an underlying theme of hope.

Then there are moments in the track when Williams allows the track to slip into minor dazes of techno and electronic dance.
For some listening to the actual track it might seem odd, but with the more industrialized settings that take place later in the film (the same time the techno appears) then it is obvious why he chose that music.

All in all, the entire track is haunting, ghastly, foreboding and depressing.
Then at the end he turns full circle and gives us a final optimistic piece.

 

After seeing the movie I thought that the scoring was well done, but it would only go well with the movie (which I didn't really like).

 

I'm not going into any indepth disscussion of the score, just say that I found it rather underwhelming and flat. It was just there, and it did not seem to have the strong thematic, commanding style of his other scores. In the movie, it never really took command of my emotion. That's not to say that is was bad, it was just so secondary to the film that it was not remarkable.

 

I listened to my A.I CD earlier today and I agree that it is a very haunting score. It is indeed an experiment in minimalism, so I wouldn't recommend it to those who are only familiar with Williams' more action-oriented scores. But fans of some of his quieter scores like Empire of the Sun and Close Encounters of the Third Kind should find it highly enjoyable, as I did. I'll post a track-by-track review of the soundtrack later.

 

I had written my track-by-track review a few days ago, but my browser crashed before I could hit "post". Since I'm too lazy to write it again, I'll just say that my favorite tracks are "Abandoned in the Woods", "The Search for the Blue Fairy" and "Reunion".

 

I finally saw A.I. when it opened here on Thursday. As I said earlier, I enjoyed the soundtrack, but the music didn't stay with me very long. But after seeing the film, I can't stop hearing the cues in my head. It's even more of a haunting score when heard with the images in the film. I already mentioned that "Abandoned in the Woods" was among my favorite cues, but it took on a whole new meaning when I saw the heartbreaking scene that it accompanied. Truly a beautiful score that gets better over time.