Does anybody out there have an affinity for John Williams's comedy scores? I always thought that this was an neglected stage in his career. My all time favorite Williams's comedy score is "Fitzwilly". Anybody who wants to post their favorite Williams' comedy score - that includes "Home Alone" too!
The choices are: NOT WITH MY WIFE YOU DON'T BACHELOR FLAT JOHN GOLDFARB PLEASE COME HOME FITZWILLY HOW TO STEAL A MILLION GUIDE FOR THE MARRIED MAN HEARTBEEPS PENELOPE HOME ALONE
I am quite fond of A Guide for the Married Man (love the title song and "The Globetrotters" may well be one of my favorite Williams cues) and Heartbeeps (likewise, "Crimebuster").
I've also gotten into Not with My Wife, You Don't!. Good, if not quite as catchy.
Well, it doesn't have Dick Van Dyke or Lucille Ball in it, but it is a comedy with dark overtones as is MASH.
I rather consider it a pastiche movie with lots of meta tools. Like a French New Wave film. I guess if you find such meta tools comic, you might consider it a comedy.
I've always felt Home Alone is one of the most remarkable movies because it didn't have a big opening, was disliked by critics for the most part but took off with the public and became one of the biggest making movies of all time for that time. John Williams had already been associated with most of the biggest money makes of all time but with the kind of movie that are more typical and then this little movie came out of nowhere.
The Christmas stuff is the highlight but the comic slapstick writing is pretty amazing in showcasing his attention to detail and just overall insight. Slapstick isn't my cup of tea but to the extent it works the music I think does play a big role in timing and the set up of the humor. Williams played a bigger role I think in the movie's success than is generally appreciated - not just for the comedy but also the sentimental payoff.
Williams never wrote a huge amount of comedy so it makes the pick a little easier.
John Goldfarb's score on close inspection proves to be one of Williams most inventive efforts, delightful mixing & matching of elements, exotica, middle-east, ethnic melodies, themes catchy like spy music, Williams frenetic cues keep pace & trajectory with its screen narrative.
My favorite John Williams score for a comedy film is Monsignor.
He, he....yeah, it's so camp in its execution, it might very well be a comedy.
Then again, films like HEARTBEEPS are even better examples of that. I don't think HEARTBEEPS was ever intended as a pure comedy, despite Kaufman's presence.
In order to understand/appreciate a comment, you need to understand/appreciate the commentator's point of view/opinions ...
... so I'll start by saying that I'm not Mr. Williams' greatest fan. I have a number of his scores but I don't think he rates in my top 10 film score composers ... albeit I acknowledge he is probably the most successful in this field.
So, to answer the OP's question: I don't rate his comedy scores at all highly. Pleasant: certainly, and workable ... but definitely third-rate when compared with his contemporaries: Mancini and Dunning ... and there may be several/many others such as De Vol and Previn with whom he compares unfavourably.
When I last watched How to Steal a Million (1966) I found the music intrusive and less than good; I'm not sure I've ever seen Not With My Wife, You Don't! (1966) but its score is not that welcoming ... and I imagine Mr. Mercer's involvement aided it somewhat. I have that album and scores for A Guide for the Married Man (1967) and Penelope (1966) which have limited appeal - for me - the latter's best track being The Sun is Gray ... enough said.
A brilliant composer/arranger/conductor ~ all-round musician but, for me, comedies have never been his forte.
Does anybody out there have an affinity for John Williams's comedy scores? I always thought that this was an neglected stage in his career. My all time favorite Williams's comedy score is "Fitzwilly". Anybody who wants to post their favorite Williams' comedy score - that includes "Home Alone" too!
This film gave us the song "Make Me Rainbows" with a lyric by the Bergmans. It's been recorded a number of times. One of my favorite covers is by Michel Legrand on his "Cinema Legrand" LP. MGM records, mid 60's. Entire album is on youtube.
