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just saw this again today on uk t.v. francois dorleac is a bit special. and wot a voice. The way she says Arree Parlmurr - are lurrve her. And we know how good the score is. i stil love that skidoo track - the fast version of the love theme on the snow jetski.
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just saw this again today on uk t.v. francois dorleac is a bit special. and wot a voice. The way she says Arree Parlmurr - are lurrve her. And we know how good the score is. i stil love that skidoo track - the fast version of the love theme on the snow jetski. Agreed on all counts - just watching the end of it now on ITV4, and then I'll be getting out my Kritzerland release of the score again........
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I know it bombed at the box office but I really enjoy Billion Dollar Brain, score and movie. I agree that Francois Dorleac is wonderful in this film. Sad that she died in a car crash in the south of France in May 1967 soon after filming was completed [
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Posted: |
Dec 29, 2013 - 5:36 AM
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By: |
Tall Guy
(Member)
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Just watched BDB for the first time in years, courtesy of itv4, and can offer some fascinating trivia (or pointless pedantry, according to taste). The film does indeed include a lengthy extract from the "invasion march" from Shostakovich's 7th symphony when Midwinter's army is mobilising. Russell and Bennett would almost certainly in 1967 have equated this part of the symphony with the Nazi invasion of Soviet Russia, which is how it was portrayed by the Soviet authorities at the time. Since then many observers have come to believe that, like much in Shostakovich's music, there was an undercurrent that the relentless march could also hark back to the Soviet's treatment of their own people, including the composer, during the 1930s. In the context of the film, this unwittingly adds some further depth and irony to the idea that a mad Texan would try to overthrow communism by way of a private army (with, not forgetting, its obvious Nazi symbolism), so that the "good guy" is really the "bad guy". Also, earlier in the film Palmer is presented to Stok at the end of a performance of Shostakovich's music, which Stok weepingly tells him was written in Leningrad in 1941 during the siege, thus clearly referring to the 7th symphony. However, the final few bars played in this scene are in fact from the finale of the 11th symphony, written a mere 10 years before the film was made. I'm quite sure Ken Russell was aware of this, and used it as a little joke. I fear quite a few notes about this score - including FSM's as part of the MGM Treasury - will now have to be re-written! There you are - fascinating to me and probably pointless to almost everyone else... TG
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I'm a fan of Billion Dollar Brain, both film and score so appreciate your perceptive insights, Chris. Many thanks.
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I saw the main theme performed on 2 grand piano's (one belayed by RRB-can't remember who played the other one) at the annual 'Filmharmonic' concert in 1976. Fantastic to hear it played live what a lucky memory dave. Good insight TG and thanks for clearing all that up, sparked by my alter-ego!!
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