The soundtrack
anyone here think it's among Maurice Jarre's best work?
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shareI don't know because he has a large body of work but I really like the soundtrack from this movie and bought the album/cd 30 years ago.
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MovieChat Forums > Jesus of Nazareth (1977) Discussion > The soundtrack
One of my favorites, for sure.
The IMDb here entry fails to list him as composer (no one is), but it does on his own IMDb page. He is only listed in the Music department section as conductor.
I'm not 100% certain he's listed in the opening credits with a "music by" credit so I haven't submitted it. If you are certain, then I suggest you correct this glaring omission and add a composer credit.
It is a very good soundtrack. I can still hear the score in my head and I just finished watching the movie an hour ago.
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Very defintely among Jarre's worst scores, overdone, semi-atonal, meandering.
Jarre could be very good (Zhivago, Witness) or very bad.
His worst score was the cartoonish junk music he wrote for Ryan's Daughter. Granted, director Lean told Jarre not to write a Celtic-sounding score. But Jarre's response to that directorial instruction turned out to be one of the silliest, most distracting, and inappropriate scores ever slapped onto a film. Jesus of Nazareth fares a bit better, with a few really good moments, but overall, it's like Jarre was making it up as he walked down the street putting attention on chewing his gum.
I'm watching it now, and he's not listed as the composer in the Opening Credits. I'll keep an eye on the closing credits for his name, though.
shareThe main theme, which appears repeatedly throughout the film in a variety of different forms, is quite beautiful and majestic.
Much like the mini-series itself, the score has a sense of grandiose that gives it the feel of a major cinematic production rather than a television quality film.
I don't agree at all with the previous contention that it's 'meandering' or that it sounds like Jarre conjured it up in his spare time while he was barely paying attention. It's a very effective score.
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