John Scott: People That Time Forgot, The (1977) / London Studio Orchestra
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- Опубліковано 10 кві 2020
- ABOUT THE SCORE: The career of John Scott has been an odd one, vacillating between a handful of well-regarded or larger-scale prestige film and television projects with, near the beginning of and (sadly) more recently amongst his output, b-rate pictures undeserving of his talent also employing him. This 1977 Doug McClure adaptation of a 1918 Edgar Rice Burroughs novel (among several such films the actor would do with collaborating director Kevin Connor) falls firmly into camp b-movie territory, but it’s not without its charms - a sort of British period adventure opus into prehistoric lands redolent with man-in-suit monsters, savage natives and copious miniatures of less-than-convincing execution that, in the wake of “Star Wars”’s release the same year, would quickly begin to disappear from cineplexes as audience taste and expectations evolved. Scott’s orchestral score fits the adventurous period tone like a glove; it manages to both draw wry grins for its occasional clunkiness (action music from this composer was not yet as full-bodied as it would later become in later efforts like “King Kong Lives” or “Lionheart”) while also impressing with novel orchestrations and an absolutely terrific title theme of adventure and mystery - one that effortlessly transports the listener onto an early twentieth century expedition into primordial and unknown lands. The visuals may fall short of the story’s ambition, but Scott’s flexible and unforgettable title theme atones somewhat for that handicap.
While the main theme carries the lion’s share of scoring duties, with its tone modulated as needed from imposing statements on low-register winds to its flightier moments of valiant heroism, there are a handful of one-off or secondary motifs that command attention. At 2:25 one will find an evocative woodwind melody for McClure’s character, which will reappear occasionally and has an especially wistful, nostalgic airing on flute and bassoon at 16:46. Elsewhere, a lumbering motif for an unconvincing but docile stegosaurus is heard at 11:45, and a toe-tapping march for villainous natives of the prehistoric land makes a tambourine-slapping cameo at 13:02, with impressive fortissimo trumpets near its conclusion that foreshadows similar acrobatics in Scott’s “The Final Countdown” a few years later. The composer wraps up his score in grand style at 20:34, where whispering high violins oscillate in swirling circular patterns atop his main theme on deep celli, lending a sense of reverent mystery. This is then inverted as high strings take up the melody and low, rolling figures are taken up but churning celli beneath rising brass figures that take the theme to its apotheosis, signaling the end of a great journey.
This is not Scott’s highest artistic achievement per se but it’s colorful, creative, adventure music with a terrific main theme that perfectly captures the boyish wonderment and whimsy inherent in Edgar Rice Burroughs’ adventurous and fantastical writing. As always, Scott excels at such spirited and intrepid musical storytelling.
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The score is the best thing about this movie! John Scott always comes up with the goods!
A very entertaining movie. A magnificent score.
John Scott was an underrated composer.
I wish I could start over and re live my life so i could see this again on the weekend while playing with my toy dinosaurs, i miss this so much. I need to find a model of that sea plane. Thank you for sharing video.
I didn’t know this soundtrack and it’s a wonderful surprise! Thanks for your kindness! Scott has definitely a magical touch.
a forgotten magical film i love Land that time Forgot 1975 ,but as a kid in early 80's i saw this first must have seen it around 1981-82 on tv an was mesmerized by this score
The film may not be perfect but the theme tune is absolutely brilliant!
Agreed, it's an amazing melody that perfectly captures the spirit of mystery and turn-of-the-century adventure that epitomized Burrough's writing. I love the way Scott treats it during the end title (partially unused/badly edited in the film) especially.
Happy 2023!
The film is okay but this soundtrack is amazing!
great poster.
Here again 😆
👌❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤👍👍
13:33 shades of Star Wars
Every three months it seems!
The sad part of this awesome sound track is the themes jump around out of sequence, and the end theme is too short. it was longer in the film .and was perhaps one of the best parts of the sound track.
very true end theme was longer in the film
@@figureofauthority you can hear very clearly that the second half of the end title is (badly) edited to loop in the film. What you hear here is the track as it as intended and recorded, not as badly mangled by a music editor for the final film.
@@bobbengan I still prefer the longer version, it was one of the best parts of the score, and holds special and fond memories for me. I had recorded the longer version from the movie as I liked it so much and was listening to it in the back seat of my Parents car as were were driving over the bridge into Charleston S.C. and just as it was playing I looked out the side window and saw the USS YORKTOWN at the Patriot's Point Naval museum which my Father pulled off the ramp and drove over too When I pointed it out. That was the last vacation I had with My Parents so when ever I hear this end theme it reminds me of seeing the USS YORKTOWN and My Father stopping so I could see the Navy Ship's at the museum, and I continue to this day to play the recorded movie version when I build a Navy ship model.
The very poor dinosaur effects aside, the rest of the film is quite superb.
it is a low budget british movie so i learned to not expect much of the effects, yet i wish i could have like an aurora model kit of all the dinosaurs from the franchise lol
I think John Scott would have a very strong case in that the theme to Death on the Nile a year later in 1978 was a real ripoff of his theme here
Very familiar with that score, afraid I do not hear it at all, aside from one small modulation in that score's main theme that is arguably sounds a little bit like part of Score title melody here - if you really "squint"!
@@bobbengan Listen to the end credits of People
i enjoyed this movie the first time around, but now i've gotten older, i realise it is sexist as hell and it suffers hugely from anticlimax. and that isn't saying it isn't epic, it just feels odd to kill Tyler. That completely destroys the motive of the characters, and me, a die hard fan of Doug McClure, finds it stupid to kill him off. i decided to read the books to see if they're better. that is my opinion of the movie. sorry if i spoiled it.