Rank the film scores.

[Timby]

I'm not sure how people can rank the Final Frontier score so much lower than The Motion Picture, as much of it is the TMP score, re-orchestrated, with some brilliant new material, such as "The Mountain" and "A Busy Man." I understand why some people might dislike the movie, but the score? Can't see it.

 

[Captrek]

I'm not sure how people can rank the Final Frontier score so much lower than The Motion Picture, as much of it is the TMP score, re-orchestrated, with some brilliant new material, such as "The Mountain" and "A Busy Man." I understand why some people might dislike the movie, but the score? Can't see it.

Several comments, speaking only for myself.

First: Just because I rank it eighth out of eleven doesn’t mean I don’t like it. The series has has a lot of excellent music.

Second: While there may be some brilliant cues in TFF that aren’t in TMP, there are also some brilliant cues in TMP that aren’t in TFF, and I think there are more of the latter than the former.

Third: The same music may work differently in different contexts. Take the main theme, for example. In TMP, it’s a triumphant announcement of Trek’s return, ten years after being declared dead, for its first big budget, big screen adventure. It’s stirring music for a stirring moment. By 1989, a fifth movie was kind of taken for granted and the music itself had become the theme heard every week at the start of ST:TNG, so it has a much more “business as usual” feel compared to the same music in TMP. Other reused cues also feel like perfunctory scoring-by-numbers: “Here’s some Klingons on the screen, time to whip out the ‘Klingon Battle’ music from TMP.”

 

[Therin of Andor]

Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Jerry Goldsmith
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home - Leonard Rosenman
Star Trek (2009) - Michael Giacchino
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - James Horner
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country - Cliff Eidelman

I play those quite often, and love them.

The rest then start to level out:
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier - Jerry Goldsmith
Star Trek: First Contact - Jerry Goldsmith
Star Trek: Nemesis - Jerry Goldsmith
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock - James Horner
Star Trek: Insurrection - Jerry Goldsmith

are all on a par for me. And, strangely, I find this one utterly forgettable:
Star Trek: Generations - Dennis McCarthy

 

[Therin of Andor]

I'm not sure how people can rank the Final Frontier score so much lower than The Motion Picture, as much of it is the TMP score, re-orchestrated, with some brilliant new material, such as "The Mountain" and "A Busy Man." I understand why some people might dislike the movie, but the score? Can't see it.

Because the ST: TMP soundtrack evokes strong nostalgia for that film and, as pretty as ST V's soundtrack is, it's just a new presentation and extensions of very familiar music. Yes, ST V has some amazing tracks, but the music as a whole makes me remember how we laughed at Director Shatner's well-intentioned self-indulgence on opening night.

 

[Mr_Homn]

It's really too difficult to do this. There's just so much good music in the series.... I've been trying to come up with my list forever and I just can't.

 

[Cicero]

I'm not sure how people can rank the Final Frontier score so much lower than The Motion Picture, as much of it is the TMP score, re-orchestrated, with some brilliant new material, such as "The Mountain" and "A Busy Man." I understand why some people might dislike the movie, but the score? Can't see it.

For me, The Final Frontier's music isn't bad so much as uninteresting. There are some promising ideas in places - in the latter part of "A Busy Man," and at the start of "The Mountain," for example, but they never really develop.

In The Motion Picture, I dislike everything not derived of the main theme or "Ilia's Theme" - particularly those tracks that use synthesizers - but I love the themes that I do like. Unfortunately, the reworked version of the title in The Final Frontier is my least favorite version of it.

My ranking:

1. The Wrath of Khan
2. Star Trek
3. The Undiscovered Country
4. The Voyage Home
5. The Motion Picture
6. First Contact
7. Nemesis
8. Generations
9. Insurrection
10. The Final Frontier
11. The Search For Spock

 

[xortex]

It's impossible for me not to rank TMP first as it is a seminal piece of work with more substance and integrity than TWOK. They were two different approaches. One thoughtful, meaningful and deep and the other swashbuckling. It was also worked on by Fred Steiner, one of the original composers so for me it captured the spitit and essance of Trek best if not the fun so much. TVH was funny with that stupid opening blare of the trumpet fanfare a la the latest Indiana Jones movie but the music was ironically good by a masterful oscar winning composer but who doesn't like James Horner's spirit of adventure. Watch 'Krull' or 'Battle Beyond the Stars' for trumpet fanfares from hell and 'Glory' while you're at it. TSFP is better than TWOK as it's the same music only slightly better and more of it. 'Generations' is deceptive. It's not really music but an irresistible ambiance and panoply amalgamam collage of sound. The new movie theme was pretty nice and TUC I liked alot. Meyer wanted Holst's 'Planets' and got something pretty cool, nice and dramatic like him. The First Contact theme was the best melody of the bunch. It makes you want to cry it's so beautiful like the Borg themselves, I guess.

 

[Lonemagpie]

TMP
FC
ST XI
NEM
TFF
INS
TUC
TWOK
TSFS











GEN























TVH

 

[RandyS]

I don't know them all well enough to rank them, but FIRST CONTACT is the probably the one I listen to the most when writing.

That one DOES have the best opening theme, doesn't it?

Huh, you listen to soundtracks while writing too, huh? I thought that was just something I did.

 

[Lonemagpie]

I don't know them all well enough to rank them, but FIRST CONTACT is the probably the one I listen to the most when writing.

That one DOES have the best opening theme, doesn't it?

Huh, you listen to soundtracks while writing too, huh? I thought that was just something I did.

a lot of us do it - ISTR there was a whole thread about it on the Trek Lit board a year or two back, which focussed mainly on what David Mack wrote Destiny to...

 

[Admiral James Kirk]

1.The Final Frontier
2.The Motion Picture
3.First Contact
4.The Voyage Home
5.The Wrath of Khan/The Search for Spock (same fuckin' score if you ask me)
6.Trek 09
7.Generations
8.Nemesis
9.Insurrection
10.The Undiscovered Country

 

[Capt_Pickirk]

1. The Wrath of Khan
2. First Contact
3. The Final Frontier
4. The Search for Spock
5. Nemesis
6. Star Trek 09
7. The Undiscovered Country
8. The Motion Picture
9.Insurrection
10.The Voyage Home




...
























...


999. Generations (Bleeeuuaagghh!!! I hate this score. The worst score to a star trek film ever)

 

[Lowdarzz]

My opinion on this shifts from time to time but here is where it stands at the moment.

The Motion Picture
The Final Frontier
The Wrath of Khan
The Search for Spock
The Undiscovered Country
Insurrection
First Contact
Nemesis
Generations
The Voyage Home
Star Trek 09

 

[Amasov]

The Final Frontier had some nice tracks. Despite using the theme to The Motion Picture and having heard it every week on The Next Generation, it did seem a little bland, but I like the music that follow the opening title; The Mountain. Very nice track, in my opinion. Star Trek II and III are very similar, but I know III has some stand out tracks that aren't featured in II. Stealing the Enterprise is probably the signature track for me, but I often forget that it's very close to one of the final pieces of music from II -- when the Genesis device is activated.

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjsWr9FT824[/yt]

Star Trek IV does sound like this in parts, but eh, I still like it.

 

[mic of orion]

Star Trek: First Contact - Jerry Goldsmith
Star Trek: Insurrection - Jerry Goldsmith
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home - Leonard Rosenman
Star Trek: Nemesis - Jerry Goldsmith
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country - Cliff Eidelman
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock - James Horner
Star Trek: Generations - Dennis Mcarthy
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - James Horner
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier - Jerry Goldsmith
Star Trek - Michael Giacchino
Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Jerry Goldsmith