To Kill a Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird is not just one of my favorite novels but also one of my all time favorite movies. The music throughout the film had some traits of classic hollywood, such as the "Mikey Mousing" when the children were running from Boo Radley, and during the opening credits when a young child was humming along to the coloring. There was also some leitmotifs in this film, though I did not find there were a certain character's leitmotif. The Radley house and the mystery that lies within the walls. Overall I found the music in this film to be very unique and extremely perfect in telling this tale.

Casablanca

I had never seen Casablanca before yesterday. I knew it was a classic and had some pretty famous quotes but I had never thought of the music in the film. That's why when I turned on the movie and heard the music in the credits I was surprised. It portrayed the frantic, frazzled emotions of the occupants in Europe during World War II, as well as the suspense that was incorporated into the plot of the movie. Another song that played directly into the plot of Casablanca was the song "As Time Goes By." This song brought up the past of Rick and Ilsa, the movies two main characters. It was played throughout the film to bring up the past, bringing them together in the present and sending them into the future. "Music can help build a sense of community." In Casablanca, the music played in Rick's American Cafe, brought Americans together in Europe. They played songs in English, opposed to German or other well known languages throughout Europe. At one point in the film everyone in the cafe was singing along in high spirits. The music in this film brought people together to form a community away from their homes. To summarize the music in this film was not only suppensefull, intriging, touching, and moving. It added untertones that were neccessary to the film and really created the background for the film. d never seen Casablanca before yesterday. I knew it was a classic and had some pretty famous quotes but I had never thought of the music in the film. That's why when I turned on the movie and heard the music in the credits I was surprised. It portrayed the frantic, frazzled emotions of the occupants in Europe during World War II, as well as the suspense that was incorporated into the plot of the movie. Another song that played directly into the plot of Casablanca was the song "As Time Goes By." This song brought up the past of Rick and Ilsa, the movies two main characters. It was played throughout the film to bring up the past, bringing them together in the present and sending them into the future. "Music can help build a sense of community." In Casablanca, the music played in Rick's American Cafe, brought Americans together in Europe. They played songs in English, opposed to German or other well known languages throughout Europe. At one point in the film everyone in the cafe was singing along in high spirits. The music in this film brought people together to form a community away from their homes. To summarize the music in this film was not only suppensefull, intriging, touching, and moving. It added untertones that were neccessary to the film and really created the background for the film.

The Adventures of Robin Hood

There are many leitmotifs in the film The Adventures of Robin Hood, that was composed by Erich Wolfgang Korngold. Robin Hood and the Saxon's leitmotif was a springy sound made by string instruments. Prince John and the Norman Army had a harsher sound made by horn instruments. Marian has a leitmotif that is soft and usually blended into another leitmotif since she was not by herself very often. King Richard the Lion Hearted has a leitmotif that symbolized the good and somewhat resembled Robin Hood's leitmotif. During the many fighting scenes throughout the film, both sounds were combined to form one sound that represented the emotions, actions, and struggles of both sides. John Williams music for films such as Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, and Jurassic Park reminded me of the music that I heard in Erich Wolfgang Korngold's The Adventures of Robin Hood. Both used the characters leitmotifs and transformed them to fit the scenes or to accompany another character's leitmotif. Both composers also use different sounds for the good and the evil.

Psycho

While watching this classic the use of strings was used frequently. The way in which these strings that are used are unlike anything else we have seen in previous films. Strings were commonly used to symbolize love, light, or the female characters in a film. In Psycho, the strings are used in a harsh, almost unpleasant way. The sound is uneven, not constant.

This black and white film was one of the first films to not use the classic hollywood standards for music. I would consider the film Psycho film noir. The use of shadows to convey the killer and the use of light go portray the victum also is classic film noir.

This film has an interesting leitmotif that is unlike any other music that was have seen in a film. It is a harsh sound played by the strings. It is uneven, but remains constant throughout the movie. We would see this suspense filled lietmotif whenever the audience was left guessing about something or unsure of what was going to happen next. This use of hte leitmotif added to the suspense of the movie.

Double Indemnity

I found that the film Double Indemnity had a classic hollywood theme for the credit music, suspense. It started out strong and harsh and pulled you in as you watched it. The sound was dark with lighter strings on layered on top. The harsh music was used to describe the events and the masculine for, but on the contrasting view light music was played whenever a lady was involved to show her soft side.
The use of repetition was also used throughout the film. The same harsh and dark leitmotif was used to descrive the plan and the actions that were carried out.
I also noticed that music played when he was telling the story. The music went along with the narration.

On the Waterfront

When I first started watching On the Waterfront the music sounded harsh. It was loud, strong, and dominant. I suspected that the music would continue this way for the entire movie, but was surprised to discover that the music just stopped in some places, then picked up in a traditional manner again. Another thing thing that struck me as odd was that the music just started, sounded harsh and aggressive. There was no fading in or out of the music. The music simply started and stopped.
Music can make certain important speeches or dialogues in the movie more intense or emotional. The music can influence how the viewer perceives the speech as well. In On the Waterfront there was almost no music during any of the important dialogues.
I found that the music in On the Waterfront did not match any of the other composers that we have studied so far. There was no real leitmotifs or general themes, other than the harsh sounds of the instruments in this movie.