Chinatown

Slightly OT, but akin to the discussion about 2001. Decided to give Chinatown on Encore another watch last night (never did really appreciate it many moons ago), and kept being persuaded by others (and film critics) what a great film this was. Nicholson IS very good as also is Faye Dunaway and others, but my questions refer to the music sparsely incorporated into the first three quarters of the film, especially at climactic points. Exceptional music (quite avant garde, with percussion, piano, some of it prepared, and some strings ....). The end of the film has a memorable slightly queezy and jazzy trumpet theme.

For the real film buffs a question. Was any Berio, Ligeti, or similar music used for Chinatown, or specifically produced for the film? The credits always roll so quickly at the end ... damn it ... it was difficult to catch.

Many thanks in advance. From someone who thinks more highly of the film Chinatown than he once did.

Regards,

# http://www.users.bigpond.com/hallraylily/index.html See You Tamara (Ozzy Osbourne)

Ray, Taree, NSW

The original score is by Jerry Goldsmith with a smattering of tin pan alley tunes.

Another good resource - a PVR. Pause and rewind on demand. Once you've used one, you'll be hooked.

CHINATOWN is among my all time favorite movies; perhaps it is even my absolute favorite movie. It is a jewel of a movie that just gets better with each repeated viewing. Polanski's magnum opus. Did I mention that I really really love this movie?

To answer your question: Originally, Philip Lambro was hired to compose the score for CHINATOWN, though his efforts were rejected at the last minute. Robert Evans then hired Jerry Goldsmith, who had less than two weeks to write the score; amazing, when you come to realize what a terrific score it is. Anyway, the producers wanted a period score. Evans thought that 'I can't get started' by Bunny Berigan (in the movie heard as a source cue) should set the tone for the score. Goldsmith differed and convinced the producers to go into another direction.

Goldsmith about CHINATOWN: 'I told them [Evans and Polanski] that I didn't think that kind of music would be right for the picture in that the visuals already established the setting as 1933 Los Angeles. I grew up in Los Angeles and amazingly enough that's the way it looked. It would be too much of a re-emphasis of the thirties with that kind of music. So I told the producer and director that what we are dealing with in the film are characters and that the time was of little significance. It could be now or 1933. Bob understood and said 'You're right'.'

Instead, Goldsmith went into a different direction. Goldsmith stated: 'When I first saw the film I immediatly got a flash as to the orchestration I wanted. I had no idea musically what it was going to be but there was a sound in my mind'. The only nod to the jazzy period type of music originally requested is the bluesy trumpet theme, though it is updated with modern harmonies. The rest of the score is modernistic, dry, and utilizes an interesting array of instruments, including four harps, four pianos, prepared piano, and various percussions. So, the more avant-garde than period approach was Goldsmith's input.

CHINATOWN is also amazingly well spotted. Goldsmith's score is only about twenty minutes long. Every single cue used in the movie adds something to the scenes that wasn't there before; there's no padding whatsoever in the music. One of the finest scores by one of Hollywood's most distinguished composers.

from http://movie-reviews.colossus.net/movies/c/ chinatown.html

For many noir films, the music is as important as the cinematography and set design in establishing the tone. For Chinatown, Jerry Goldsmith turned in a moody, ethereal score that is unlike anything else for which he has been responsible in his long career. Goldsmith's music evokes Hollywood when it was still a place where dreams were made, when stars were bigger than life, and when Tinseltown was more than just a worn-out nickname. It's not a rousing score, but it fits Chinatown's style and atmosphere more tightly than a surgical glove.