One thing I haven’t really talked about much is the music we’ve gotten over the years in the Star Trek movies. Let’s be honest, there is some great music to be found in these films. And the TV series, but today I am focusing on the movies. So I thought it would be fun to go over the theme’s to all ten movies, and rank them from what I consider worst to best. And I am not including the re-boot movies simply because the music never did anything for me with either of them. Yes I did listen to them they are OK just not “Star Trek”. Besides this way it can be a “Top 10″.
#10.Star Trek Nemesis
This is considered one of the worst Trek theme’s, and I agree. No offense to Jerry Goldsmith but man is this boring. Maybe for a dark movie like The Terminator or something, but it just isn’t Star Trek and really sucks. It’s to dark and to damn dull.
#9.Star Trek V:The Final Frontier
Awesome, Jerry Goldsmith was back! Did he have to use the exact same theme as The Motion Picture? Seriously, The Next Generation was going strong also so hearing this in the theater wasn’t really exciting. It felt lazy, like they didn’t want to try something new. This movie was awful and it started with this recycled theme music. To be fair the standard theme does segue into some new music which is nice, .but….eh.
#8.Star Trek:Insurrection
Yep, we get the Jerry Goldsmth theme again. But this time, I am a little more forgiving. This is a Next Generation movie so it fits better than it did on Star Trek V. The real problem comes when that ends and we segue into the boring music that follows it. It’s bad, slow, and totally forgettable. So…I guess it fits the movie perfectly then.
#7.Star Trek First Contact
I have to be honest, the last three TNG movies I had to listen to on YouTube because there was nothing memorable about any of them. So I played this and…I love Jerry Goldsmith but good god is this depressing. This is a big action movie, and the music sounds like it’s the start of a romantic comedy or something else depressing. Awful.
#6.Star Trek III:The Search for Spock
I once made a mix tape (remember those?) of all the Star Trek theme’s, and this is the one I had the most trouble with. Where does it start? Where does it end? Good god is it slow and boring. And I still feel that way. While I love the movie, and there is technically wrong with this score, the music is just way to sad and just doesn’t work for me. And it goes on forever!!!
#5.Star Trek-The Motion Picture
Ok forget you ever heard of The Next Generation, or the other movies this them appears in, this is a kickass theme! It is really wonderful and it’s no wonder it sort of became the official movie theme from then on. It’s exciting and doesn’t bore you, it’s a wonderful theme to a really crappy movie. It doesn’t include any of the TV show theme in it and, what can I say about Jerry Goldsmith that hasn’t been said already? Why so high then? Because it has been reused and rehashed to many times, a movie theme should stand on its own and when you hear this music do you think The Motion Picture first, or TNG? So yeah I have to be a little hard on it, but hey #5 isn’t that bad.
#4.Star Trek VI:The Undiscoverd Country
I was prepared to hate this music when it began. Slow and somber. Yawn. But then the tempo picks up, and it is quite the theme music to be honest. Yeah it’s not my favorite, but Cliff Edeleman gives a theme full of real suspense. It fits in with the action in the movie perfectly, and I ended up pleasantly surprised by this one. Not as light as Star Trek IV but not as depressing as III either. Nice.
#3.Star Trek Generations
This movie has it’s problems, but I adore the music. It is so different from anything else thus far, and it really worked for me. It’s fast, it’s upbeat, it really gets you pumped. Yeah there is a slow section but that still works, especially the best part when it builds back up to the fanfare end with the familiar TV theme s incorprated into it. This one was done by Dennis McCarthy and I simply have nothing bad to say about it. To bad the movie itself couldn’t have been better. It’s the one theme I have to listen to from start to finish.
#2.Star Trek IV:The Voyage Home
I talked about how much fun I had seeing this movie in the theaters, and it began with the fantastic opening music. It was upbeat, it was different, it was…fantastic! It really told us that this wasn’t going to be the depressing stuff we’d had the last two films. I was excited the first second I heard it….right to the final scene of the Enterprise and this beautifulmusic played once again. So why not #1? It was a hard choice, I mean really hard, but the truth is this music is not as iconic as my #1 choice. Would you associate Star Trek with this if you didn’t know better? It sounds more like a cheesy Christmas movie is about to start, doesn’t it? While the kid inside me loved it I have to agree, it isn’t the best Star Trek score ever.
So it may be obvious but here is my #1……
#1.Star Trek II:The Wrath of Khan
No surprises here. But how could it be anything else? This is the perfect movie theme! We hear more of the TV theme in this one, which is fitting since it is closer to the TV series than the first movie. In fact starts like it’s going to rehash the first movie, but then suddenly we get this brand new and fantastic overture. The way the theme builds and builds to that chorus….very lovely piece of music. The good thing about this one is that while it is clearly Trek, it is it’s own unique thing. It goes so well with this movie that it is literally impossible to not hear this music and think of the film. Listen to it, the ups and down’s are perfect. It may be the best movie theme next to The Back to the Future movies for hitting EVER SINGLE NOTE it’s supposed to. James Horner may have passed but he will never be forgotten.
Since I am nothing if not fair, I leave you with the closing fanfare to the Star Trek:Into Darkness. I won’t lie, this music gives me the chills. Fantastic!
So my friends, do you agree with my choices? Comment and let me know.
No comments:
Post a Comment