I got an email announcing the release of a CD, Maurice Jarre’s score to the incredible Sundays and Cybele. The music has been re-recorded by Robert Lafond and the example I heard was very faithful to the original. It’s been a while since I’ve seen this amazing film but I do remember being struck by the soundtrack, especially some intriguing electronic tonalities.
This score so impressed Sam Spiegal that he hired Jarre to score Lawrence Of Arabia. It’s wonderful that his music from this forgotten gem is being brought to life once again. I had the distinct pleasure of working with Mr. Jarre on a film a few years back, Michael Cimino’s The Sunchaser. He was a warm, sensitive person and his score was great. All the musicians at the scoring stage were in awe of him. It was magical to hear his music come to life. Thanks to Clement Fontaine for bringing this to my attention. He is the producer of the album entitled Unpublished French Film Music available on Disques Cinemusique . See The Movie, Listen To The Score.
An intrepid band of young filmmakers got together and made a Western, it’s called The Scarlet Worm. Now they have a distribution deal, congratulations! The Scarlet Worm is an enjoyable foray into Morality Western Style, a gun, a Bible, a whorehouse, a killer with a conscience, a Scripture spouting abortionist. Very creative spin on the genre. Standout performers: Dan Van Husen, Aaron Stielstra, Kevin Giffin, Montgomery Ford, David Lambert, Mike Malloy. Impressive wide screen cinematography by Mike Martinez. Great production design and locations, these guys do a lot with a little, it’s difficult to pull off a period film without a big budget and their results are very impressive. I also thought the practical gunshot effects were outstanding, when someone gets shot you feel it. Lead actor Stielstra composed the score as well and it’s very good, atmospheric, lyrical, it elevates the film. An excellent script by David Lambert explores Religion, Spirituality, Morality, in a classic Western drama, fraught with unexpected twists and creative soliloquies that contrast Biblical verse and natural science and become the basis for man’s rationalization of his horrible behavior. Director Michael Fredianelli assembled a talented cast of actors and artisans and pulled off a coup. The Scarlet Worm will be distributed by Unearthed Films later this year (I got a chance to view an advanced screener). Check it out as soon as you can.
Fassbinders epic SciFi filmWorld On A Wire will screen at LACMA , Saturday August 20th at 7:30 pm. The recently restored 3 1/2 hour movie screened for the first time at the Museum of Modern Art last year, now it’s here in LA, being shown at the endangered LACMA film series. It looks like classic Fassbinder, check out the trailer. All the info can be found here.
