Search - Jerry Goldsmith :: Forever Young

Better than a four

11/21/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I know I wrote the last (and only) review here, but I just had to write again now that I've listened to it more. I just can't stop! It's really a great CD, and the music is all very good. While after my first listening, I didn't think it a five star, I would definitely say now that it is. Based on the fact that there are no other reviews here, that must mean not many people have it, or have checked it out. But they're missing something great, especially if they're a Goldsmith fan. Sorry about the more negative (although 4 stars still isn't bad) review, but this is what I really think about the CD after listening to it more. Definitely get it!"

Not the best, but not too bad!

Stuart M. Paine | 11/12/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Upon hearing the music in the movie, I really liked the romantic, and action cues. So I bought the soundtrack. I was not dissapointed. The Love Theme is very pretty, and woven into a variety of tracks. Some of the secondary music is great as well, including an action theme that really sounds great, and keeps your attention. I can see what the Videohound is saying when it comes to Goldsmith's usually flamboyant themes, this isn't one of those. But it's pretty just the same. There isn't any music that just gets on my nerves and I want to skip, which is always nice. The last track, "The Very Thought of You", is a nice touch of nostalgia, and fits with the era of the movie (That, besides the fact that it's an integral part of the movie). The one bummer is that it's not longer. The whole CD isn't quite 40 mins. However, Rudy (Another of Goldsmith's works, and in my opinion his best), which is my favorite overall soundtrack (out of the 60 or so I've listened to), is even shorter, and that doesn't diminish the value of the CD. I believe the same is true here. It may not be real long, but what's here is nice and worth getting. This probably deserves more like 4 and a half stars. If you liked the movie, I'm sure you'll like the soundtrack. Plus, if you like Goldsmith, you'll want to add this to your collection. And if you like romantic music, put on the Love Theme, turn the lights down low, and bask in it's ambience. You'll feel"

One of Goldsmith's most underappreciated triumphs

Stuart M. Paine | Arlington, VA USA | 11/22/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Fans may know the beautiful Love Theme from FOREVER YOUNG, but I doubt they know the second theme. The first time I heard it, I thought "I know that from somewhere". I had to stop the music for a moment to reformulate it mentally as something more broad, but once I did it came to me immediately. Yes, the "flying" theme introduced in track 2, "Test Flight", is based upon the transcendant climax of Richard Strauss's "Death and Transfiguration". How inspired! (In the film, Gibson's character is put into suspended animation - and then forgotten for more than fifty years before being serendipitously revived.) Jerry didn't borrow from the classical composers often, but when he did he made it count.



The love theme appears in tracks 1, 3, 6, 7 and 10 and the "flying" theme in tracks 2, 4, 7, 8, and 10. In tracks 5, 8, and 9, Jerry uses snippets of the love theme to construct yet other musical shapes. Fans of his exciting irregular-meter action music will find plenty of that in this score, too - in tracks 2, 8 and 10. This is a large orchestra making a very big Romantic sound. I cannot imagine any Goldsmith enthusiast failing to get into it within the first few listens. Track 10, "Reunited", is as exhilarating as anything in EXPLORERS. It's a safe bet that if you liked that one, or RUDY, you'll like this.



The disc concludes with a Billie Holliday rendition of the Ray Noble classic, "The Very Thought of You". That melody does not make its way into the score, though. In this film it merely serves as period source music, albeit conspicuously. Goldsmith devotees might remember that the song was an important element in the 1980 score to CABOBLANCO as well."