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Forum - General Questions |
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Question
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Maurice Jarre: The MacKintosh Man and WUSA
Has anyone ever come across Maurice Jarre's scores for the MacKintosh Man (1973) or WUSA
(1970). Paul Newman was the star in both movies.
There exists an obscure vinyl release for the first (never seen, though), and for the second I
never heard anything about it. I can't imagine, however, that the music is unpublished
because Jarre was at the peak of his career in 1970 (having just scored the widely celebrated
Ryan's Daughter).
And does anyone know whether there was a special relationship between Jarre and Newman?
There are at least four cooperations between 1970 and 1973. Mere coincidence? I think not,
since Newman, producer and director of some of these movies, was very careful in selecting
the people he had to deal with.
Christian.Quatremain, August 4, 2006; 6:15 PM
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Answers
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He also worked four times with the late John Frankenheimer and twice with the late Moustapha Akkad.
TheSaint.786, August 5, 2006; 12:17 AM
Okay so far, but what about The MacKintosh Man and WUSA?
Ever stumbld into these scores?
Christian.Quatremain, August 5, 2006; 1:41 AM
Sorry to throw water on the flames but ...
... as a fan of Desmond Bagley's novels (well, at least I was reading them in the hope that the next one would be very good) I went with great expectations to see The Mackintosh Man ... what a rubbish movie it was (and no doubt still is!) and in no way resembles the better British action movie of the 70's.
And I recall the music by Jarre as being ... music by Jarre. He had such a style in those days that it took less than 30 seconds to recognise the composer! I remember the finale theme as being pleasant (despite the "horrific" story end) but he was not the right man for this movie. The poor film and mismatched score probably provide the reason for the lack of album distribution and subsequent CD issue.
As for W.U.S.A., sorry no knowledge (I used to avoid Paul Newman movies unless there was another reason to see them).
Perhaps it's time I saw The Mackintosh Man again to see if my acerbic views have softened!
Mitch, August 5, 2006; 1:32 PM
Well, like Mitch am not very fascinated by the movie. There are many much better spy
thrillers.
But the music was quite good. In particular, I remember a scene when Newman was walking
through rainy London streets, accompanied by music in Ipcress File/Quiller Memorandum-
style (so the comparison to Barry's Persuaders makes some sense). But, hell, it's 7 or 8 ago
that I last saw it.
I just discovered that the main theme is featured on this release:
http://www.soundtrackcollector.com/catalog/soundtrackdetail.php?movieid=24804
Anyone out there who owns/knows this release?
Christian.Quatremain, August 5, 2006; 3:29 PM
By the way, WUSA is by Lalo Schifrin, not Maurice Jarre.
I've always enjoyed THE MACKINTOSH MAN score, and the movie. Comparisons
with Barry's THE QUILLER MEMORANDUM are very apt. Another Jarre score that
doesn't seem to get mentioned very much is THE BLACK MARBLE. I remember it
has a lovely end title theme.
stephenlister, August 5, 2006; 5:50 PM
Hi catfellah,
you're totally right about Lalo Schifrin and WUSA.
Don't know what made me think Jarre was the composer for WUSA (but that score, or scraps of
it, havn't been released either, as far as I know).
Sorry, folks.
Anyway, did you ever listen to MacKintosh Man-LP?
Christian.Quatremain, August 5, 2006; 10:57 PM
I used to own that LP, and I'm fairly sure that the majority of the tracks were
lifted straight off the films - you could hear sound effects under some of the
tracks, if I remember correctly (I don't own the LP any more).
stephenlister, August 5, 2006; 11:17 PM
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