Thoughts on Michael Giacchino's Fallen Kingdom score!

First of all, I'm back! I left the forum months ago since I wanted not to get into any spoilers/trailers/spots until the movie release.

So, what's your opinion (for those who've seen the movie) about Michael Giacchino's score?

I watched the movie twice now (loved it) and am listening to the recently released iTunes tracks previews, and I can safely say the score sounds miles better than its predecessor.

I actually loved Jurassic World's score, but with Fallen Kingdom Giacchino just killed it!

The orchestrations, the sound quality, the epicness of the music is something spectacular.

The Main Theme (also used a lot for the Indoraptor) is FANTASTIC. It's obscure, mysterious, aggressive, and sooo powerful. The use of choir and pipe organ really gives a feeling of an unstoppable force in form of music.
I think it really worked in moments like:

Spoiler:

I noticed also Maisie's theme very sweet yet with a sort of sadness inside it. The military march works well too.

The classic JP and JW themes were used really sparingly but I think they were beautifully arranged.

What do you guys think of the soundtrack?

Please: if you talk about the movie scenes, put them under the spoiler tag!

I really wish I could hear it so I could formulate an opinion on it

Indoraptor's theme and the theme that plays when they arrive to Jurassic World ruins...10/10.

I thought that the score was amazing. I loved the ominous new theme that was used for the opening, the Indoraptor and the ending.

John Williams' music wasn't used much but when it was it added so much emotion and nostalgia to the scenes for example when Hammond's portrait was shown. The music when they arrive at Nublar was amazing and also

Spoiler:

.

I also liked the reuse of some of the themes from Jurassic World.

owenpratt wrote:

The military march works well too.

I loved that the military march was an updated version of one of the themes from TLW. That was very cool.

The best part is definitely the Indoraptor's theme. It's so chilling and instantly recognizable. It's a major part of the movie's atmospehere, for sure. The original JP theme wasn't used much, but was effective in the few scenes it was in. It's also nice to hear the JW theme again, but it's used with less impact here IMO.

Spinosaur4.4 wrote:

Indoraptor's theme and the theme that plays when they arrive to Jurassic World ruins...10/10.

Loved how the first part of the JW main theme played in a minor key, nice choice by Giacchino. It brings a feeling of sadness, like the reflection of another broken dream (after Hammond's Jurassic Park).

Also, I noticed that during the part where they run with the van trying to reach the dock you can hear an action cue veeeery similar to one action music used in TLW when in San Diego Ludlow is chasing Ian and Sarah in order to find the baby Rex.

Also,

Spoiler:

Full Fallen Kingdom score on YouTube! Enjoy!

Listening to the soundtrack as we speak. Enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would so far.

M Favourites:

- This Title Makes Me Jurassic (Best opening ever)

- The Theropod Preservation Society (love the new rendition of Giacchino's JW theme)

- Maisie and the Island (I love how the music accompanies the lines spoken by Lockwood regarding Maisie's "Mother")

- March of the Wheatley Cavalcade (Always love some march music)

- Lava Land (This was the music I originally thought would be the music accompanying the Indoraptor, but I love it regardless)

- Go With the Pyroclastic Flow (The way the majestic Jurassic World theme becomes dissonant as the Volcano erupts is amazing)

- Raiders of the Lost Isla Nublar (This definitely feels like Indiana Jones. Even in te theatre I thought everything about the scene felt Indiana. Loved the music here)

- Volcano to Death :'( (What else is there to be said here? Michael's music definitely enhances that emotional factor just right and the scene is one of the best in the franchise for sure)

- Jurassic Pillow Talk (This was great music to go over a bad guy montage)

- Shock and Auction (I loved this scene, the parallel editing was on point. The music is very Bernard Hermann here)

- And Thus Begins the Indo-Rapture (Just what the Indoraptor needed, this theme is gorgeous, seriously!)

- World's Worst Bedtime Storyteller (This has the best rendition of that glorious overarching theme, IMO. It's actually incredible and  the more I hear it, the more I believe this is one of Giacchino's best utilised themes in any of his scores).

- Declaration of Indo-Pendance (I love that Blue has her own theme and I love that the Indominus Rex motif is included in this one! it is finished off by a fantastic, epic version of the Chasing the Dragons theme accompanied by the powerful choir. I just wish more of Blue's theme was included in the soundtrack release because there was a lot more of it in the movie)

- To Free or Not To Free (The use of the classic 4-note horn motif during the final dilemma is perfection)

I coulda listed the whole thing, really lol.

Just finished the whole thing.

Wow.

Really enjoyed this score much more than JWs. Far less quirky and and eccentric and far more menacing.

Also, Maisie's theme >>> Zack and Gray's theme. Absolutely beautiful.

Tyrant Lizard wrote:

Just finished the whole thing.

Wow.

Really enjoyed this score much more than JWs. Far less quirky and and eccentric and far more menacing.

Also, Maisie's theme >>> Zack and Gray's theme. Absolutely beautiful.

Did Zach and Gray have a theme?

I do think Jurassic World needed a whimsical-sounding score to match the magic of the park being open.

Six-Foot Turkey wrote:

Did Zach and Gray have a theme?

I do think Jurassic World needed a whimsical-sounding score to match the magic of the park being open.

Yeah, "The Family That Strays Together" was basically their theme.

If you say "whimsical" in the sense of "As The Jurassic World Turns", I would agree. However, I feel that as JW went on and the tension ratcheted up, the score didn't reflect that as well as it could have. Themes like "Chasing the Dragons" and whatnot were more quirky than I would have liked.

Tyrant Lizard wrote:

Six-Foot Turkey wrote:

Did Zach and Gray have a theme?

I do think Jurassic World needed a whimsical-sounding score to match the magic of the park being open.

Yeah, "The Family That Strays Together" was basically their theme.

If you say "whimsical" in the sense of "As The Jurassic World Turns", I would agree. However, I feel that as JW went on and the tension ratcheted up, the score didn't reflect that as well as it could have. Themes like "Chasing the Dragons" and whatnot were more quirky than I would have liked.

Ohh right, I didn't know that was considered their theme. I actually really like that one. There's a part in the movie where it plays, but it's totally different. No idea why it's been left out of the soundtrack release.

Six-Foot Turkey wrote:

Ohh right, I didn't know that was considered their theme. I actually really like that one. There's a part in the movie where it plays, but it's totally different. No idea why it's been left out of the soundtrack release.

I just want to make sure I'm getting this right. Which theme would you consider to be Maisie's theme?

Tyrant Lizard wrote:

Six-Foot Turkey wrote:

Ohh right, I didn't know that was considered their theme. I actually really like that one. There's a part in the movie where it plays, but it's totally different. No idea why it's been left out of the soundtrack release.

I just want to make sure I'm getting this right. Which theme would you consider to be Maisie's theme?

Y'know, I never noticed a theme for Maisie in the movie, but it seems both Wilting Iris and Maisie and the Island include similar instrument structure.

Six-Foot Turkey wrote:

Y'know, I never noticed a theme for Maisie in the movie, but it seems both Wilting Iris and Maisie and the Island include similar instrument structure.

Maybe I'm thinking of something else. You tend to get confused when you haven't seen the movie yet xD

Maisie's theme (not sure it's her own theme... maybe it's a theme in general for quieter or sad moments) appears in "The Theropod Preservation Society", "Volcano to Death", "Operation Blue Blood", "Wilting Iris" and "To Free or not to Free". Also in the End Credits suite from 05:18.

The main Fallen Kingdom theme is also used for the Indoraptor, but in general for powerful and dramatic moments about dinosaurs and "inevitable change"... It's used at the end of "This Title Makes Me Jurassic", in "Nostalgia-Saurus", "Operation Blue Blood" (before turning into Maisie's theme), it has a wonderful scary arrangement in "Thus Begins the Indo-Rapture", "World's Worst Bedtime Storyteller", in "The Neo-Jurassic Age" and in the end credits of course.

By the way, absolutely wonderful score. I loved the previous Jurassic World score, but this one is just an improvement on almost every aspect. It also feels more organic. The choir being throughout the whole score unites everything so well. Loved also the TLW-esque use of percussions in some moments.

The JWFK score lacks the uniqueness from the JW score in my opinion. It feels more like a generic movie score that every movie has. There was some tidbits that I think stood out like the TLW'ish sounds but they usually were followed up by more generic music. The JWFK theme was quite nice but does not feel as unique as the JW theme. The only two tracks I really liked were the Wheatly calavade and the last one, because it had the JP theme.

Well, to each their own.
But I'm glad that the vast majority of people is loving Giacchino's new score I just wish most of the people loved the film itself too.

I'm not 100% sure if I think this score is better than Jurassic World's score, but that overarching theme is by far one of Giacchino's best and most well-utilised. It's absolutely stunning every time it kicks in.

owenpratt wrote:

Well, to each their own.
But I'm glad that the vast majority of people is loving Giacchino's new score I just wish most of the people loved the film itself too.

Well, it seems as though most people here really enjoy the film, and that's what counts.

But yeah, this score is a huge improvement on the JW score imho. The theme that's introduced in The Therapod Preservation Society might be my favorite piece of music to come out of a JP film since the original.

For me, I feel like it is rivaling TLW as one of my favorite scores among the sequels.

From 5:18 to 6:40 of At Jurassic World's End gives me absolute shivers.

Spoiler:

Tyrant Lizard wrote:

From 5:18 to 6:40 of At Jurassic World's End gives me absolute shivers.

Spoiler:

Yeah, that's Maisie's theme. Or, whatever, the quiet theme that plays with sad and dramatic moments. Really lovely theme, really brings the emotions of a typical Bayona movie. Reminds me also of some emotional stuff Giacchino composed for Planet of the Apes and Super 8.

Also, anyone else really appreciate the TLW-esque first 30 seconds of "Operation Blue Blood"? It was very effective during the film.

I'd also like to point out just how badass Jurassic Pillow Talk is.

Spoiler:

I like these two best

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFD2LNxqgcY


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9qJ0jagWCI

Fredriksam wrote:

I like these two best

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFD2LNxqgcY


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9qJ0jagWCI

Yeah, probably the best tracks of the score due to that glorious and scary rendition of the FK main theme.

Also, did you notice the JP theme being used from 00:28 of "Volcano To Death"? Didn't notice the first time at the theater. Really subtle.

Love how creepy Keep Calm and Baryonyx is. Has a really "dinosaur-ic" vibe to it too.

Spoiler:

I might be on the minority here, but I have really mixed feelings about Giacchino's scores. He's a great composer, don't get me wrong, but I would say he's the new James Horner, not the new John Williams: he gets so overworked, and has to deliver scores in so little time, that he can't help but phone in some them. There are a lot of great stuff in Fallen Kingdom's score, like that jaws-esque leitmotif that plays in the opening scene when the T. rex is being revealed through the lightning; the Indoraptor leitmotif; the "Volcano to Death", and the mercenaries leitmotif.

But a big beef I've had with this score is that there's moments in the movie where Giacchino literally reuses score from Jurassic World. And I don't mean that he reuses the leitmotifs he composed, he literally just plays music from the first Jurassic World over some scenes, like when they are taking off, and he reuses the "Chasing the Dragons" arrange from "Jurassic World Suite", or when

Spoiler:

I'm also really annoyed by the way Giacchino sometimes uses some leitmotifs in parts of the movie where it doesn't make sense to use it. In the first Jurassic World, I was constantly annoyed by how much the Velociraptor/Owen and Indominus rex leitmotifs were practically identical. It makes sense considering the little twist, but it's used for such different contexts for the two, that it ends up sounding really weird (and, again, he uses that theme in Fallen Kingdom for when they are taking off. Why???). In Fallen Kingdom, for some reason, he uses the Indoraptor's theme in "Neo-Jurassic Age" over

spoiler:

Also, I'm getting increasingly worried by how Giacchino seems to completely refrain from using the "triumphant" version of the Jurassic Park theme in these new movies. It makes sense in Fallen Kingdom, because other than Rexy's big moment, there's really no place where he could have fitted that theme, considering Fallen Kingdom's overall tone. Problem is, considering he didn't use it two movies in (other than a few notes here and there), I'm getting worried that he won't use it in Jurassic World 3 either. I would really like to hear that theme one last time in a new Jurassic Park movie.

I think you might be overthinking it a tad. I imagine he's pretty flexible/loose in terms of the placement of certain themes, preferring to form his soundtracks based on what he feels sounds best and what has the most impact, rather than what makes the most sense.

Different strokes for different folks I suppose.

I will admit though that I am annoyed by the lack of Journey to the Island in these films (although that's partially made up for by the fact that it does have a significant return in it's unaltered form in the Fallen Kingdom Suite).