Taking a vastly different route from the usual dance party antics that can be found here every Friday night, this week I am showing some love for one of cinema's greatest contributors, Ennio Morricone. The man's work is vast and he has done many memorable scores, but I have a personal favorite that I will be focusing on this evening, which comes to us from 1971's Duck, You Sucker aka A Fistful of Dynamite.
What sets this party apart from most is the fact that I will be providing an entire sequence from the film, but it is a sequence that encapsulates why Morricone and Duck's director, Sergio Leone, worked so brilliantly together. It's also my favorite part of the film, so it's a no-brainer. The scene in question is the siege on the Mesa Verde bank, where Juan Miranda (Rod Steiger) believes he is robbing a bank, but instead, he is actually releasing political prisoners of the Mexican revolution, making him a great hero.
This segment starts with a little sampling of the Duck,You Sucker title theme, Invention for John, and sets up the entire segment in a nice way. After a little chit-chat, thing really gets going at the 3:05 mark when the song March of the Beggars begins to make its presence known and then plays throughout the rest of the sequence. What I love about this section of the film is how it shows what music can add to a film, as the music simply compliments everything that is happening on screen - which is essentially the point of a score - but this is a perfect example of it being done right.
Before I send you off, I should note that the 6 and 7 minute marks are SOOOO GOOD!! Sorry, I could resist.
Alright, this party's about to "blow up," shun (shun-shun-shun)!
My 2nd favorite Morricone score & my 2nd favorite Leone film.
ReplyDeleteI DARE you to listen to March of the Beggars and NOT wave your arms in a conductor like fashion!
Nice. I have a couple of songs from this movie as part of a pretty big Ennio Morricone music collection that I have. My new favorite Ennio Score as of a couple of weeks ago is DEATH RIDES A HORSE, specifically the main theme. SO fucking good. It's on the latest edition of Death Rattle Radio (plug). Easily one of my top 5 score of all time now. I also like Ennio's work in BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE and the obvious choice of THE GOOD THE AND AND THE UGLY. "Ecstasy of Gold" is one of the most beautiful songs ever written for a film. I could go on and on about Morricone. Have you picked up Mike Patton's Mondo Cane joint yet?
ReplyDeleteOh and I haven't seen this movie yet, but I'll be watching it soon since you picked it for me. Looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteTurnidoff: It gets in your head and stays there for sometime...I always catch my self whistling it at random times. Definitely one of my favorite Leone films and Morricone scores too.
ReplyDeleteAaron: I haven't checked out the newest Death Rattle Radio, but I shall head over there and tear that shit up asap! Death Rides A Horse is a tight song, though, I haven't seen the movie yet (but REALLY want to), but I do know it from Kill Bill.
I did very recently pick up Mondo Cane and actually found it on Amazon for download for only $5 bucks, which is a low enough price I suppose. I haven't fully delved into it yet, but from what I have heard, it is pretty amazing. Patton is just...you know, awesome.