AboutKjell Neckebroeck, Author at JAMES HORNER FILM MUSIC
GLORY: AN ANALYSIS OF THE COMPLETE SCORE
September 14, 2021 | Kjell Neckebroeck | One CommentOnce in a blue moon, a score comes along that floors you well and truly. Granted, 1989 was an unusually strong year for film music, but on the battlefield of musical excellence, James Horner arguably carried the day. Even coming … Read More
THE LAND BEFORE TIME EXPANDED EDITION: OUR EXCLUSIVE REVIEW
October 27, 2020 | Kjell Neckebroeck | 6 CommentsWith their expanded 74-minute edition of The Land Before Time (1988), the diligent folks at Intrada bring back into the spotlights one of the absolute masterpieces of James Horner’s long and distinguished career. The music sounds as punchy and clear as … Read More
CASPER EXPANDED EDITION: OUR EXCLUSIVE REVIEW
August 4, 2020 | Kjell Neckebroeck | One Comment1995 saw James Horner climbing steadily to the height of his fame. The year yielded first-rate scores for Braveheart, Apollo 13, Casper, Jumanji and Balto – with a dud like Jade thrown in for good measure. Even though Titanic and … Read More
ONCE UPON A FOREST – AN ANALYSIS OF THE COMPLETE SCORE
June 22, 2019 | Kjell Neckebroeck | One CommentNotes on the movie Once Upon A Forest opened to mixed reviews on June 18, 1993 and was not the financial success that the filmmakers had hoped for – of course, there was the small matter of Spielberg’s dinosaurs … Read More
ONCE UPON A FOREST – AN INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR CHARLES GROSVENOR
June 22, 2019 | Kjell Neckebroeck | One CommentHot on the heels of A Far Off Place and just prior to Searching For Bobby Fischer (both 1993), James Horner was asked by producer David Kirschner to score a modestly budgeted animation movie called Once Upon a Forest. Kirschner … Read More
NOTES ON PROJECT X: HOW JAMES HORNER MAKES THE MONKEY SHINE
March 19, 2019 | Kjell Neckebroeck | One CommentThanks to the efforts of La-La Land records, one of James Horner’s most addictively enjoyable scores gets another deluxe treatment. Not that there was a lot to complain about: Varese Sarabande had released the near entirety of the score in … Read More
AN AMERICAN TAIL EXPANDED EDITION: OUR EXCLUSIVE REVIEW
February 12, 2019 | Kjell Neckebroeck | 2 CommentsAfter the artistic and commercial success of his first animation project, 1982’s The Secret of N.I.M.H., Disney alumnus Don Bluth (born 1937) and his newly established studio went from a separate entity that produced animation to part of a major … Read More
BALTO EXPANDED EDITION: OUR EXCLUSIVE REVIEW
October 30, 2018 | Kjell NeckebroeckJames Horner once said he never turned down a project offered to him by Steven Spielberg. (Neither would any other composer in their sane mind, I imagine.) After Schindler’s List (1993), Spielberg embarked on a string of serious movies calling … Read More
*BATTERIES NOT INCLUDED 2-CD: OUR EXCLUSIVE REVIEW
September 19, 2018 | Kjell Neckebroeck | One CommentLike so many other movies of its day, 1987’s *batteries not included basks in the soothing glow of all things Spielberg. Showcasing a family of flying saucers, designed by Industrial Light and Magic as miniature versions of the mothership in … Read More
FOR GREATER GLORY: AN ANALYSIS AND AN INTERPRETATION
June 24, 2018 | Kjell Neckebroeck | 2 CommentsWhen in 2011 James Horner was offered the Mexican-made Cristiada (re-titled For Greater Glory for its international release), he realized he was placing himself in the service of the faith crowd. And faith-based movies are invariably a risky proposition. … Read More