The leitmotif has come to symbolize Luke and the Force, and is arguably one of the most recognizable seven-note sequences in American music. Williams’s composing hand and the London Symphony Orchestra’s strings, for instance, turn a wordless moment in the original Star Wars film into a profound contemplation of power and self-realization.
What’s a Star Wars film without John Williams? It’s a hard question to answer when you consider the careful, virtuoso work he’s done to flesh out and develop a universe of figures and knotted allegiances.
So when I found out that Rogue One: A Star Wars Story would be the franchise’s first live-action film without Williams at its center, I was apprehensive.
Williams’s music has been as vital to my love of Star Wars as have light sabers and giant weapons with rather conspicuous weaknesses. But for me, perhaps the most singular contribution has come from the legendary composer John Williams, of Jaws, Indiana Jones, and Jurassic Park fame. Of course, there are the actors themselves, and the legions of mimics in science fiction and fantasy. In the 39 years the franchise has been in existence, creator George Lucas has had a lot of help in its success and integration into popular culture. The villains of my youth were imitating shadows of the Dark Side, clad in capes and cybernetics, and the heroes were paler imitations of the didactic duos of Obi-Wan and Luke. There were numerous video games, toys, comics, spin-offs, and an entire new trilogy of films by my twelfth birthday, and characters like Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, and Han Solo had long been cultural icons. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is now in theaters nationwide.Star Wars was already deeply embedded in American pop culture by the time I was a kid. Follow him on Twitter midmarauder) and any inquiries can be e-mailed. Tony Stella’s work can be found on his site and his Twitter studiotstella). Midnight Marauder is a Los Angeles-based graphic designer, illustrator, and cinephile.
#ROGUE ONE SOUNDTRACK FULL FULL#
The Ralph McQuarrie-inspired art takes a watercolor-esque approach giving more of an old-school feel than perhaps Disney’s official posters for Rogue One manage to accomplish.Ĭheck out the full score below, along with the alternate poster, and our discussion if you missed it. With the complete score now available to stream, we’re also thrilled to exclusively debut an alternate poster from the film by Tony Stella and Midnight Marauder. I wanted to honor that vernacular but still do something new with it, something that was still me in a way.” There is a wonderful musical language that John put together for the original films. “George was looking at Flash Gordon, the old serials, and John was looking at Holst and different composers along the way to get a baseline for what he wanted to communicate. “It does borrow from traditions that both John and George Lucas borrowed from when they made the original Star Wars, you know,” Giacchino tells EW.
The result is a bombastic composition which touches on cues from the franchise while resisting an all-out pantomime. One of the points of the conversation is a score from Michael Giacchino, who was brought in mere months before release to replace Alexandre Desplat. Alright, maybe you weren’t that curious about how the Rebels got their hands on the Death Star plans, but Gareth Edwards and company have laid things out in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and while it may not be the knock-out blockbuster many hoped for, there’s still much discussion to be had. The story you’ve been waiting nearly 40 years for is finally here.