Search - Danny Elfman, Michael Giacchino, Jerry Goldsmith :: Comic Strip Heroes: Music from Gotham City and Beyond

Comic Strip? Then where's Dick Tracy?

gordonblu | USA | 11/17/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Yes, the title is a big misnomer. All of these characters, excluding the Shadow and the Incredibles, are from Comic BOOKs, not Comic STRIPS! The Shadow was from pulp magazines and the radio, while the Incredibles were only inspired by the likes of the Fantastic Four and such.



Now that I have that petty observation out of the way, I will talk about the music itself.



First off, I have most of these soundtracks already, but I always enjoy hearing different orchestras tackling familiar pieces because each orchestra has a different flavor. I had recently purchased the 'Music from the films of Steven Spielberg' Album and thought the Prague Philharmonic had done a pretty decent job.



They seemed to have a hard time re-recording Spider-Man though. They abandoned the electronic aspect of the theme(i.e. the way cool drum pattern) and as a result the piece seemed lethargic. There seemed to be a similar problem with the suite from the Incredibles, which is ironic since the Incredibles was recorded originally with the enitre orchestra playing at once instead of only recording a section at a time(i.e. The strings, then the brass etc.).



Both Superman and Batman played out nicely. And the version of the Shadow theme, complete with an opening of Mongol music, was a definite Highlight.



The biggest surprise though, was at how well the Fantastic Four theme sounded! It was better than the original soundtrack! It had much more depth to it. I wish they would re-record that entire album!



As for the remaining tracks, I had never heard Judge Dredd before, but I enjoyed it. Batman Begins was nice but not special, and while they pulled off Ottman's Fantastic Four, they were merely adequate with X2(although I think they should have done Kamen's Theme from the first one or even the Phoenix theme from the new picture.)



To wrap up, I enjoyed this album, even though it is nothing special, except for Fantastic Four; That version made me excited for the next Film in the series. Ottman are you listening? Have the Prague Philharmonic record the next score!"

"Super Heroes from DC & Marvel...on the Silver Screen ~ Silv

J. Lovins | Missouri-USA | 07/15/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This collection has some of best film themes for super heroes in one album...Silva America creates visual moods for each film compilation they release...romantic, sentimental, action, adventure, suspense and mystery...the list could go on--- we have "COMIC STRIP HEROES", Silva Screen's release traces several decades of film music...featuring "The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra" --- conducted by Mr. James Fitzpatrick and Mr. Nic Raine (as always outstanding)...performing 10 selections, close to a full hour of symphonic suites with a full orchestra sound...all individually wrapped-up into one neat package...just the way "film-score-buffs" like 'em! --- without a doubt Danny Elfman, Michael Giachinno, Jerry Goldsmith, James Newton Howard, James Ottman, Albert Silvestri, John Williams and Hans Zimmer are some of my favorite film score composers...what does Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne, Peter Parker, Lamont Cranston and Reed Richards have in common...they all have alter egos with secret identities so they may fight crime and put all the baddies behind bars...in the course of doing this they need some of the best music themes to keep the adrenaline going with that knock-out punch.



10 Selections of Crime Fighters Feature Film Music (in alphabetical order in which they appear)



1. BATMAN (Suite) (1989) (Danny Elfman) (12:57)

2. BATMAN BEGINS (Eptesicus) (2005) (James Newton Howard & Hans Zimmer) (4:51)

3. FANTASTIC FOUR (Main Titles) (2005) (John Ottman) (2:44)

4. INCREDIBLES,THE (Suite) (2004) (Michael Giachinno) (5:42)

5. JUDGE DREDD (Suite) (1995) (Alan Silvestri) (4:50)

6. SHADOW,THE (Main Theme) (1994) (Jerry Goldsmith) (2:37)

7. SPIDERMAN (Main Theme) (2002) (Danny Elfman) (4:43)

8. SUPERMAN (Main Theme) (1978) (John Williams) (4:10)

9. SUPERMAN (Love Theme) (1978) (John Williams) (6:12)

10. X-MEN UNITED (Suite) (2003) (John Ottman) (7:50)



Must ask the following to take a bow ~ James Fitzpatrick (compilation producer), always in their pitching, Reynold da Silva (executive producer), Rick Clark (mastered tracks), James Fitzpatrick and Nic Raine performing the conducting duties, a tremen!dous asset to every project they undertake...and the label which made it all possible...Silva America --- must say this collection is nicely priced.



Total Time: 57 mins on 10 Tracks ~ SILCD 1210 ~ (7/11/2006)"