This past weekend I went to see the new Thor movie with my dad, and one thing I really liked about it was the soundtrack. As a trombonist I’ve always been a fan of the rather epic soundtracks associated with sci-fi and adventure films, but this one was enjoyable in a much different way. The soaring french horn melodies as the heroes descended onto the battlefield were replaced with driving rhythmic beats and synthesized sounds mimicking the 1980’s, the dramatic choral accompaniment when the villain ascends the steps of the castle were replaced by the sounds of Led Zeppelin’s loud guitar chords, and the beautiful love themes were replaced by pulsating synthesizer underneath edited vocals.
The most interesting thing I found in the movie was the transition. It begins with a fairly normal soundtrack, but slowly begins to switch over to mainly synthesizer. The first scene of the movie I noticed this was when Thor’s father dies and that event triggers the arrival of the movie’s main villain, Hela. As Odin fades away, the music turns to a minor setting as Thor grieves his loss (around 3:11). Then as the music gets darker and the portal from which Hela arrives opens, the earthy woodwind/string sound slowly gets replaced by heavy brooding brass and synthesizer. They begin to fight and the synthesizer is there, but very low and still not a main part of the score until Thor arrives on the alien planet, this is just the first instance where I noticed it’s presence and the effects of it.
Once Thor arrives on the alien planet of Sakaar where everything is 80’s colored and exciting, the music really blows up with electronic sounds. From here on out the movie is very electronic sounding and it creates a very different experience than what a normal Marvel fan might expect. I think for me at least the integration of the orchestra and the synthesizers was extremely cool and effective. The music was written by Mark Mothersbaugh, and he has stated that he combined his knowledge of synthesizers from Devo with his knowledge and access to a 100 piece orchestra to create the score.
The video I chose is a teaser trailer for this film. I particularly like this trailer because it highlights this transition of old to new in terms of score. The trailer begins with Thor hanging by a chain and voicing over, while a quiet choral interval is repeated in the background. As the scene fades and Thor begins to explain some background, the Led Zeppelin comes in nice and strong. If you go back and listen to the opening of the trailer you can hear that the choral interval is the same exact interval featured in “Immigrant Song”‘s iconic call. Also if you go back with the knowledge of the upcoming Immigrant Song, you can hear the drums very softly present underneath the chorus. This trailer does a great job in my opinion of integrating the new and old styles of soundtrack from the dramatic orchestral score to the similarly dramatic and maybe even more exciting rock and roll background music. Even though the Led Zeppelin music had different connotations with it’s release and wasn’t written specifically to match this scene of film, it’s effects are similar and even more effective in many ways. This could be possible because of the nordic connotations already in the song and the fact that it’s supposed to be “powerful and funny“, something the movie strives for in itself.
These are some comments that I thought sum up my point very well. The first uses some crass language to describe the popularity of the movie and associates it all with the music, while I don’t necessarily agree with them because who knows what the music is going to be like before watching? But whatever. The second goes as far to place the music over the aesthetic attraction to Cate Blanchett! I’d say that’s a pretty cool statement in today’s sexist world of stupid men who love fighting movies with pretty women in them. Finally the third comment reveals that the song is also used in the movie and even though it is repeated, it’s presence only amplifies the experience! That’s cool, sometimes things get overused.
All in all I thought this movie was pretty cool, and it’s use of both orchestra and synthesized sounds made it a very interesting aural experience for me. I urge you to watch the movie and even listen to the soundtrack!
I found this to be quite a cool read! I too saw the new Thor movie and I thought it was really good on so many levels. I didn’t even think about this musical evolution throughout the film, and I’m glad you pointed it out. Music can have such a strong impact on a film, and can heighten the viewing experience by triggering our auditory senses to accompany the visual masterpiece before our eyes. I thought the synth music throughout the movie was very well done, and there was a really cool blend between electronics and acoustics. It also makes sense that they utilized pieces from “Immigrant Song” because in the film the Asgardians have to move to Earth because (SPOILERS) their home, Asgard, gets ripped to pieces in an intense fashion. Really cool article Ben, thanks for sharing!