Thursday, April 23, 2009

Something for Thursday

One of the better-known bits of 1980s pop-culture trivia is that Tom Selleck was originally slated to have played Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark, but was unable to get free of his contract to CBS and Magnum, PI. So Harrison Ford got the role and used it to break free of any potential Star Wars typecasting, and Selleck saw his own movie-star career pretty much end. Selleck would do movies, but he would never be the big movie star. I doubt he minds this all that much; Selleck has enjoyed a long and admirable career shuttling between movies and teevee.

However, he did get a consolation prize a few years after Raiders, in the form of a movie called High Road to China. Selleck is a drunken ex-World War I flying ace who is hired by Bess Armstrong to fly her to China, in search of her father, who has disappeared. (This has something to do with an inheritance or some such -- it's been well over fifteen years since I saw the movie.) Various adventures ensue as they fly in a pair of biplanes (Selleck has a buddy who tags along) from Cairo to China. As movies go, High Road to China is a nice work; not great but not awful either. Aside from its leads, its most notable features are the gorgeous cinematography and the lush romantic score by John Barry, which gives us this love theme.

4 comments:

The Earl of Obvious said...

I don't understand why you (in a previous post about your local classical music station) discount baroque classical music and seem to favor music like this which (to my untrained ear) sounds like typical homogenized background music. Not muzak but no where near as stimulating as baroque.

I am reading the books you recommended on classical music on appreciation (on Green Man) so perhaps its just opinion, like thinking the Browns are the most storied franchise in professional sports.

jason said...

John Barry can always be counted upon to deliver the lush and romantic, can't he?

To the previous commenter, I can't contribute much to any discussion of classical music, because I don't have the knowledge to say anything intelligent about the subject. But I will say that I find much of Barry's work pretty in a way that a lot of other film music is not. It always calls to mind unspoiled landscapes, gentle winds, and bittersweet love. That seems like a form of stimulation to me...

Anonymous said...

What a treat on another dreary Friday morning. Beautiful music and beautiful photography!

The Earl of Obvious said...

It is nice sounding, I just have not developed an appreciation for this type of music...YET.