There are a lot of elements that make up a good film, script and credible plot helps, acting or course is a must. But a decent musical score is also the back bone of any great film.
As an action buff I’ve spent a long time watching films from most eras, but there is one that for me that really stood out when it came to a good score, the 80s.
As an example, I’ll use Beverly Hills Cop II, there is no doubting that this was one of a few films to be thought of as a great sequel. Of course not everyone would agree, and I certainly don’t expect them to.
But the film’s greatest selling point, aside from the fact that Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold and John Ashton are in it, and that it was directed by Tony Scott, is the brilliant score and accompanying soundtrack that went with the film.
It was ubercool, sexy and slick and that was in part thanks to composer Harold Faltermeyer who had also worked on the original film, as well as my other guilty pleasure Tango & Cash (don’t judge me on that one).
The opening to Beverly Hills Cop II which saw Brigitte Nielsen’s Karla Fry lead a robbery on a down town jewellery store was the perfect tonic for any 80s action film.
Faltermeyer’s use of synths and low beats set the scene for an epic and explosive opening sequence, which then flowed straight into the opening credits and Bob Seger’s Shakedown, which for me is the ultimate film soundtrack driving song.
And in the actual scene itself…
It seemed that Faltermeyer’s score had something for most scenes, from the Beverly Hills gun club to the robbery at the bank depository even right down to the buddy relationship between Foley, Taggart and Rosewood. There was a unique blend to everything, and in part like the film a story, alebit a three minute one.
Another great score was the race track robbery, again somewhat similar to the opening of the film the subtle differences are noticeable, and really lifted the action when it arrived on screen.
Check it out below…
Finally the end credits, it needed something soft to finish off what had been an adrenalin fuelled film, and Faltermeyer didn’t disappoint.
It rounded off the film well as a whole, and sad in the knowledge that the ride was over and that the next instalment, Beverly Hills Cop 3 would be fucking awful!
That said Beverly Hills Cop 2 still rates as one of the best action films of the 80s and is still one of my all time favourites….trust me!
Tucker & Dale are on vacation at their dilapidated mountain cabin when they are attacked by a group of preppy college kids.
(3.5/5)
Set in the near future, where robot boxing is a top sport, a struggling promoter feels he’s found a champion in a discarded robot. During his hopeful rise to the top, he discovers he has an 11-year-old son who wants to know his father.
A test pilot is granted an alien ring that bestows him with otherworldly powers, as well as membership into an intergalactic squadron tasked with keeping peace within the universe.
When big city detectives refuse to further investigate his kid brother’s gang related murder, small town Sheriff Michael Spencer drops the badge and goes undercover to find his brother’s killer and avenge his death.
