'dramatic' background music in otherwise sober documentary films, classic or dud?

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9 times out of 10, totally fucking dud. who decided absolutely every film ever needs music? the worst offenders are those AMC 'behind the movies' things but i just watched an otherwise classy danish documentary that had generic music (probably from those stock-music cds) playing over the whole goddam thing.

discuss.

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 05:08 (twenty years ago)

the music in that weather underground doc sucked. even if they used an aphex twin track i like (and i think they did).

also, destroy npr - esp. ira glass - please. it's the radio equivalent!

― hstencil (hstencil), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 05:11 (twenty years ago)

well really depends on how it's used--are you talking the phillip glass manqué that's all over every documentary since thin blue line?

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 05:23 (twenty years ago)

well, there's that.

there's also the generic synth swells behind such intense lines as "and when selznick returned to his office, a letter from mr. ford was waiting for him."

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 05:30 (twenty years ago)

it actually seems so ridiculous as to seem like parody much of the time. alas, i know better.

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 05:30 (twenty years ago)

haha our movie totally does that (for funny)

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 05:33 (twenty years ago)

yeah, it's totally worth parodying, although as noted just above sometimes it almost seems that parody would be redundant.

maybe i'm oversensitive but i find this really maddening. it makes an otherwise decent documentary totally unwatchable for me.

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 05:42 (twenty years ago)

CLASSIC

― jones (actual), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 17:23 (twenty years ago)

(SOBER DOCUMENTARIANS: DO NOT LISTEN TO AMATEURIST; PLEASE CONTINUE PAYING TOP DOLLAR FOR THIS VITAL ELEMENT OF THE DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKING PROCESS)

― jones (actual), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 17:27 (twenty years ago)

They should all use the music from the Benny Hill show.

― n/a (Nick A.), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 17:28 (twenty years ago)

"1924: Martin Prince is found hanging from the rafters of his attic apartment" BUDDA BUDDA BA BA BA! ZZWWWEEEEE!

― n/a (Nick A.), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 17:29 (twenty years ago)

Even more annoying is "comedy" background music in documentary films. Case in point: "Shiny Happy People" in Farenheit 9/11

― Elvis Telecom (Chris Barrus), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 18:07 (twenty years ago)

haha what jones said!

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 18:34 (twenty years ago)

"comedy" background music shouldn't even be in comedy films

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 18:35 (twenty years ago)

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