It's a deliberate choice. I am a fervent supporter of the idea that you don't have to have wall-to-wall music in good films.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
In the end, you don't want music to be noticed as much as digested and integrated into the storytelling. And make audiences sit forward in their seats and enjoy the movie.
I don't believe in an annual dose of film music for the sake of it being film music. If we program film music, it will be because there is a real artistic reason for doing so.
In the 1960s and into the '70s, everyone in their own way was trying to open up the musical horizon. There shouldn't be a wall that you're going toward and bouncing off.
If my role in a film is meaty, and I get a good song along with it, then why not?
When I started out, I preferred to watch my films without music, as its presence tends to mask the underlying pace of the film. I felt I could feel the rhythm of the film better without music to influence me.
So, when you divide the world into music lovers, music fans and then those people who are just very casual about their music, it's wallpaper to them, it's elevator music, it's just the thing that's playing in the background that helps them through their day.
I think that's one of the things that has always put me in kind of an odd niche. It's that all of my understanding of orchestral music is via film, not via classical music like it's supposed to be. To me it's the same, it doesn't make any difference.
Music is so crucial to every film, I think.
I think it's a big deal to have a great soundtrack for a movie.
I hate this idea in the Cinematheque that you must watch silent movies with no music, like it's a piece of art. It's not true.