Customer Reviews

The Final Conflict: Original Motion Picture Score (Deluxe Edition)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Wow! That's more like it! I cannot tell you what and improvement this deluxe edition is over the previous Varese release. The sound is about 50% better than before (and 12 minutes more..now 61 minutes!) In particular, the strings no longer have that "fuzzy" sound. Everything is greatly improved. There is a considerable difference in the quieter passages..the beginning of the Ambassador, the Trial Run, and the Hunt, etc. The louder passages are never abrasive or shrill...they were very good before..now, they are just right. The superb National Philharmonic Orchestra musicians(with outstanding performances excellently conducted by Lionel Newman) sound just like they do in the third "Omen" film. That amazing choir (the magnificent Amabrosian singers of about 40, I believe) sound much fuller and more present. Even the timpani solo in the first 10 seconds of the Main Title has more of a dynamic presence on this recording!
The score to this film is just o u t s t a n d i n g. Its contribution to this film is invaluable. Although I felt The Final Conflict was the weakest of the first 3 films (it does have its moments though), the true star of this movie was its score by the legendary Jerry Goldsmith. It is every bit as good as the Oscar winning The Omen (and Damien: Omen 2). There should have been an Academy Award nomination for this score, as well.
The highlights are abundant. Some of my top tracks (believe me, it's hard to pick 'em) are...Main Title, The Ambassador, Trial Run, A T.V. First, The Second Coming, The Hunt (thrilling is an understatement on this cue), The Blooding, The Iron, and the greatly expanded finale (8:32 vs. some 4:00 minutes on the first Varese edition!!)
If I had to pick a top 10 list of Goldsmith scores, this would definitely be on that list.
There should be top kudos for producer Robert Townson on the packaging and art work of the booklet. There are even some additional and welcome stills from the film that are included in the booklet. Liner notes by Robert Townson on this score are just commendable. Thanks Mr. Townson!
I just have one frustration..wish there had been an inclusion of about 3 more excellent cues (about 3 1/2 minutes)! These all involved the choir, too. Perhaps these would have put the budget over on this (surely) very expensive project.

Goldsmith, one of the truely great musical geniuses of the 20th Century, gets one of his grandest and epic scores remastered into crystal clear CD quality.

The Final Conflict is a grandiose body of music that is both terrifying and gorgeous, but always spiritual. The whole of it is weaved with the "Main Title" which starts with a resiliant brass fanfare that dips into a dark, gothic chanting pulse. This is reiterated as the Damien character's motif. Not only is it chilling to hear, it also sounds like a musical advancement for Goldsmith. The original Omen film had a simplicity to it, the second was slightly more complex and then this is even deeper still.

The musical speak peaks several times in this score, a rarity in any type of body of music on a single CD. The first peak, aside from the Main Theme, is "The Second Coming" which introduces a gorgeous religioso/pastoral choir build that seems to be a beam of light on this CD. Imagine the brightest light possible, bursting through a hurricane's midnight dark sky, and you have the power of that track.

"The Hunt" is one of the composer's greatest chase themes. While not being either scary or uplifting, it is meerly epic. It has a repetive use of Damien's motif but also has it's own feeling. The repetative use of the theme does not grow old; instead it simply GROWS.

The final track, aptly named after the film, is downright genius. The original cut did not have the opening chanting and such, instead cutting to the pastoral theme's opening timpani roll. This cut includes some rather evil and atmospheric music that slowly builds to a musical epiphany, truely the music suitable for the arrival of "The King of Kings". A sweeping, soulful and dramatic choir roll that spills into a reprise of the Main Title.

Overall, the music is almost exhausting in it's beauty and scale.

Also of note is an odd addition to the end of the CD. Following the End Title music on the last track, there is a bit of silence, followed by bizzare, frightening chanting. It sounds like one particuar voice is saying the "Ave Satani" chant from the original film, but it is too hard to make out under all those voices.

All in all, this score demands to be in the shelves of every movie go-er EVER! Encore, Goldsmith, encore!

This has to be one of Jerry Goldsmith's best scores ever and in it's remastered form the majestic brilliance of this score is in its full glory. Unfortunately, Varese Sarabande decided not to include all the cues used in the movie, which are (times listed are from the movie):

1. When Damien tells Harvey Dean that the beast won't be destroyed at the second coming (00:07:51).

2. Damien and Kate are walking in the park and one of the priests is ranting about the celestial alignment foreshadowing the second coming (00:26:40).

3. Kate is arriving home and is surprised by Father De Carlo (1:09:58).

4. Peter follows Father De Carlo to Harvey Dean's house (01:18:44).

If Varese was going to go through the work of releasing a new version of this score, they should have made it truly complete as they did for Total Recall, hence my rating of 4 stars instead of 5. Other than that, this release is an absolute pleasure to own and listen to.

"The Omen" trilogy has the most fascinating progression of styles I have heard in soundtracks for a movie series. The first one bagged the Oscar and provided the gothic power of that energized that movie. The second one has a beating rawness combined with an electronic edge. But number three --"The Final Conflict" -- not only tops the series, but is one of Goldsmith's best works.

This soundtrack continues to portray the ominous evil this series is about, but in a completely different style from the others. Unlike the choral and electronic driven entries before, Goldsmith really lets the whole orchestra loose here. In addition the movie allows him to balance the portrayal of the ultimate evil with the ultimate good...and the contrast makes for some great listening.

My favorite tracks: the "Main Title", and the absolutely outstanding "The Hunt". "The Second Coming" is riveting as well.

It's a shame the music was attached to a mediocre movie. It's not likely this soundtrack will get the attention of the Goldmith has received on "Star Trek" or even the first "Omen". Varese Sarabande has done a terrific job with this release however, and this remains an underrated score that deserves more attention.

Simply put, a towering achievement.

What is it about film composers of Jerry Goldsmith's stature that their music so often transcends the material it was written for? I guess that's why the word "genius" was invented.

The sound is a vast improvement over the original release, as is the inclusion of new material.

This is Jerry Goldsmith at the absolute pinnacle of his art. Complex, melodic, challenging, and emotionally overwhelming.

I think this one is the best Music Soundtrack ever by Academy Award Winner Jerry Goldsmith ever since he did Music to The Final Conflict. I mean the first Music Soundtrack is about The Birth of the AntiChrist, The Other one was when he grew up as a Teen. and The Third one is about the fall of the Antichrist. But If you want to listen to the Music to any of The Omen Trilogy listen to this one instead.

Each of Goldsmith's soundtracks to the films in "The Omen" trilogy was uniquely constructed to reflect the on-screen horrors that it accompanied. The first was a masterpiece that turned religious scores upside down, deservedly winning Goldsmith his only Oscar.

The score to "Damien: Omen II" took the first to its next phase by assaulting the senses full throttle with the driving demonic chorus from the first but at an accelerated and more frenzied pace.

Finally, the third score hints at the past two but is more traditional in its approach, signifying the story line's defeat of the Anti-Christ.

This deluxe version, like the ones for the preceding films, offers cuts not found on the original LP release.

And, in light of this year's death of the great Goldsmith, it is fitting testament to his place as one of the cinema's most prolific and gifted composers.

A "World Premier" release from Varese Sarabande, with Jerry Goldsmith at the helm, is a "film-score-buffs" dream...who else could pull off the third and last sequel to an outstanding trilogy...this is just so worthy of film composing, a film is nothing unless the score can provide character within the storyline, and Goldsmith delivers, and delivers big time!

Performed by The National Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Lionel Newman and the brilliant orchestrations of Arthur Morton, no mention of the moving choral work or choirmaster, but a lot of credit to those unknown souls who give a dark-gothic tone to Goldsmith's cues.

Must make mention of the clarity and sound quality from this "Deluxe Edition", thanks to Robert Townson who always puts quality first in all releases...now for the stand out ~ "THE HUNT", brass asounding with the well-known main theme, very moving with every piece of the National Philharmonic getting into the act, as we feel the goose-bumps rise within our being...but the highlight is the last track "THE FINAL CONFLICT", nothing else can stand up to this cue, if you weren't a Goldsmith fan, you are now, added to this edition makes the whole thing worthwhile, if there was another word for GENIUS, it would be read ~ JERRY GOLDSMITH!

Total Time: 62:40 on 15 Tracks ~ Varese sarabande 302-066-289-2 ~ (2001)

Judging by the quality of the music and not the film from which it comes, Jerry Goldsmith's score for "The Final Conflict" is a masterpiece on par with the best of John Williams and Miklos Rozsa. Surely its only demerit is the fact that it's from a movie most people regard as inferior, which I'm sure cost it many nominations in the 1982 awards season. The score is epic, operatic, dynamic, and emotionally universal, encompassing every emotion from soul-wrenching terror to spiritual elation. This Deluxe Edition incorporates quite a bit of music not previously available with a strikingly perfect remastered sound. The sound quality itself is flawless, and on some players it can sound almost live. While the score for the original "Omen" was more famous and successful, "The Final Conflict" is, in my opinion, of the best quality and is one of my all-time favorite film scores. I imagine it was discontinued due to a strong lack of interest, which is all the sadder. The "Main Title," "The Second Coming," "The Hunt," and "The Final Conflict" are a few of the highlights of the album. If you can get your hands on it, by all means, do so.

"The Final Conflict" happens to be my favorite Jerry Goldsmith soundtrack of all time. It's even better than the original Omen score because Goldsmith found the way to make pastoral music to someone as hellish as Damien Thorn, who must deal with the second coming of Jesus Christ. The main title opens triumphantly with horns, which later give way to chorus singing praise to Damien; this track later finishes with a pastoral motif that announces the arrival of the daggers which are going to be used to destroy the Anti-Christ. The pastoral is spectacularly displayed on 'The Second Coming' when you see a star alignment that announces our savior's new coming.
However, we hear diabolical motifs on this CD in tracks like 'The Ambassador', 'Electric Storm', 'Parted Hair', and 'Lost Children'. There is also incredible action music, better represented in 'The Hunt'. 'The Bloody Reel' is also a great cue, diabollically spectacular. All in all this is a great CD.
Just like John Williams' "The Empire Strikes Back-Special Edition", Jerry Goldsmith's "The Final Conflict" is another musical work that surpasses its original counterpart, and that's why I say "If only there were 6 stars". The recording on this Deluxe Edition CD is far better than the one on the original release so enjoy what I believe it's the best Jerry Goldsmith score ever in all its glory.