Loft
Wolfram de Marco
" the incredible 12-minute-long Casino cue "Written by Joep de Bruijn - Review of the regular release
Loft (2008) is a Belgian thriller directed by Erik van Looy. The plot outline is as follows: Five close friends, all of them married, share a loft to meet their mistresses. One day, they find the body of a young woman in the loft. Since there are only five keys to the loft, the five men begin to suspect each other of murder.
Overall, the music by German composer Wolfram de Marco is quite atmospheric, full of underscore and yet suspenseful and luridly sensual at heart, greatly performed by the London Metropolitan Orchestra, with low-key electronic textures and features a wonderful two-note motif that reaches its climax in the incredible 12-minute-long Casino cue. Very captivating.
The 12-minute Casino cue is based on a suspenseful two-note motif with further orchestral support, which is, yes, very repetitive, but the sheer tension is what makes this such an incredible Hermannesque cue. As the motif is put on hold at 5:41 for atmospheric music, it regains strength again and evolves by adding urgent, louder percussive musical accents, and two intensifying dissonant layers for the brass and strings section towards the end.
On a side note, throughout the score, you can hear obvious temp-tracks influences, especially from suspense and sensual thrillers, and while Tangerine-dream's Risky Business was most likely the template for the 2 note motif, only one casts a dark cloud over this astounding cue; the repeated use of the Zimmer' Batman motif. I have not seen the Belgian and Dutch 2010 remake – both feature almost the same score by de Marco – in a long time, yet I vividly remember how the music works so extremely well combined with its outstanding mise-en-scène. The approach John Frizzell chose for the Casino sequence in the American remake The Loft (2014) is a bit similar, yet it lacks the level of excitement de Marco so efficiently provided.
Wolfram De Marco was also involved in the music to the 2010 Dutch remake, which mostly reuses all his score, and designates some of his original score differently. In collaboration with the new director (Antoinette Beumer), they agreed upon reusing 95 percent of the original score. He wrote and recorded new music for the romance between two characters (which is a deviation from the original), but also rewrote the end cue, as the new director's approach was slightly different. In 2014, Erik van Looy directed the American remake (The Loft), but instead of once more reusing Wolfram de Marco's music, I suspect the director, in hiring John Frizzell, wanted him to follow some basics of the original score, but at the same time allowed him to present his view on suspenseful temp music van Looy had previously presented to de Marco. Frizzell' take is in many ways similar, yet so different, instinctively more accurately emulating characteristics of the suspense temp tracks by various composers, mixed with numerous of his own features and more refined, classical touches.
The music as written for the original Loft was released by Moviescore media, physically and digitally.
Tracklist
1. Loft (05:14)
2. Flirt (01:58)
3. Lies (02:29)
4. Shadow (01:42)
5. Breakdown (04:48)
6. Casino (12:01)
7. Traitor (02:42)
8. Revenge (03:07)
9. Murder (03:01)
10. Body (03:52)
11. Letter (03:42)
12. End (03:24)
Total Duration: 00:48:00
(15-09-2023)
Overall, the music by German composer Wolfram de Marco is quite atmospheric, full of underscore and yet suspenseful and luridly sensual at heart, greatly performed by the London Metropolitan Orchestra, with low-key electronic textures and features a wonderful two-note motif that reaches its climax in the incredible 12-minute-long Casino cue. Very captivating.
The 12-minute Casino cue is based on a suspenseful two-note motif with further orchestral support, which is, yes, very repetitive, but the sheer tension is what makes this such an incredible Hermannesque cue. As the motif is put on hold at 5:41 for atmospheric music, it regains strength again and evolves by adding urgent, louder percussive musical accents, and two intensifying dissonant layers for the brass and strings section towards the end.
On a side note, throughout the score, you can hear obvious temp-tracks influences, especially from suspense and sensual thrillers, and while Tangerine-dream's Risky Business was most likely the template for the 2 note motif, only one casts a dark cloud over this astounding cue; the repeated use of the Zimmer' Batman motif. I have not seen the Belgian and Dutch 2010 remake – both feature almost the same score by de Marco – in a long time, yet I vividly remember how the music works so extremely well combined with its outstanding mise-en-scène. The approach John Frizzell chose for the Casino sequence in the American remake The Loft (2014) is a bit similar, yet it lacks the level of excitement de Marco so efficiently provided.
Wolfram De Marco was also involved in the music to the 2010 Dutch remake, which mostly reuses all his score, and designates some of his original score differently. In collaboration with the new director (Antoinette Beumer), they agreed upon reusing 95 percent of the original score. He wrote and recorded new music for the romance between two characters (which is a deviation from the original), but also rewrote the end cue, as the new director's approach was slightly different. In 2014, Erik van Looy directed the American remake (The Loft), but instead of once more reusing Wolfram de Marco's music, I suspect the director, in hiring John Frizzell, wanted him to follow some basics of the original score, but at the same time allowed him to present his view on suspenseful temp music van Looy had previously presented to de Marco. Frizzell' take is in many ways similar, yet so different, instinctively more accurately emulating characteristics of the suspense temp tracks by various composers, mixed with numerous of his own features and more refined, classical touches.
The music as written for the original Loft was released by Moviescore media, physically and digitally.
Tracklist
1. Loft (05:14)
2. Flirt (01:58)
3. Lies (02:29)
4. Shadow (01:42)
5. Breakdown (04:48)
6. Casino (12:01)
7. Traitor (02:42)
8. Revenge (03:07)
9. Murder (03:01)
10. Body (03:52)
11. Letter (03:42)
12. End (03:24)
Total Duration: 00:48:00
(15-09-2023)