MUSI370 Film Music of John Williams
T he Characters ’
Narrative Perspectives : The Contribution of John
Williams ’ Music in Catch Me if You Can
Annabelle Lee
For MUSI370 , ANNABELLE LEE studies the narrative effects of composer John Williams ’ music in Steven Spielberg ’ s Catch Me if You Can , positing that it is used to heighten or to relieve the level of stress felt by the audience as a method of accentuation .
CATCH Me if You Can is one of many successful film collaborations of John Williams with Steven Spielberg . Winters writes , ‘ Spielberg acknowledges music ’ s constitutive role in defining a character ’ ( 2010 ). This begs the question ; how does film music ‘ define ’ a character ? Does the character
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have its own music ? A theme or leitmotif ? Does this music have a narrative role ? Spielberg suggests the music defines a character ; I posit the music is the vehicle for the characters to deliver their perspective of the narrative . This essay will explore the two main musical themes in Catch Me as the musical language that the protagonists communicate their inner thoughts and feelings with the viewer , from their narrative perspective .
A narrative is a complex thing , it can be told through many means , Winters suggests that