MUSIC BY JOHN WILLIAMS

While Music by John Williams gives an excellent overview of the life and work of the master of the modern movie score, the documentary lacks the emotion and insight to elevate it above standard fare.

There’s no denying that John Williams, the man who provided indelible music for classic movies like Jaws, E.T. and Schindler’s List, deserves his own documentary. Few people have shaped the collective film memory of the past fifty years more than he has, after all. But Music by John Williams unfortunately does little more than scratch the surface.

The film is directed by Laurent Bouzereau, who for years plied his trade as a producer of DVD bonus content, but also made the impressive Five Came Back a few years ago. In tone and style Music by John Williams is a lot closer to the former than to the latter alas.

He intercuts archival footage with recent interviews with – amongst others – Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Thomas Newman and other collaborators and admirers. They deliver nice anecdotes and cute stories but there is little in the way of exploring their emotional bond with Williams and his music.

The composer himself, always a congenial raconteur, displays a laudable modesty and charm throughout, but this only adds to the sense that Music by John Williams contents itself with a shallow portrait instead of really digging into the personal trials and tribulations that contributed to his art.

For streamer Disney+ this probably is no problem: in this documentary they have content that perfectly complements the many features on the service that contain John Williams scores. Film lovers who were looking to get some insight into the mind of a genius have more to quibble about though.

release: 2024

director: Laurent Bouzereau

starring: John Williams, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Thomas Newman