STORY OF A WOMAN (1971) - Andy's Blu-Ray Review - Great John Williams Score!

[AndyDursin]

STORY OF A WOMAN
6/10
(available 9/28 from Kino Lorber)

A buried gem – still unreleased – in John Williams' early filmography is STORY OF A WOMAN (90 mins., 1971, R; Kino Lorber/Code Red), a quaint Universal adult drama from the early '70s: rated R for topless footage of star Bibi Andersson yet otherwise so tasteful and placid it'd be the sort of thing your grandmother might be watching on a rainy Sunday afternoon, this Leonardo Bercovici-directed film sits somewhere between a stodgy 1960s studio product and the more “daring” sexuality of the 1970s. Yet “Last Tango in Paris” this isn't, even as Bercovici serves up a storyline involving a Swedish woman (Andersson) who has a fling with a medical student (James Farentino) before settling into a proper marriage with an American diplomat (Robert Stack).

Andersson and Farentino's passion is, of course, later rekindled even after the birth of her and Stack's daughter, leading her husband to question her loyalties. Thankfully, most of the drama between the trio is resolved not through banal dialogue but montages struck to Williams' striking score: this is a forceful, effective orchestral work that eschews the “mod sound” of its era, with the composer even writing an original song – in Italian – for singer Ornella Vanoni. And not only that, but there's a lot of music in this film, especially for a 90-minute, three-character drama: backing scenes of Andersson cavorting around Stockholm and Rome, attending sporting events and absorbing local color – so much that it's surprising nobody has gotten around to releasing it.

The movie's obscurity has to be the main reason why the score has never attracted much discussion, but Code Red and Kino Lorber's Blu-Ray release later this month ought to give Williams fans a prime opportunity to hear what they've been missing. The movie itself is a straightforward, pokey soaper, almost coming off like a TV movie from its time, but Williams' music elevates it into something watchable just the same. It's also, stylistically, a score that has much more thematically in common with Williams' later, post-”Star Wars” writing than many of the pictures he was scoring earlier in the '70s – making it all the more relevant to his wider body of work.

“Story of a Woman” has made scant appearances on television over the years and, as far as I can see, zero home video releases – at least none in any kind of recent post-laserdisc history. Kino Lorber's Blu-Ray (1.78, DTS MA mono) looks well composed with some dirt and speckling inherent in the source material cropping up here and there – this isn't an especially “cinematic” looking work despite its location shooting, with Williams' score being its most distinguished component, especially for those who have never heard it.

Here's an example of the long, flowing Williams writing on-hand in the film -- this is a six minute segment ripped right off the movie with very little dialogue:



And a later piano recording of the main theme:

[jkholm]

The music in the YouTube clip reminds me of Williams' score to Jane Eyre.

Andy, did you get a review copy of The Screaming Woman from Kino? I know that also has an early Williams score.

[AndyDursin]

The main theme sounds like a cross between that and "My Funny Valentine." But I like the fact there's none of that pop-ish type of "70s sound" like you'd hear in his disaster scores, "Cinderella Liberty," even some of "The Cowboys," etc. -- it's nearly all orchestrally/classically driven, much more in keeping with scores he would write from "Star Wars" onwards or thereabouts.

Andy, did you get a review copy of The Screaming Woman from Kino? I know that also has an early Williams score.

I haven't received THE SCREAMING WOMAN yet but it shouldn't be long. Look forward to checking that one out too!

[Paul MacLean]

Sounds good -- I'd definitely snatch-up a a CD of Williams' score were it to be released.