As a fan, I can’t help but marvel at Hildur Gudnadóttir’s journey since her Academy Award win for Joker. It’s like she got hitched to that Oscar, with “Oscar winner” now being an unavoidable prefix in every mention of her name. It’s a bit overwhelming, I must admit, and I can almost hear her jokingly saying, “It’s like having a new last name!
Since earning the Best Original Score Academy Award for her work on Todd Phillips’ film “Joker”, Icelandic musician Hildur Gudnadóttir has undergone a significant change in her career trajectory.
She playfully tells The Hollywood Reporter that it feels like marrying the title, since she always gets the “Oscar winner” prefix. It’s tough for her to see her name anywhere without this added label.
42-year-old composer Hildur Guðnadóttir is back for the sequel of “Joker,” titled “Joker: Folie à Deux.” She expresses it was an obvious decision for her to return, stating, “It was a foregone conclusion that I’d be involved in the sequel since the music played such a significant role in the original film.” She emphasizes the importance of maintaining musical continuity with the first movie. Guðnadóttir mentions that, from a sonic perspective, the second film originates from “the same source” as the initial one. She explains that they felt the structure of the source material was so closely linked to the character (played by Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck, also known as Joker), therefore they wanted to keep the soundscape relatively close to the original.
The essence of Phoenix’s personality seems deeply rooted in specific themes and musical arrangements. We aimed to preserve these aspects as they are integral to his character, rather than making significant changes.
In “Joker: Folie à Deux,” unlike its predecessor, music plays a unique part. This film is a jukebox musical, with Joaquin Phoenix as Fleck and Lady Gaga portraying Harleen “Lee” Quinzel, better known as the beloved DC Comics character, Harley Quinn. Unlike the first movie, this one features frequent singing by the characters. Even though Gudnadóttir didn’t handle the arrangements for the musical sequences in the film, she describes the harmonious blend of the score and the musical numbers as a “giant musical jigsaw puzzle” and confesses that it required “a lot of trial and error” to achieve the desired effect.
In my perspective as a dedicated fan, the unique charm of the songs lies in their live performance during filming, devoid of any pre-composed orchestral pieces. As Gudnadóttir points out, this approach to recording was somewhat unconventional; it was only after the scenes were shot that the arrangement process began. This reverse order allowed for a more immersive experience, with the actors hearing the live piano performances through their headphones.
According to Gudnadóttir, “Those who work with arrangements will grasp the difficulty inherent in this task,” she explains, “as an arrangement must be continually adapted, and each recording features distinct performances.
The composer explains that the technique she used in the film involved seamlessly blending the existing soundtrack from the initial movie with the new musical sequences.
She notes that it’s intriguing how the initial soundscape isn’t directly linked to where many of these songs originated. This project was massive, intricate, and presented a unique challenge.
Gudnadóttir aims to further develop the “string instrument lexicon” from the initial movie, primarily utilizing the cello. A significant portion of the sequel unfolds within Joker’s confinement at Arkham State Hospital, and the composer made a concerted effort to harmonize her affection for strings with this atmosphere.
She expressed her strong interest in creating an instrument that could function as a self-contained prison, she mentions. Sparked by this curiosity, she approached her friend, Úlfur Hansson, requesting him to design what she later named “the string prison,” which she describes as resembling an electric fence. Additionally, she enlisted Hans Jóhannsson, a luthier and father of Úlfur, to construct a unique instrument known as the “trench cello.” This box-shaped string instrument, used during World War I, was often used by soldiers to carry bullets.
Gudnadóttir points out that soldiers would often play this particular instrument during their downtime in the trenches, and historically, it’s been noted as a source of joy even amidst the most unimaginably grim conditions. This reminded her strongly of how Arthur’s mother always spoke about him.
She remarks, “That’s incredible, it belongs to Arthur, doesn’t it?” She continues, “It’s not only a tool for delivering intense force, but also a means to infuse happiness in the most dire circumstances.
As a fervent admirer, I found myself confronted with an intriguing yet potentially risky endeavor. The strings, you see, would heat up to quite an extent, as I was later informed. This intensity could easily cause burns due to the high level of amplification they possessed.
According to Gudnadóttir, she deeply valued her partnership with the director of “Joker”, Todd Phillips. She describes the creative aspect of scoring these movies as “beautiful” and “incredibly open”. From the beginning, Phillips had a great deal of faith in what she was accomplishing and contributing to the project.
Check out other revealing stories about how movies get made at THR.com/behindthescreen.
Originally published in a special December edition of The Hollywood Reporter magazine, you can get your own copy by clicking here to subscribe.
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2024-12-14 23:55