The Rose Bush and The Song The Show Down

 Leah Zanzucchi-Marroquin                                                 

                                                             Preface

I am acknowledging this may be risky of me for posting to my literary blog instead of my film review/critique blog; however, I did not go about writing this thinking I was writing a film critique.  The organic set up was the enthusiasm for the sound I heard then treating like a research paper and or write to build ideas.  The nature of conveying ideas has a cross-over in writing form, analyzing film and books are very similar when writing. Case in point, one of my undergraduate classes was a film studies class.  I mean modes of writing are similar, and I am not happy placing in that blog in part because I am working on my platform here.

I took a substantial amount of time over a period of days researching in hopes that I would find the original musical score of “The Show Down,” by Allen Silvestri. I feel that it would make my blog complete in immersing myself in it and adding it to the study; however, after searching musical data-bases, and contacting two people as research points, I can state it is not in the public domain. The day where I made the sound connection below in relation to the film sequence, I believe is a flute. However, without deconstructing the Original Musical Score, I cannot get to the soy meat on the matter.  

Blog--, The Rose bush and The Song, “The Show Down” By Allen Silvestri

This morning 1.26.2023, I hear a sound outside. The wind-storm is blowing the Rose bush up against the house. The sound was reminiscent of a Song from __Back to The Future Part III._ After going through an Amazon Alexa Soundtrack to put title to name of song, it is “The Showdown” By Allen Silvestri.  I am going to extrapolate on the sound. First, it fascinates me because I don’t know what is making that sound. But it creates a feeling of fear-excitement.  It is done three times spaced apart; I want to write at different lengths.  And visually it makes me think of deserts, and a visual of a snake. The setting in _Back to the Future Part III_ is largely California desert setting.  

The sound is a type of whistle. I think it is awesome how the composer figured out how to use various and distinct whistles throughout this sound-track to make me feel a different set of emotions when I feel/hear them.

Now, the sound my rose bush was making wasn’t the same sound. It was an ominous rustle that complimented the song. On the other hand, I just heard it make 1 sound that sounded similar. 

There are 3 different scenes in the film that depict this song, “The Show Down.” 

First, being the scene where Marty prevents Doc from being shot in front of Clara at the Festival by throwing a pan tin.  It doesn’t play the whole song. It stops before the significant whistles.  They switch back to the party activities.  Which could be stated ironically because the song is an instrumental of Double Back by Allen Silvestri, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill, and Frank Beard (Extended Version). I really pushed our Alexa device for questions to give me the answers on the names.  They are definitely making a statement with this song here to convey a switch back to a happy mood as they hold off on the foreboding sounds until later on in in the other sequences of the film. 

Here are two GIPHYs tied to that scene--,
The first link is in sequential order.  

https://giphy.com/gifs/BTTF-back-to-the-future-bttf-three-QPnlT0XGehE9iCZ3rh

https://giphy.com/gifs/BTTF-back-to-the-future-bttf-three-UzzrzazvgjvmcLXSbn  

Second time, when Marty is practicing with a gun with holster in white full body pjs while looking in a mirror. This scene continues the song with the whistles creating a feeling of foreboding.

Three, the final battle with Mad-dog Tannen Marty and Doc.  This part plays the song more or less in in full.  They create a feeling of suspense and or foreboding and progresses with the climax as Marty decides to fight or not to fight and Mad-dog Tannen shoots. 

Here is a GIPHY tied to this scene--, 

https://giphy.com/gifs/BTTF-back-to-the-future-bttf-three-n1zkpBBr7plzqNXPRH

It is almost like these whistles are needed for action sequence and the composer/film composer knows when to hold off on a sound.  Give me a moment, my mind is blown. 

So, there are clock chimes prior to Marty coming out of the building he is hiding in to notate the 8:00am hour.  There are no clock chimes in the sound-track version of this song, In the scene, there is a bass drum roll prior to the whistles.  The whistles play when Mad Dog has his hand prior to touching the gun, when they pace/walk and when Marty releases the Holster from his outfit dropping it to the ground.  

Unfortunately, all the GIPHYs I cross-referenced through matching with the film do not have an imbedded sound function. None of the _Back to The Future Part III_ GIPHY have an imbedded sound function with their scene/sequence.  So you would have to watch the film itself.  

An Additional note, as I was putting this write up together my other fascination with the song “The Hanging,” By Allen Silvestri was due to it having a riff very similar to the Campbells’s Soup commercials, so I get excited about Back to The Future when I hear that riff. I always comment on it when I hear the notes.   My prior drum instructor agreed with me when I brought this up.  My point being until I studied this, both songs, clearly for facts, I kept switch backing on if the song was “The Hanging,” and now I know why I was confused.  I had this point in here on the Campbell’s Soup riff in a BTTF song, but it was not in the same song connected to the Rose Bush up above which is what my text is about. 

I enjoyed putting together this Write-up: I hope you enjoyed reading it. 

Leah Zanzucchi-Marroquin owns the copyrights to this Write-up. 

GIPHY website owns the Gifs; however, they are in the public domain.