| CLOSE WINDOW |
|
FILMTRACKS.COM
PRINTER-FRIENDLY VIEW 
Review of Peggy Sue Got Married (John Barry)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... for a simple and comforting exploration of light familial
drama from John Barry for an equally innocent story.
Avoid it... if you prefer your Barry scores of this genre to exude resonating presence, the ensemble for this recording too small to register such depth.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
Peggy Sue Got Married: (John Barry) Highly
respected for its sweet story and appreciable acting ensemble, Francis
Ford Coppola's 1986 fantasy drama Peggy Sue Got Married is a
"what if" tale that allows its titular character to magically travel
back in time from her high school 25th anniversary reunion to change her
past. The movie is a touching spin on the "high school angst" subgenre
of movies and examines how destiny and imagination can affect peoples'
lives, and none of the issues shown in screen are unique. As Peggy Sue,
Kathleen Turner pursues different romantic pathways during her final
high school year but ultimately finds herself back together with her
original life partner, played by Nicolas Cage. More importantly, her
relationships with both that partner and her own family are strengthened
by the experience once she returns to the present. What were not strong
by any measure were real-life relations between Turner and Cage, the
latter suing the former in 2008 for defamation after Turner had claimed
in a book that Cage was immensely difficult to get along with on set and
had been arrested multiple times for drunkenness. That bitter coda to
Peggy Sue Got Married, in which Cage prevailed, didn't stop
Turner from receiving acclaim for her performance. The concept was
successful enough to spawn a short-lived stage musical in 2001 as well.
The movie was obviously named after the famed 1959 Buddy Holly song of
the same name, and this piece is used prominently in the opening scene
of the film. Source song placements dominate the soundtrack in the
narrative, including an on-screen lead performance since Cage's
character is a musician. These songs are all of an innocent late-1950's
style of pop that serve the tone of the film quite well, and that
personality carries over into John Barry's equally lighthearted score.
The composer was no stranger to dramatic music in this era, especially
when a dose of sexuality and suspense was thrown into the equation.
While this film has all of those basic elements, Barry solely
concentrates on the dramatic appeal of Peggy Sue's hearty journey while
minimizing the outright comedy and fantasy.
Barry's instrumentation for Peggy Sue Got Married includes a small orchestra with abbreviated woodwind and brass sections, as well as acoustic and electric guitars joining a saxophone for period reference. A piano provides typical Barry interludes of solace, and the only unique moment stylistically comes in "The Ritual," which offers an annoyingly stoic rhythm with metallic percussion and dissonant sax as the woman's grandmother humorously attempts to send her back to the future. Listeners expecting to hear the depth of the time-travel romance Barry wrote for Somewhere in Time will be disappointed despite fairly good sound quality in the mix, as the smaller ensemble doesn't allow for that kind of presence. But the same familiar territory is traversed, and the composer doesn't do much to spice up the sound. Sadly, distinct versions of themes for potential alternate futures are not clearly explored, a missed opportunity. As usual, the themes tend to repeat their phrases twice in prototypical Barry fashion, a possible annoyance for some listeners. More problematic is that he infuses absolutely zero passion to any of the thematic performances, a totally dull environment resulting. It's a score to sleepwalk through despite the relatively decent thematic identities explored. There's one dominant theme in Peggy Sue Got Married and a host of secondary ideas that never quite congeal, and your ability to attach to that main identity will likely determine your affection for the whole affair. The main theme is backed by waltz formations and represents the Peggy Sue's sense of home, introduced following its rhythmic piano introduction at 1:39 into "Peggy Sue's Homecoming." After delicately dancing through "Grandmother Calls" on piano and woodwinds with soft string backing, this idea quietly graces "Peggy Sue With Michael" on acoustic guitar and rolling string foundation. The length of that cue allows Barry to explore secondary lines freely, though the main melodic renditions do become redundant after a while given their repetition. The theme is melancholy in its rotation between flutes and strings in "Peggy Sue Visits Grandparents," emerges from the light suspense of the Charlie material in the middle of "Charlie's Proposal," and offers comfort on sax and strings in the latter half of "Charlie, I Had the Strangest Experience." The secondary themes of Peggy Sue Got Married aren't as well defined, but a pair of them share phrasing as they relate to the suspense element and Cage's character, Charlie. Common to both are rising figures under shifting harmonies, the first one revealed for the concept of time travel mystery and sometimes joined by a descending answer in counterpoint. This material develops in "Blood Drive 1960," consolidating at 1:13 with counterpoint line on sax at 2:00. It meanders in the middle of "Peggy Sue's Homecoming," turns lighter in "Sleep, Baby," and continues its evolution in "The Silent Treatment." After revisiting its original form in "Time is Like a Burrito," Barry pushes it further towards its more optimistic and romantic version in "Date With Charlie." This mode vaguely guides "Did We Break Up" before light jazz travels in a new direction, and the melody continues that journey on guitar in "Charlie's Unplayed Guitar." Tentatively opening "Peggy Sue Visits Grandparents" on cyclical winds, the theme's brighter side finally reveals itself as a motif for Charlie in "Charlie's Proposal." The original mystery for the idea then recurs in "Charlie, I Had the Strangest Experience" for the shift back to modern times. Aside from these themes, Barry also briefly touches upon an underexplored motif of wonder that uses James Horner-like progressions of light drama with anticipation. Opening "Peggy Sue's Homecoming" nicely on strings, this idea returns in the first two minutes of "Charlie, I Had the Strangest Experience," perhaps solidifying it as a distinct time travel identity. In the end, the thematic core keeps things pleasant and extremely smooth on album. But it could definitely bore if you're not in the mood for this kind of Barry music. It lacks the passion of Somewhere in Time and most of the composer's equivalent dramatic works despite having little to offend. Four oddly selected cues from the score appeared on the original 1986 album from Varèse Sarabande, the product's emphasis clearly on the songs. That label expanded the presentation in 2014 to feature 45 minutes of Barry's score with another six minutes of alternate takes and the same set of songs. The alternate version on "Peggy Sue With Michael" pushes brass over woodwinds while a spirited moment in "Unused Fanfare" has more zest than anything else. That limited product is a decent presentation of Barry's music, but pitch distortions on strings at the end of "Did We Break Up" are a detriment. None of Barry's material survived in the 2001 musical adaptation for Peggy Sue Got Married, but given how nondescript his music tends to be for the picture, nobody should wonder why. ***
TRACK LISTINGS:
1986 Varèse Sarabande Album:
Total Time: 28:28
2014 Varèse Sarabande Album: Total Time: 62:51
NOTES & QUOTES:
The insert of the 1986 Varèse album contains no extra
information about the score or film. That of the 2014 Varèse
product includes notation about both.
Copyright ©
2025, Filmtracks Publications. All rights reserved.
The reviews and other textual content contained on the filmtracks.com site may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of Christian Clemmensen at Filmtracks Publications. All artwork and sound clips from Peggy Sue Got Married are Copyright © 1986, 2014, Varèse Sarabande, Varèse Sarabande and cannot be redistributed without the label's expressed written consent. Page created 7/1/25 (and not updated significantly since). |
