VALLEY OF GWANGI - Jerome Moross

Valley of Gwangi (1969) fantasy adventure film, directed by James O'Connolly. Also known as 'Gwangi', 'The Lost Valley', 'The Valley Time Forgot' and 'The Valley Where Time Stood Still'. Members of a touring circus, cowboys and a scientist encounter a 'forbidden' Mexican valley full of prehistoric animals, and capture its massive allosaurus leader. Guess what? It escapes to terrorise the cast.

'Tuck Kirby' James Franciscus (Beneath the Planet of the Apes)
'Champ Conners' - Richard Carlson (It Came From Outer Space)
'T J Breckenridge' - Gila Golan (Our Man Flint)
'Prof Horace Bromley' - Laurence Naismith (Jason and the Argonauts)
'Tia Zorina' -- Freda Jackson (Brides of Dracula)

The stop-motion magic of legendary special effects creator Ray Harryhausen is the highlight of this sporadically exciting fantasy-adventure. The cowboy-roping scene of Gwangi is wonderful, merging live actors with the animated allosaurus using Harryhausen's special technique where he animated a miniature model mounted on a film board, with the live-action film running in the background. This gave the scene a three-dimensional quality.

Music is by Jerome Moross - best known for his film score for the 1958 movie 'The Big Country', for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Original Music Score.

Gwangi is actually a Native American name that means "lizard".

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• James-Franciscus
• Gila-Golan
• Richard-Carlson
• Laurence-Naismith
• Freda-Jackson
• Gustavo-Rojo

[JubalCalif]

The late great Jerome Moross' score for this fantasy film sounds a LOT like his score for the classic 50's Western "The Big Country"....especially the opening bars! Both are QUITE rousing! The man was a genius....thank you so much for sharing this music & these exciting clips from the film with us! :)

[Soundtrackcollector]

@JubalCalif thank you for taking the time to watch the video.

[Gojira777]

A classic score by Moross. Gwangi rawks!

[Soundtrackcollector]

Thanks for your comment.

[QuietThought]

Classic Ray Harryhausen animation, cracking good Jerome Moss score. The plot ain't much, but the movie just rolls along and everyone enjoys themselves hugely. Cowboys and dinosaurs, dudes!

[Soundtrackcollector]

Thanks for your comment.

[kaindeath]

Awesome film, movies over-do it with the CGI to much now, stop motion was so much more respectable.

[mierpaul]

the coolest thing about this movie is the blue allosaurus. in other words what was harryhausen thinking?

[rockhammer85]

I love this film: it's got a rousing score, typically great effects from Ray Harryhausen, a neat blend of genres in cowboys and monsters, and James Franciscus looking very handsome indeed.

[JubalCalif]

@Soundtrackcollector

You are MORE than welcome, O' Collector of Superb Soundtracks! This is always a THRILL to listen to!

CHEERS, mate! :-)

[dltanner99]

Cryptozoology novel about two boys who find something strange on a beach one night see video book trailer

[kezadrone]

@animatorIsomer I think that may have been myself that added that blur .

[Sshelly34213]

Anyone have his score for Rachel Rachel, or know where to find it?

[av21031]

Gwangi easily bites through the lassos when first being roped around the neck, so the cowboys later tie his jaws together (after he knocks himself out trying to get through the canyon wall). Yet when he is transported back to town in the cart, his jaws are not tied shut and he is again held by ropes tied around the neck.

[TheUnknownAgenda]

I remember watching this as a kid and was transfixed, dinosaur's, cowboys, man this was gripping stuff. I've just shown this to my three kids and they all laughed at me lol. How times have changed ..... thanks for bringing some priceless memories back.

[JubalCalif]

@sqccccccccc

Yes, the score for the classic big screen 50's Western was indeed composed by the late great Jerome Moross, as was the theme to the classic TV Western "Wagon Train". As what is or is not "genius", I suppose it's like "beauty"...such judgments are in the eye and/or mind of the beholder/listener. THANK YOU for your insightful comments! CHEERS! :-)

[sqccccccccc]

@JubalCalif Wasn't Big country's score done by Moross.

As for Moross Score on Gwangi or even on the War Lord it is not pure genius, but a well orchestrated and alas sometimes poor musically speaking... However one must admit that it's strange music, strange in agood way, for what could have been a poor western without his and Harryhausen's work.