It can be difficult to determine which aspects of a piece of art stick with the audience. A game might base half of its runtime around a feature most fans consider incidental. A movie can dump resources into an element that viewers ignore. Ideally, a game likeThe Legend of Zeldaworks as a complete ecosystem, with countless traits combining to form one perfect whole. However, only a few of those elements can be transferred to a feature film.The Legend of Zelda’s music might be the most critical element of its cinematic adaptation.
The Legend of Zeldamoviefeels like a house of cards. It could be beautiful if the creators put it together with surgical proficiency and obsessive care. One wrong move could easily topple everything worthwhile about the project. UnlikeThe Super Mario Bros. Movie, a passable family-friendly experience with a mountain of cameos and callbacks simply won’t cut it. Fans want more from the franchise, which gave the world several of its most immersive entries.
The Legend of ZeldaMovie Has Several Unique Issues
What couldThe Legend of Zeldamovie look like? The answer to that question takes at least a dozen different forms.Director Wes Ball andscreenwriter Derek Connolly could pick any of the beloved titles in the franchise as their singular source material. They could also meld all of them into a combined Platonic ideal ofZeldaas a series. They could even abscond from that dichotomy entirely, crafting a new point in the endless cycle of heroes saving princesses and slaying demons. Beyond the myriad concerns at the first level of adapting a video game,The Legend of Zeldaalso raises questions of intent. The usual experience of aZeldagame involves crossing vast expanses of varied terrain, fighting endless enemies, and encountering unique characters with striking personalities. Can a movie with a reasonable runtime really capture the sheer scope of aZeldagame? Will it shave off everything people love about the franchise and force Link to push Epona to her limits by sprintingnon-stop toward Ganon’s lair? Only the filmmakers know the answers to these questions, but there are some things fans know in advance.
The Legend of ZeldaMakes its Music Critical
EveryZeldafan can hum the treasure chest song from memory. Every time Link gets an item out of a chest, the franchise has a built-in method of building up excitement and communicating victory.The Legend of Zeldain 1986played a version of that iconic sound when Link retrieved his first sword from the old man. By 1991’sLink to the Past, the sound was set in stone. EveryZeldareleased since has some version of the same four notes. Music is the beating heart ofThe Legend of Zelda. From the moment it became possible, every element of gameplay had some tie to the game’s sonic ecosystem. Combat, puzzle solving, acquiring objects, reaching new environments, and everything in between feature some connection to the ever-present music. The games formalize music as a tool. The first game gave Link a flute he could use to travel instantly between dungeons.Link to the Pastupgraded that instrument into the now-ubiquitous Ocarina.Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, Wind Waker, Twilight Princess,andSkyward Swordallhave playable musical instruments with a real impact on the world. Music is not just a background element inZelda, as it is in many other games. It’s Hyrule’s primary language.
The Super Mario Bros. Movieis a Terrible Example
The Super Mario Bros. Moviehas a perfect orchestral soundtrack featuring recreations of several classicMariosongs. The film’s composer, Brian Tyler, partneredwith the great Koji Kondoto capture the spirit that made most of those songs. The film’s score is available on Spotify and is genuinely excellent. Unfortunately,The Super Mario Bros. Movierelies heavily on hacky pop song needle drops to fill iconic moments. They have some of the most iconic and well-received video game music of all time in their back pockets. They spent a considerable amount of money on a full orchestra, unique instruments, Skywalker Sound’s mixing studio, and even some original music from Brian Tyler, but they fell back on classics like “Take on Me” and “Thunderstruck.” This was an embarrassing cop-out that boggles the mind.The Legend of Zeldawill fall flat with even a single version of that decision. Theyhave to use the music they have, no matter how bad the producers want to shove in another 80s hit.
The Legend of Zeldafranchise makes its musical soundscape one of the most important aspects of its worldbuilding. A cinematic adaptation of the series would be incomplete withoutrecreations of those classic songs. Music isn’t just there to liven things up. It’s the lifeblood of a franchise that pumps iconic sounds into nearly every moment. The filmmakers must use music the way thatZeldaalways has. Hyrule has to sound like Hyrule.
