Lucian Piane (1980-2026)

Two composers in one month. This shit ain’t funny.

Unlike George Fenton, Piane only had one major credit as a film composer, but it was still a gem, in my book: The score and songs for 2009's shamefully entertaining horror remake, Sorority Row.

Re-listening to the CD-R I burned of the soundtrack around the time of the film’s release because studios were already adopting a ‘fuck the labels and their physical albums; we’ll just put the score out on music streaming services’ attitude even then, this showed an impressive command of horror scoring that would bring a smile to the likes of Richard Band, who scored the original The House on Sorority Row. Even in the opening credits song, “Tear Me Up”, Piane shifted masterfully between pop and orchestral sensibilities. It’s the kind of horror scoring that’d make most genre composers today indulge in a bit of the ol’ hari-kari, but I won’t name names (the hacks behind Smile and The Black Phone 2, in particular).

His talent for film scoring should not have been a surprise to me, as (in doing further research) he was a collaborator of Marc Shaiman. In addition, he provided a number of songs for reality TV, notably “RuPaul's Drag Race” and remixes of various celebrity speeches. The guy had layers.

There were also some aspects of his life that were a little tabloid-y, but elaborating on such matters is not my place. I’m not TMZ. All I will say is that I loved his work on Sorority Row and I’d have enjoyed working with him on a project in the future, as there seem to be more people scoring movies these days who don’t know how to write music than those who do and it’s always a tragedy when one of the ones that do pass away.

He will be missed.

“You know how it feels when McDonald's says you're not good enough to make the french fries?"

Behold, my latest foray into seeking employment (yes, I lost that awesome job I had last month...or, to be more correct, it was stolen from me):

Not sure why I had to be so truthful in the section about assessing my personality. I’ll know to lie my ass off if (God forbid) I find myself unemployed this time next year.

George Fenton (1949-2026)

One of those composers you figure might have fallen off after an incredibly fertile period in the 80s and/or 90s, George Fenton never stopped working, but it helps to have consistent collaborators like Nicholas Hytner, Andy Tennant and Ken Loach, all of whom are likely in mourning along with other film music fans as Fenton has passed away.

My first encounter with Fenton ended up being my favorite. Neil Jordan, a long ago collaborator with the composer, wrote and directed the ghost comedy High Spirits. It’s more than likely that the film’s producers wanted the film to be more like Beetlejuice, which had come out while the film was still shooting. That tonal imbalance resulted in a very middling effort, but the tech credits - especially Fenton’s colorful, Irish-flavored score - were above reproach.

Like any composer, he had his occasional missteps: some of his comedy scores hit the wrong note (Multiplicity, Bewitched) and he never quite found the right footing for Cold Pursuit (though, in fairness, that tonally confused movie would've defeated most composers). But these are very minuscule against the many amazing scores he wrote: The neo-classicism of Dangerous Liaisons. The Hitchcockian thrills of Final Analysis. The delightfully jazzy music of The Duke (which I had discovered when I had been gifted with the ability with the opportunity to review it). The religious excitement of We're No Angels. The delightful holiday music of Mixed Nuts and another hidden gem on his résumé for Tennant's Fool‘s Gold, a sweeping adventure score with some engaging detours; the pseudo rap music he created for Kevin Hart’s villainous character Bigg Bunny still cracks me up.

A composer of many colors, he will definitely be missed.

Having a TIFF.

As an extra effort to punish myself (and, by extension, you all), I have been purusing the website for the Toronto International Film Festival and checking out which movies I would go to if the money was there.

September 9th
Hope - 6:30p - TIFF Bell Lightbox

September 11th
Le Faux Soir - 2:45p - TIFF Bell Lightbox
Girl Group - 5:30p - Roy Thomson Hall
Everybody Wants to F*ck Me - 9:30p - VISA Screening Room at the Princess of Wales

September 12th
Purgatory - 3:20p - Scotiabank Theatre
The Surgeon - 8:30p - Royal Alexandra Theatre

September 13th
Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother - 11:15a - TIFF Bell Lightbox
Evil Genius - 2:00p - Scotiabank Theatre
Back in Black - 5:45p - Scotiabank Theatre 
Vintage Violence - 9:15p - Scotiabank Theatre

September 14th 
In Waves - 11:15a - TIFF Bell Lightbox
A Talent for Murder - 1:30p - Roy Thomson Hall
Iron Boy - 3:35p - Scotiabank Theatre
Alpha Gang - 5:30p - Scotiabank Theatre
Strangers on a Train - 10:00p - Cinema Park at David Pecaut Theatre

September 15th
The Unknown - 3:15p - TIFF Bell Lightbox
The Surgeon - 9:20p - Scotiabank Theatre

September 16th
Once Upon a Time in Harlem - 10:00a - TIFF Bell Lightbox
The Only Living Pickpocket in New York - 5:30p - Roy Thomson Hall 
Alice: Pioneer of Cinema - 9:35p - Scotiabank Theatre

September 17th
Light Pillar - 3:30p - Scotiabank Theatre
Ten Dark Women - 5:30p - TIFF Bell Lightbox
Crystal Lake - 9:30p - Scotiabank Theatre

September 18th
Tangles - 12:15p - Scotiabank Theatre
Arrested Memory - 3:30p - Scotiabank Theatre
I Play Rocky - 5:45p - TIFF Bell Lightbox
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory - 10:00p - Cinema Park at David Pecaut Theatre

September 19th
Julian - 12:30p - Scotiabank Theatre
Muyi - 3:30p - Scotiabank Theatre
Half - 6:15p - Scotiabank Theatre
God Bless You, Mr. Kopu - 9:40p - Scotiabank Theatre

September 20th
Wild Horse Nine - 10:15a - Scotiabank Theatre
Rogue Trooper - 1:15p - Scotiabank Theatre
Ancestors - 3:45p - Scotiabank Theatre
Carrie - 7:00p - Scotiabank Theatre

Someday, a crazy schedule like this will be a reality. I promise.

Funemployed no more.

It’s a situation too familiar to a number of people in real life, to say nothing of television writers: someone is tired/bored with the situation they’re currently in and idly wonder to themselves, ‘Gee, things would be so much nicer if I had a little more time in my life’. (The first thing to come to mind: that episode of “Hey Arnold!” where Harold gets expelled from school.) Then, you get the time and things are fun, at first, but then come the questions: what can I do when I have nothing to do? How long is the money I have supposed to last? How much longer will it be before I get more? What am I supposed to do with this time alone? I don't have any friends!

Well, until a couple weeks ago, this was me. Gaspingly, desperately trying to find a new job after cruelly getting bounced from my old (and cushy) one. Having to take handouts from the state to retain some semblance of solvency.

Then came the 17th. I had an interview for a position. It would be an in-person job at a bank as opposed to a remote one I greatly wanted. No problem. I was on the verge of begging for a customer service job like the one that enshackled me for over a decade, but this one involved interacting with co-workers instead of the general public, so I'll take it!

The staffing service required quite a bit of nonsense: fingerprints, a background check and references (thankfully, I was able to get apparently glowing notices from my former co-worker and supervisor, securing my position), so it seems like I’m all set.

The night before what I assumed was my first day, I get a call from a member of the staffing service. As there were a number of people hired for the business, they were hoping to have us all start at the same time. Well, that time is here. The day after tomorrow (Wednesday), I start on a new job. Regular paychecks. Billing companies getting off my back. Feeling like a man again. An indescribable feeling when these things are taken from you.

Bob Summers (1943-2026)

A brief rant before I get into the obituary proper: why is it that news of people passing away comes so late from time to time? Make-up maestro Screaming Mad George apparently passed away in February of this year, but his family needed time to grieve before making this news widely known. I suppose they had their reasons, but I’m sure his fans and former collaborators felt a little put out in having this news sprung on them. I’m sure it wasn't the same case with composer Bob Summers who - according to a YouTube comment! - passed away on August 2nd, but it seems like there’s so much news being thrown at people that important bits like this can’t help but get lost in the shuffle. (It’s a cruel joke of fate that so many talented, life-enriching 80-something individuals have shuffled off this coil in the last few weeks, yet the most life-enriching - as in the one who will enrich us all when he’s finally dead - continues to linger.)

A self-taught musician, arranger and performer whose ultimate film and TV credits ranged from “The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams” to The Boogens, One Dark Night, Eliminators and something called The Malibu Bikini Shop. A Merchant-Ivory film, no doubt. (As a Richard Band fan, I also knew Summers for his orchestration work on Metalstorm: the Destruction of Jared-Syn.) However, for a generation of people, one credit looms largest of all.

As a 14-year-old discovering “Sailor Moon”, I was struck by a number of elements: the animation (much faster than anything I had experienced from American shows), the cheesy lines (part and parcel, one supposes, of any anime dub, but these went up to eleven) and “the boom anime babes that make me think the wrong thing” (thank you, Barenaked Ladies), but what stuck with me most - and what continues to even three decades later - is the music. The main theme was taken directly from the original anime as I would come to learn with the far more faithful - but not as involving - Viz dub*, but Summers’ embellishments and original compositions really made the underscoring for that show shine. (Even people who hated the dub give props to the music. Enough said.)

Whether in a high-energy, go-getter setting for Serena running late for school, a lush waltz for the dressier moments or a tense, creepy variation for the suggestion of a Negaverse monster, Summers clearly had fun playing with the original melody. His original compositions were quite enjoyable, as well, from the heroic fanfare for Tuxedo Mask (a marked improvement on the character’s theme in the original anime) to the mysterioso idea for Luna and the mystical, Arabic-flavored melody for the Moonlight Knight. When he released the tracks a few years ago, it was like being transported back to high school.

Especially for 90s kids, it goes without saying that he will be missed.

* - I can think of no better comparison than the 1995 and 2021 film adaptations of Mortal Kombat. Sure, the newer one is more faithful to the original source material, but that doesn’t always make for the most gripping entertainment. Sometimes, screwing around with the original yields better results.

Toronto in 2026. Wouldn’t it be nice...

...if I were going? Spending a few days up there in the North?

It’s the last Thursday of August. In a just world, at this moment in time, I’d be flipping through the soundtrack section of Neurotica Records…but of course, we don’t live in a just world. I just don’t feel like telling a story or tszujing it up with some sort of gimmick. If money weren’t an issue, this is how I would’ve spent Fan Expo weekend in Toronto this year.

Thursday

6:00 wake up
6:10 get dressed
6:20 final check of luggage
6:30 depart home
6:45 breakfast at Donut Kraze
7:15 drive to Peace Bridge
7:40 cross border into Canada
8:20 board bus to Burlington, then train to Union Station
11:20 arrive Union Station
11:40 lunch at Nom Nom Nom
12:15 touring museums
3:15 go to BMV Music and Books
4:00 check into Airbnb
5:10 go to Neurotica Records
6:00 arrive at CNE
6:45 CNE cuisine for dinner
8:30 return to Airbnb
11:00 bedtime

Friday

6:30 wake up
7:45 take a shower
8:10 get dressed
9:00 depart Airbnb
9:10 get snacks from Shoppers Drug Mart
9:30 take bus downtown
10:00 breakfast from Egg Club
10:40 arrive at Fan Expo
11:00 Conversations with Jim Cummings - Room 206
12:00 Exploring the Magic of Friendship with Shannon Chan-Kent - Room 701
1:00 take train to Yonge Station
1:15 lunch at Chungchun
1:45 take train to Union Station
2:10 return to Fan Expo
2:25 roam around the North Building
3:45 Voices of Gaming: From Booth to Boss Fight - Constitution Hall (yeah, I don't like video games, but this may be the closest I get this weekend to having panels with William Fichtner and Michael Ironside)
5:00 Strength and Respect: A Q&A with Mr. T - Constitution Hall
5:45 depart Fan Expo
6:10 take bus to Revue Cinema
6:45 Coyote v. Acme @ Revue
9:00 dinner from Bank Bao
9:45 return to Airbnb
11:00 bedtime

Saturday

6:30 wake up
7:30 take a shower
8:00 get dressed
8:30 depart Airbnb
8:40 get snacks from Shoppers Drug Mart
8:45 take bus downtown
9:05 breakfast at Sunset Grill
9:50 arrive at Fan Expo
10:00 Yabba Zonkers Zoinks! Podcast - Community Zone
11:15 Saturday Morning Cartoon Fun and History! - Room 705
12:05 depart Fan Expo
12:15 arrive at Union Station
12:30 lunch from Paramount Fine Foods
12:50 return to Fan Expo
1:00 roam around the floor of the South Building
2:00 The Mummy with Oded Fehr - Room 714
3:00 Toronto's Revue Cinema: Cult Movies Talk and Trivia - Room 705
4:00 Mark Hamill Live - Constitution Hall (yes, I believe I could get in)
5:00 continue South Building runaround
6:00 depart Fan Expo
6:20 take bus to Sonic Boom
7:10 dinner at Betty's (on Queen East; yes, we're doing this)
8:25 return to Airbnb
10:30 or 11:00ish bedtime

Sunday

6:30 wake up
7:30 take a shower
8:15 final check of luggage
8:30 head out of Airbnb
9:00 breakfast from Saving Gigi's
9:30 return to Airbnb
9:40 enjoy savory breakfast
10:15 check out of Airbnb
10:35 take bus to Eaton Centre
11:05 arrive at Eaton Centre
11:15 some light shopping
11:55 take train to Union Station
12:10 lunch at Patties Express
12:45 board train to Burlington, transfer to bus for Niagara Falls
3:20 arrive at Niagara Falls GO
3:30 pick up dinner from Quiznos
5:00ish return home

I’m as surprised as you are that I’m blowing off Sunday at Fan Expo (and, by extension, Monday entirely), but the John Cena panel is one of those special advanced ticketing deals. Yeah, he’s worth it, but I’m not made of money.