Film music and construction of tourist imaginaries in Hollywood blockbusters

Abstract

The various films of the two successful spy franchises, James Bond and Mission: Impossible, are distinguished not only by their lead actors (heroes and antagonists), but also by their geographical settings. Each new film must explore new destinations, and the audience expects a change of scenery. This change of scenery, far from depending solely on the filming locations, is in fact literally skilfully orchestrated. This paper aims to show how the music composed for these movies contributes to the creation of topoi by promoting exoticism and orientalism, notably through the use of local instruments and musical motifs and through the representation, on screen, of traditional musical and artistic practices (singing, dancing, etc.). We analyze the music that accompanies the hero's travels to emblematic “exotic” places, by studying the tourist imaginaries that they convey, help to reinforce or reconfigure.

Keywords

• exoticism
• espionage blockbusters
• tourist imaginaries
• soundscapes
• Hollywood music