Stefan Gregory has made his feature scoring debut on the the upcoming British Netflix original film The Dig. The movie is directed by Simon Stone (The Daughter) and stars Carey Mulligan, Ralph Fiennes, Lily James, Johnny Flynn, Ben Chaplin and Ken Stott. The drama is set in 1938 as World War II looms and follows a wealthy widow who hires an amateur archaeologist to excavate the burial mounds on her estate. Moira Buffini (Harlots, Jane Eyre) wrote the screenplay based on a book by John Preston. Gabrielle Tana (Philomena, The Duchess) is producing the project for Magnolia Mae Films, alongside Ellie Wood, Murray Ferguson (The End of the F***ing World, Misfits) and Carolyn Marks Blackwood (The White Crow, The Invisible Woman). Gregory is best known for his music and sound design for numerous stage productions and his previously collaborated with Stone on a stage adaptation of Federico García Lorc’s Yerma. The Dig is set to be released in select theaters on January 15, 2021 before premiering on Netflix on January 29.
Stefan Gregory Scoring Simon Stone’s Netflix Film ‘The Dig’
Posted: December 8, 2020 by filmmusicreporter in Film Scoring AssignmentsTags: Simon Stone, Stefan Gregory, The Dig
Just watched The Dig. Good film but badly let down with the monotonous music. Going up and down between 2 notes on the piano for so many times all throughout the film was extremely irritating and lacked any imagination. The levels were too high and sometimes made it difficult to understand what was being said. I kept reaching for the volume control! Very disappointing…
J. Brown, not sure why you had such problems. We’ve watched it twice now and have nothing but praise for everything pertaining to either audio or video of the movie. Granted we have a fairly nice sound system that we use for movie watching, if you are watching with nothing more than the audio as reproduced by only a tv, then that could very well be problematic. My daughter who is a musician remarked how beautiful and well done the music was. Just my thoughts. A sound system beyond tv speakers or even a sound bar is a very worthwhile investment in my opinion. Yes, I know what they say about opinions, but there’s mine.
Regards
I found the music a repetitive unsubtle irritant! Bring on James Everingham!
A brilliant film let down badly by ‘computer generated muzak?”
I suspect you don’t actually know what muzak is, or indeed music that is “computer generated”.
While it might not be everyone’s cup of tea, Gregory’s score was ‘music to my ears’ and it made me want to look up the name of the composer. As for it being ‘monotonous’ as stated by J.Brown, I felt that its soft subtleties allowed for the sublime script, acting and cinematography to dominate the movie, rather have music that was overbearing, so it felt really apt. So,well done Stefan Gregory.
I totally agree. The music was mesmerizing and at first I thought most certainly it was Max Richter. I would have been money on it and lost. The music was nearly identical. Great movie – and wonderful actors and music.
The music was exquisite. It called to mind the British setting and the piano evoked a simplicity that complemented the timeless message of the endless cycle of history.
A great movie supported and complemented beautifully by the minimalist Gregory’s music score. All class.
Just watched The Dig, I think it was a wonderful movie, the music gave it a feel of 1930. I love watching British movies and series. The cast was exceptional. Kudos to all involved will watch it again and recommend.
The music ruined the movie
What a film. Music reminiscent of James Newton Howard’s score of The Prince of Tides. Loved it!
I thought the music was beautifully done and fit the film. That’s why I found this site!
The music was quite mesmerizing. I found it suited the directorial subtleties quiet well. Rather than “monotonous” or “irritating”, I thought it tied in well with the emotions of the characters. I’ll definitely be buying a copy of the soundtrack and searching for more of this composers work. Modern composition is not to everyone’s taste and I’m so glad, this world would be a very dull place if we all appreciated the same thing.
The music was the icing on the most wondrous cake.
This guy should have sent half of his paycheck to Philip Glass… flagrant!!
We loved the movie! So nice to see a film that is understated and subtle. I even found the spaces in the dialog refreshing when so many films these days rely on nonstop action. Most archeology movies just want to be Indiana Jones. And just my opinion (and I’ve been a professional musician for 50 years), I thought the soundtrack was good. It was sensitive and subtle just like the movie. We think the film should have been nominated for a few more awards.
The music was terrible. For me it didn’t ruin the film, which was overall quite disappointing (except for the excellent acting), but it certainly contributed to its failure.
how can anyone not like the music for this film? it’s perfectly tailored to the tone and form of the whole thing; every last thing in the film is understated, it’s all gently agreed, made into a dignified solution, and the beautiful minimalist music is just right — whenever you see Ralph Fiennes’ face alongside this music you just think, “yes”. One of Rf’s best performances, and the music really is just perfectly spot-on.