From Genregrinder‘s review of The Advuentures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984): “Neurosurgeon. Physicist. Rock Star. Hero. Buckaroo Banzai (Peter Weller) is a true ‘80s renaissance man. With the help of his uniquely qualified team, The Hong Kong Cavaliers, Buckaroo is ready to save the world on a moment’s notice. But after his successful test of the Oscillation Overthruster – a device that allows him to travel through solid matter – he unleashes the threat of “evil, pure and simple from the 8th Dimension”… the alien Red Lectroids. Led by the deranged dictator, Lord John Whorfin (John Lithgow), the Lectroids steal the Overthruster with the intent of using it to return to their home of Planet 10 ‘real soon!’ But, no matter where you go, there Buckaroo Banzai is… ready to battle an interdimensional menace that could spell doom for the human race.”
Was the movie a comedy, a sci-fi geekfest, or a fast-paced race-against-time thriller with sky high stakes? Yes. Was it so visually jam-packed with cutting-edge tech trinkets while simultaneously so light in plot continuity that it confused audiences? Also yes. But for audiences happy to see a movie with the look and feel of a cartoon book come to life — particularly one that featured an all-new universe where the effortlessly charismatic hero was somehow a top neurosurgeon by day and also a guitar-slinging rockstar by night — the movie was a cult hit. In addition to Weller and Lithgow, the cast’s other A-list actors include Ellen Barkin and Jeff Goldblum. Descriptions of the film pretty much can’t cut it, so watch the trailer, below!
The theme, which played under the movie’s closing credits, features the high-pitched three-note call of Buckaroo’s abovementioned overthruster (first heard at 0:26 as the theme starts), which was so centrally important to the plot that it should have been listed in the credits itself. After a start in A major, 1:04 brings a shift to Eb major for the B section. The modulation is ushered in by sudden shift to a I minor chord and then a V chord in A major just before the key change. So somehow, the improbable modulation feels more like a gentle exhale down a half-step to the new Eb tonic than a jarring shift. The overthruster’s call chimes in often as the two sections alternate again throughout. At 3:24, the regal fanfare which brings the theme to an end still features the now-iconic three-note chirp.
for Roger
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