He is best known for collaborating with director Bryan Singer, composing and/or editing many of his films, including Public Access (1993), The Usual Suspects (1995), Superman Returns (2006), Valkyrie (2008) and Jack the Giant Slayer (2013), as well as the X-Men film series. For his work on Singer's 2018 Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, Ottman won the Academy Award for Best Film Editing.
Ottman was born in San Diego, California. Growing up in San Jose, Ottman made many amateur films garnering local attention in the community. He attended De Anza College and then transferred to the School of Cinematic Arts of the University of Southern California, where he graduated in 1988. One of his first assignments was to provide original music for the computer game I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream. In 2007, Ottman appeared in the documentary Finding Kraftland for his agent Richard Kraft.
He is best known for his multi-tasking as editor and composer for Bryan Singer's films, and on a few occasions, producer roles to boot. The Usual Suspects, Apt Pupil, X2, Superman Returns (including adapting themes originally composed by John Williams), Valkyrie, Jack the Giant Slayer, X-Men: Days of Future Past and X-Men: Apocalypse. Other notable films he worked on as composer are Snow White: A Tale of Terror, the 2005 remake of House of Wax, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Fantastic Four and its sequel Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, The Invasion, and Astro Boy.
He also directed (in addition to editing and scoring) the 2000 horror film Urban Legends: Final Cut. He won a BAFTA Award for Best Editing for The Usual Suspects, as well as two Saturn Awards for Best Music for The Usual Suspects and Superman Returns. In 2019, he was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Editing and won the ACE Eddie Award and the Academy Award his work on Bohemian Rhapsody, a film Ottman saw through on his own after both directors' departure (Bryan Singer being fired and Dexter Fletcher beginning pre-production on "Rocketman" shortly after finishing the shoot.) Ottman navigated the film's development in post and the tricky waters between film-maker and studio, working with producer Graham King and Dennis O'Sullivan.
Upon Bohemian Rhapsody getting nominated for, and winning its Best Editing awards, a scene of the band outside a pub went viral online after a post by someone critical of the editing style. Ottman, aware of the clip, explained that for a test screening, a heightened pace for the first act was asked for by the studio. After the test, Ottman returned the scene to its original pace and design. Ottman regretted that he missed returning the scene outside the pub closer to his original version. The scene (directed by Fletcher) contained no master shot of the band at the table.
Hope
John Ottman Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The first thing that I'd like to do
Is to save every day
Till Eternity passes away
Just to spend them with you
If I could make days last forever
If words could make wishes come true
I'd save every day like a treasure and then,
But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do
Once you find them
I've looked around enough to know
That you're the one I want to go
Through time with
If I had a box just for wishes
And dreams that had never come true
The box would be empty
Except for the memory
Of how they were answered by you
But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do
Once you find them
I've looked around enough to know
That you're the one I want to go
Through time with
The lyrics to John Ottman's "Hope (Xavier's Theme)" are a poignant reflection on the desire to cherish moments with a loved one for all eternity. The opening lines, "If I could save time in a bottle, the first thing that I'd like to do, is to save every day till eternity passes away", express the wish to capture time like a precious liquid and store it for an infinite amount of time. The desire to spend eternity with a loved one is further emphasized in the next two lines, "Just to spend them with you, if I could make days last forever".
The idea that life is finite and the importance of living each day to the fullest is conveyed through the lyrics, "But there never seems to be enough time, to do the things you want to do, once you find them". Even though the desire may be strong, the inevitability of time running out is a reminder to seize every moment and not take anything for granted. The final lines, "If I had a box just for wishes, and dreams that had never come true, the box would be empty except for the memory, of how they were answered by you", echo the sentiment that the most precious memories are those spent with the ones we love, and that those moments are worth cherishing forever.
Overall, "Hope (Xavier's Theme)" is a touching and emotional tribute to the power of love and the importance of cherishing the time we have with those we love.
Line by Line Meaning
If I could save time in a bottle
If I could save time and hold it for future use
The first thing that I'd like to do
The first thing that comes to mind
Is to save every day
Is to save every moment
Till Eternity passes away
For all of eternity
Just to spend them with you
Just to be with you during those times
If I could make days last forever
If I could make each day never end
If words could make wishes come true
If my wishes can come true with just my words
I'd save every day like a treasure and then,
I'd keep every moment valuable and never let them go
Again, I would spend them with you
And again, I would be with you during those times
But there never seems to be enough time
There's always a shortage of time
To do the things you want to do
To accomplish what you wish to accomplish
Once you find them
Once you find what you're looking for
I've looked around enough to know
I've searched far and wide and determined that
That you're the one I want to go
You're the one I want to spend my time with
Through time with
As time passes
If I had a box just for wishes
If only I had a container for my desires
And dreams that had never come true
And dreams that have yet to be realized
The box would be empty
The container wouldn't have anything in it
Except for the memory
Except for the recollection
Of how they were answered by you
Of how you made them come true
Writer(s): LIOR ROSNER, JOHN OTTMAN
Contributed by Caden I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@jpcbarron
"Just because someone stumbles, loses their way doesn't mean they're lost forever." - Charles Xavier
@monishk6561
awesome quote
@-cloudsaboveuscrying-6805
"sometimes we all need a little help"
best quote ever
@noodlesmaster69420
+
Clouds above us crying"We got... a little help" --Cyclops@-cloudsaboveuscrying-6805
haha yeah! everything is connected somehow
@lenedwardsjr9014
John Barron nice quote bro
@whysos3rious88
This movie is almost 10 years old and not a single movie from Marvel phase 4 comes close to this masterpiece. Days of Future past "felt" like an actual Marvel movie, you can feel the emotion and passion that was put into this film..
@LifeSaloon
Besides Captain america winter soldier no mcu film can be compare to this
@topknot01
X-men good movies actually felt like films. The closest Marvel got to that was the first iron man and winter soldier.
@anonymousaccount4483
@@topknot01Guardians 1 and Infinity War are up there too. But then youโve got โproductโ films like Love and Thunder and Guardians 2