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.
Time in a Bottle
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
'Til eternity passes away
Just to spend them with you
If I could make days last forever
If words could make wishes come true
Again, I would spend them with 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
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
John Ottman's song Time in a Bottle is a touching tribute to the fleeting nature of time and the power of love to transcend it. The lyrics express the desire to "save time in a bottle" so that every moment spent with a loved one could be treasured for eternity. The singer reflects on the fact that there never seems to be enough time to do all the things we want to do, but recognizes that the most important thing is to spend that time with the person we love. The song is a poignant reminder of how precious our time on this earth is, and how important it is to make the most of every moment.
Line by Line Meaning
If I could save time in a bottle
If I could control the flow of time
The first thing that I'd like to do
The top priority in my mind
Is to save every day
To capture each moment forever
'Til eternity passes away
Until the end of time
Just to spend them with you
To share the moments with my loved one
If I could make days last forever
If I had control over time duration
If words could make wishes come true
If wishful thinking could become a reality
I'd save every day like a treasure and then,
Every day would be a valuable memory
Again, I would spend them with you
I would cherish the moments with my loved one
But there never seems to be enough time
Time always seems insufficient
To do the things you want to do
To accomplish all desired tasks
Once you find them
Once you discover what's important
I've looked around enough to know
I've searched and realized
That you're the one I want to go
That my loved one is who I want
Through time with
To share experiences and memories
If I had a box just for wishes
If I had a container for dreams
And dreams that had never come true
And my unfulfilled aspirations
The box would be empty
The container would lack content
Except for the memory
Except for the recollection
Of how they were answered by you
Of how the love of my life provided satisfaction
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, BMG Rights Management
Written by: Jim Croce
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@KamenDokov
Time in a Bottle
If I could save time in a bottle
The first thing that I'd like to do
Is to save every day 'til eternity passes away
Just to spend it 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
Again, I would spend it with 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
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
@Ironeyes128
super speed is now cooler than teleportation
@Ironeyes128
***** yeah but quicksilver was better especially in this slow motion matrix type sequence
@JonRIPSammy13
Matthew Brendley Yeah but Blink is hot just saying.
@CelestialCookie
But teleportation stems from the mutant traveling to an alternate dimension.
@lordtrophies
controlling metal is better because mostly everything in earth is metal like weapons , cars , secret military hide out .
@joandelossantos7200
brian Sanchez It didn't save them though.
@AnimeRevProductions
Never thought a comic book character could be epic as hell with such an old school song like this. Advantage: Quicksilver!
@BarryAllen1
hmm. ok
@benjaminwoodman
So flash, we finally meet...
-Your rival, Quicksilver
@kokayinewsome9308
Quicksilver steals the show in both movies.