 |
|
 |
|
 | |||||||||
| • | Newest Major Reviews: | . | • | This Week's Most Popular Reviews: | • | Best-Selling Albums: | ||
| . |
1. Nim's Island 2. The Life Before Her Eyes 3. Horton Hears a Who! 4. Leatherheads 5. The Spiderwick Chronicles | . | . |
1. Moulin Rouge 2. Gladiator 3. POTC: Curse of the Black Pearl 4. Star Wars: A New Hope 5. Edward Scissorhands |
6. Pearl Harbor 7. Schindler's List 8. Titanic 9. Braveheart 10. Home Alone | . | . |
1. Varèse Sarabande 25th 2. The Last of the Mohicans 3. Legends of the Fall 4. Schindler's List 5. LOTR: Return of the King (Set) |
 | ||||||||
|
|
|
Filmtracks Recommends:
Buy it... if you want a hilarious album from an equally creative film and if you easily fall in love with tributes to lush themes from Hollywood's golden age. Avoid it... if you're listening to Armageddon at this exact moment and you can't fathom why anyone would find French tongue in cheek comedy music to be listenable. Filmtracks Editorial Review:
8 Femmes (8 Women): (Krishna Levy) One of the most creative films to come out of any country in recent years, François Ozon's international hit 8 Femmes is a large-scale comedic parody of murder mysteries and musical productions from yesteryear. It's the French story of eight oddly matched women who get stuck in the mansion of a murdered man. Through their outwitting of each other, they pursue the mystery and attempt to stay out of each other's suspicions. The fact that the film is an utterly ridiculous musical is what gives it its comedy and undeniable charm. Each of the eight women performs her own song, which is no small event given that the eight actresses are well known in France and aren't seen in such roles everyday. The songs are all interpretations of famous songs from the 1960's through 1980's (along the lines of what Baz Luhrmann did with Moulin Rouge, but done with a playful tongue in cheek attitude). Likewise, the orchestral score by Krishna Levy is a parody of sorts of the classic romance and suspense scores of Miklós Rózsa and Bernard Herrmann (respectively). The overall result is a delightful listen. The score is perhaps the lesser desired part of the production and album when you poll the masses of viewers of the film. It shouldn't be disregarded, however. The lush thematic simplicity that it exudes is even reminiscent of early Elmer Bernstein. Likewise, the suspense is tip-toes around the chord progressions often used in high strings by Herrmann, resulting in a score that will bring smiles to the faces of avid film score collectors. The parody is precise enough to be recognizable and effective, but funny enough in the interpretation to stay true to its comedy genre. The songs, adapted by Mick Lanaro, are carefully chosen to reflect each character's personality. The songs range from funky 1960's dance hits to lofty Parisian jazz, modern light tangos, to longing, 1970's ballads. Their diversity speaks volumes about the characters, and the arrangement of the songs, while distinctly separate from the score in style, is delightful. The album is a gorgeous production that identifies each song with its character and provides extensive lyrics and song identification credits. Since it was released first by Warner in France, the majority of existing albums on the market will be in French. Rhino re-released the album in the U.S. six months later. The identical contents are a comedy riot and a hit across all generations. ****
Insert includes extensive lyrics and notation about the songs. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
