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Orchestrated by:
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Mark McKenzie
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Release Date:
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April 3rd, 2001
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Availability:
Regular U.S. release.
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Filmtracks Editorial Review:
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| | Goldsmith | |
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Along Came a Spider: (Jerry Goldsmith) Back in the early 1990's, Jerry
Goldsmith introduced the first glimpses of how he would score modern suspense
and horror films. A perfect example of this was Malice, an otherwise
nothingness of a score that happened to have a haunting end title theme. As the
decade progressed, Goldsmith also began repeating his trademark motifs of this
genre of scoring into his music for drama and action films, leading to a
"modern" Goldsmith sound that has become less and less interesting with each
incarnation. Disappointments such as U.S. Marshals and Hollow Man
are causing classic Goldsmith fans --those who embrace The Omen and
Poltergeist as the Goldsmith standard-- to lose confidence in the
composer. This concern over the substandard originality of Goldsmith does not
necessary entail that his more recent efforts are becoming less effective in
their role within the films, but rather, it points towards a disturbing
direction of repetition in this particular genre of film. In other words, if
Goldsmith ever wants to win another Oscar, this is not the way to do it.
While there are modern Goldsmith fans who enjoy Hollow Man and now
Along Came a Spider, there can be no debate that Goldsmith's days of even
providing a (at least) mediocre motif or theme at the end of his scores have
passed. What we've been left with is a legendary composer on autopilot.
Therefore, you won't be surprised when I say that there is absolutely nothing in
Along Came a Spider that Goldsmith fans haven't heard five or six times
before in recent years. It is without a doubt a boring score if not only for
this fact. Goldsmith doesn't even make an attempt in his 2000 and 2001 scores to
create a new sound, a new theme, or a new approach to his balance between
electronics and the orchestral. Even with Mark McKenzie brought in to
orchestrate Along Came a Spider (rather than Alexander Courage), we are
bombarded with the same old electronics and orchestral elements. Because of the
suspense of the film, Goldsmith's music spends a significant amount of its time
appropriately establishing the setting and atmosphere of the story, leading to
lengthy sequences of single cello plucks that require amplification just to
hear. Or, as the score begins, Goldsmith's trademark metallic electronics drone
away for three minutes, barely interrupted by occasional single sways of the
strings. I'm sure that the electronic sound effect of the "vibrating metal wire"
first heard in this opening sequence is meant to give an aural representation of
a spider, but it is not pronounced enough to be even remotely exciting.
The action sequences are stereotypically handled with cliche hits of the
orchestra (often followed by a few notes of brass --a motif that is becoming
very tiresome). The chasing or searching scenes have the same drum-pounding
percussion of Total Recall, but without the same thematic development.
The one interesting aspect of these louder moments is the performance of the
piano in the latter half of the score, which hints at the staggered rhythms of
Capricorn One. Otherwise, however, there is really nothing original or
interesting about the score for Along Came a Spider. The final track
doesn't build up to any satisfaction, leaving the listener with 35 minutes of
bland and uninspiring underscore. To its credit, the mixing of Goldsmith's
modern scores remains consistent, leading (since 1998) to a phenomenal presence
of the orchestra and crisp qualities to each section of the orchestra.
Heightened sound quality doesn't lead to originality, though, and I am beginning
to wonder how long it will be before dedicated film score fans begin turning the
"James Horner Self Rip-Off" arguement over onto Jerry Goldsmith. With only
Along Came a Spider and Hollow Man coming from the pen of the
great composer so far in this century, it should come as no surprise that
Goldsmith fans are secretly nervous that he is slowing his pace as he nears a
possible (though unlikely) retirement. **
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Viewer Ratings and Comments:
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• 1. Night Talk (3:06)
• 2. Testing (2:09)
• 3. Alone (1:05)
• 4. Megan's Abduction (3:19)
• 5. Megan Overboard (4:51)
• 6. Cop Killer (3:51)
• 7. The Ransom (7:27)
• 8. Profiling (3:40)
• 9. Not My Partner (5:02)
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Insert notes contain only a list of all
the players in the studio orchestra.
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