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The Fugitive: (James Newton Howard) The history of
the concept of Dr. Richard Kimball's attempts to solve the murder of his
wife while evading the forces of Federal Deputy Marshal Sam Gerard has
been rich on television and on the big screen. The famed fugitive's
chase into the cinemas in 1993 earned the production significant
critical praise, with the film nominated for the top award by the
Academy. Despite Harrison Ford's adequate return to the role of "scared,
innocent family man," the better contributor to Andrew Davis' film was
Tommy Lee Jones, whose performance as Gerard would itself garner Oscar
recognition. So overshadowing was Jones that the ill-advised 1998 sequel
to
The Fugitive would be centered solely on his character. In the
long and illustrious career of composer James Newton Howard,
The
Fugitive is a score that does not compete with his best. But as it
was a decent score for a highly popular film, Howard also received an
Academy Award nomination for his efforts.
The Fugitive is one of
the rare events when an A-list composer receives a nomination for an
average score while the vastly superior film could actually have used
superior musical representation (the same phenomenon would happened to
Howard much later with his nomination for
Michael Clayton).
Howard's approach to scoring
The Fugitive involved the merging of
electronic and orchestral elements, as well as the general avoidance of
providing music that stands out strongly in the film. Hence, the themes
are rather underplayed and secondary in emphasis compared to the
rhythmic devices that Howard provides for the chase scenes. A jagged and
frightfully disjointed set of rhythms is performed by a modestly-sized
orchestra and electronic percussion section. Interestingly, the
orchestral parts of the score, from the choppy action rhythms to the
gracious, harmonic exit at the end, are a distinct tip of the hat to
Jerry Goldsmith. In fact, much of the score for
The Fugitive
sounds like a Goldsmith score for a B-rate 1990's action thriller, and
perhaps there's less irony than one might think when remembering that
Goldsmith himself was brought in to score the sequel five years
later.
With the action material firmly rooted in Goldsmith
territory (resembling
Capricorn One in the staggered, percussive
moments), Howard provides some of the more stylish tactics of Dave
Grusin and John Barry for similar films at the time for other sequences.
There are jazzy undercurrents in
The Fugitive that never really
work themselves into the score well enough to be effective. The
saxophone, bass, and piano seemingly address the elegant lifestyle lost
by Kimball, thus explaining why it only exists in faint hints. On album,
"The Fugitive Theme" elaborates on this style, performing the title
theme with a touch of jazz that cannot compete with like-minded
alternatives from Goldsmith or Barry. That theme would only be utilized
sparsely throughout the score, easily receiving its most complete and
satisfying performance in the harmonically rewarding resolution cue.
Outside of this "redemption theme," as it could be called, Howard's
score uses rhythmic motifs as his secondary ideas to propel the score.
In "Helicopter Chase," "Subway Fight," and "Stairway Chase," a jagged,
rising motif for full ensemble represents Kimball's panic, and while
efficient in furthering the thrill of the moment, these cues aren't
particularly enjoyable when separated from the visuals. The remainder of
the score is quite mundane in its conservative, only mildly engaging
attitude. Cues like "Main Titles," "Kimble Returns," and "Sykes' Apt."
accompany scenes when Kimball is either mentally defeated of in
"sneaking mode," thus handing control of the music over the realm of
ambient sound design. The only exception to this tactic is a downright
hip rhythmic motif for Kimball's minor victories, embodied by a cool,
light rock rhythm (complete with
Unbreakable-like, bold drum pad
thumps and finger-clicking sounds) in "Kimble Dyes His Hair" and "No
Press." The latter cue has some fluttering of the sax at the outset that
is worth noting. For most listeners, however, the only true highlight of
The Fugitive is "It's Over," with a slow and resolute form of the
action rhythm leading to a solo woodwind and eventually full ensemble
performance of the title theme in grand, bittersweet harmony. Otherwise,
The Fugitive is a significantly underachieving effort floated
more by the film than vice versa.
**
| Bias Check: | For James Newton Howard reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating
is 3.34 (in 34 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.39
(in 46,135 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
|
The insert includes no extra information about the score or film.
