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Indochine
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Varèse Album
French Album
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Conducted by:
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William Craft
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Orchestrated by:
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Lawrence Ashmore
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Labels and Dates:
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Warner France
(December 1st, 1992)
Varèse Sarabande
(December 8th, 1992)
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Availability:
The Varèse Sarabande album was a regular U.S. release, but is now out of print. The French Warner album (WEA 9031-77338) with identical music is also out of print. Both were released in December, 1992.
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Filmtracks Recommends:
Buy it... if you appreciate the melodramatic power of Patrick Doyle's
solid classical style with grand themes and immense orchestral harmony.
Avoid it... if that same power and harmony from Doyle begins to lose
its edge because all of his similar scores sound the same to you.
Filmtracks Editorial Review:
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Indochine: (Patrick Doyle) In 1992, theatres around the
world were buzzing with the French film Indochine, a love story set
during the dangerous final years of the French occupation of Vietnam. The
film won the Academy Award for "Best Foreign Language Film," gaining a
substantial audience in America as well. Director Régis Wargnier's vision
for the film was one of immense visual and aural beauty, with the drama of
the story serving alongside an overwhelming artistic canvas for the senses.
He had heard Patrick Doyle's grand score for Henry V and was
interested in a similar sound for Indochine. When Wargnier showed up
at Doyle's door to hear a sample of what Doyle could provide for the film,
the funny circumstances of the day had required Doyle to record his ideas on
a Fisher Price children's cassette recorder; despite Doyle's embarrassment
over the situation, Wargnier and the producers were impressed and Doyle was
set to go (see the notes at the bottom of this review page for the full
story). Wargnier and the studio were so concerned about the appropriate
sound for the film that they had set aside one of the largest music budgets
ever for a French film. With that money, Doyle was able to boost the number
of musicians from a typical recording by expanding the string section. A
total of 120 musicians would perform the score for Indochine,
creating a depth in drama that very much pleased both Wargnier and
audiences. Following the success of the score, Doyle's effort was nominated
for a César award that year. On album, the score would be distributed
separately in Europe and United States. For Doyle, who was still relatively
fresh onto the scoring scene in 1992, Indochine was an excellent
addition to an already promising resume.
That success would be due, as expected, to Doyle's usual
romanticism throughout the score. Indochine is a fine example of
everything that defines Doyle's trademark sound. It is saturated with
passion and harmonic brilliance, inspiring a rich and enthusiastic
performance by the oversized orchestra. The score's title theme is sweeping
and rooted in Western classicism. Broad orchestrations feature the strings,
but provide outstanding solo performances for every section during the
course of the score. Highlighted are an adult chorus and a powerful
percussion section. Scenes of the impending French retreat from Vietnam are
scored with an unyielding rumbling of revolution. The percussion and brass,
often emphasizing Western power, do exist in the minority compared to
Doyle's meandering and lovely string themes for the predominant love story.
The difference between the height of passion and the periods of underscore
is minimal. Unlike such contemporary efforts a Great Expectations,
Quest for Camelot, or even his Shakespeare scores, there is a
constant level of intensity that is maintained from beginning to end on
Indochine. Thus, the title theme can, at times, be absorbed into the
rest of the score so that it is less obvious. But such is beauty of Doyle's
style; Indochine is a consistent listen from beginning to end,
offering a modern, classical romance for enthusiasts of large orchestral
ensembles. The one weakness of Indochine --and it could be a major
flaw, depending on your position on scores that don't entirely represent
their location-- is the plain fact that Doyle utilized no theme, style, or
instrumentation with which to properly match the location of the film.
Without any ethnicity at all, the score's heart is slightly out of place,
but Doyle's effort is still a success because of the primary characters'
roots in European culture. The score was released in America by
Varèse Sarabande and has fallen out of print. Even more difficult to
find is the French Warner album with identical contents. Both albums finish
with elegant Doyle songs performed by smaller ensembles or a single piano.
Overall, Indochine is a lush score that Doyle collectors, among all
classical fans, should appreciate. ****
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Viewer Ratings and Comments:
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Track Listings (Both Albums):
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Total Time: 52:25
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• 1. The Adoption (3:50)
• 2. The Burning Boat (1:19)
• 3. First Rendezvous (1:22)
• 4. We're Two People (3:06)
• 5. The Thunderstorm (3:46)
• 6. Isle of the Dragon (1:39)
• 7. Exodus (1:21)
• 8. Camille's Journey (2:28)
• 9. Journey's End (5:16)
• 10. The Escape (4:18)
• 11. The Decision (2:18)
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• 12. The Road to China (0:55)
• 13. Birth and Revolution (1:53)
• 14. Vietnamese Mothers (1:00)
• 15. The Coffin (1:11)
• 16. Eliane Finds Camille (2:57)
• 17. I No Longer Have a Past (2:31)
• 18. Indochine (4:28)
• 19. Tango (3:40)
• 20. Yvette's Waltz (1:28)
• 21. The Last Rhumba (1:26)
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The inserts of both albums contain information about the score or film.
"When I have an idea for a melody I tape it on a cassette, played on the piano, and work it out on sheet paper. But on one day the cassette recorder fell off my desk and broke. I picked up my little daughter's Fisher Price toy cassette recorder and taped a tune one day. And that day film director Regis Wargnier was at the door to listen to some of the music that I just had written for Indochine. But letting him in, I had forgotten that I had the Fisher Price on my desk...He was laughing. 'Are you telling me that you are recording the score for Indochine on a Fisher Price?'...I was embarrassed and refused to play it for him. But he wanted to hear it. It was not bad after all. He told me, 'Let's play and record the rest of the things you wrote for the film so far on the Fisher Price for the film producers in Paris. They are very serious people! They have dollar signs in their eyes. Let's do it for fun.' So I played it on the piano and we taped it. The next day Regis called me and said: 'They like the Fisher Price.'"
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