Buy it... if you enjoyed Hans Zimmer's Gladiator score but yearned for more choral, thematic, and percussive consistency from start to finish.

Avoid it... if you prefer a bombastic, thematically obvious score with the style of heavy, electronic brooding that you heard in Gladiator.

Gregson-Williams

Kingdom of Heaven: (Harry Gregson-Williams) Director Ridley Scott's fascination with the history of the Old World extends from Gladiator to Kingdom of Heaven, and is reportedly headed in the direction of a Gladiator sequel in the years to come. These vast epics from the times of Rome to the Crusades have earned Scott immense critical acclaim and popular respect, and for Kingdom of Heaven, the Crusades of the 12th Century are the subject matter. In the starring role, Orlando Bloom plays Balian of Ibelin, a young blacksmith in Jerusalem who rises through the ranks from a common man to a knight and beyond in the process of protecting his people from foreign, Muslim invaders. With a solid cast and many of the same stylistic portrayals of violence seen in Gladiator, Scott's Kingdom of Heaven was originally set to maintain the same continuity in its film score. Long-time Scott collaborator Hans Zimmer was signed to score Kingdom of Heaven, but conveniently switched jobs with his protege Harry Gregson-Williams upon Zimmer's recommendation. With Harry Gregson-Williams then assigned to Kingdom of Heaven, Zimmer took Gregson-Williams' place on the animated children's/talking anima film Madagascar. It's natural to compare Gregson-Williams' style in Kingdom of Heaven to Hans Zimmer's in his wildly popular Gladiator score, and while there are several similarities in the neo-classical methodology of the two composers, Gregson-Williams seems more interested in creating and sustaining a much more consistent underscore while avoiding the outwardly obvious thematic outbursts and new-age influences of Zimmer's Gladiator. Along with the topic of the Crusades comes a more ethereal, adagio-styled score for large-scale choral Latin in Kingdom of Heaven, as well as a far less imposing role for electronic elements. Gregson-Williams' score is more likely to be found on the shelves of classical music collectors than heard in European discos, as Gladiator was, and that attention to authenticity in Kingdom of Heaven will likely serve its film to a better end.

Unlike parts of Gladiator, Kingdom of Heaven won't blow you over with any single cue; as a matter of fact, it'll take several cues to really begin to sink in. The title theme by Gregson-Williams is very consistently utilized throughout the score, but rarely pronounced with great clarity and gravity. Its smoothly flowing chord progressions are often shifted between different layers of the chorus and the orchestral ensemble in such a fashion as to remain elusive. No explosive brass statements truly define its boundaries, but its effectiveness is ensured by Gregson-Williams' ability to use it as counterpoint to any meandering choral or string moment of underscore. The religious qualities of the score cannot be missed, on the other hand, with the nearly constant wordless and occasionally Latin-chanting chorus making a strong presence in nearly every cue. Sometimes solo and at other times with the resounding backing of a diverse percussion section (Turkish musicians from Istanbul) and a full orchestral ensemble, the 100+ member chorus weaves in and out of the major key, keeping the score hopeful even during its darkest moments. The strong level of surprising consistency in quality is evident in Gregson-Williams' ability to provide suspense and drama without relying much on the bombast of the brass section, instead tightening the percussion and his central elements of the electric violin and electric cello. While orchestral purists may not be thrilled to hear those electronic string instruments in the mix, Gregson-Williams utilizes them well as extensions of woodwinds in an effort to score the Muslim and other ethnic portrayals in the film. Along with every solo instrument --and Gregson-Williams does seem to have done his homework here-- nothing in the ensemble is ever able to overpower the chorus, however, and it's the Howard Shore-like moments of beauty from The Lord of the Rings that make this score shine. Very slow movements of theme progression (such as the seemingly Zimmeresque opening chords to "A New World") never seem to bore if simply because of the masterful choices of instrumentation and choral integration. In light of that consistency, the Kingdom of Heaven score has no single weak cue as presented on its album release.

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Perhaps the most important aspect of Gregson-Williams' work for Kingdom of Heaven is that it remains extremely respectful in the face of religious fanaticism, and like Lee Holdridge manages to do in his own scores for religious persecution and war, Gregson-Williams doesn't succumb to stereotypical levels of religious hysteria. The chorus borders on this territory a few times, almost building up the kind of rhythmic steam that Don Davis fans heard in the latter Matrix scores, but the electric violin & cello, and especially the vivid percussion section, keep the score rooted in its time. The fact that the percussion in Kingdom of Heaven is genuine and not synthesized rings out with power in the score, elevating cues like "The Battle of Kerak" to outstanding levels of sword-clanging authenticity. Among the more memorable moments of the score will be the "Terms" cue, with outstanding layers of Muslim vocals, and the "Ibelin" theme, perhaps a character theme within the context of the larger, main theme of the score (which likely represents the Crusades as a whole). Appearing twice in almost concert format, the score offers the percussive base of Brian Tyler's Children of Dune and eventually adds the enticing vocals of Natacha Atlas (whose performances here --similar to those in the end titles of Gabriel Yared's Troy-- ring with an appropriate twist of ethnicity that never sounded quite right her duties for Danny Elfman's The Hulk). Speaking of Children of Dune, much of Gregson-Williams' use of percussion throughout Kingdom of Heaven is reminiscent of Tyler's landmark television score. But, once again, there is no royalty to be clearly heard in Kingdom of Heaven. An hour-long album will take you 15 minutes to establish itself and after another half hour, its consistent quality will lure you into a level of comfort that is surprising for a violent film about the Crusades. Gregson-Williams accomplished this same consistency in his score for the animated Sinbad flop, and while you may be able to argue with the merits of that score in the context of its genre (and the terrible film), Gregson-Williams is beginning to show an ability to infuse his music with a level of quality that you often only hear in the highlights of comparable scores. Some score collectors will point to scores such as last year's Man on Fire and disagree, but you can also go back to a score as early as Spy Game and hear the roots of this ability. Overall, Kingdom of Heaven is an intelligent and respectfully restrained powerhouse of a score... and a definite improvement over Zimmer's Gladiator for Ridley Scott. *****

Bias Check:

For Harry Gregson-Williams reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.09 (in 22 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 3.24 (in 42,163 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.