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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.
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.
|
The insert includes extensive credits, but no extra information about the score or film.