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Last of the Mohicans on DVD
• "engaging score" • DTS Digital Surround More DVD info... |
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Last of the Mohicans on DVD
• "engaging score" • DTS Digital Surround More DVD info... |
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Filmtracks Editorial Review:
Whether the high unit sales for the Last of the Mohicans album can be attributed to Jones or Edelman specifically remains to be seen. There is much disagreement about how the two halves of the work together. What remains consistent, though, is the belief that Jones' first two tracks are the highlight of the album and the score as heard in the film (unless you're solely seeking the Clannad song). The main title theme is so magnificent and captivating that Jones would use mutations of the theme in Cliffhanger (1993) and the television film Cleopatra (1999). The second track, "Elk Hunt" features a strong and pulsating synth background that is overtaken by the orchestra in full --it begins the film with great momentum. Jones' half does have a few low-points. His period theme, which is a repetitive harsh-string motif heard during the third and sixth tracks, can get on the nerves after the length to which it performs. On the whole, Jones uses the synthesizers as a secondary accompaniment, which is a tactic that has proven to be very effective for him in other scores. Edelman, on the other hand, with such scores has Gettysburg (1993) and Dragonheart (1996), is known to place his synthesizers in a primary role. With both guitar and keyboard compositions for Last of the Mohicans, however, Edelman's music doesn't fit with the epic proportions of the film. This may have been due to the time constraints under which he was working, but it is possible that his style was simply incompatible with the content of the film. Also at issue is the incompatibility of the two parts of the album release. People generally pick and choose which half of the release they enjoy better, but many will also agree that the two halves just don't work well together. Jones' themes are so orchestrally sweeping that they make Edelman's music sound like simple filler material. Personally, I 'd purchase the album just for the first two tracks of Jones' material, even though they amount to only about three minutes combined. Also of note is the song performed by Clannad --another reason for the album's high sales-- which was also featured prominently in the film. On the whole, the album is a success because it offers an excellent selection of music from the film, including the best of Jones' score and the Clannad new age style song. It is not surprising that Varèse Sarabande and producer Robert Townson decided to tackle a re-recording of Last of the Mohicans; it is one of the best-selling score albums of the 1990s and continues to gain popularity long after Michael Mann's endlessly re-edited film fades from memory. Nevertheless, I was originally skeptical of Townson's selection of this score for Joel McNeely and the RSNO to perform. The original score was fragmented because of the vastly different styles of Jones and Edelman, and I had copied the first two tracks onto a compilation of my own and disregarded the rest of the score. Any re-recording has its positives and negatives. In favor of this new album is the simple fact that one performing group was used to bring life to both Jones' and Edelman's halves of the score. There is a much tighter cohesiveness because of this fact, and the full orchestra does wonders with Edelman's compositions, which, as many have commented on in the past, sounded overly processed in 1992. Even though Edelman's music is vastly improved, the Jones themes are no improvement over the original. Some might even argue that some of the sweeping majesty of the original performance is lost. The infamous "Elk Hunt" track has a softer and less stimulating electronic beat, though the resounding drum performances during the "Fort Battle" are an impressive improvement over the original. In the end, there are some improvements and some disappointments, and it comes out in a wash. The sound quality is usually a concern with these RSNO recordings, mostly because they are often performing music that needs a substantial improvement in surround quality from the original. But for Last of the Mohicans, we're talking about an original score from only eight years ago, so the difference in quality is only noticable in a handful of tracks (mostly the Edelman ones). Also of issue is the track selection. Only 45 minutes of score is performed, less than what was on the original, and most of the omitted material came from the Edelman side. On the other hand, there is some new material appearing for the first time. I suspect that there will be a good sum of people who were expecting a 70+ minute CD (the whole score was 77 minutes in length) and will balk at this shorter outcome. In any event, Last of the Mohicans is still a very good score, and the RSNO adds much needed cohesiveness to the Edelman selections and warrants a listen if you're a fan of the original.
Re-Recorded 2000 Album: ****
The insert notes of the original album include no extra information about the score. The 2000 re-release provides an excellent cue-by-cue analysis and situational perspective on the double-composer effort. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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