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The Passion of the Christ: (John Debney) Not much more needs
to be said about this film. It is a project that, when combined with his bigoted,
drunken rants during a traffic arrest not long after, could forever overshadow
actor-turned-director Mel Gibson's career for the better or worse. The graphic
depiction of Jesus Christ's last twelve hours of life was as controversial as any
film had been in a decade, and questions of merit were raised about whether the
polarizing effect of the film was really necessary. The violence of the
interpretation is so graphic that members of theatrical audiences were reported
to have vomited in the isles and staggered out of the cinema in disgust.
Christian organizations were pushing advertising for
The Passion of the
Christ alongside the studio's $25 million of a marketing budget aimed at
stimulating religious groups into flooding America with talk of the project.
Whether you are a born-again Christian or a die-hard atheist,
The Passion of
the Christ is at the very least a lengthy topic for debate over the supper
table, and with the musical score for the film so closely tied to the efforts of
the film, its evolution is worthy of equal debate. Gibson's production suffered
from a serious case of indecision when it came to its music; with Gibson
attempting for an ultra-accurate, original-language portrayal of Jesus' death,
the first reported idea was to have no musical score at all. Rumors circulated
that James Horner was interested in the project. Then, talk involved romantic
female composers such as Lisa Gerrard and Rachel Portman, who, in hindsight,
would have had no chance to compose what Gibson would eventually decide upon for
his film's musical identity. Portman did indeed have the job until her pregnancy
caused her to bow out gracefully. The assignment eventually went to Hollywood
utility man John Debney, a composer fresh off of
Bruce Almighty and
Elf, two scores that were quite typical in his comedy-dominated scoring
career. Another devout Christian himself, Debney has attributed prayer for
receiving some of the inspiration for this score. Much light-hearted discussion
resulted when Debney admitted that he blamed technical difficulties during the
recording and editing of this score on the forces of Satan, even claiming to run
out into the parking lot to confront his demons in these regards. Any number of
references to
End of Days could work here. No matter your opinion about
Debney's sanity or religious beliefs due to these silly revelations, at least it
conveyed a sense of the composer's own passion for the project.
The important and relevant element of Debney's career has been his
versatility, especially on short notice, and he is well respected by studios for
providing serviceable, quick music for any kind of film. Debney also seems well
adjusted to the idea of stepping in and producing the exact sound requested by
his employers without bickering over the approach demanded from him. In this case
particularly, Debney was an excellent (although still surprising) choice for the
project;
The Passion of the Christ is easily the most intriguing and
widely known of his scoring assignments to date. While film music collectors will
always favor
Cutthroat Island from a technical and enjoyment standpoint,
The Passion of the Christ earned the composer his only Oscar nomination
(and it's hard to imagine that he lost the award by a wide margin) and has
remained his most commonly referenced work. Debney received the job in October,
2003 after Portman's departure. He was so thrilled by the prospect of being
involved with the project that wrote some sample material for Gibson that was
ultimately used in a trailer for the film. "I had no pre-conceived notions about
what the score should be," Debney states. "I did know that the filmmakers liked
an eclectic approach to the music, not wanting to make the score too literal or
conventional. The result, I believe, is a nice blend between some very powerful,
more traditional music, as well as some very interesting ethnic and contemporary
textures." More than in any case in recent memory, the soundtrack for
The
Passion of the Christ cannot easily be separated from the film, for the
popularly accepted version of the story of Christ, despite its flaws in
historical accuracy, is so very well known. Thus, even if a person were to
attempt to evaluate Debney's
The Passion of the Christ as a piece of music
alone, without any regard for the film it accompanies, then that evaluation would
sorely miss the intent and context it embodies. Many film music fans argue that
this is the case for nearly any film, but with
The Passion of the Christ,
it is a clear reality. Part of this necessity to consider film and score together
is caused by Debney's uncanny ability to do his job well, and he has certainly
succeeded here. He accomplished his task so well for the intended adoring
audience that the score's best sections have become a popular concert piece for
Debney. In fact, he was scheduled in 2010 to lead a performance of the score with
a 500-member choir and a full orchestra in Saint Peter's Square at the Vatican, a
monumental occasion for any composer.
The score for
The Passion of the Christ is hugely
orchestral, with layered choirs, flighty flutes and female vocals, authentic
instruments from the era, and an array of electronic elements to provide accents
and rumbling bass to the soundscape. It is largely conceived music at every turn,
worthy of a lord or god indeed, and the intense passages of rhythm and lyrical
statements of harmony carry with them the weight of a heavily burdened topic.
There is seemingly less contemplative underscore compared to action,
interestingly, with strongly propulsive sequences extending throughout the score
and featuring choral statements over broad orchestral sweeps, very bass-heavy
synthesizers, and relentless drums. There are parts of
The Passion of the
Christ that sound like they were inspired by
The Prince of Egypt in
instrumentation, although the pounding action cues (and there are quite a few of
them) seem better compared to Hans Zimmer's
Gladiator, which also defined
Romans as the evil-doers. In short, Debney's score is immense, even during
dialogue-respecting underscore that often features a distant, powerfully beating
drum and a rumbling cymbal to accentuate each pivotal statement by Jesus himself.
One brief show of lyrical love is the flute work in the center portions of
"Crucifixion," a welcome break from the score's constant pressures despite its
strangely Irish tone. One has to make the inevitable comparison to another
Christ-related score that was, ironically, be released to theatres at the same
time as
The Passion of the Christ. Even though it debuted during the
previous year, Jeff Danna's
The Gospel of John provides a similar glimpse
into the life of Jesus, but with an entirely different intent and focus. The
score for
The Gospel of John is eloquent and romantic, beautiful and
loving in its operatic interpretations of Jesus' life. Debney's
The Passion of
the Christ has all of the exact same kind of instrumental and choral
ensembles, but with a completely different approach in its tone. This is where
talk about context in Gibson's film becomes necessary; you can listen to
The
Gospel of John for hours and not associate it necessarily with Jesus Christ
or any overtly religious idea. This is not so with
The Passion of the
Christ. Debney has said that "restraint was key to this film, so when the
music really gets big and emotional, we've earned it." And yet, Debney's score is
saturated with troubling and agonizing passages, a mirror reflecting the graphic
and upsetting events portrayed on screen. He would find better restraint with the
same elements in his music for
The Stoning of Soraya M. several years
later.
Perhaps the most defining aspect of Debney's score is its lengthy
sequences of downright nasty, mean, and oppressive material. There is very little
love and tenderness heard in the composition or performances of
The Passion of
the Christ, which is understandable given the horrible events concentrated on
by the film. But when you add the intended mass of the sound to the already
troubled waters of the composition, you get a final result that sounds like
Armageddon is upon the world in this film, with an abrasive spirit that could
indeed have better existed as part of Debney's dark music for
End of Days.
The scope of Debney's music is larger than life ("I can't imagine a more dramatic
story to compose music to," he says), relentlessly pounding its message home, and
while musically there are many outstanding and impressive aspects of this score,
you can't help but be worn down by its inflated attitude. There are some
interesting techniques employed by Debney that lead to a few cues that qualify as
downright horror music, especially with frantic strings and woodwinds exploding
in every direction at once for poignant moments of betrayal in the story. Aside
from melodic development for Jesus' mother, Mary ("I believe that Mary had a hand
in giving me her theme," Debney continues), there are no overwhelming, central
thematic identities in the film. The most widely recognized motif (a glorified
crescendo of rhythmic force), used to advertise the film, comes at the one minute
mark into "Resurrection." The majority of the harmonic statements in the score
are appropriately rooted in the minor key as to maximize their dramatic effect,
even during interludes of contemplation. The resurrection cue has a surprisingly
huge statement of powerful action in the minor key (before finally switching to
the major key in lesser volumes), a curious approach given that the events of
that part of the story don't maintain the same sense of dread as those prior.
Several curious decisions are made by Debney for this score, especially when you
compare his spoken intentions with the finished product. He claims to have tried
so hard to avoid the pitfalls of common perceptions of religious music, striving
for the kind of authenticity that Jeff and Mychael Danna had already achieved
with admirable success. But, ultimately, the music for
The Passion of the
Christ is the king of religious cliche, utilizing the exact bloated sound
that even Gibson had originally attempted to avoid. Massively harmonious
orchestral and choral music of almost liturgical power was too easy to generate
for this context. It's truly disappointing, therefore, to hear so little truly
intelligent or challenging thought expressed in this score.
[
Editor's Note: My wife was reading a book in the
Filmtracks office while I was listening to and originally reviewing this album in
February of 2004. At this point in my review, and during the "Resurrection" cue
on the stereo, she suddenly exploded with anger at Debney's music. I mention this
because she has always been a student of Christian religion, obtaining her
Master's degree in theology from a Christian seminary and working in subsequent
years with Christian organizations locally. Her distaste for this score was
surprising but perhaps predictable, because her opinion of the film's
controversial portrayal was one of disappointment from the start. She stated,
"It's gruesome music that's meant to make you feel guilty, just like the film. It
could make someone clinically depressed or suicidal if they care about the good
things that Jesus did." She left the office and did not return until I was
finished with the review. This is the only review at Filmtracks to feature this
kind of editor's note, but given her expertise on the topic and overwhelmingly
thorough disdain for Debney's approach to the film, it remains a particularly
interesting side note.]
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It's important to remember that
The Passion of the Christ
is a score written by a devoted Christian for a devoted Christian film aimed at a
devoted Christian audience. If you believe that the film is a propaganda tool and
nothing more, then this music could really irritate you. Once again, it's hard to
enjoy this music for its grand beauty without thinking about the film's
application as an offensive conversion tactic. Gibson seems to have been obsessed
with films about martyrdom from the start, including his top titles like
Mad
Max and
Braveheart, and with
The Passion of the Christ he has
the ultimate martyr's score for the ultimate martyr's film. Had Debney written
this music for a
Stargate sequel, then it would be magnificent in both
technical execution and enjoyability on album. As it stands, however, it is a
score flawless in execution and yet difficult to enjoy. Everything about it seems
aimed at parallel goals with the rest of the offensive production, and if you're
bothered by any of the issues involving the film, then Debney's score could
equally push your buttons with its bloated sense of self-importance. The album
was pressed by Christian music label Integrity Music in partnership with Sony
Music for distribution. The cues are out of order so that the listener is struck
with the momentous "Bearing the Cross" music early in the presentation. Despite
the film's great length, the score is only 54 minutes long on album, and no
matter your opinion of the religious intent of the music and film, it would be
very interesting to hear additional material. Overall, it is the best score
you'll ever hear for which you'll wish you didn't know the context of its film.
There is nothing loving about this music for Jesus. It is built to impress and
oppress with its sheer weight. Sometimes, the result is harsh and abrasive, and
rarely is it relaxing or understated. For Debney, it is an effort that he must
surely wish had been released just prior to the deadline for the previous year's
Academy Awards voting, because it represented his best chance at the award during
his long and illustrious career. He still received the nomination, but it came a
full year after the hype, and liberal Academy voters likely did what they could
to exclude the film from receiving any Oscars. Structurally, the music doesn't
exist at
Cutthroat Island levels (still his crown jewel to date), but it
comes close in parts. Melodramatic, controversial, and explosive, this music's
fate rests on the shoulders of its film, for there is no better an example of a
score that will sink or float with the fortunes of its overarching production. As
for the quality of Debney's effort alone, intelligent restraint unfortunately
lost to popular cliche.
**** Amazon.com Price Hunt: CD or Download
| Bias Check: | For John Debney reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating
is 3.23 (in 49 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.01
(in 42,775 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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