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Orchestrated by:
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Greig McRitchie
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Labels and Dates:
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Virgil 55.7991 (bootleg)
(September, 1997)
Varèse Sarabande
(November 1st, 2001)
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Availability:
The 2001 album is a Varèse
Sarabande CD-Club release. Only 3,000 copies of this album were pressed,
though the albums are not numbered. It can only be purchased through the
label's website. This album is the second of three to begin a resurrection of an
earlier CD-Club that existed in the late 80's and early 90's. Their initial cost
is $20, and will likely escalate if they ever sell out. Full index: VCL
1101-1002. The bootleg was previously available on the secondary market for
roughly $40, but is now made worthless with the expanded 2001 album, unless
you're interested in the suite from The Hand on that bootleg.
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Filmtracks Editorial Review:
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Project X: (James Horner) Horner was about to hit his stride in 1987,
with several high profiles scores already under his belt and his most popular of
his early career to emerge in the following two years. The film Project X
was a production that Horner would not turn down, for it would be yet another
opportunity to spread his wings in the use of non-traditional instrumentation.
It was an odd film in many respects, for although it had all the makings of a
family film (with Broderick, Hunt, and a bunch of monkeys), but it also
contained a strong and dark political message that could easily frighten
children. For an average adult, it may seem just a tad too childish to catch and
hold your attention, and for the average kid, it had too many scary scenes of
nuclear radiation and death to satisfy their needs. Thus, you get Project
X, a film that could be mildly interesting at the late night hour on a
lonely night. What would make it an even more attractive movie to see for film
music enthusiasts is the complex score offered by James Horner. The film may
have been a lightweight in the end, but Horner didn't treat Project X as
such. His score for the film plays an integral role in the film, enhancing the
inhibited communication skills of the monkeys and each of their slightly varied
personalities. Available for four years on a hideous bootleg, the score for
Project X has finally been pressed with full sound and length on the
second of the new series CDs from the Varèse Sarabande CD-Club in 2001.
Without a doubt, Project X is one of those scores that is much easier to
appreciate than it is to enjoy. The complexity that Horner pulls off in the
effort is commendable, and adds a wealth of depth to the film, however its
complexity alone causes it to be a more difficult album to enjoy in any great
length. Nevertheless, it's the performance in the film that counts the most, and
in this case, Horner makes a barely watchable film worthy of a view. The concept
of scoring for animals with a distinct personality is perhaps one of the most
difficult tasks for any composer, though Horner has embraced that opportunity,
especially when it comes to apes and monkeys. The chimps in Project X,
with the brilliant Virgil as their leader, are not meant to be funny or to be
laughed at (except, maybe, for the rumble scene described below). As a serious
film, it was necessary for Horner to capture both the primordial instincts of
each personality and develop it slowly as the chimps learn to fly an airplane.
The plot, of course, entails that the monkeys, once capable pilots, would be
exposed to rising levels of radiation in the simulators so that human scientists
could test approximately how long the chimp pilots could continue their mission
before dying (after flying, that is, into an irradiated portion of the earth in
a post nuclear attack scenario). Thus, both the themes for the chimps, as well
as their soaring accomplishments on the simulators, are overshadowed by Horner's
insertion of ominous tones for the majority of the score... and that is why the
score isn't particularly pleasant on album outside of a listener's ability to
appreciate the music.
As for the style of the music itself, Project X falls in between Horner's
early identification (the harsher sounds of Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan
to Brainstorm) and his more fluid styles that would prevail in just a few
years (Willow, Glory). In the development of theme and
instrumentation, Project X could probably be classified better as a
member of the latter group, offering some of the same trademark sounds and
motifs that were still maturing for later uses in Horner's better known scores.
Among these repetitions are the use of the flighty woodwinds, both in native
flutes, and in regular woodwind instrumentations, that Horner typically calls
upon for any project involving a forest setting. A passage in the sixth track
will serve as a practice run for Mighty Joe Young. The four-note "danger
motif" (incorrectly identified as being of three notes in the insert) is the
ammunition for Horner self-ripoff counters across the world, but its early
appearance in Project X is very effective in the latter portions of the
story. The scoring of "flight" breaks new ground here, with several moments of
soaring orchestral music that offer a foreshadowing of the mature composition
for flight in The Rocketeer, including a short burst of an elegant piano
performance in the seventh track. Horner cuts loose for the one really funny
scene in the film, during which the chimps bust loose from their cages and maul
the laboratory, and the composer tackles it with an equally enjoyable
combination of ethnic drum beating and inspiring rhythms.
The album ends with another seemingly trial run of material that would be heard
in the celebration opening of Willow's end titles. The highlight of
Project X, as correctly pointed out in the insert by the album's
producer, Nick Redman, is the "Ghost Call" track. As the chimps begin to realize
their fate, they call out in unison for the loss of a popular companion, and
Horner's delicate balance between his themes and the primordial percussion
instruments is outstanding. Project X, in the end, is diverse enough to
hold your interest, but it is nowhere close to being amont Horner's hidden
treasures. The darker tilt to the film causes the tension in the score to
elevate it beyond its obvious competition, Mighty Joe Young, and its
appearance on the Varèse label should be welcomed by Horner's fans. Don't
expect too much from the score, however, because it is a subtle character piece,
rarely exploding with theme. Even the escape sequences at the end of the film
are scored with some hesitation, because the chimps in the wild face a great
unknown. The 2001 limited release eliminates the need for anyone to seek the
1997 bootleg of the score, which suffers from terrible sound quality. Only a
suite from The Hand distinguishes the bootleg, but that music is of poor
quality to begin with, so the distant, muddy sound quality further detracts from
that album. For the price, the limited, expanded Project X album won't be
for every collector, but it is nevertheless an interesting enough selection to
warrant an entry in the prestigious Club series. ***
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Viewer Ratings and Comments:
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Track Listings (2001 Varèse album):
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Total Time: 74:58
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• 1. Main Title (4:54)
• 2. First Lesson (3:15)
• 3. Losing Virgil (4:10)
• 4. Learning to Fly (3:02)
• 5. The Plea (1:03)
• 6. New Friends (5:48)
• 7. Student Pilots (5:00)
• 8. Bluebeard's Flight (6:13)
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• 9. Ghost Call (4:09)
• 10. The Rescue (6:00)
• 11. The Tower (6:02)
• 12. Chimp Rumble (5:48)
• 13. Chain Reaction (4:36)
• 14. The Escape (4:12)
• 15. Flying (4:28)
• 16. End Credits (6:09)
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Track Listings (1997 Bootleg album):
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Total Time: 54:58
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Project X:
• 1. Prologue/The Jungle (4:46)
• 2. Main Titles/14 Years Later/Virgil Learns (3:08)
• 3. Sign Language/Virgil Performs (5:29)
• 4. The Test Room (5:29)
• 5. The Plan/Revolt/Breakout (5:54)
• 6. Reunion/Chimps on the Loose (4:56)
• 7. Escape in the Plane (4:16)
• 8. Sanctuary/End Credits (7:12)
The Hand:
• 9. Suite (14:03)
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The insert of the 2001 album contains a
lengthy note from album producer Nick Redman. It is customary for these CD-Club
releases to include lengthy analysis of both the film and score.
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