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Rambo III: (Jerry Goldsmith) By the late 1980's,
the concept of John Rambo was being replaced by technology, but that
didn't stop the Carolco studio from tempting the reluctant hero back
into one last battle against whatever forces were disparaging the
American way of life at that particular moment. The targets of Rambo's
mayhem in
Rambo III were, once again, Russians, but the location
shifts from Vietnam to Afghanistan for the end of the iconic 80's
trilogy. By this point in Rambo's journey, the script and its underlying
story didn't really matter, though in the process of providing a new
backdrop for the killing, the producers of
Rambo III
inadvertently utilized a political alliance in the film that would seem
horribly shortsighted just a decade later. Not only does it seem awkward
that Rambo would have attended a Buddhist monastery in Thailand (as he
does at the outset of the film), but the fact that he would train and
fight with the Mujaheddin of Afghanistan against the Russians would
eventually give
Rambo III a more fascinating edge in a post-9/11
world. Outside of this now creepy aspect of the film,
Rambo III
only existed in concept to show us more of Sylvester Stallone
annihilating his enemies in close combat. Stallone would earn $20
million and shoot location scenes in Israel for
Rambo III, though
even on a technical level, the film was dragged down by terrible
direction and under-achieving cinematography. It would seem that Jerry
Goldsmith didn't let any of these trashy elements discourage him from
providing yet another strong action score for the franchise, though. His
scores for the first two
Rambo-related pictures were acclaimed by
fans of the composer, serving the explosive nature of the franchise's
lead character well. Goldsmith had entertained listeners of
Rambo:
First Blood Part II with several intelligent adaptations and
maturations of themes from the original film's score, keeping the
established material fresh while adding a few, somewhat underwhelming
new themes and motifs. In
Rambo III, the formula would be the
opposite; the quality of the new themes would overshadow the adaptations
of the previous material.
In no way does Goldsmith abandon the majority of his ideas
from the previous two scores, however. As Rambo contemplates his future
in a familiar solitude, Goldsmith employs the mournful "long road home"
theme from the first film in four minutes of tender solos over the full
ensemble in "Another Time." This theme would be reprised on occasion in
Rambo III, typically in solo fashion, though Goldsmith does send
the triumphant hero off at the end of the trilogy with one very rousing
full string-section rendition of it. The variant of this theme used for
the primary action performances isn't anywhere near as well developed
and manipulated here as it was in the second score, though
Rambo
III does have its fair share of ambitious action cues. Instead of
relying on the straight, harmonious vigor of the theme to propel those
cues, he maintains your interest with relentless rhythms from a variety
of orchestral and synthetic sources, mirroring some of the low-piano and
drum rhythms that would eventually highlight
Star Trek:
Insurrection. The electronic accompaniment would be toned back in
Rambo III, never reaching the level of potentially harsh
irritation as heard in the previous installment. The ethnic slant of
these synthetic aides would be visited once again by Goldsmith in
Star Trek: Insurrection as well. The "sneaking" theme used in the
first two scores wouldn't be as evident in the third (at least as a
stand-alone element), though one of Goldsmith's more creative moves is
to incorporate the theme directly into the underlying rhythm of the
major action pieces. Another curious, but effective strategy by
Goldsmith involves the employment of the first four notes from Rambo's
primary theme at the outset of both major new themes in the third score.
The rising set of notes appears at the start of the somewhat flat new
action theme for
Rambo III, as well as the primary idea for the
setting of Afghanistan. The technique provides an interesting connection
between all of the ideas involved in the franchise's maturation, and
Goldsmith varies their pacing and instrumentation to marginalize
whatever overt familiarity that may bother the listener about these
similarities.
Among the highlights of
Rambo III is Goldsmith's
treatment of the location in Afghanistan. While the setting of Thailand
is never really addressed outside of "Preparations," a
percussion-dominated cue that is easily the low point of the album,
Goldsmith provides a surprisingly warm representation for the
Mujaheddin. Because the film attempts to present the "freedom fighters"
of Afghanistan as sympathetic --part of the film's problem nowadays--
there is a significant amount of harmonic warmth provided to them.
Introduced in "Afghanistan" and developed in full performances
throughout the cues of tragedy that follow, ethnic percussion (real and
synthetic) lead the familiar four notes into an engaging theme that
suffices for the region despite relying a bit heavily on progressions
that would seem better suited for
The Mummy. This theme sometimes
yields to a secondary statement that may qualify as another separate
theme for the location; more whimsical and robust in its orchestral
performances, this extension of the ideas in "Afghanistan" offer
progressions related to Lee Holdridge's equally emotional theme for
Old Gringo, especially in woodwind employment. Later performances
of these two themes would merge them, with the secondary theme serving
as an interlude. The last cue, presenting the finale and rejected end
credits suites, would offer all of the major ideas in succession,
sending Rambo off with a reminder of where he's been. One interesting
note about
Rambo III is that despite the presence of Russian
villains in both sequel films, Goldsmith only carries over fragments of
his Russian theme from the second score into the third. It is often
identifiable in places such as "The Show Down" because of its inherently
slow pacing and brass construct, despite never being stated with obvious
intent. Another note of importance is the skill with which Goldsmith
employs counterpoint in
Rambo III. Even the hero's primary theme
is stated with a pause and rumble in nearly every performance, and the
widespread use of the four-note motif at the opening of themes assists
in further blurring the lines between the concurrent thematic
statements.
Without good reason, the majority of Goldsmith's music
for
Rambo III was never actually used in the film. Significant
portions of
Rambo: First Blood Part II were placed in the film
instead, often with pacing problems and other difficulties inherent in
last-minute, editing-room zeal. Granted,
Rambo: First Blood Part
II featured a wider selection of roaring action cues of superior
quality, but
Rambo III has its fair share of top-notch Goldsmith
material as well, especially when studied in retrospect. The composer
would write outstanding end title suites for both films only to see them
replaced by obnoxious songs. Initially adding to the frustration of the
situation with Goldsmith's music for
Rambo III was its
presentation on commercial album. The Scotti Brothers release concurrent
with the film only featured seven cues of Goldsmith's work, favoring
several songs featured in the style first introduced at the end of
Rambo: First Blood Part II. In 1993, Intrada Records continued
their long-time association with Goldsmith by obtaining the rights to
the digital recording session masters for
Rambo III. Their
expanded album runs 76 minutes, nearly the entirety of the session
recordings (the only missing material involves the trimming of a few
relatively unimportant moments of minimalism, allowing Intrada to
advertise the product as being "complete"), and provides a cleaner
quality of sound compared to the original product. The performances by
the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra were vivacious to begin with, and
the Intrada album provides them with outstanding clarity. The inclusion
of the rejected cues on the expanded album is a major relief for
Goldsmith collectors, centering mostly around the remarkable "I'll Stay"
rejected credits. Intrada remastered the score further and repackaged it
with identical contents in 2005. Overall,
Rambo III is a solid
finale to the franchise. It doesn't feature the strongest action
material among the three, nor does the intelligence of its adaptations
quite equal
Rambo: First Blood Part II. But it explores beautiful
new territory in its two major ethnic ideas, and the use of electronics
is as well balanced with the orchestra in
Rambo III as it ever
was in the trilogy. A conceptually satisfying conclusion to six years of
great Goldsmith fun.
Amazon.com Price Hunt: CD or Download
Music as Written for Film: ****
Music as Heard on Scotti Brothers Album: **
Music as Heard on Intrada Albums: ****
Overall: ****
| Bias Check: | For Jerry Goldsmith reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating
is 3.26 (in 113 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.32
(in 133,461 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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