Filmtracks Recommends:
Buy it... if, simply put, you own and enjoy a few Richard Robbins scores for similarly constructed low-key period classicism. Avoid it... if everything about costume dramas set in eighteenth-century England strikes you as boring from the outset. Filmtracks Editorial Review:
Sense and Sensibility: (Patrick Doyle) Looking back at the early to mid-1990's, the age seemed ripe for Jane Austen dramas. The big costume period-piece flair for dramatics was experiencing a renaissance at the time, not restricted only to the adaptations of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Persuasion, and Sense and Sensibility. With Hollywood stuck in eighteenth-century England for much of the decade, it's no surprise that Sense and Sensibility was such a success with both critics and awards nominators. The film does have merit; it was a surprisingly good adaptation of the Austen story by lead actress Emma Thompson herself, and the supporting cast led by Kate Winslet and Alan Rickman (in a charmingly rare gentleman's performance) counterbalanced the on-cue bumbling of Hugh Grant. For detractors of the kind of ridiculous structure of society resurrected in these Austen tales, Sense and Sensibility is an insipid bore, with the sort of mindbogglingly trivial romance of the era that indeed nearly ruins the larger, overarching themes of the maturing process that the film also displays. Just as the genre sends people (men, of course) running away in terror, the music for these old England dramas suffers from much of the same kind of reputation. When you think of Merchant Ivory Productions, director Ang Lee, composer Richard Robbins, or even Patrick Doyle in these circumstances, the genre presents itself as a natural sedative for people who couldn't care less for the romantic and social commentaries of Jane Austen. The music for these period pieces was equally recognized in the 1990's, from Elmer Bernstein's The Age of Innocence to Robbins' pair of nominations later in the decade for Howard's End and The Remains of the Day. Doyle, while known better for his Shakespearean efforts, entered this scene with Golden Globe and Oscar nominations for Sense and Sensibility. To write off the score for Sense and Sensibility as an exercise in pure fluff wouldn't be an injustice for many listeners (and perhaps even some Doyle collectors), but the composer accomplishes all that he needed to do. The score is performed by a simplified orchestral ensemble at tentative, but nevertheless beautiful levels of attentiveness to character. The romance and interminable conversations in the film beg this kind of basic string, woodwind, and piano writing, and while the charm shines through in the end, Doyle is careful to present his music with just enough solemn pace of restraint to serve the hardships of the women in the film. Thus, Sense and Sensibility isn't really a upbeat venture, teasing you with typical flourishes of Doyle's always-swirling strings while never truly engaging you until the final cue. It could be said that the quality of the music increases as the score goes forward, but that's because Doyle is manipulating the tone of his music to match the maturity process of the women in the story. The two operatic performances by Jane Eaglen (making her large-scale debut at about that time) are poems set to two Doyle songs, and the differences in tone between those two bookending songs tells you everything you need to know about the changes in the score. The opening song, extending several cues into the score, allows Doyle to prance on the light touch of the piano and woodwinds, and the best of the playful elements are developed into the first signs of serious contemplation in the piano and string cue "My Father's Favorite," the highlight of the score. The "Steam Engine" and "Willoughby" travel cues strike a more wild waltz-like rhythm that sustain interest in middle sections. Later in the score, the orchestrations become a little more lush, and Doyle's tempos slow to allow the strings to perform theme variations of simplicity in the broad style of John Barry. The mood is very consistent in Sense and Sensibility, and Doyle's score is equally respectful and warm throughout. The final cue, "Throw the Coins" is the only full ensemble piece, with victorious cymbal crashes and rounded accompaniment for the final pronouncement of the title theme as the pairings in the film are realized. Overall, Doyle's Sense and Sensibility can be either sickeningly boring or charmingly inviting, depending on your opinion of low key period classicism. As a composition, it remains one of Doyle's better achievements. **** Track Listings:
Total Time: 42:54
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