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Vanity Fair: (Mychael Danna) Modern moviegoers may not
realize the lengthy history of the
Vanity Fair story in film; the
classic novel by William Makepeace Thackeray has been translated to the big
screen six times, but four of those films were produced in the silent era
and the two others were viewed in the 1930's. Three different TV mini-series
have been inspired by the tale, the most recent of which being a 6-part
series on BBC and A&E in 1998. After a long silence from the major studios,
everyone spoke out about
Vanity Fair at once in 2002, with two
concurrent and separate recreations of the tale announced for major
production. Through delays and maneuverings, however, only one of the two
films was ever made, and despite significant talk about the film being a
Cannes-type of limited release,
Vanity Fair was finally chosen to
receive a wide release for September of 2004. Director Mira Nair of India is
recognized for her narratives and documentaries about world cultures, and
for
Vanity Fair, she teams up with composer Mychael Danna, whose more
distinct career efforts include Mira Nair's
Monsoon Wedding. Danna is
no stranger to writing music for varied cultures and historical settings,
and his diverse talents would be well suited for
Vanity Fair. In case
you are unfamiliar about the story,
Vanity Fair follows the ambitions
of Rebecca (Becky) Sharp, a clever girl born into the lower classes of
London circa 1820. She uses her intelligence as well as her body to climb
the social ladder and creates ripples in a society not quite ready to handle
her soap opera methodology. Mychael Danna's approach to the film, of course,
would revolve around the idea of classical structure, but rather than
allowing an inherent stuffiness to prevail in his music, Danna manages to
emulate the personality of the primary character and thus move at his own
playful pace.
Danna does not deviate much from the confines of the
orchestra that embodies the historical mores of the period, although he does
avoid the pitfalls of over-consistency. If classical structure doesn't
interest you, then Danna's prancing adaptation of that traditional music to
mimic Sharp's attitudes may be equally irritating to you. But Danna always
seems to be walking the fine line in
Vanity Fair between your piano
and string traditionalism and the more contemporary rhythms and vocals that
likely represent the forwarding-looking Sharp in her journey. Both sides of
the coin are featured in the highlights of the score. The film opens with a
short and elegant (but mysterious in ways that remind of James Newton
Howard's styles) vocal performance by Sissel of one of Danna's primary
themes. This, along with two subsequent cues with wordless female vocals and
a touch of Danna mysticism heard in short snippets throughout the score, are
perhaps the most appealing moments. The lack of further exploration into the
vocals is an odd action by Danna, for a considerable effort towards that
artistic line of thinking must have been explicitly discussed in order to
secure the services of Sissel for the recording. Despite any advertising you
may read about Sissel's involvement with the score --and make no mistake
about it, her voice is outstanding as always-- her contribution to
Vanity
Fair is unfortunately minimal. The first full score cue on the album
release ("Exchange") expands upon this theme and introduces it to the
pompous and highly structured classical side of the score. The first half of
the album lets rip with some substantial and awesome thematic recitals,
whether in a quartet format or (more typically) with the full ensemble. The
pronounced timpani in "Steyne the Pasha," leading to a massive thematic
outburst, is not to be missed.
If you prefer the string-dominated classical side of the
score, then you could very well be enticed by Danna's lengthy light-hearted
rhythms and overall playful nature (a highlight is the "Sir Pitt's Marriage
Proposal" cue which dances between sections of the orchestra with great
comedy). There is rarely a serious moment in the orchestral performances for
Vanity Fair, outside of the stereotypical trumpet that marks the
start of battle in the 14th cue. More somber moments are marked by piano
solos (some by Danna himself) and period vocal performances. The score does
have its awkward moments. While the story does call for a switch to
third-world music during Sharp's travels, the two semi-original Indian songs
cannot be more of a contrast from Danna's score. Despite Danna's involvement
in their production, it is odd that he did not preface them to any degree in
his score. Therein may lie the weakness of Danna's work for
Vanity
Fair; the score's very consistent loyalty to the Western orchestra,
while it may perfectly match Sharp's prevailing attitudes about her position
in life, doesn't mature or change location throughout the film. That may be
Danna's point, but on album, the final handful of cues alternate in jarring
fashion between Danna's material and that of Hakim and Shankar Ehsaan Loy.
Overall, the score has bright and optimist moments that make for a
fantastic, classically-inclined listening experience. Sissel's frightfully
short performance is another reason to enjoy this album. In addition to an
identity crisis in the latter half, the sound quality of the album does have
some slight aural distortion in the fuller moments of "No Lights After
Eleven" and "Ride to London," perhaps indicating over-inflated gain levels
in the mixing.
Vanity Fair is a strong score, and despite unexplored
artistic avenues, Danna should be commended for this effort.
***
| Bias Check: | For Mychael Danna reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating
is 3.38 (in 8 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.01
(in 2,800 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
|
The insert includes no extra information about the score or film.
