The Velocity of Gary: (Peitor Angell) Described by
one well-known critic as "a wretched example of indie filmmaking,"
The Velocity of Gary was a 1998 adaptation of an off-broadway
play. It was brought to the big screen by director Dan Ireland, whose
only previous effort was the surprisingly likable
The Whole Wide
World, and his second project would also drag along lead actor
Vincent C'Onofrio for the ride. Also featuring Selma Hayek and Ethan
Hawke, the film shows the real personalities (if they could be called
that) of the people behind the New York prostitution, pornography, and
drag queen scene, serving as a character study of the people within
those industries. Rather than taking a documentary-like approach, the
James Still story is shown with all the glitter, outrage, and
flamboyance of the setting and its immorality. Symbolism, vivid colors,
and downright bizarre characters are plenty in the film, and with their
antics came enough negative critical reviews to doom
The Velocity of
Gary at the art houses. The varied style of composer Peitor Angell
would seem to augment the fractured worlds of the film quite well;
Angell's career has been unheralded in the mainstream film score realm,
but certainly not due to a lack of activity. A composer, lyricist,
arranger, and record producer, Angell has a foot in several industries,
composing full scores for a small handful of feature films, some
additional music for others, a collection of short films, and a plethora
of television specials when not doing arrangements for a regular crowd
of recording artists. It's composers and producers like Angell that
provide much of the music you hear on television but never pay much
attention to, and while
The Velocity of Gary certainly wasn't as
groundbreaking of a calling card as any of his other scores (for equally
obscure, often independent films), the album for the project serves as
quite a compliment to his wide range of talents. Unfortunately, it
doesn't function much at all like a cohesive film score, though. If you
look at a score like this from the point of view of the film itself, you
can easily understand how varied the emotions, situations, and genres in
the story actually are.
There is nothing consistent about Angell's music for
The Velocity of Gary, defeating any hope that the score would
have of forming the kind of cohesive personality that a score must
obtain to truly be memorable. But, just like anyone watching the film
will remember favorite scenes, the score will attract some listeners to
individual parts of its contents. The album release, which is
independent itself and may as well qualify as a promotional item, is
nothing more than a style sampler for Angell, squeezing all sorts of
musical styles into one product that conflicts with itself at every
turn. There is a distinct 1970's feel to the blues and soul in
The
Velocity of Gary, with unashamed returns to the outdated glitz of
the era sometimes merged with a more contemporary set of dance rhythms.
The ensemble consists of every band element and vocal technique
necessary to accurately recreate the era, along with a small orchestral
string section aided by solo clarinet, guitar, and Angell himself on
piano for the more serious plot aspects. A theme is present in the
score, offering its suave movements in "The Kiss" and "His Stuff, My
Stuff," though even in these performances, Angell allows the style of
the underlying light rock to dominate. This deference to style over
substance makes the score for
The Velocity of Gary seem like all
fluff and ear candy, a criticism also aimed by critics at the film.
There are individual pieces in the score that offer interesting mosaics
of the different genres, including a merging of the small orchestral
ensemble (with plucked strings), synthetic voices, and a light dance
rhythm in "I Want You to Meet Him," an enticingly unique cue. Listeners
who can dig the 70's sound will enjoy Angell's somewhat anonymous, but
competent resurrection of basic rhythms and vocal techniques, often with
lyrics, though the strictly dramatic cues for the orchestral ensemble,
placed mostly towards the end of the album, offer very little of
interest due to their limited size and thematic development. Overall,
The Velocity of Gary gave Angell the opportunity to produce the
ultimate demo of his talents, and it plays exactly as such. Don't expect
anything remotely like a traditionally constructed film score.
** Amazon.com Price Hunt: CD or Download
The insert contains extensive credits, but no extra information
about the score or composer.
