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10/30/08 - | Composer Danny Elfman's
Worst Nightmare: Sarah Palin |
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Filmtracks has never been a site to shun American politics. Partly because Filmtracks
has endorsed every Democratic presidential candidate since Bill Clinton in 1996 and
partly because of positive reviews for music from "amoral films," the site has long
been the target of anger from conservative interest groups (mostly the fundamentally
religious variety). Veterans of the Scoreboard Forum have seen robotic and predictable
retaliatory posts for years. With these facts in mind, the following piece of news is
particularly intriguing.
Danny Elfman, one of Hollywood's most popular and successful current composers, has
contributed to the formation of a PAC organization called OurGreatestFear.org. Frustrated
by the political landscape of America's government during the 2000's, Elfman was
specifically driven to action by Republican candidate John McCain's selection of novice
Sarah Palin as his running mate. As he states, "Sarah Palin was my worst nightmare."
The composer today posted a fascinating entry in his new blog at The Huffington Post,
explaining the circumstances behind his decision to become more involved. He received
over a hundred comments on that site within hours, almost all in support of both his
music and his political efforts. His entry is entitled
"Battling Our Greatest Fear". If you decide to read OurGreatestFear.org, be sure to enjoy the
apocalypse cartoon on the "Facts" page.
Filmtracks strongly supports Elfman and his organization. Such initiative warrants both
praise and admiration.
[Addendum: the aforementioned apocalypse cartoon seems to have been removed from the
site]
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| 10/29/08
- | Backdraft: (Hans Zimmer)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you own several scores from later in Hans Zimmer's career and seek his first, highly
successful and enjoyable large-scale merging of an orchestra and choir with his electronics.
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Avoid it... |
if no variant on the extremely masculine tones and simplistic themes consistent to Zimmer's
style (from any era in his career) will fit with your preference for subtlety and delicacy.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/28/08
- | An American Tail: Fievel Goes West: (James
Horner)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you've ever been curious about what playful mayhem James Horner could stir up when
combining the animated and Western genres into one wild score.
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Avoid it... |
if you'd rather not hear Horner adapt Aaron Copland, along with a few others, in extremely
obvious fashion.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/27/08
- | High Road to China: (John Barry)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you are a self-proclaimed fan of John Barry's lush and occasionally soaring romance themes
and rhythmic action motifs.
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Avoid it... |
if you expect an ounce of originality from Barry in this score.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/25/08
- | Edward Scissorhands: (Danny Elfman)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you don't mind scores that jerk the tears right out of you, for Edward Scissorhands is the
most impressively tragic fairy tale score of the digital era.
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Avoid it... |
if subtlety is your preferred method of introspection.
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| Rating: | *****
Read the entire review
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| 10/23/08
- | The Little Mermaid: (Alan Menken)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you are one of the few remaining fans of musicals who hasn't seen this film,
because it's main ballad and two calypso songs alone are worth the price.
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Avoid it... |
if you've never been impressed with Alan Menken's arguably superior (and equally
awarded) works for the subsequent Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/21/08
- | Batman: (Danny Elfman)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you have any affinity for superhero scores, for Danny Elfman's Batman is among the best
ever recorded.
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Avoid it... |
if Elfman's famous theme for the character is too overexposed for your liking, along with some
of the passages that reveal the composer's inspirations from others' works.
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| Rating: | *****
Read the entire review
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| 10/19/08
- | Beetlejuice: (Danny Elfman)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you consider yourself a Danny Elfman fan to any degree whatsoever.
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Avoid it... |
if the zany and frenetic scores from very early in Elfman's career
are too wild and inconsistent for your tastes.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/17/08
- | The Land Before Time: (James Horner)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you're enamored with James Horner's lyrical orchestral work for the animated
children's film genre, because The Land Before Time is the standard by which all
his other related scores would be compared.
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Avoid it... |
if you expect the few action cues in the score to rival the rambunctious
intensity of Horner's concurrent work for Willow.
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| Rating: | *****
Read the entire review
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| 10/15/08
- | Willow: (James Horner)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you are any fan of superior fantasy and adventure scores that combine
orchestral majesty with exotic beauty, for James Horner's Willow is among
the best of the digital era.
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Avoid it... |
if you have absolutely no curiosity about the inspiration for most of
Horner's self-references later in his career.
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| Rating: | *****
Read the entire review
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| 10/14/08
- | The Ultimate Star Trek: (Compilation)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
only if you consider yourself a true fan of the "Star Trek" franchise, for this compilation is
among the weakest of the plethora of similar products aimed at you.
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Avoid it... |
if you expect the performances conducted by Cliff Eidelman and Frederic Talgorn to have the
same authenticity as those by Jerry Goldsmith, which were already previously available on
album.
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| Rating: | **
Read the entire review
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| 10/13/08
- | Space 3: Beyond the Final Frontier: (Compilation)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if five or six outstanding performances amounting to half an hour of material merits the
purchase of the whole set.
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Avoid it... |
if you are dissatisfied with the more suspect collection of scores represented on this product
compared to the two superior sets that came before in the series.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/12/08
- | Sonic Images: Prime Time: (Compilation)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you do not own any of the Sonic Images label's plethora of television music albums and seek
an accurate sampler of the majority of those releases.
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Avoid it... |
if you're contemplating the album due to any specific item you see in its contents, for
everything here has been released in fuller form on albums dedicated to each selection.
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| Rating: | **
Read the entire review
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| 10/11/08
- | Mega Movies: (Compilation)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you have enjoyed other modern (post-1993) compilations from this ensemble on Telarc and
have a fond place in your heart for their usual array of sound effects.
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Avoid it... |
if synthetic choral accompaniment and an occasional "pop" sound to some cues deters you as
much as the often overwhelming sound effects that could conceivably blow out smaller speaker
systems.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/10/08
- | The Best of Star Trek: Volume Two: (Various)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you seek the last relevant music from "The Next Generation" to be released, as well as one
of the best episodic scores from "Deep Space Nine."
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Avoid it... |
if you are dissatisfied with the lack of attention to the superior action music from the later
seasons of "Voyager," for this album does not offer any of those highlights.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/9/08
- | U-571: (Richard Marvin)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you, like many fans of the war genre on film, have traditionally enjoyed all capably robust
and thematic scores for submarine thrillers.
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Avoid it... |
if you demand originality in your adventure scores, for Richard Marvin forces several previous
scores by other composers (with one bordering on plagiarism) into this otherwise entertaining
effort.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/8/08
- | Take a Hard Ride: (Jerry Goldsmith)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you seek the last Western score of Jerry Goldsmith's early career, with a
maturation of his melodic sensibilities combined with a twist of the expected
Ennio Morricone style for the dying genre.
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Avoid it... |
if you have the four or five highlights from this score on the 1993 SPFM Goldsmith
tribute album and weren't impressed with those selections.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/5/08
- | The Nightmare Before Christmas: (Danny Elfman)
- Expanded Review, with Additional New Album |
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Buy it... |
if you have any doubt whatsoever about Danny Elfman's talents, because his writing and
performances in The Nightmare Before Christmas produce one of the most uniquely attractive
musicals ever to scare the big screen.
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Avoid it... |
if you expect the Broadway style of songs or light-hearted atmosphere of Alan Menken's
musicals for Disney during the same era. Also avoid it on the disgraceful 2008 cover-version
album at all costs.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/4/08
- | Galaxy Quest: (David Newman)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you can't resist a really good parody score, especially one of the very few that takes
effective aim at the science fiction genre.
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Avoid it... |
if the bright and overly enthusiastic style of David Newman's parody writing lacks the
resounding depth and power necessary to make such music worthy of a standalone listening
experience.
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| Rating: | ****
Read the entire review
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| 10/3/08
- | Amanda: (Basil Poledouris)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you respect the pleasantly conservative dramatic underscores that typically grace the
Hallmark-style of films that involve children bonding with animals.
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Avoid it... |
if you expect to hear the more richly melodic, dynamic style that Basil Poledouris provided
for Free Willy and other related projects in the same sub-genre.
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| Rating: | ***
Read the entire review
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| 10/2/08
- | Unbreakable: (James Newton Howard)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
if you were enamored with the score to The Sixth Sense and would be interested in
a more thematically and instrumentally engaging variation on the same ambient
spirit.
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Avoid it... |
if you expect the scores that came from the James Newton Howard/M. Night Shyamalan
collaborations of the 1990's to offer the same harmonious appeal as those in the
2000's.
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| Rating: | ***
Read the entire review
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| 10/1/08
- | Turbulence 2: Fear of Flying: (Don
Davis)
- Expanded Review |
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Buy it... |
only if you are capable of appreciating one-man orchestras, for Turbulence 2 is a
rather mundane desktop computer score that barely lifts off with any interesting
and fresh ideas for the genre.
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Avoid it... |
if you have allergic reactions to those awful-sounding synthetic "orchestra hits"
that software of the 1990's once produced.
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| Rating: | **
Read the entire review
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