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Review of 12 Years a Slave (Hans Zimmer)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... to study a prime example of a score respected because of
the quality of its film rather than its own merits, Hans Zimmer playing
this project conservatively to ensure harm prevention rather than
elevate the narrative.
Avoid it... if you have no interest in minimally audible, derivative, and repetitious stewing that conveys absolutely no heart, no soul, and no passion for this powerful film.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
12 Years a Slave: (Hans Zimmer) Regarded as one of
the very best films of its decade and among the most respected ever to
tackle the topic of American slavery, 2013's 12 Years a Slave
tells the largely true biographical story of free black man Solomon
Northup, who was kidnapped from the North in 1841 and forced into
servitude in the South until 1853. Northup's story has long been studied
by historians and, in director Steve McQueen's rendition of his tale,
not much of the brutal truth is withheld from the depiction. Northup, a
violin player in New York, was drugged and sold into slavery, finding
himself in Louisiana and being bartered between several slave owners
through the years, often because of his conflicts with overseers and
others. He eventually manages to smuggle out a letter that alerts those
in New York of his whereabouts, and they retrieve him against the
furious protests of the plantation owner. After being reunited with his
family, he seeks justice against his kidnappers and wrote the memoir
that achieved fame, including serving as the basis for this film.
Because Northup was a capable violin and fiddle player, the film
required a series of diagetic music for his own performances, and
American composer Nicholas Britell wrote and arranged these pieces.
McQueen was adamant that he wanted Hans Zimmer to write the original
score for 12 Years a Slave, though the director had to talk the
composer into taking the assignment. Zimmer always had an uncomfortable
relationship with the topic, interestingly, insisting at the time that
he wasn't the best composer for the task. He leaned on upstart composer
Benjamin Wallfisch to help him flesh out the work. Even after they had
finished work on the film, Zimmer declined to allow the release of the
music on album despite retaining ownership rights to it. The film was a
monumental fiscal success and swept through the awards season with
countless nominations and wins. Zimmer's score, while nominated for a
Golden Globe and a BAFTA Award, did not achieve the same praise as the
rest of the production. It was ultimately a work that may have been
confused with Britell's contribution and rode the coattails of the movie
to whatever recognition it received. The studio, Fox Searchlight, did
what it could to promote Zimmer's music, even if the composer himself
wasn't inclined to do so, and a "for your consideration" promotional
release of the score has long been readily available to listeners.
The basic strategy Zimmer applied to 12 Years a Slave is logical, but the execution of his approach has always left many listeners cold. Because the main character is a violinist, the work and its one theme are anchored by that instrument's emphasis. The ensemble for the score most often consists of moderated strings with occasional accents like celeste, woodwinds, brass, piano, and percussion in single cues. The composer's synthetics waft through at times. There is zero counterpoint or complexity to the structures, very simple chords slowly developed during every moment. The score lacks any passion or feeling of importance whatsoever, with no sense of gravity, drama, warmth, or history to the melodic expressions or instrumental performances. The strings are mechanical and cold, totally losing the human-centered heart of the tale. Zimmer's attempt to stay out of the way of the picture doesn't necessarily harm the film or its narrative, but he adds very little that the rest of the production hadn't already won. The score can be divided into two halves: the cues in which the main theme for Solomon is expressed and then, with no relation whatsoever, there's the diversity of everything else. The theme consists of ascending four-note phrases highly derivative of "Time" from Inception and, by association, "Journey to the Line" from The Thin Red Line. It wasn't uncommon for these slow, brooding chord progressions to emerge in music from Zimmer and his clones at this time, but it's obnoxiously eye-rolling in 12 Years a Slave because it is so ineffective when boiled down to this context. Zimmer takes the listener on no journey with this theme, its demeanor as unpleasantly devoid of emotion in the first and last cues. Developed on very restrained high strings in "Solomon Northup," this idea is barely evident in "Main Title" and still tentative on bass strings in "Solomon in Chains," where it dissolves to nothingness later in the cue. The theme is barely alive in the middle of "Boat Trip to New Orleans" amongst the cue's heinous noises. Very whiny, almost inaudible violins quietly pass it to lower shades in "Saratoga Flashback," a technique that will be repeatedly revisited later without much better results. This same effect opens "Eliza Flashback," for instance, but shifts to rare solo piano for the grim moment. On the upside, a rising secondary phrase in the latter half of the cue, likely as a representation of the man's family, is a welcome touch. This interlude sequence is the score's only meaningful attempt to generate some basic sense of empathy, and it only very minimally works. The chilly renditions of Solomon's theme in 12 Years a Slave continue to languish in the score's midsection, a subdued, breathy expression of the idea slowed considerably in "Devasted Crops." Thereafter, "Plantation Life (Part B)" is largely a pointless reprise of "Saratoga Flashback," but the theme perseveres for slight hope at the end of "Judge Yarney's Ball," in which solo cello and voice slightly convey the theme against a solitary plucked thumping. Once again reprising "Saratoga Flashback" is "Solomon Burns the Letter" while some gravity finally arrives for the theme's very low string rendition in "Soap," though the theme dissolves to ambient haze by the end of this cue as well. This slightly better enunciation carries over to the mid-string ranges in "A Free Man" and informs "Nothing to Forgive - End Credits," another reprise of the format employed in "Saratoga Flashback" but also appending the rising family interlude sequence from "Eliza Flashback" to provide drama during the credits cue. The remainder of the score for 12 Years a Slave is comprised of totally unrelated offshoots of typically minimal volume. Rising trios scamper under a meandering theme on celeste in "Bedtime," a distinct waltz for cello and chamber ensemble offers quick distinction in "Arrival in Washington," and synthetic atmosphere serves little purpose in "Preparing for Travel." The score's most brazenly different cue, "Boat Trip to New Orleans" was reportedly a Wallfisch contribution. The cue's angry percussion and groaning low winds are striking, the latter's distorted bassoon blasts humorously awful. Slamming metal percussion on top sounds like Klingons at mealtime, the wet mix giving the moment a surreal personality. Far less interesting but more palatable is the lone clapping rhythm in "River Rafting Claps," a tapping wooden percussion solo during all of "Escape Sequence," and extremely understated ambience in "Time Passing Sequence." A whistling tea kettle effect is modulated throughout "Plantation Life (Part A)," and the strings offer a slight sense of dread in the descending figures that open "Judge Yarney's Ball." Altogether, 12 Years a Slave tells absolutely no story in its score, Zimmer unsure about how to support Solomon's perseverance and content to throw a handful of off-kilter, attention-getting rhythmic diversions that may impress awards voters but few others. The promotional presentation of 39 minutes seems endless because of the music's almost inaudible, derivative and repetitious stewing. Zimmer's score isn't horrible by any means; in fact, most of it passes without much disturbance. But it also conveys absolutely no heart, no soul, and no passion, thus making it a frightful failure for such an impressive film. **
TRACK LISTINGS:
Total Time: 38:40
NOTES & QUOTES:
There exists no official packaging for this album.
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