franchise had not been kind to the composers assigned to it by the time
a relatively unknown Elliot Goldenthal came onboard in 1992 for the
third installment. Both Ridley Scott and James Cameron had absolutely
mutilated the scores by Jerry Goldsmith and James Horner to such an
extent that there was no prayer that either of them would return to
score Ellen Ripley's final chapter. David Fincher's
,
trapped for years in production hell as the script underwent a studio
tug-of-war, enjoyed nowhere near the quality of the first two films, and
it remains to this day a most unsatisfying sequel that set the stage for
an even more pointless fourth film in the franchise. The movie's
suspense premise (an alien stalking and killing people in a confined
space, this time existing on a penal colony full of rapists and
murderers) is rehashed from the prior films, and its inherently tragic
ending is a detriment that the prior films had not contended with.
Whereas the franchise had always maintained some hope of redemption
despite the obligatory horror, this entry seeks to make the humans just
as much the villains, with the only exceptions, Ripley and the other
survivors of the previous film, all killed without much purpose.
Goldenthal wasn't a household name at the time, and his unconventional
score did serve as an important one. First, it contributed to the launch
of avant-garde post-modern classical styles in major film scores, and,
of course, it assisted Goldenthal in landing such assignments as
in subsequent years. The
latter score is relevant to the discussion of
, because in
both cases Goldenthal was stepping into the third installment of
franchises that would yield four films in the original line. Whereas
Goldenthal made some creative nods to Danny Elfman's work in
, he would not afford the alien concept the same courtesy,
abandoning the "time" motif that both Goldsmith and Horner had utilized
in their
scores, as well as all other thematic material.
The resulting experimental approach that Goldenthal made to this film is
definitely a "love it or hate it" event.
As he tends to do, Goldenthal over-intellectualizes the
assignment, inserting a purely classical, operatic, and religious
element into a film that was already really uncomfortable with its own
balance of religion in its setting. The plot never called for that kind
of elegance, even in its sacrificial finale, and Goldenthal thus
overplays his hand. The composer's adagio and related neo-classical
ideas for
Alien 3 do, however, ironically offer the most easily
listenable music from the franchise's original trilogy in their rather
simplistic beauty. The horror music in the film shows that the composer
was incapable of finding a completely effective middle ground between
the concepts of horror and romanticism. He is constantly at war between
the romantic and the chaotic, and the result is that neither element
really works in context. Orchestral chaos can indeed be beautiful in
execution, but it can also distract from the film and annoy you on
album. Unless you're among the small group of film music collectors who
live and die by Goldenthal's brilliance in style, and it is truly
intelligent enough for any student of composition marvel at, you're
still going to find a score like this to border on intolerability. In
the film, both the horror and religious elements fail, with the chasing
and stalking cues serving as obnoxious sound effects (you can literally
hear the screeching movements of fleeing prey and the tapping of an
alien's feet on the metal floor in the music) and the classically
religious explosions of near-harmonic power in "Lento" and "Adagio"
seeming equally out of place in a franchise that had exercised careful
restraint up to this point. As always, there are individual moments that
are exempt from this criticism. When Goldenthal drops the electronics
for the frenetic high string burst in the latter half of "The
Entrapment," you can't help but feel the chills that the rest of the
ensemble must have felt while sitting in the room listening to that
performance. There are also exceptions on the album as well. There is no
doubt that "Adagio" is one of the most powerful creations of
Goldenthal's career. Whether you find its over-dramatic style misplaced
in the film or not, it's the one moment in
Alien 3 when
Goldenthal finally drops the bizarre performance effects and outright
dissonance and produces a moment almost as strikingly awkward on its
album as "Silver Screen Kiss" would be in
Demolition Man.
The closing "Adagio" of
Alien 3 summarizes the
composer's rather grim, five-note theme for Ripley that is poorly
explored earlier in the score. In fact, that theme is really the only
recurring motif of importance aside from the three-note descending
phrases of victory as the aliens are killed. Goldenthal's interludes for
lament or romance are frightfully generic and do nothing to prepare the
audience for the emotional payoff. On the other hand, the score for
Alien 3 certainly has unique textures to appreciate, assuming you
don't need pain pills to survive them. If you're a fan of Goldenthal's
abundant non-conventional use of orchestral instruments, such as the
pitch-defying whines of the brass, and you can actually sit through the
relentless barrage of pounding, rock-inspired mayhem in the "Wreckage
and Rape" cue, then
Alien 3 is indeed a fascinating study. That
technique with the wavering brass, heard throughout several of
Goldenthal's scores, is somewhat of a symbol of the composer's break
from the norm, and you can be assured that if it is a source of
annoyance for you, then you'll probably not appreciate some of the other
startling performance aspects in this recording. It should be mentioned,
though, that composer Cliff Eidelman re-recorded several cues from all
three original
Alien films in 1996 with the Royal Scottish
National Orchestra, and among the more interesting variations was
"Lento" from this score, with its longing theme performed without the
wash of the background vocals that dilute its harmony. Overall, you're
going to hear a group of devoted film score and Goldenthal collectors
defend
Alien 3 to the death, and to their credit, the score is,
like many of the composer's efforts, an interesting listening experience
no matter your inclination towards his style. While there are indeed
some boring sequences of barely atmospheric haze heard throughout the
suspense portions, few parts of the score will put you to sleep on a
reasonably condensed album presentation. The original 1992 album
arranged the various types of material from the score into mini-suites
that contained (arguably superior) mixes different from those heard in
the film, including some notable overlays emphasizing the religious
elements even further. A limited, 2-CD set from La-La Land Records in
2018 offers 90 minutes from the film mix of the score as well as some
alternate takes and a reassembly of the original album.
Two distinct observations result from La-La Land's 2018
album for
Alien 3; first, all the score's accessible highlights
were included on the first album, and the additional music, which strays
towards stalking material that at times is nearly inaudible for up to
half a minute, makes for an even more excruciatingly challenging
listening experience. The film mix is far less palatable than that
provided originally for the album. Alternate takes on both the closing
adagio and the cremation sequence for the film mix are worthy additions,
however, especially the former, "You Can Still Have a Life (Alternate)."
Secondly, for a score that prides itself on the creativity of its
instrumental textures, it features remarkably restricted sound quality
in the film version of the mix. The orchestra sounds incredibly flat on
the 2018 product's main presentation, suggesting that the dull and dry
environment may have been Goldenthal's intent all along. Better spread
of the unique effects and a touch of reverb would have aided greatly in
enhancing the fantasy element for the film. On the album version of the
mix, the solo boy vocals in "Lento" are a noteworthy addition. Comparing
the second half of that cue to "The Cremation" on the film mix shows a
significant degradation of sound on the latter. On the other hand, the
solo trumpet tribute to Goldsmith's
Alien score at the end of the
closing cue sounds just as muted in all instances. Regardless of how it
is mixed for the film, Goldenthal's approach towards the franchise will
potentially detract from the viewing experience for some. Most people
won't notice the awkward, overwrought musical stance, of course, though
it's highly probable that others will find the majority of chasing and
killing music in
Alien 3 to be merely obnoxious experimentation
in instrumental mutilation. Brilliance in concept doesn't always equal
success in context. Appreciate cues like "Adagio" and "Lento" on either
of the albums if you seek the engaging, albeit misplaced religious tones
from the score at their finest, separate from their overblown effect in
their scenes that are diminished by their striving for splendor. There
seem to be endless ways to love or hate this score, and much of that
determination will depend on your opinion of the Goldenthal's
predictably brutal, textural experimentation within the film itself.
Approach the expanded 2018 album with extreme caution, as its sound
quality of its film mix presentation is very disappointing and the
additional material will not convert anybody to this score's cause.
** @Amazon.com: CD or
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| Bias Check: |
For Elliot Goldenthal reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.13
(in 16 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.2
(in 16,697 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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