: (Rupert Gregson-Williams, Various)
Comedian Jerry Seinfeld has maintained for years that he wanted to make
an animated children's film, and
is the culmination of
his efforts to that end. As a producer, writer, and lead voice, the film
is an extension of his own humor, with writing credits shared by those
who used to contribute to his hit television show. The story shifts the
subject of the talking animal concept to the world of bees, with
Seinfeld's primary character deciding that the highly scripted, routine
life of a bee is not for his wandering soul. He breaks fundamental
bee-world rules by befriending and talking to a human, and in his
journey to discover how bees and humans typically interact on the
planet, he decides that it's time to sue humanity for its ills towards
his species. Despite what you might think, the film has little
overarching morality, and critics have been particularly harsh towards a
script that seems tailored specifically to be populated by typical
Seinfeld one-liners. The jokes, while funny at times, are not
surprisingly saturated with the comedian's usual dry humor, making
an odd film that might have difficulty keeping the
attention of both adults, who have heard that humor in better contexts,
and children, for whom little attempt is made to give them satisfying
action. Being a Dreamworks animated project, it's also no surprise that
Hans Zimmer became involved in the project. While the composer would not
write any music for
, he would oversee the assignment of
Rupert Gregson-Williams and six other composers to the project. With the
ever-controversial Zimmer as the executive producer of the music for the
film, the score inherits some of the characteristics that fans and
detractors have come to expect from projects he helms.
Hans Zimmer has high praise for Rupert
Gregson-Williams, brother of the already-established Harry
Gregson-Williams and another veteran of the Media Ventures glory years.
Always enthusiastic about the talent he employs at his now-renamed Remote
Control, Zimmer would afford Gregson-Williams primary credit while
receiving assistance from other "usual suspects" that you find attached
to several Zimmer scores of late, including
The Simpsons Movie.
Also typical of a project from the hive of Zimmer's busy little bees,
fans can get stung when trying to figure out exactly which composers
wrote what material. Assuming that Gregson-Williams coordinated all the
themes and styles for
Bee Movie and merged them into a cohesive
whole, considerable credit should be given to him. The score is highly
entertaining for much of its length, echoing the styles of his brother
and John Powell far more than those of Zimmer himself. As such, the
score leans towards
Antz and
Chicken Run for inspiration,
and with these parody scores amongst the stronger to be spawned from the
Media Ventures era,
Bee Movie will be a worthy addition to the
collections of the fans of those previous comedy scores. The opening
cues in
Bee Movie function much like the equivalents in
Antz, first introducing a jazzy, upbeat character theme with a
varied percussion, electric organ, and sharp orchestral counterpoint. In
"Honex," the score launches into a theme for the hive, an ultra-spastic
romp of productivity with mechanical rhythms leading a sunny orchestral
balance of theme that makes remarkably strong use of each section.
Finally, a third theme bursts forth for the ace "Pollen Jocks" that
inspire Seinfeld's character to break the rules. This cue features
outstanding brass layers reminiscent in progression to some of Jerry
Goldsmith's most optimistic and masculine themes.
The climax of the score comes early, in "Barry Flies
Out," with the theme for the jocks provided choral accompaniment in a
cue that will remind listeners of the final, rambunctious cues from
Chicken Run. As the humans become involved with the story, the
score withdraws to a more restrained level of soft jazz rhythms and a
handful of less interesting motifs for individual scenes. A parody of
thriller music late in "Assault on Honey Farms" is a highlight for the
chorus. A series of slapstick-oriented cues cheapen the score to a
degree, especially in regards to the European romanticism on strings and
guitar that's conveyed in "Hearts, Flowers, and Hive Closures," among
other cues. A singular action cue in "Honey Round Up" takes some
inspiration from David Arnold's James Bond music and Michael Giacchino's
proven animation score techniques and rolls them into a suave rhythm and
electric organ performance. One final statement of all three major
themes is provided for "Land That Plane," with Gregson-Williams
following the harrowing action piece with a brief return to the sleek
jazzy that opened the score and, inevitably, a harmonic crescendo (with
limited choral accompaniment) to close out the score. The pollenation
scene over Central Park is absent of score; a cover version of the
Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun" is performed with considerable lethargy by
Sheryl Crow and finishes the album as well. As for the contribution by
Gregson-Williams and the six other Remote Control composers,
Bee
Movie is as purely a fun listening experience on album as the
aforementioned Powell and Harry Gregson-Williams scores, along with
Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit by Julian Nott
and other Zimmer assistants more recently. The theme in "The Pollen
Jocks" is among the most satisfying of the year, and with the four
fantastic cues that open this album,
Bee Movie is an easy
recommendation. The album does slow down in its latter half, and the
flow is interrupted briefly by "Sugar Sugar" by The Archies, but you
can't help but admire the optimistic energy this score conveys.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
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