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Review of Bounce (Mychael Danna)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... if you have always appreciated Mychael Danna's
intelligent knowledge of world music (and its exotic instruments) and
seek a faint reminder of that style in an easier, contemporary
package.
Avoid it... if the prospect of hearing Danna journey well into the mainstream betrays your love of his truly innovative tendencies.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
Bounce: (Mychael Danna) Perhaps the safest, least
controversial film Miramax had released at the time, Bounce is a
straightforward romance flick starring studio regulars Ben Affleck and
Gwyneth Paltrow. A cocky advertising representative, Affleck, decides on
a business trip to give his airline ticket to a man he meets while
waiting for a plane back to Los Angeles (so that he can instead bounce
on the also-stranded Natasha Henstridge... no surprise there). But when
the plane crashes, Affleck's character becomes disillusioned and a
drunk, eventually seeking to repay his debt to the widow of the man
(Paltrow) and her children. He arranges for his company to buy a
property through her real estate listing, earning her a commission that
he figures will repay the debt. Falling in love is their true destiny,
but his lack of truthfulness about his connection to her is a
complication they eventually have to work through. Composer Mychael
Danna has never been known for his work in the romantic drama category
of film, usually instead providing the kind of music appropriate for any
of Miramax's typically unconventional offerings. The ethnic undertones
of each of his scores, the result of his wealth of knowledge about world
music and its varying instrumentation, have largely defined his career.
The contemporary romantic setting of Bounce was so foreign to
Danna at the time that the modern pop rhythms of the score, along with
the tender orchestral parts for the family scenes, were initially quite
surprising to hear from him. Although he refuses to completely disregard
the exotic elements so natural to him, Danna combines them with those
pop rhythms, piano and guitar solos, and orchestral subtlety to produce
a short, but enjoyable score. The employment of orchestrator and
conductor Nicholas Dodd usually sparks comments about how much a score
will emulate the sound of David Arnold, and in the case of
Bounce, some of the hip, 70's style of the electric guitar
performances during the rhythmic sequences are indeed faint reminders of
Arnold's jazzier half. Overall, however, the score and its smooth
themes, in a few more telling ways, are true to Danna's sound.
Essentially, four basic ingredients are used by Danna for Bounce. The most obvious and necessary is the collection of contemporary rock rhythms performed by a light electric guitar and electric bass. Although these loops aren't anything we haven't heard before in other scores, Danna and Dodd incorporate them well in the surrounding material, with fading that is always easy on the ears. The final three cues on album, as well as "Seven Steps," are the strongest integrations of electronic elements into a classy mix with the symphonic ensemble. Secondly, Danna's Thomas Newman-like piano solos add some much needed heart, as do the acoustic guitar performances often heard in the first half of the score. Thirdly, Danna uses an orchestra of moderate size to add conversational filler music, and although the string-dominated underscore for Bounce isn't anything that will jump out at you, it is a very pleasant listen. The tandem of "Kiss" and "Deception" is as quietly compelling as any material in the genre at the time. The final and most interesting aspect of Bounce is the tiny ethnic influence. Danna uses an Indian bamboo alto flute called a bansuri to spice up a few of his cues, including "Weather," "Testimony," and "You're Excused." The tone of the bansuri combines with a slurring effect and complicated chord progressions in the title theme to really expose this as a Danna work. The latter half of "You're Excused" begs for Danna to someday create a concert work that further explores all of the elements here (and even more of the international flavor) for a full hour. Overall, the score for Bounce is one that will likely pass unnoticed by the mass majority of the public. There were reportedly problems with movie-goers trying to purchase the song compilation "inspired by" the film (which includes songs by Sarah McLachlan, Sophie B. Hawkins, and Carly Simon, among others) but walking away with the score album instead because the covers are almost identical (the score album is sans the black stripe at the bottom). If they give Danna's heartfelt and passionate score a chance, they might actually like what they hear. It may seem on the surface to be a standard romantic comedy work, but Danna's inherent creativity gives it a interesting and distinctive edge. ****
TRACK LISTINGS:
Total Time: 30:43
NOTES & QUOTES:
The insert includes no extra information about the score or film.
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