 |
| Williams |
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull:
(John Williams) Like the franchises for
Conan the Barbarian and
The Terminator, among others, speculation about yet another
sequel in the
Indiana Jones series long consumed fans through the
1990's and 2000's. The publicized reason for the 19-year delay since
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade often involved perpetual
revisions on a story penned by George Lucas, and a yearning by Lucas and
director Steven Spielberg to perfect it before dragging a nearly
senior-aged Harrison Ford back into the fold. Lucas didn't ultimately
get his wish to allow aliens and UFO's to completely dominate the script,
but their involvement caused many fans and critics to scratch their
heads. With the lovable part-time professor and whip-cracking
archeologist faced with a different set of villains in the 1950's,
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull shows a quest
for the title's artifact of legend with new and old sidekicks and
Russians in hot pursuit. The film's script, which has been the source of
much of the criticism aimed at the production, attempted almost too hard
to merge elements from the first and third films in the franchise
(
The Temple of Doom doesn't factor compared to the others) into
the new material for
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Between
the plethora of references to
Raiders of the Lost Ark and
The
Last Crusade and Lucas' obsession with aliens, reaction to
The
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was often summarized by an affinity for
seeing Indy continue his adventures, but a general disappointment with
the material he had to work with. Both the reliance on the
aforementioned two films in the franchise and the popular response to
the film can also be applied to John Williams' score for
The Kingdom
of the Crystal Skull. After a flurry of motion picture production in
2005, the composer's attention strayed away from Hollywood for two years
and gravitated towards classical writing, concert conducting, and,
perhaps most famous, an original theme for NBC's "Sunday Night
Football."
Anticipation from film score fans for Williams' return to
both the big screen and, even more importantly, the
Indiana Jones
franchise, was as palpable as that of hardcore fans of the franchise
itself. All three of the
Indiana Jones scores had been nominated
for Oscars, and the first is commonly considered a classic. Many
collectors of Williams' works took the opportunity to rehash debates
about how the maestro handled the long-awaited return to the
Star
Wars franchise in 1999. Perhaps more actively than in any of the
Star Wars prequels, Williams relied on the themes and
foundational structures of the first and third
Indiana Jones
scores to guide his work for the belated sequel. The ties between
The
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and what has come before are quite
strong, and any fan requiring a firm set of musical references to the
franchise should be very pleased. Four primary themes from
Raiders of
the Lost Ark and
The Last Crusade all receive multiple
performances in this newest installment, each generously stated and
serving the story's continuous desire to make such connections. The
composer also takes the opportunity to write a handful of new themes and
motifs for
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, giving the film so
many thematic ideas through which to rotate that it maintains itself as
a perpetually interesting study. If there is negative criticism to be
aimed at this score, and there's certainly some merit to such mentions,
it's not related to Williams' loyalty to the new and old themes.
Instead,
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a parade of friendly
themes that don't particularly form a personality when viewed as a
whole. The evidence of its clear duty as a sequel score is heard in the
lengths to which the old themes are the heart and soul of
The Kingdom
of the Crystal Skull, rather than emphasizing the fresh themes to
such an extent that the old ones are forced to adapt to the new style.
In terms of maturation and development, this
Indiana Jones score
makes little attempt to steer the franchise's overall sound into a new
realm. Of course, that applies to moments outside of the generally
bizarre alien plot elements specific to this entry.
Some Williams collectors may be tempted to compare the
somewhat aimless overall direction of
The Kingdom of the Crystal
Skull to the stream-of-consciousness style of score that Williams
provided for
Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. Indeed, both scores
seem to lack an anchor with which to punctuate the end of their
franchises (assuming this is the conclusion for both), making one wonder
if there really was a "point A" and "point B" in either series of
scores. But the similarities end with those generalities, however, for
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a score far more at home in
its franchise. It will likely be described as the weakest of the four
Indiana Jones scores, but considering how high a standard such
scores are held to,
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is quite
admirable. No matter how you cut it, this is not only John Williams
music at its most adventurous, but despite whatever problems the new
material may present to the listener, it's great to hear it in action
once again. The more interesting debate about
The Kingdom of the
Crystal Skull is not about the thematic choices that Williams made,
but the execution of those ideas. The new themes are very well adapted
into a variety of emotional circumstances, proving their versatility in
nearly every major cue. The statement of the previous franchise themes
is where the true debate exists, for many of the most obvious uses of
those themes are seemingly lifted directly from
Raiders of the Lost
Ark and
The Last Crusade with only minor alterations. There
are parts of
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull that seem like a
"cut and paste" job while other parts that call out for treatment
similar to identical situations in previous films are left hanging. This
latter dilemma is likely the result of Williams' own maturation of
compositional style; the days of overwhelmingly simplistic, easily
graspable statements of rhythm and theme have been replaced by an even
higher level of complexity. While it's now technically superior,
sometimes a good musical punch to the face is best delivered without
fancy tricks.
It should be mentioned before proceeding with this review
that the 77-minute listening experience provided by the Concord Music
Group on album is by no means representative of everything you hear in
the film. While some fans have exclaimed their satisfaction with the
album, others are bothered by the 35+ minutes of material absent from
it. Evaluating a franchise score like
The Kingdom of the Crystal
Skull is a difficult proposition when based on the album alone; in
this case, the presentation of the music on the product is badly
rearranged, out of order, edited or in an alternate mix, mislabeled in a
few cases, and entirely missing some of the most poignant references to
previous material. With these circumstances in mind, most of this review
will speak in general terms about the score's thematic usage. Tackling
the new themes first, it needs to be mentioned that there is some debate
about exactly how many new themes actually exist in formality. The most
obvious idea exists for the mystery of the crystal skull concept. This
theme is actually two motifs overlaid throughout most of the work; the
first is an octave-spanning three-note progression repeated in hypnotic
fashion by middle range instrumentation, while the second is a
rhythmically-staggered six note motif of eerie atmosphere for the upper
ranges. Williams states these ideas simultaneously over timpani and
other bass region pounding that moves with the same hypnotic and
deliberate stature as the three-note progression. The lack of
synchronous movement in this pairing is quite effective, as is each of
the two ideas when separated. The three-note motif exhibits the same
tormenting attitude as Williams' similar theme for Lord Voldemort
(introduced in
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets). The
high-pitched rendering of the longer motif, along with the occasional
choral accompaniment, accentuates the other-worldly nature of the
artifact. Among Williams' fantasy themes involving unknown or alien
elements, this is one of his most effectively frightening. This also,
unfortunately, makes it a tougher experience on album.
In customary fashion, Williams provides concert suite
arrangements of his major new ideas for the film. The first and
lengthiest of these on album is "Call of the Crystal," which offers two
crescendos of the theme that never quite reach the brass-blasting power
of the massive performances in "Hidden Treasure and the City of Gold"
and "Temple Ruins and the Secret Revealed," both of which use a high
choir to suggest the fantastic origins of the skull. The suite does
conclude, however, with a wicked set of descending brass figures to
accentuate the key. A lengthy, psychologically gripping performance of
the theme exists in "Return" and is reprised to lesser extents in
"Orellana's Cradle" and "Oxley's Dilemma." Perhaps the most interesting
performance of the theme is its final one, shifting into a high brass,
chime and triangle-banging, major key fanfare for the spectacle of "The
Departure" and proving that it represents a far broader element than
just the crystal. As the credits roll, the lack of this theme in the
closing suite is somewhat of a curiosity. A theme for badgirl Irina
Spotka is even more liberally quoted throughout the score than the
crystal skull theme (including a place in the end credits), used almost
constantly during the character's appearances and suggested actions.
This theme is a brilliant combination of both the sensual and sinister
sides of the character, using a saxophone, muted brass, and classic noir
progressions (in the theme's even-numbered, descending phrases) to
balance out the turbulent undercurrents that run through its low tones
and tense string renditions. Aside from a brief exploration of this
theme in the suite "Irina's Theme" (which appropriately closes with
hints of the crystal skull theme), this idea is given significantly dark
shades in "The Spell of the Skull," action variants in "The Jungle
Chase," and an agonizingly appropriate death in "Temple Ruins and the
Secret Revealed." While this theme is heard in short bursts throughout
the album, there exist three or four distinct cues with the theme that
remain unreleased (as opposed to the crystal skull theme, which the
album only really fails to cover once).
A theme for the Colonel Dovchenko and his Russian forces
is precisely for
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull what the German
fanfare was for
The Last Crusade, though toned back in its
saluting brass statements for a more stately attitude here. This theme
usually appears, logically, with Irina's theme, rarely venturing onto
its own (as in the cue "Ants!"). Further exploration of this theme would
have been welcome, especially if Williams had merged its militaristic
tones in some way into Irina's material. The final new thematic ideas
for
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull represent the character of
Mutt, Indy's motorcycle-driving sidekick (and a little bit more).
Whether the material in the suite "The Adventures of Mutt" actually
constitutes a theme is an interesting debate. The character is treated
to a frenetic spirit not much unlike the "Scherzo For Motorcycle and
Orchestra" or "Escape from Venice" cues from
The Last Crusade,
but with an even more classically-complex playfulness that points to
Far and Away,
Hook, and various
Harry Potter
equivalents for comparison. The rollicking staccato rhythms even employ
some of the meandering woodwind ideas from
The Terminal, making
the "theme" a collection of generally charming, swashbuckling techniques
from the library of Williams that may suggest a lack of grounding in the
character. With the title theme for Indy mixed into package, you might
want to search a bit harder to see if there's a piece of another theme
from
Raider of the Lost Ark included as well. One aspect of the
Mutt material that is somewhat obnoxious is that Williams has a tendency
to litter such boisterous performances with false conclusions, and
Mutt's music has several (in multiple cues). The fragments of this suite
are integrated into "A Whirl Through Academe," "The Jungle Chase," as
well as a more cohesive restatement in the end credits suite. It's
difficult to find satisfaction in this theme, for while it represents
the character well enough, its lack of clearly delineated statements (in
both its primary and secondary passages) leave you without much to
remember or admire after its conclusion.
As for the old favorites, Williams is extraordinarily
loyal to four of the themes from
Raiders of the Lost Ark and
The Last Crusade. The "Raider's March," commonly associated with
the franchise as Indy's theme, is worked into roughly 20 of the score's
40 major cues (with only half of those twenty heard on album). Most of
its statements are brief and well integrated into surrounding material,
but Williams does offer a few guilty pleasure moments for the theme.
Most obviously, he uses it as the bookends of the end credits suite and
during the famous map/travel sequences. Fans will rejoice in the
composer's liberal usage of the secondary passage of the theme, which
has arguably held up better over time. He also freshly recorded the
official "Raider's March" suite for the opening of the album release.
The theme for Marion Ravenwood is obviously the interlude in that
original suite, and the performances of the theme here are as lovely as
ever. Aside from a few brief uses of the theme in the unreleased
portions of "The Jungle Chase," the idea's major contribution to
The
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull comes in full form as the series ties
up loose ends in "Finale." It also leads into the familiar latter half
of the end credits suite. Whimsical high string counterpoint to the
theme reminds of a different generation of Williams' writing, when
beauty such as this highlighted similar themes for
Superman and
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back frequently. Also
considered an old friend is the theme for the Ark of the Covenant, which
scarred the memories of children in theatres with its proficiency in
melding peoples' faces during
Raiders of the Lost Ark. The Ark
makes a cameo in the early warehouse scene in
The Kingdom of the
Crystal Skull, and Williams treats it with two reprises of its
mysterious theme (only one of which is featured on the album release).
Both are more substantial than the theme's cameo usage in
The Last
Crusade. In fact, Williams even copies over a snippet of the
associated, militaristic digging motif from
Raiders of the Lost
Ark in "The Spell of the Skull."
The final theme to be reprised from the franchise is that
of the relationship between Indy and his father in
The Last
Crusade. Considered by some to be a theme for Henry while others
look upon it as a secondary idea for the Holy Grail, Williams clearly
establishes this now as the Jones family theme. He inserts the theme
twice in
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, first as Indy returns
to his college life and remembers his father, and finally as the film
resolves its familial connections in the aftermath of the action.
Neither cue is included on the album, which is especially a shame in the
case of the latter, 2-minute cue. Other snippets referencing
Raiders
of the Lost Ark and
The Last Crusade litter the score for
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, some of which a bit too obvious
for comfort. With some of these tied so close in structure and
performance, there might be some room for temp track speculation. For
instance, the stop-and-go action and humorous instrumental solos in "The
Snake Pit" beg for comparisons to "The Basket Chase" from
Raiders of
the Lost Ark. The use of the Ark theme in "The Spell of the Skull"
pulls 45 seconds of material almost identical to the first film's "The
Map Room: Dawn" sequence. The "Flight from Peru" cue from that film is
quoted several times in the fourth installment, with the most obvious
pull existing over the first map/travel sequence. The album lists this
cue as "The Journey to Akator," though this would seem to be a mistake.
The similarities between Mutt's material and that of
The Last
Crusade's more ambitious rhythmic cues has already been discussed.
There are also connections between the propulsive movement of "The
Jungle Chase" and "Belly of the Steel Beast" from
The Last
Crusade, though there are also hints of "Desert Chase" from
Raiders of the Lost Ark in the percussion of this cue.
Unfortunately, there is no action piece in this film as rousingly
consistent as "Desert Chase," which emphasizes the point that Williams'
maturing style of writing has abandoned that kind of blatantly ballsy
writing.
There are singular moments in the score for
The
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull that warrant some mention. First, the
latter half of "Hidden Treasure and the City of Gold" obviously repeats
the overbearing and menacing bass-tone rhythm from Williams' more recent
War of the Worlds. After the traveling sequence of "The Journey
to Akator," Williams unleashes a mariachi-style motif of two minutes in
length (too long, really, for a source-like cue) that marches with pan
pipes, acoustic guitar, trumpet, a variety of medium-range percussion.
The wild rhythms of percussion and low piano in "Grave Robbers"
resembles Williams'
Jurassic Park and, in the aerosol can-shaking
effects, even raises memories of Danny Elfman's original
Batman.
The two cues with significant choral effects, "Hidden Treasure and the
City of Gold" and "Temple Ruins and the Secret Revealed," are
interesting due to their texture (they almost sound like synthetic
voices in their mix), though Williams' integration of shades of Marion's
theme into a crescendo during the first of those cues is quite
remarkable. The map sequences in these films are always fun; the second
(and more subtle) of these is heard at the end of "Secret Doors and
Scorpions." Many of the other notable singular moments exist in the 35
or so minutes of music not heard on the album. These include the
extended sections of "The Jungle Chase," which in sum runs about ten
minutes but only reveals four of those minutes on album. The lack of the
two-minute cue in between "The Departure" and "Finale" is also a
disappointment, given that the development of the Jones family theme
there is arguably more compelling than anything heard in
The Last
Crusade. The first twenty minutes of the film (involving the
warehouse) is badly represented on album, with only the four minutes of
"The Spell of the Skull" existing (and mislabeled) here and leaving out
significant thematic exploration for Irina and the Russians, as well as
performances of three old favorites.
In conclusion,
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
is an engaging, interesting, and, at times, thrilling score. Williams'
loyalty to themes both old and new deserves significant kudo points.
Many of the score's weaknesses, including an over-reliance on quotes
from previous scores in the franchise, are flaws attributable to the
film and therefore not solely the responsibility of the composer. On the
other hand, none of the new themes is a knock-out, with Mutt's material
nebulous at best, the crystal skull theme effectively horrifying but
occasionally obnoxious in its hypnotic qualities, and the Irina and
Russian themes often lost in the shuffle. The action material compares
unfavorably to
Raiders of the Lost Ark in the same way that
Jurassic Park: The Lost World did to its superior predecessor;
the noise and sophistication is there, but the memorable appeal is not.
This is the point of comparison that some fans also, to varying degrees
of success, can make when applying the mould of the
Star Wars
prequel scores. The performances and mix of the ensemble also merit
comment. Williams recorded this score in Los Angeles, and the difference
between the performance and recording there and those in London is
nowhere as evident as in the "Finale" cue from
The Kingdom of the
Crystal Skull. Compare the closing wedding cues in this score and in
Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, both featuring melodramatic love
themes leading into the respective title marches, and London's
superiority will be confirmed. In the end, despite its flaws, remains an
Indiana Jones score and, as such, it's a fun and necessary
inclusion in any Williams collection. The fifteen minutes of suites at
the start of the album badly constrain the presentation of the music
actually heard in the film; the "Raider's March," while a delightful
mainstay, begs to be skipped. Unfortunately, no expanded album came with
Concord Records' 2008 set of 5 CDs of Indiana Jones music, and the same
music was re-issued again by Disney in 2024 as part of a useless and
expensive franchise set. Still, Indy being Indy, you can't help but
smile at an encounter with an old friend, no matter how the concept and
the composer's style have aged.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
Download
| Bias Check: |
For John Williams reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.68
(in 91 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.54
(in 363,495 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
|
The original, individual album is offered in the form of a slipcase digipak. Its
removable insert contains the standard note from Spielberg about the score. The 2008
Concord and 2024 Disney sets contain bloated packaging with extensive photography and
short notes from the composer and director, but they surprisingly contain no analysis
of the music itself.
