: (Shigeru Umebayashi)
Director Zhang Yimou has proven through the years that he is capable of
both high melodrama and extreme action, ranging from
in his Mandarin-language
efforts. While
end of
the spectrum, the 2006 film is a blazing attempt to combine the
spectacle of the battle-driven, computer-generation action with the
intrigue of a true Shakespearian story.
does have the highly stylish action and brilliant
cinematography of the martial favorites, but its story, based on a
1930's Chinese play and transferred back to its proper setting in the
10th Century, is a merging of
. The Chinese Emperor is slowly poisoning the Empress for a
variety of reasons, including incest and betrayal. The Empress is
sexually involved with one of the Emperor's sons and is plotting with
others to overthrow the Emperor. Other characters become tangled in the
web of murder and deceit, with the script using the elegance of complex
Shakespearian linguistics while offering the revolting but strikingly
enticing personality conflicts and scheming of the various factions in
. It may not be entirely fresh, and critics
have remarked that the complicated layers in the story make it a tad
difficult for Western audiences to completely understand, but nobody has
questioned the remarkable beauty of the film's use of colors and other
stunning visual elements.
Even if you can't comprehend the duplicitous actions of
the primary characters (the cast lead by Gong Li and Chow Yun Fat is
also praised),
Curse of the Golden Flower is an event to see and
hear, and Japanese composer Shigeru Umebayashi does not disappoint in
his assignment. Making the transition from rock music into a decade of
successful film scoring, Umebayashi was chosen by Yimou to replace Tan
Dun for his
House of Flying Daggers in 2004, yielding a score
that has been generally applauded for continuing the blend of Western
and Eastern elements that Dun had helped make popular several years
prior. Earlier in the year, Umebayashi struggled to a degree with the
merging of Chinese, Japanese, and Western sounds for
Jet Li's
Fearless, never bringing the three elements together in a satisfying
mix. No such problem exists in
Curse of the Golden Flower, but
that's not necessarily due to a strikingly unique and layered balance of
the aforementioned cultures. Instead, Umebayashi emphasizes the Western
influences above the Chinese ones in
Curse of the Golden Flower,
creating a truly Shakespearian score that just happens to very
effectively shine with the contribution of Chinese style. He really has
seemed --perhaps even intentionally-- to use John Barry's score for
The Lion in Winter as a template, for so much of
Curse of the
Golden Flower will remind of that Academy Award-winning 1968 score.
The use of mass male and female voices, ranging widely in tone and often
performing separately or in sonic battle, is both ancient and
melodramatic to the extreme. Striking chants for both genders yield to
subthemes for characters that involve extremely lofty female vocals or
threateningly dominant and deep male ones.
The chorus' performances range from elegantly
free-flowing majesty to violent and sharp chants that create the perfect
environment for high-class betrayal. Solo female vocals for the Empress'
theme are operatic in tone and as spine-tingling in beauty as those in
the latter half of John Williams'
A.I. Artificial Intelligence.
The orchestral mix is generous in the bass regions, enhancing the basses
and cellos with remarkable clarity during the ensemble's plentiful
performances of grand, sweeping harmony. The highly melodic nature of
the orchestra's performances, consistent throughout the entire score
(and with each major character treated to a dramatic, recurring motif),
makes
Curse of the Golden Flower a far more listenable score on
album than
Jet Li's Fearless. Several cues in
Curse of the
Golden Flower are almost strictly Western in rendering, with some
hints of style not surprisingly reminiscent of Patrick Doyle's
Hamlet from 1996. What makes this score transcend into the
intoxicating overall piece that will impress you is the masterful
incorporation of the Eastern sounds. Their presence in
Curse of the
Golden Flower is secondary in importance to the melodies and other
ensemble performances, throwing the score into a Western realm that
Klaus Badelt took advantage of with
The Promise earlier 2006.
Even for listeners weary of Eastern instruments like the dizi flutes and
erhu violins,
Curse of the Golden Flower will be a palatable
score for your sensibilities. Umebayashi inserts these instruments as
accent pieces, and when they perform in unison with a full string
section, the resulting mix is magical.
The handling of percussion is also superior here
compared to
Jet Li's Fearless. In the former score, lengthy
sequences of solo drum performances in a very dry mix tended to be
tiring after very short lengths, but in
Curse of the Golden
Flower Umebayashi presents them in a far more enjoyable, distantly
ominous, and wet mix. A cue like "Imperial Ceremony" explodes with a
combination of Eastern and Western percussion, including a multitude of
cymbal and gong usage, all of which impressive even at great lengths.
That's the key to the success of this score. Its emotions are often cold
and relentless, lonely in solo performances and depressing in thematic
sways, but you never tire of it. There are no unlistenable portions
throughout its 50 minutes on album, a treat for all Western ears, though
it would be interesting to learn from Chinese listeners if the score is
too powerful in orchestra and chorus for their own sensibilities. If the
score does have a weakness, it's an awkward one; Umebayashi doesn't feel
the need to finish the statement of a theme when a cue ends. Instead, a
performance of one of the score's several character themes can end
mid-statement, leaving the listener with a somewhat unsatisfying
conclusion to the thought. Given the twists of plot on screen, and the
sudden movements of intention, though, the tactic could be very
effective. Overall, unlike
The Promise, the score for
Curse of
the Golden Flower won't immediately blow you out of your seat. But
its consistently morbid elegance, almost Gothic in places, will leave a
lasting impression on you. Fans of varied choral work, especially in the
kind of layers and rhythmic movement that many enjoyed in Jerry
Goldsmith's
The 13th Warrior, will find endless pleasure in this
score. The final three tracks, amounting to nearly ten minutes of tying
up loose ends with the score's themes, are not to be missed, and "Ending
Title" is among the best cues of the entire year. The 50-minute album on
Lakeshore is an addictive multi-cultural experience.
***** @Amazon.com: CD or
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