Filmtracks Traffic Rank: #1,372
Written 12/17/07
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Buy it... if you are typically drawn to classical crossover scores
of restrained beauty and are lured by solo violin performances of
austere distinction.
Avoid it... if you expect substantial variance or dramatic
inflection in Howard Shore's thematic development, leaving instead a
score that is potentially stagnant in its consistency.
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| Shore |
Eastern Promises: (Howard Shore) The Russian mafia
of London is the subject of David Cronenberg's Eastern Promises,
one of the director's most widely praised and less bizarre films. The
world of the Vory v Zakone is exposed in a character thriller that
unravels a mystery while endangering lives of Russians both within and
outside of the mafia. Among the continuing group of loyal collaborators
of Cronenberg is composer Howard Shore, whose career, like the
director's, has strayed closer to mainstream artistry in recent years.
Shore's output since his stunning work for Peter Jackson's The Lord
of the Rings trilogy has mostly been heavily weighted in dramatics,
both robust in orchestral construct and existing for films of greater
popularity that before. While strong, none of these scores has been as
appealing in its style as Eastern Promises, which conveys an
attempt by Shore to transcend to a level of classically-inclined
melodrama defined at the top by John Williams' Schindler's List.
Shore claims that his inspiration for the score came from Russian folk
music and the tattoo art of the mafia itself, though it's difficult to
pinpoint a significant aspect of the score that points directly to
either. The violin as a dominant element in the score was a discovery
made by Shore after starting his work on Eastern Promises, and it
is the performance of Nicola Benedetti that highlights the finished
product. Shore provides two major themes for the film, and Benedetti's
violin is the voice of both, creating an attractive consistency to
almost every cue. The primary theme, introduced in "Eastern Promises,"
is an overarching representation of the mafia and the Nikolai character.
Its descending, melancholy structure extends some of the bittersweet
spirit of Gollum's motifs from The Lord of the Rings: The Two
Towers while using the austere performances of the violin to hint at
the history of the mafia's influence. One of the score's few weaknesses
is the lack of development of this theme despite its frequent
restatement. A short running time on album forgives the repetitive
nature of Shore's employment of the theme, though only in the final cue
on that album do you hear a truly interesting variant on the idea.
For much of the score, Shore avoids a powerful presence
in the bass region, never really providing the violin with a substantial
backing. Only in the latter half of the opening cue and in the
impressively conclusive brass statement of the title theme in
"Trans-Siberian Diary" does any significant sonic depth exist in
Eastern Promises. Interestingly, the score is also largely devoid
of troubling passages, with restrained and smooth sailing until the
turbulence of "Nine Elms" conjures some of the tension from
A History
of Violence. The Russian Army Choir's performance of a traditional
piece in "Slavery and Suffering" is a licensed inclusion and disrupts
the flow of the album with a differing sound quality. The second theme
in
Eastern Promises exists for the dead prostitute whose diary
tells her story throughout the film. Debuting in "Tatiana" and repeating
less often than Shore's primary idea for the film, this one is arguably
more enticing and it lends itself better to the slight incorporation of
percussion and other elements meant to represent the Russian influence
on the music. Those elements are otherwise mixed with such a slight
presence that they make practically no impact on the score, with the
balalaika in particular almost lost completely. The cimbalom, santoor,
and accordion, among other specialty instruments, leave no impression
that can compete with the violin, though the numerous clarinet solos
fare a bit better. On the whole, the score may seem a bit
one-dimensional, especially with the constant statements of the primary
theme, the lack of alteration to that theme, and the dominant presence
of the violin. But the strength of the score for
Eastern Promises
is that same consistency, with a distinct and easily listenable tone
maintained throughout. While it may not have the same emotionally
charged appeal of other scores that have attempted the same restrained
beauty, it contains enough style to warrant an album purchase and lure
the votes of awards-givers. Look for this score to succeed as a
crossover product as well, appealing to collectors of classical music.
The commercial album is joined by an alternative iTunes release that
offers an additional four-minute cue of moderate interest. It's an
impressive score overall, but Shore surprisingly missed a slam dunk with
the lack of variance and dramatic inflection in his thematic use.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
Download
Bias Check:
For Howard Shore reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.56
(in 25 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 3.33
(in 101,293 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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