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Review of Eastern Promises (Howard Shore)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
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.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
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. ****
TRACK LISTINGS:
Total Time: 36:50
* track initially only available for download at iTunes
NOTES & QUOTES:
The insert includes a synopsis of the film's plot and a note from Shore about the
score and film.
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The reviews and other textual content contained on the filmtracks.com site may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of Christian Clemmensen at Filmtracks Publications. All artwork and sound clips from Eastern Promises are Copyright © 2007, Sony Classical and cannot be redistributed without the label's expressed written consent. Page created 12/17/07 (and not updated significantly since). |
