: (Ramin Djawadi) Unbeknownst to many
casual viewers of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a group of eternal
beings has existed on Earth for thousands of years, tasked with ensuring
the survival of humanity as means of propagating their own "Celestial"
kind when the time comes. These immortal superheroes, inhabiting the
print comics for decades, were intentional bystanders to all the mayhem
of the ensemble
films but are now drawn into conflict
because the events of those movies brought back the previously
vanquished enemies of these "Eternals." As a standalone film, 2021's
is a bit of an enigma in that novice Chinese director
Chloe Zhao sought to explore philosophy just as much as action
technique, causing some audiences to become bored with the story's
relatively slow pacing. Too many characters are introduced in one
picture, forcing them into duty without proper development and with too
few details of their origins explained in a way that audiences can care
about. Nevertheless, Marvel and Walt Disney now have another group of
properties with which to monetize, though not all of the world
appreciated the gesture. The movie was blocked from China due to the
director's statements about the Chinese government and, more
ridiculously, it was banned in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait for
promoting homosexuality after Disney refused to alter the picture for
those audiences. The studio deserves credit for that decision, though it
may not have been thrilled by the less-than-enthusiastic embrace the
remainder of the world gave
. The film represented the
return of composer Ramin Djawadi to the franchise; he had opened it with
a rock-inspired score for 2008's
that remains one of the
worst Marvel soundtracks. Fortunately, Djawadi, replacing Joseph
Trapanese on the project, has matured significantly as a composer since
then, slowly increasing the quality of his output for both television
and films in the 2010's and now primed to offer far better music to
. To understand his approach to the story, you have to
remember that Zhao sees the music for her films through a more classical
lens, so do not expect this score to sound like a prototypical superhero
entry. Instead, it is written as a hybrid that combines the genre's
basic anthemic requirements with a series of concert-like compositions
that represent the concepts of the story more generally, often with
beautiful results.
Djawadi follows some of the basic rulesets of the genre in
how he devices themes for the protagonists and their adversaries of
Eternals and developing those ideas over time. But how he states
these themes is remarkably different from expectations. It's almost as
though he has taken a page from the Hans Zimmer and Lorne Balfe methods
of writing music inspired by the concept for album appreciation first
and then tailoring specific adaptations of those constructs for the
picture. As such, you receive a combination of tracks that serve as a
classical/new age hybrid product that could exist separately from the
film and then some tracks that are better matched to the actual story.
Sadly, the album release for
Eternals does few favors for
listeners expecting to appreciate what was heard in the film, with most
of the best rendered action variants of the main themes simply dropped
from the product, leaving it as a listening experience defined by
Djawadi's religiously-inclined fantasy material in passages typically
conveyed over long tracks. The instrumental tone of
Eternals
isn't fresh at all, but his execution of expected elements is very well
handled. An orchestra is a joined by solo female and ensemble voices
while electric guitars and a tasteful amount of synthetic ambience is
applied for the darker passages. Following the same path taken by Zimmer
in
Dune, Djawadi also seemingly takes a page from Rupert
Gregson-Williams' synthetic slurring effects from
Aquaman to
enhance the fantasy element for modern ears; it is interesting how
pervasive this technique of slurring the pitch of a note up to key has
become since 2018. Most of the score's ethnic coloration is restricted
to scenes in humanity's ancient past, which is a disappointment given
that Djawadi's handling of these tones here echoes the magnificent
breadth of his sound for the Disney documentary
Elephant the
prior year. The solo female voices may be the easy highlight for some
listeners, but an organ is where Djawadi really supplies the religious
depth to the score. Portions of this work will remind listeners of Mark
McKenzie's beautiful music for religious propaganda films, easily
digestible for long periods and inspirational to the max. The tonalities
in
Eternals are largely consistent and extremely accessible,
minor thirds applied everywhere and requiring few challenges in the core
themes. Even in the score's moments of discord, the composer refrains
from outward expressions of dissonance, opting to keep the experience
friendly.
The main theme of
Eternals is a clear winner,
appropriately reminiscent of Alan Silvestri's mannerisms and applying
the minor third chords and progressions in a simplistic but satisfying
manner. The theme's rising conclusive phrases shift to major key heroics
on rare occasions. Unfortunately, this idea functions in the score much
like Benjamin Wallfisch's main identity in
Shazam!, promising
more than it delivers, especially on album. The anthem is highlighted at
0:56 and 2:52 into "Eternals Theme" and never achieves the same heights
again on album given the absence of so many prominent action cues on the
product. It is vague throughout "Somewhere in Time" on strings over
mandolin rhythms, lightly choral in latter half of "The Domo," and in
fragmented battle mode during "This is Your Fight Now." Djawadi
struggles to enunciate the theme in the action and fantasy of "I Have
Been Waiting for This" and "Emergence Sea," saving a better rendition
for a sorrowful reduction to solo piano and strings in "Eternal Loss"
that eventually enjoys better anthemic brass backing. Sometimes
associated with this theme is a rhythmic pattern that seems to represent
the concept's coolness as well as the Eternals' arrival and spaceship
technology in the story. This undulating on synthetic keyboarding opens
with quick 3-note phrases up and down and is easily recognizable in the
score given its distinct rendering. Heard at 0:10 and 2:22 into
"Eternals Theme" and 0:23 into "The Domo," the idea recurs at 1:23 and
later into "This is Your Fight Now" for heavier electric guitar and
closes out "Earth is Just One Planet." While the electronic performances
of this idea are certainly catchy, it exists well in the symphonic realm
as well. An interlude to the main anthem in "Eternals Theme" debuts at
1:48 on cellos and remains a sadly underutilized element of the score.
It uses same general chord shifts as main theme and, at 0:29 into
"Audience with Arishem" on choir and forceful brass, suggesting itself
as relating to either Arishem or the associated, compelling backstory. A
separate theme for the Eternals' mission on Earth is explored by Djawadi
with beauty but not necessarily evolved purpose in the work,
encapsulated on piano and solo voice in "Mission." A wonderful variant
on this idea exists for ancient Babylon in "Joie de Vivre" on duduk,
dulcimer, and ethnic woodwinds in the score's lone
Life of Pi
moment, but it shifts to a more comfortable religious tone with organ
under solo voice in "Isn't It Beautiful," where it enjoys a heroic brass
ending. A more subdued performance of the identity graces "A Wish" on
piano and strings.
The elements of conflict aren't spectacular in
Eternals, but the theme representing the Celestials and their
Deviants does serve its purpose. The theme is mostly rooted around key,
moving between two notes before ominous descents to close out the two
phrases denote bad intent. The idea develops out of lovely origins in
the ascending formations for solo voice and organ in "Celestials," a cue
that becomes anthemic and then frightful at the end, the album's most
challenging moment. The proper theme for the villains is best expressed
in the cyclical rising brass figures and driving electric guitar menace
of "Not Worth Saving" and at 1:41 into "This is Your Fight Now." Deep
pulses hint at the theme throughout "It is Time," it's ambient and
unnerving in "I Have Been Waiting for This," and it receives an ominous
crescendo in "Earth is Just One Planet." Among the best singular themes
in
Eternals is one for the Thena character (Angelina Jolie) that
builds throughout "Remember" and retains a Craig Armstrong-like sense of
lamentation. Also a highlight is the romantic theme of "Across the
Oceans of Time," this religious, concert-like piece using the same
opening progressions as the Celestials theme. Oddly resembling Gabriel
Yared's rejected love theme for
Troy in part, this idea is
affably conveyed on strings over specialty instrument rhythms at 1:31
into "Joie de Vivre" but struggles in the middle of "Audience with
Arishem." While all of these themes are sufficient to their task, the
album presentation doesn't illuminate any sort of narrative whatsoever.
The product is out of chronological order and supplies its ideas in
long, suite-like arrangements that slow the experience to the extent
that it's impossible to appreciate more than basic conceptual
relationships between the music and the film. Still,
Eternals
remains a solid listening experience for those looking for easily
accessible fantasy music of mostly organic character. Twenty to thirty
minutes of beautifully contemplative material could be assembled from
this work's romantic passages. Don't expect a significant amount of
unique intelligence in the score, however, its demeanor coming across
like a thinking man's version of Tuomas Kantelinen's 2014 score for
The Legend of Hercules but without the outrageously catchy action
music to coincide. The album for
Eternals concludes with a
Hindi-inspired song, "Nach Mera Hero," which was utilized as source in
the film. In the end, Djawadi's take on
Eternals is about as far
from
Iron Man as one could imagine, lovely and fulfilling
throughout but lacking any pizzazz or enough of the main theme's action
potential to establish more than just a very pleasant fantasy mood.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
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