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Powell's music for Gigli is somewhat hip, laced with arguably inappropriate Western tones, romantic in its basic harmonious simplicity, and lacking in an abundance of novel ideas. It is mundane score with little character until its final few cues. Two sides of the score alternate depending on how painfully conversational the situation is on screen (a red flag right there, given that the music had to compete with that awful dialogue). First, you have the urban, supposedly cool, light rock that you get from a guitar, electric organ, and percussion. If you can tolerate electric organs (which is a big "if," because when isolated like it is here, it could easily make you pull your hair out), then these cues are listenable in a generic, bland sort of contemporary fashion. The same applies to the light orchestral cues with piano and pleasant acoustic guitar. A string section is accompanied by the band and a few flutes to produce harmonious meanderings of pleasant chords. For such a monumentally horrible film, one might expect a score just as offensive, but if Powell's score is to be criticized negatively, then it would suffer that comment because it simply doesn't try to flourish beyond its own stale flavor. That is, until the final cues presented on the album, and this is where Powell collectors can claim a saving grace and pull his score from the same depths of despair experienced by the film. Finally sincerely developing its thematic ideas in "Pro Perogative," Powell shifts gears completely in "Nice Weather," which plays upon a Western rhythm to the full extent of the strings, piano, and guitar, and whipping up surprising attitude with several flutes. It almost stinks of Randy Edelman fuzziness, but after half an hour of Powell's largely boring underscore, it's a welcome change. Likewise, the final cue explodes into a climax complete with the full ensemble engaged with gospel singing. It's completely out of blue, but the "Rochelle" cue also injects some life into the rubbery album, even if only briefly. Comically, the Varèse Sarabande label felt obliged (perhaps legally necessitated by their contract to purchase the score) to tell buyers that the album does not include a Jennifer Lopez single ("Baby, I Love U"), costing them several thousand possible purchases by J-Lo fans who would in turn fill used-CD bins with the product. Somehow, that would have been a fitting end to this sorry chapter.  **   @Amazon.com: CD or Download

Bias Check:

For John Powell reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.28 (in 50 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 3.16 (in 52,492 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.

Total Time: 37:33