: (Alexandre Desplat) Bless the
Japanese for their bizarre cultural obsessions, from massive fighting
robots and animated sexuality to talking toilets and city-leveling
radioactive beasts from the deep. In the early 2010's, there was wishful
talk from director Guillermo del Toro about combining the kaiju concepts
of Godzilla and the fighting robots for an American extravaganza tribute
to Japanese pop culture, though perhaps humanity will not experience the
ultimate in triumphant Japanese thrills until the beasts, robots,
toilets, and sex anime all figure prominently in the same picture.
Americans have been trying to copy some of these Japanese concepts for
decades, but the category of radioactive primordial beasts, after a
splurge of attempts with giant octopuses and ants in the Ray Harryhausen
era, has proven somewhat elusive. In the realm of massive lizards laying
waste to cities, you have only 1998's unfortunate
to examine, neither really
eliciting the same public zeal that the original Japanese market seems
to experience with the concept. The 2014 American reboot of
, originally meant to be a short IMAX feature before
revolving through studio doorways, is a bit more measured in its
tackling of the adaptation, going further to paint the titular beast as
a hero in many ways, shifting the burden of humanity's adversary over to
other radioactive creatures called MUTO's. These alien and insect-like
nasties are a pair in 2014's
that cause many of the
insurance claims to physical property throughout the western portions of
America, and in parallel plotlines to humanity's continued fumbling with
nuclear weapons as a false solution to the problem, there is the kind of
beast on beast fighting in this film that would make the Japanese
heritage of the concept proud. While this rendition of
was not specifically designed to open a new series in the franchise, its
gross of over half a billion dollars worldwide might cause
reconsideration. Fortunately, the soundtrack for this version of
, though it did offer some source and pop culture
material to varying levels of distraction, was generally authentic in
its application of music that certainly would not have embarrassed Akira
Ifukube, composer of the original 1954 classic and the guiding musical
identity of the franchise.
While David Arnold's score for the 1998 version of
Godzilla remains something of a guilty pleasure for many film
music collectors, Arnold's approach to the concept was more streamlined
in its bombastic Hollywood mannerisms and seems closer to an alien
invasion soundtrack at times (is anyone surprised?). On the other hand,
Alexandre Desplat's plan for 2014's
Godzilla is more measured in
its adherence to some of the guidelines unofficially established by
Ifukube, including several key instrumental techniques. Desplat may be
known in mainstream circles for his multitude of scores in other genres,
from lighter dramas to tense political thrillers, but there has been a
strain of his career that has occasionally afforded him the opportunity
to unleash unbridled orchestral chaos,
The Golden Compass
remaining the most intriguing of these entries. Thankfully for the giant
radioactive lizard in
Godzilla, Desplat doesn't allow his
intellectual compositional mannerisms to take a leave of absence,
resulting in perhaps the most orchestrally accomplished music in the
franchise to date. As already mentioned, you hear pieces of Ifukube's
identity in places, most frequently in the applications of brass, but in
conjunction with the density that you expect from Desplat at his more
rambunctious, a learned film music collector will hear similarities to
Elliot Goldenthal's frightfully complex methodology of the 1990's and
the brutal low brass usage akin to Don Davis'
The Matrix trilogy
as well. Desplat doubled the size of the brass section for this score,
allowing both low concentrations of brute force and, when necessary,
several overlapping lines of action without sacrificing power. To
enhance the bass further, he brings his own trademark electronic bass
pulse into the equation, too, and while this tone can prove really
obnoxious at times, it's really only a problem when he allows it to
ramble. In the opening cue, "Godzilla!" and at the outset of "Following
Godzilla," this is the case, but later in the score, Desplat seems
contented applying it as simply a whole-note bass accentuation tool, a
technique that is far more palatable. The composer's use of ethnic
Japanese flutes and Taiko drums is tastefully handled to avoid
stereotyping, and his insertion of more primal jungle tones in the first
half of the work, including vocalizations, is commendable. Some
listeners may be reminded of John Williams'
Jurassic Park at
times given how well these colors are splashed onto the canvas without
really defining the larger picture.
It's difficult not to admire Desplat's accomplished
textural and emotional accompaniment to the script in
Godzilla,
his score often so smart in its execution of distinct loud lines of
action that you can't help but appreciate the tenacity. The flipside of
that benefit, however, is the digestive issue listeners might experience
with the music. There are not many tonally pleasing moments of grandiose
payoff in this score, the rhythms of "Golden Gate Chaos" and thematic
culmination in "Back to the Ocean" yielding this work's few "ear candy"
moments. Part of the dissatisfaction some listeners might have with this
score is its underplayed prominence of themes. To say that it doesn't
have themes is asinine, for Desplat does quite well at establishing
identities for Godzilla, the family of humans at the emotional heart of
the story, and even motifs for the MUTO's and their battles with humans
and Godzilla. The main beast's theme takes significant time to evolve
from the opening cue (the film doesn't reveal him until relatively
late), but the switch to the major key for the heroic statement at the
conclusion of the score is not to be missed. The string family theme in
"To Q Zone" and "Back to Janjira" is somewhat muted compared to
everything else, but it is a nice break. The rhythmic figured for the
radioactive creatures in general (and the MUTO's by association) are all
over the score, one of which ironically reminiscent once again of
Williams'
Jurassic Park. Action rhythms near the end of "Entering
the Nest" combine this minor-third element with vintage James Horner
brutality. The use of a wailing cry throughout the score is a convenient
and attractive tone-setter. The choral layer is not very impactful as
mixed, so don't expect the fantasy element to compete at all with the
action one, especially in such a dry mix. Overall, you have to be
patient with Desplat's
Godzilla, for its opening third rumbles
and toils in spectacular but not always memorable ambient textures. The
middle begins to reveal the enticingly overbearing action in more tonal
shades, and the final five or six cues form a powerhouse suite with the
themes exposed for your enjoyment. The Desplat-only soundtrack album can
be a tiring experience, but its highlights balance intellectual and
accessible construction for an outstanding 20 minutes of smart sonic
force. The trailer and parachuting scene in
Godzilla utilize
"Requiem, for Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano, 2 Mixed Choirs & Orchestra" by
Gyorgy Ligeti, and this track is unfortunately missing from the album.
Still, if you have grown weary of dumb and derivative summer blockbuster
scores of the era, then Desplat's aptitude at adapting to nearly any
genre will merit your strong consideration.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
Download
| Bias Check: |
For Alexandre Desplat reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.39
(in 31 reviews)
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