As always, the trademark personality inherent in Ottman's writing is present in House of Wax, with wacky instrumentatal effects, decent thematic integrity, and hints of false innocence throughout. His main theme, performed in the opening by celesta, piano, violin, and restrained "la-la" choral mixing whips itself into a frenzy in its 8-note movements. Representing the town, this theme isn't one of Ottman's strongest, especially in this context, but it is adapted into larger sections of the orchestra for consistent dramatic effect later in the score. The more interesting theme is the one with which Ottman obviously had his most fun; the over-the-top gothic characteristics of the ritual theme (heard twice with a relentless snare rhythm, deep vocal effects, and staggered series of orchestral hits) is exactly what you'd expect to rise from the best realized action sequences of an Ottman horror score. Unfortunately, many of the other horror passages resort to typical cliches in the "shock methodology" of film scoring, and much of the meat in House of Wax steps back into the shadows of Ottman's more non-descript writing for the genre. One notable exception is the melting of the museum itself in "Bringing Down the House," ending with an outstanding 45 seconds of tonal melodrama starting at 4:20 into that climactic cue. It's difficult, as with many similar Ottman scores, not to appreciate the subtle cues more that those of massive volume. An echoing woodwind effect in "Story of the Town" reminds of the technique used by Jerry Goldsmith in Total Recall, and "Brotherly Love" offers a straight-forward and ultimately more ominous performance of the ritual theme than the prior, full-blown version. Ottman also provides his own solo performance of the religiously-inclined organ as the final track on the album, the instrument providing satisfying bass throughout the score. The downfall of Ottman's work here, however, is that it fails to achieve the rhythmic structure that often binds his best efforts. Short blasts of devilishly accessible music will remind of The Usual Suspects but lack the same flow of consistent rhythmic development (which the film's narrative may not have allowed), causing much of the score's filler material to meander in Gothika territory. Neither the album nor the film is the best representation of Ottman's work for House of Wax, however, with several cues in context drowned out by ambient sound effects and the album featuring less than half of the recorded composition. Dedicated Ottman enthusiasts will be enticed by the spirit of this score, but its reach likely won't extend much farther.  ***   @Amazon.com: CD or Download