PRINTER FRIENDLY VIEW
(inverts site colors)

It was really no surprise that Arnold was never asked by Emmerich to score Independence Day: Resurgence, and Kloser and Wanker had proven themselves adept at yielding shameless temp-track rip-off scores in the past, so there was some hope that the duo would at least adapt Arnold's score liberally for the sequel. The Wanker/Kloser partnership never lives up to any soundtrack collector's hopes, however, scores like The Day After Tomorrow and White House Down barely functional but remarkably boring. Their most notable success, arguably, was for 10,000 B.C., the ultimate guilty pleasure score that remains known for its nagging plagiarism issues. On Independence Day: Resurgence, as with 10,000 B.C., Wanker and Kloser are joined by Thomas Schobel, who co-composes two of the worst cues of electronic textures in the 2016 work ("Traveling Through Space" and "The Queen is Leaving"). The success or failure of the music for Independence Day: Resurgence was predetermined in the planning and spotting meetings with the filmmakers about the score. How Arnold's score would be adapted into the sequel was the single most pivotal decision they had to make, and at this task they failed spectacularly. The fact that Wanker and Kloser compiled what is likely the best score of their career is irrelevant, because their passing lip service to Arnold's themes, not to mention their crew's inability to match Nicholas Dodd's accomplished orchestrations, doom this soundtrack to the inevitable comparison factor. These composers simply aren't good enough to match the Arnold and Dodd team. You hear them thrash around and emulate James Newton Howard, Hans Zimmer, and Jerry Goldsmith throughout Independence Day: Resurgence when, in fact, they damn well should have been more closely matching Arnold's lead. Even their infrequent and unsatisfyingly dropped references to the Arnold classic are badly orchestrated and performed compared to the original recording. That is not to say that Wanker and Kloser don't try to establish some interesting instrumental textures and atmospheres, nor does it mean that their score is devoid of thematic consistency. It simply entails a lack of talent on their part to compete with Arnold. It's as simple as that. In this regard, Wanker and Kloser wasted their time with all their efforts for Independence Day: Resurgence, because they will likely never compete in the big leagues. The trick to appreciating the sequel score is to move beyond that reality.

The scope of Independence Day: Resurgence is broader than any of Wanker and Kloser's scores except, perhaps, 10,000 B.C., and parts of this work, such as the percussive banging at the outset of "Hostile Territory," will remind you of that 2008 entry. If this score had existed outside of its franchise, any reviewer would be able to point to several action cues here that are more engaging and interesting than anything else in the composers' careers. Between "What Goes Up," "Whitmore's Choice," and "Bus Chase" is upwards of ten minutes of really entertaining, albeit brainless, action music for orchestra and thumping electronics in the bass region. The spirited piccolo exuberance and raw, growling brass brutality of Dodd's orchestrations are gone, however, the demeanor of the performances more conventional in tone. Also not a factor, unfortunately, is a choir. Standout solos are saved for the trumpet and snare, of course, along with a few heinous, processed electronic passages. Percussive rhythms occasionally remind of Alan Silvestri's vintage tendencies. The entire affair sounds like an auto-pilot effort by a team that was trying not to screw up. Thematically, there are few chances taken, and Wanker and Kloser rely on the progressions of both of Arnold's two main themes for the preceding score along with passages from Godzilla and the works of the aforementioned other composers, particularly Goldsmith. Recall that Arnold's Independence Day contained a multi-part main theme and a frequently utilized, menacing brass motif for the alien species. Both inform parts of Wanker and Kloser's score without actually making any significant impact. The main Arnold theme is heard three times and officially credited twice. Other than the latter two wholesale regurgitations, the lesser passage is at 0:21 into "Worth Fighting For." Allusions to the melody also occur at 1:24 into "More Stimulation" and, to an even lesser extent, 1:23 into "The Sphere." Meanwhile, Arnold's theme for the aliens has been oddly twisted into an optimistic major mode, a truly bizarre turn given that the villains are much the same in the sequel. (Could they be suggesting that the alien technology is now being used for good? Or is that over-thinking this situation?) You hear this adaptation at 1:10 into "More Stimulation," 1:34 into "What Goes Up," 0:08 into "It's Getting Real," at the outset of "Humanity's Last Stand," and at 1:38 into "Independence Day Resurgence Finale." The composers inexplicably do not offer their own cohesive identity for the villains as a replacement, stewing about with menacing minor-mode progressions that never lead anywhere.

Rather than make substantive use of Arnold's heroic themes in Independence Day: Resurgence, the composers generate very basic and stale alternatives for no good reason. Their identity for noble resistance exists on the expected instruments in "Great Speech," "Fear," "Welcome to the Moon," "Humanity's Last Stand," and "Independence Day Resurgence Finale." This idea degenerates into power anthem territory in cues like "More Stimulation" and "It's Getting Real," cues reminiscent of generic Zimmer-defined techniques. When it comes to handling the potentially benign secondary aliens of this plot, Wanker and Kloser access Howard mystery methodology, offering tonally pleasing chord alternations primarily for strings and brass in "The Friendly Spaceship" (seriously, can anyone listen to the passage at 1:24 into that cue and not think of Howard's similar recordings?), "The Sphere," and as a parting shot of suspense (or setup for the next film) at 2:42 into "Independence Day Resurgence Finale." Maddeningly, none of the new or old themes is applied in such a way as to create any of the fantastic narrative appeal of the prior score. The end result of Wanker and Kloser's efforts is a merely functional and occasionally entertaining work, but it's completely forgettable. There is not even a convincingly heartfelt secondary character theme comparable to what Arnold nurtured on the side in Independence Day. You also have an odd mix of sound effects and/or unusual percussive textures in this recording. At times, these intrusions are so bizarrely placed in the mix that you might occasionally wonder if some background studio noise accidentally made it through. The entire product seems amateurish compared to Independence Day, a sad irony given that Kloser and Wanker have far more experience writing scores now than Arnold had in 1996. Also do not discount the comparatively simplistic orchestrations; while the electronic embellishments outside of the two Schobel cues are handled well, there is little performance emphasis of note in the sequel. Ultimately, as a stand-alone effort, Independence Day: Resurgence is a three-star score with a few roaring four-star moments and a few obnoxious cues of one-star electronic ambience. In fairness, this music really is the best of the duo's careers thus far, and other film music reviewers are recognizing this fact. It's boring and predictable, but it's by no means inappropriate or laughable. At some point, however, one of the reviewers has to give a swift kick to the asses of Emmerich, Devlin, and Kloser for their inability to properly work with Arnold's music or Arnold himself. For the Arnold enthusiast, this score is nothing less than heartbreaking. And who isn't an Arnold enthusiast? Get it right next time, filmmakers.  *   @Amazon.com: CD or Download

Bias Check:

For Harald Kloser reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 2.56 (in 9 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 2.54 (in 3,748 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.

Total Time: 51:54