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Review of The Insider (Lisa Gerrard/Various)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... only if you have seen the film first, for context is
absolutely necessary to maximize your enjoyment of this unstructured,
wandering collection of contemplative sounds.
Avoid it... if you expect any overarching identity in the soundtrack, outside of the morbidly melancholy sense of remorse that prevails in nearly every track.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
The Insider: (Lisa Gerrard/Pieter Bourke/Graeme
Revell) A fine example of a film applauded by critics and nominated for
a multitude of Academy Awards despite never gaining any box office
traction, The Insider is a powerful but disturbing examination of
events involving a whistle-blower and the monolith that formerly
employed him: big tobacco. Director Michael Mann's gripping drama is
based partly on the real-life events of fired tobacco scientist and
executive Jeffrey Wigand, his testimony about the intentionally
addictive construct of cigarettes produced by Brown & Williamson, and
the interview he agreed to with famed journalist Mike Wallace of "60
Minutes" and CBS News. When Wigand decided to lose his pension and
health care by turning against his former employer, he and his family
was physically threatened. To make matters worse, the corporate machine
at CBS forced Wallace to shelve the famous interview with Wigand that
would blow the lid off the tobacco industry's claims that they don't
knowingly advertise addictive products. The integrity of CBS and of
Wigand's mind are challenged in The Insider, a truly great film
to ponder. The director had a habit of piecing together random works and
styles of music for the soundtracks of his films, usually offering
diverse scores that attempt to merge the sounds of many composers. These
soundtracks are built around the emotions of each individual scene,
soliciting reactions singular to every moment and neglecting to form a
larger, cohesive structure. For Mann, this technique has largely worked
in his films, though both Trevor Jones and Elliot Goldenthal for Last
of the Mohicans and Heat managed to work in some basic
thematic and tonal consistency. For The Insider, Mann would pull
significant inspiration from a previous album release, "Duality," by new
age artists Lisa Gerrard and Pieter Bourke, working a few pieces from
that collection directly into a newly arranged score. He would also tap
the sounds of veteran Hollywood composer Graeme Revell and eventual
multiple-Oscar winner Gustavo Santaolalla for pertinent score tracks.
With the addition of more stylish contributions by Jan Garbarek and
Massive Attack, the soundtrack is eclectic in its artistry but generally
conveys the same melancholy, dread, and solace that results from the
film's story and outstanding lead performances.
The material by Gerrard and Bourke dominate the album, though be aware that the best portions of their contributions are those that were already available on their previous album. The "Tempest" cue is arranged to suit the necessary African tones here, while the gorgeous "Sacrifice" cue largely carries over intact. The latter cue is the only one to really showcase Gerrard's vocal talents, with her melodramatic shifts of progression sure to please listeners who appreciate her one major performance in Mission: Impossible II and the more contemplative moments of Gladiator. Her voice is present in some of the original material of The Insider, but not to the same eloquent extent. The majority of the Gerrard and Bourke cues are synthetic ramblings to serve atmospheric needs rather than carry the narrative. Much of the material is aimless, and the pulsating techno beat of "The Subordinate" and the clanging bells and faux-organ of "Faith" are somewhat predictable. In "Liquid Moon" and "Meltdown," the two composers adapt what sounds like the instrumental backing of rock songs, both consistent and lengthy in their anonymous tones. The work by Graeme Revell for The Insider fits well with the mundane and minimal underscore of the others, offering bland synth tones that do little to extend or develop any musical ideas. The "Iguazo" cue by Santaolalla is interesting in and of itself, even if it doesn't really represent the Deep South well in the film, it would be one of the very few highlights of the composer's Oscar-winning Babel score in the next decade. Ultimately, the collection that Mann has put together is functional in the film (and occasionally quite poignant, especially in the case of "Sacrifice"), but it does little to stir the soul outside of its context. The music of The Insider really requires an appreciation of the superior film to float its album, because each of its contemplative, musical parts doesn't really tell a story alone. Pieces of this work would inform the music for Steven Soderbergh's Traffic after appearing in its trailer. It's easy to get the \sense, however, that the "Duality" album by Gerrard and Bourke is the better buy, because why settle for Mann's rearrangement of the music when you can hear what inspired him in the first place? That way, you'd avoid the pitfalls of the less interesting material that prevails on this extremely effective, but wandering soundtrack. ***
TRACK LISTINGS:
Total Time: 52:31
NOTES & QUOTES:
The insert includes no extra information about the score or film.
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The reviews and other textual content contained on the filmtracks.com site may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of Christian Clemmensen at Filmtracks Publications. All artwork and sound clips from The Insider are Copyright © 1999, Sony Columbia and cannot be redistributed without the label's expressed written consent. Page created 12/30/00 and last updated 8/5/08. |
