Whether or not Burwell is to blame could be debated,
but it is probably safe to say that the composer was stuck balancing two
musical styles that have nothing in common, and not even one of the top
composers in the industry could have pulled it off. Burwell takes a
medium sized orchestra and uses it to make simplistic fanfares to
accompany the time period, and in the process utilizes a series of
awkward chord progressions to portray the medieval setting at a basic
level of functionality. The composer's style has never been one of
fluidity in its grand thematic constructs, and that tendency to stomp
rather than flow is a major detriment here. For the showdown and
competition cues, Burwell pulls the fast, almost Western-like rhythm out
of
The Hi-Lo Country and inserts it into
A Knight's Tale,
producing a sudden burst of energy that is equally enjoyable in parts,
though completely out of context with the rest of the score. A lack of
originality in these cues is a disappointment, because Burwell doesn't
make much of an attempt to mask his references to the rhythms and
instrumentation of both
The Hi-Lo Country and
Conspiracy
Theory. Thematically, Burwell does establish the noble title theme
on brass for the hero, a sensitive love theme on guitar, harp, and
strings for the two-dimensional romance in the story, and an
octave-hopping minor-key motif for antagonist. His use of all of these
themes is quite consistent and, in the majority of their orchestral
performances, they hold the work together. But the music for
A
Knight's Tale as a whole suffers from problems inherent in mixing
instrumentation, rhythms, and chord progressions from two uncompromising
musical styles into one messy product. No better of an example is there
than the combination of "Cooked Patents" and "A New Worship," which
tries unsuccessfully to merge medieval themes and instruments with rock
and disco rhythms (the type that would make Lalo Schifrin proud),
electric guitars, and a choir, causing the potential for any listener to
suffer a case of the giggles. If not for the ineffective attempts to
insert traditional woodwind solos into the mix, the music would have
been better suited for a contemporary urban comedy or romance
film.
Defenders of this score will point to the several
flourishes of orchestral bombast as a saving grace. The many brass
fanfares, however, lack even a fraction of the resonating power of those
from such a score as Jerry Goldsmith's
First Knight. The
performing group seems unenthusiastic and poorly mixed, causing period
music that sounds more appropriate for a Mel Brooks comedy set in the
era than anything to be taken seriously. The many source-like dance
pieces and other marginally related period performances are a major
detraction on the album, usually separating the tolerable orchestral
pieces with mindless rhythmic noise. The better orchestral cues on the
album are those that don't relate to the pumped up action scenes. The
straight romantic cues, with an acoustic guitar and a reasonably
affectionate love theme, are an enjoyable listen. You unfortunately have
to sift through the awkward muck of elevated volume to get to cues like
"Guinevere Comes to Lancelot." Ironically,
A Knight's Tale is
still one of Burwell's somewhat larger attempts at writing an orchestral
theme of heroism, and one has to believe that a larger, better utilized
ensemble could have done great justice to the action cues as written for
the film. Most initial copies of the album had a sticker on the front of
the jewel case that referred to Burwell's score as "Heroic. Romantic.
The Rousing and Beautiful Score..." Well, don't let the marketing hounds
fool you. This is no
Legends of the Fall, nor was it meant to be.
The advertised centerpieces of Burwell's effort were the two "St. Vitus'
Dance" tracks, neither being very tolerable, and the second of which is
peppered with two minutes of hidden dialogue from the film (at the very
end of the album). As a companion album for the film, this product will
not work as well as the song album for the hoards of youth seeking the
material from Queen and ACDC, among others, that so blatantly stood out
in the film. For serious score fans, this album represents the evidence
of the buffoonery of modern studio flicks, aiming unintelligent fantasy
and romance stories at an eager teenage audience willing to suspend any
rational thought. Burwell has done significantly better in genres better
suited to his style of writing.
** @Amazon.com: CD or
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