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| Ottman |
Lake Placid: (John Ottman) There always has to be
some catchy technique used in today's mutant monster flicks in order to
seduce audiences into a predictable series of scares, and unfortunately,
Lake Placid didn't provide that distinctive element. It remains
among the worst films ever produced in its genre, shunned and ridiculed
by critics and audiences alike. Television writer and producer David E.
Kelley teamed with
Halloween H20 director Steve Miner to create
the ridiculous premise that a 30-foot Asian crocodile would take up
residence in a pristine New England lake and, upon eating a game warden,
a silly crew of four dumbasses would hunt down the beast to either kill
it or capture it. When the highlight of an entire mainstream motion
picture hinges on a scene in which a cow is dangled over the lake as
bait for the jumpy crocodile, you know you're in trouble. The whole
production was bland and generic, and that attitude carries over to John
Ottman's score. Given the troubles that Ottman had with his previous
Miner collaboration (with his score for
Halloween H20 largely
rejected), it's not surprising that
Lake Placid turned into
something of a production nightmare itself. Ottman's contract called for
the large orchestral score to be recorded specifically with a non-union
ensemble, saving costs. In Los Angeles, assembling such a group (of
mostly student performers) led to a significant backlash from forces
representing the musicians' unions, and Ottman and his crew were forced
to move the recording process to Seattle at the last minute. Ottman had
used musicians in Seattle for
Snow White: A Tale of Terror with
strong results, though the hassle that this deviation caused the process
is reflected in the score's quality. Not only does it not sound as well
rendered in mix as works like
Goodbye Lover and
Incognito,
but it lacks enthusiasm in its performance.
Almost everything about
Lake Placid is dull,
betraying the composer's usual knack for instrumental creativity. While
Ottman would be involved in several mediocre suspense and horror
projects in the following years,
Lake Placid doesn't even offer
the textual interest that many of those equally troubled projects
exhibit. In terms of instrumentation,
Lake Placid utilizes a
standard orchestral ensemble, emphasizing low brass during most action
sequences, as well as some rather uninteresting synthetic effects and a
acoustic guitar, harp, and piano for softer moments. While the guitar
had played a devilish role in previous Ottman scores, its place here is
relegated to generic character-building mush. Even the usually crisp
percussion section in Ottman's works is muted, making its most dynamic,
still-restrained contribution in "Main Title." That opening cue's
instrumentation, with a brief flourish for trumpet over guitar and
percussion, resembles Trevor Jones'
Arachnophobia in ways, but
without the charm. Thematically, Ottman was challenged with characters
that were "too cardboard to base the score on" (his words at the time)
and thus created an overarching theme for the lake and a few minor
motifs for subplots. The title theme, explored significantly in "Main
Titles" and thereafter in "Udder Preparations," "Scouting," and "The
Lake Hitching a Ride," is a four-note melody that is far too optimistic
in its rising structure to be an effective horror film mood-setter.
Besides, does this film have any heroes we don't really want to see
eaten? A slight theme for the Hector character and a barely-registering
love theme for the two leads exist on the guitar and piano. Most
disappointingly, the crocodile really doesn't enjoy any dominant motif
for its activities, so Ottman has little opportunity to foreshadow its
strikes or maintain a consistent thread of suspense (nor does it
musically relish in its tasty victories).
As usual, Ottman does try to add little perks to the
score, giving it a bit of personality beyond the typical horror score. A
quick reference to John Williams'
Jaws theme arises in the
"Swimming with Croc" cue, and there's a very brief synthetic choral
effect near the resolution. To Ottman's credit, the score does create an
ambience suitable for the misty lake experience, mostly in the wavering
movements of the woodwind section. The "Udder Preparations" cue (perhaps
the highlight of the score as well) has a touch of Jerry Goldsmith in
its somewhat campy rhythmic action, complete with electric bass,
rambling guitar, and impressive brass layers. On the whole, the tone of
the score for
Lake Placid seems somewhat inappropriate. In far
too many situations, the performance has the airy, whimsical sound of
Ottman's "Fantasy Island" work, with even the stabbing percussive blasts
of horror retaining some tongue-in-cheek attitude. At no time does
Ottman generate the resounding orchestral force that highlights his
better ventures in the genre. Maybe this lack of truly horrifying
gravity is due to the fact that everyone involved with the picture knew
it was going to bad (and thus, the paycheck philosophy took over), and
Ottman may have been simply trying to have some fun with it. The lack of
a strong motif for the crocodile and supporting characters, however,
causes the music to wash out in the end. One of the positive results of
recording the score in Seattle instead of Los Angeles is the fact that
the non-union performances allowed for a longer album release from
Varèse Sarabande. But be careful what you wish for;
Lake
Placid may have been a more sustainable listening experience at 30
minutes. It remains among Ottman's least inspiring scores, and even the
composer humorously mentioned, "...and I financially lost my shirt on
the score." He and his fans should definitely forget this one and move
on.
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| Bias Check: |
For John Ottman reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.17
(in 35 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.05
(in 21,438 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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The insert includes a short note from the director of the film, but does not contain
the usual commentary that Ottman usually supplies to the albums of his works.
