: (Jerry Goldsmith) The career of Frank
Schaffner began to unwind in the late 1970's, with several disappointing
feature films following a series of powerful depictions of serious
topics in the late 1960's and early 70's. Not long before his death in
1989, the director made
, a loose retelling of a true,
12th Century story of a group of children who decided to join King
Richard in the Crusades and elude slave traders on their journey to the
Holy Land. In real life, they were almost all captured and entered
slavery anyway, though
glosses over many of the
troubles inherent to their historical hardships and shifts the tale into
the realm of romantic fantasy. Schaffner's tactic didn't work, however,
and the film disappeared almost immediately from theaters before a
short-lived run on cable a few years later. The production is only
remembered by enthusiasts of the director and those of composer Jerry
Goldsmith. The two had collaborated on several classic films over the
course of Schaffner's career, yielding a handful of Academy Award
nominations for Goldsmith as a result of the partnership. After several
years working independently, the two teamed up one last time for
, leading to one of Goldsmith's longest scores (of 90
minutes) to that point in his career. The composer very much enjoyed
working with Schaffner because of the director's immense musical
knowledge; the communication between the two was as fluid as that
between Goldsmith and Joe Dante, and the results were arguably even
better. At a time when Goldsmith's career was flying high and Oscar
nominations were a regular occurrence,
represented an
assignment delivered upon out of friendship rather than delusions of
grandeur, and like the obscure film
from the previous year,
the plethora of Goldsmith loyalists are largely responsible for any
remembrance of
whatsoever. In this case, it doesn't
hurt that the composer wrote one of the most ambitious action scores of
his career, a daunting orchestral juggernaut complete with Wagnerian
motifs and some of the boldest tones that Goldsmith ever recorded. Many
of Goldsmith's most appreciated action powerhouses of the 1990's owe
their stylistic development to
(not surprisingly), and the work stands as a defining
achievement despite its obscurity.
It is precisely the sound of
Lionheart that
Goldsmith was attempting to emulate during the period of his career in
the 1990's when so many of his works sounded like the composer was on
auto-pilot. After all, once you've nailed the action/adventure genre
with broad, muscular music of intense satisfaction, then why try to
reinvent that sound? More importantly,
Lionheart stands as a
bridge between the electronic and symphonic styles of Goldsmith's early
1980's tendencies and the truly matured, vibrant blend that he would
achieve with
Total Recall and subsequent successes in the genre.
The electronics in this score, derivative of the rather harsh,
faux-brass tones heard in
Under Fire and
Baby: Secret of the
Lost Legend, take a purely background role compared to the strong
emphasis on brass in the orchestral ensemble. Only in a few of the
Paris-related cues (of almost filler character) does Goldsmith allow the
synthetics to carry the melody for an extended period of time. Not only
does
Lionheart contain a multitude of easily identifiable themes,
but each one is above average for the composer. The primary theme is for
the boy leading the children on their journey; his anthem has the
characteristics of a mature hymn above an often accelerated and heroic
rhythm that reminds of both the composer's Western scores of a previous
generation and a major-key regurgitation of the relentless pulsations in
Capricorn One. A secondary phrase in this theme, extended out to
full performances in the memorable "King Richard," is redemptive in its
shifting to lofty string shades, mingling with the love theme for
Lionheart. This sensitively alluring idea, heard most prominently
in "Robert and Blanche," retains the epic quality and optimistic
nobility of the title theme while still offering a lush alternative to
the larger than life identity of the score as a whole. The third major
theme exists for Gabriel Byrne's villain in
Lionheart, a dark
prince who pursues the children for the purposes of selling them as
slaves. Explored in its full form in "Children in Bondage," this
intriguing idea is placed over a militaristic rhythmic procession that
suggests the inevitable brutality of the period. Its rigid structure,
slightly disembodied character, and melodic progressions remind
significantly of John Barry's stoic military music for films like
The
Last Valley and
The Lion in Winter. It could be argued,
additionally, that the swaying romanticism and repetition of phrases in
the other themes of
Lionheart were informed in part by the wild
success of Barry's expansive tones of the era, too.
In addition to the three major themes of
Lionheart, Goldsmith relies upon a three note figure that ties
many of the cues of the score together with its highly flexible
structure. Heard immediately in "The Ceremony," this three-note motif is
eventually revealed to be the opening stanza of the primary theme for
the film. Its usage not only allows for extremely creative
implementation by various players throughout the score, thus serving as
the glue that holds
Lionheart together as such a consistent work,
but it invariably connects this score to the highly related
First
Knight. Perhaps most impressive about
Lionheart is that the
score has no weak element, no single obnoxious cue in its original 80
minutes on album. Even the less engaging moments in the work maintain
the thematic and instrumental level of mastery conveyed best in the
stunning "King Richard," easily among the best eight minutes of
Goldsmith's career. Prominent chimes and xylophone in this cue are
comfortable elements of Goldsmith's style. A generous role for snare and
timpani will appeal to enthusiasts of martial tones while the whimsical
sound of Goldsmith's highest violin themes brings in the opposite end of
the spectrum. Intelligent counterpoint in the form of the three-note
motif (over all three main themes but especially the title identity)
will satisfy those seeking depth. A digital recording allows
Lionheart to be as dynamic in its soundscape as any Goldsmith
score until his reverb-happy period of the late 90's. The score was an
object of much attention from Varèse Sarabande at the time of the
film's debut. The label released two concurrent CDs in 1987 to coincide
with their LP record issues of the score. Nearly the entire score (over
82 minutes of it) was released over two separate products that were
simultaneously released as "Volume 1" and "Volume 2" (likely to
accommodate LP running times). The bulk of important material was
included on the first volume, but the second one, despite containing
some filler material, features its own unique highlights in the form of
variations on the three main themes. A third CD, released in 1994 and
titled "The Epic Symphonic Score," took the entire first volume and
added half of the second, omitting much of the Paris-related material
(indeed this score's least interesting) and bringing the combined
running time up to 62 minutes. Despite reissues of the first two albums
from Varèse's European distributor, Colosseum, from 1992 to 1994,
all three volumes are out of print and in demand. While some have sold
for over $50 a piece, expect to spend $30 per in auctions. Unreleased
recently,
Lionheart deserves limited, deluxe, 2-CD treatment
despite the film's failure. It defines the overused term "hidden gem."
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- 1987 Varèse Sarabande Volume 1: *****
- 1987 Varèse Sarabande Volume 2: ****
- 1994 Varèse Sarabande Combination Album: *****
- Overall: *****
| Bias Check: |
For Jerry Goldsmith reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.29
(in 113 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.31
(in 144,215 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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