, the team of writer/director Richard Curtis and
producer Duncan Kenworthy had proven their mastery of the British
romantic comedy. Following their success with
into nearly $250
million in worldwide grosses (the mass majority of which coming from
outside of America, where the film's charm didn't connect as well). It
was the kind of production nominated for ensemble cast awards, featuring
a screenplay that examines romance in contemporary times through several
love affairs and marriages that cross nearly every conceivable
socio-political boundary. Familiar names carry both the lead roles and
cameo appearances throughout the picture, led by crowd (and critic)
favorites Emma Thompson, Liam Neeson, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, and
Hugh Grant. So authentic are the depictions of each couple's struggles
and triumphs that
is a rare entry in the genre that
sidesteps the cheese factor almost entirely. The soundtrack for the film
was also well managed; like all of the Curtis films of this variety, an
intelligent combination of classic and contemporary rock songs were
licensed for prominent placement in mostly transitional scenes. Leading
these songs were the Pointer Sisters' "Jump" for an entertaining scene
with Grant and Dido's "Here With Me," a song for a moment of solitude on
the streets that was experiencing an explosion in popularity at the
time. Unlike the aforementioned Curtis films, though,
also gave a prominent role for an original score. Although
these films had included work from names as popular in London as Patrick
Doyle and Trevor Jones, the production turned to Glasgow's own Craig
Armstrong for this assignment. Given Armstrong's success in building
bridges between sensitive, intimate underscores and his extensive
experience as an arranger of accompaniment for pop songs, not to mention
the high that he was still enjoying from the monumental success of his
compositional and arrangement work for the phenomenal
Armstrong's score for
Love Actually, despite a
short overall running time, occupies some of the most poignant scenes in
the film, underlining both the incredible sorrow of some of the
storylines while offering jubilant, fully orchestral exuberance for
others. The twenty minutes of highlighted material that Armstrong
provides to
Love Actually was so effective, in fact, that its
three most engaging themes became a strong accompaniment to the rock
songs for the demographic of women most interested in the film and
soundtrack. Despite Universal's attempt in America to push the score for
major awards consideration, Armstrong was shut out of that season across
the board, likely due to his contribution's short running time and its
placement in the shadow of the songs. Still, for enthusiasts of the
composer's relatively sparse but fruitful output in the first ten years
of his film scoring career,
Love Actually is a lovable entry with
eight to ten minutes of music that belongs on any compilation of light
orchestral romance. Three of the major relationships receive consistent
thematic development, led by the Glasgow theme for the bittersweet,
doomed interaction between Knightley's character and her new husband's
best friend. This piano piece is pure Armstrong at his best,
devastatingly lovely in a tragic sense, using descending lines much like
the love theme for Christian and Satine in
Moulin Rouge. It's
also the best known track from the score, the only one to appear on all
of the commercial song compilations for
Love Actually. Joining it
is the Portuguese theme representing Colin Firth's funny interactions
with his Portuguese chambermaid, culminating in a full-ensemble, grand
expression in the restaurant proposal scene. The most surprising theme
in
Love Actually is the one of stately stature for Grant's Prime
Minister, reminiscent of the broadly realized excitement in a political
environment that Marc Shaiman so memorably wrote for
An American
President. Heard briefly in "Press Conference," this distinctly
British theme at the height of its orchestral bombast erupts for
extended treatment in the latter half of "Joanna Drives Off," summarized
in a slightly altered form as "PM's Love Theme" on the European song
compilation album. With the full statements of these themes occupying
roughly seven minutes of running time, the remainder of the score
generally reprises these ideas in less obvious incarnations.
The piano is, as usual for Armstrong, the heart and
soul of
Love Actually's score, though it is joined by acoustic
guitar and strings for appropriate depth (the composer performs most of
the solos on piano and guitar). The only notable brass and percussion
usage comes in the two renditions of the Prime Minister's theme. The
full twenty minutes is pleasant even in the most contemplative moments.
Armstrong enthusiasts didn't receive much satisfaction from the American
song compilation album for
Love Actually (only the "Glasgow Love
Theme" appeared on this product), but the European variation, targeted
at the greater mass of viewers of the film, rearranged the songs
considerably (adding and omitting some) and appended three Armstrong
score cues representing the seven minutes of the three major themes at
the end. These truly are the highlights of Armstrong's score, making the
European song and score combination album a recommended product for fans
of the film. For film score collectors, Universal offered the score's
twenty minutes on an official "for your consideration" promotional
pressing aimed at AMPAS members. The sound quality of the promo is
slightly muted compared to the cues presented on the song compilations,
but simple volume adjustment can solve most of this problem. On the
promo, the "Restaurant" track mirrors the "Portuguese Love Theme" from
the European song album, and the "Mark's Video" track likewise mirrors
"Glasgow Love Theme." As previously mentioned, there was some editing
involved in cutting "Joanna Drives Off" down to the version of "PM's
Love Theme" on the song album, and the promo really exists for listeners
who want the extra performances of this robust idea. The "Glasgow Love
Theme" also appeared on a short-printed Armstrong compilation in 2005
and a Ghent Film Festival compilation souvenir in 2007. The cue
"Restaurant Proposal" additionally appears on the latter. It's
surprising and disappointing that the highlight of the score, so clearly
the Prime Minister's theme in full performance, doesn't represent the
score on these compilations and the American song album, for it is truly
among the most satisfying single themes of 2003. For some collectors,
the score for
Love Actually will seem insignificant. It is,
indeed, a scant lightweight. But its impact on the enjoyable film is
more memorable than most others in this genre, earning Armstrong well
deserved recognition for working his original music so effectively into
environments otherwise dominated by songs. This is "warm and fuzzy" of
the best kind.
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- Music as Written for the Film: ****
- Music as Heard on the American Song Compilation: **
- Music as Heard on the European Song Compilation: ****
- Music as Heard on the Promotional Album: ****
- Overall: ****
| Bias Check: |
For Craig Armstrong reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.83
(in 12 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.41
(in 45,004 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
|
