: (Jerry Goldsmith) Films with
political messages about the destruction of the Amazon rain forests were
plentiful in the 1990's, both in live action and animation, and John
McTiernan's
is one of the more tedious and
transparent entries. Blasted by critics, the early 1992 film proposed
that Sean Connery, an ornery Scottish scientist, has found the cure for
cancer in the forest, but the ingredients are quickly being destroyed by
the fires and bulldozers of encroaching agriculture. When Lorraine
Bracco shows up from the company that is financing him to examine his
progress, the two inevitably join forces to develop the cure in time
and, while they lose the larger battle for humanity, they at least can
take solace in each other. For yet another film that didn't live up to
the quality of his contribution, composer Jerry Goldsmith produced a
forgotten gem of a score for
that managed to survive
the horrific box office failure of the film. Goldsmith's large-scale and
popular score for the film sold well and was played widely at public
events, the composer himself very pleased with the end result. Its
generous performances of ethnic and orchestral creativity show the
obvious labor with which Goldsmith toiled to write this score, a
considerable show of dedication to detail that would be lacking in his
scores a decade later. In 1992, Goldsmith was still at the height of his
true mastery of electronic and orchestral melding, and
takes both of these elements and combines them with a diverse
percussion section (itself partially synthetic, of course) to recreate
the exotic, foreign, and romantic atmosphere of the rain forests. The
director specifically sought a sound that listeners hadn't readily
heard, resulting in Goldsmith striving for enhanced roles for the
synthesizers and Latin tones. Ultimately, the only redeeming part of
McTiernan's film is indeed the Goldsmith score, which simply dominates
several scenes during its running time even though the director edited
the music more than Goldsmith would prefer.
The greatest asset of the music for
Medicine Man is
that it never ceases in its creativity. That style therefore maintains a
strong sense of character and personality that is largely unique in
Goldsmith's career. It's silly and playful without resorting to dumb
banality, and it's menacing in its action without completely losing the
style of the work's lighter moments. And, most importantly, it uses
Goldsmith's library of sound effects to expertly imitate the sounds of
the forest, a prerequisite for a score such as this. The extensive synth
array was orchestrated directly into the score alongside the organic
lines, and Goldsmith insisted that these and the adjoining Latin accents
be accentuated in post-production. The score rotates evenly between its
three main themes that clearly represent the forest, the romance, and
the impending doom and other threats in general.
Medicine Man
opens with a Southern Caribbean-flavored calypso piece as the lead
female character journeys into the heart of the forest. It is perhaps
the best scene of the film, if only for the perfect match of scenery
with Goldsmith's bubbly forest theme. This title track conveys all the
high adventure that the film suggests at its outset, and although "Rae's
Arrival" ends on a substantially lower emotional note, Goldsmith never
loses the child-like enthusiasm in his rhythms. The first half of the
score maintains three or four lengthy cues of this dancing, percussive
material, light with the orchestra and electronically cute. With flighty
spirit, easy acoustic guitar and marimba performances, and the mass
plucking of the string section of the orchestra, the fast-paced native
rhythms often yield to the more tender cues of the romance theme. The
use of a synthetic pan pipe effect to puff away at the theme and provide
colorful accents in the background will raise memories of
Under
Fire. Rhythmic percussion is highly varied and includes shakers,
woodblocks, conga, tom-toms, and bamboo brushes. Goldsmith perfects a
light electronic accompaniment that mimics the droplets of rain as heard
in a natural setting, and his ability to set the pitch of these effects
to match the other performers is among the score's most notable
attractions.
The second theme of importance in
Medicine Man
is the horrific, harshly electronic beating of the synthetic keyboard
and drum pads that signifies the inevitable fiery end of the rain forest
in what serves as a creative, dark mutation of the "Mountain High" cue
for the native elders' wisdom. It's equally effective in the film though
less listenable on album due to the resounding power of bass thumps that
sound like the basketball-dribbling effect from
Hoosiers in its
deepest and most powerful incarnation. Goldsmith interestingly termed
these deep synth thuds with the label "Blade Runner" on his score
sheets. In "Mocara" and "The Fire," the French horn theme of threat over
this ominous rhythm is provided with outstanding counterpoint,
especially in the latter cue at the climactic confrontation. The
conflicts between the two primary characters, out of their element and
among the natives, is often punctuated by these reverberating electronic
thumps and a faint and dissonant electronic rhythm as well. When
performed by the same instruments as the cues focused on the natives and
forest, Goldsmith succeeds in juxtaposing a more identifiable city life
with the sounds of the unknown. A distinctly synthetic edge is provided
to both the start of the performances of the doom theme and moments like
"Without a Net," which extends the sound into a more general purpose of
panic. For many film score collectors, however, the highlight of
Medicine Man is the National Philharmonic Orchestra's performance
of the sweeping romance theme of the film. Heard first in "Campbell and
the Children" and swelling to remarkable heights in "The Trees," this
idea covers both the love interest between the two leads and the
romanticism inherent in the forest. Although the orchestra is typically
secondary to the tropical electronics, the dominant string performances
of this elegant "theme of awe" are those which appear in re-recordings
and most re-use situations involving this score. With one of Goldsmith's
finest fully orchestral themes of majesty, again recalling the high
string theme of
Under Fire, "The Trees" conveys the overwhelming
beauty of life from great heights. There are distinct similarities in
structure between the rendering of the idea here and John Barry's
dominant style of scoring vistas in the 1980's, though Goldsmith's take
on the same general idea is far more refreshing.
Aside from these three themes, there's not much filler
material in
Medicine Man, the love theme diminished well in
places and the identity of threat turning organic for the human element
in "Unforgiven." In the end, the score for
Medicine Man offers
the best of two worlds, with extended performances of that sweeping
theme and nearly fifteen minutes of Goldsmith's bubbly guitars and
synthesizers at their most inspired. There are parts of this score that
will instantly cheer you up, or maybe even get you out of your seat to
shake your fanny. So happy-go-lucky are the folksy calypso parts of this
score that edits of
Medicine Man have been used on the decks of
cruise ships in the Caribbean Sea when their live players are off duty.
The only detractions from the album are the occasionally overbearing
synthetic thuds of the threat theme, but even these cues offer a bold
Goldsmith brass motif that remains superior to much of what the composer
provided to generic action films later in the decade. The texture of the
instrumentation, both synthetic and organic, keep filler cues like
"What's Wrong" and "The Injection" from becoming tedious, begging for
appreciation at high volume. For the most part, the recording presents
these elements in an understandably wet sound, with the exception of the
acoustic guitar, which is mixed up front as Goldsmith desired. The
original, 50-minute presentation from Varèse Sarabande in 1992
generously provided the score's highlights, but the label expanded that
presentation to 63 minutes in a limited 2025 product that also appends a
different mix of "Rae's Arrival" that adds the bass thuds to the latter
portion of the cue. The additional cues help round out the themes and
are much welcomed, the enthusiasm of the opening cue reprised in
"Progress Reports" while "Night Clothes" playfully toys with the nascent
love theme amongst the jungle tones. Quiet string redemption in "I Lost
It" joins the more poignant "Unforgiven" for the score's relatively
brief somber side, which earns a coda with extended threat theme
treatment during the stunned "Devastation/New Equipment." That theme is
translated fully to the jungle elements for comedic effect in the
delightful "Something's Up/She's in Love," eventually yielding to the
love theme on flute. Overall, on either album,
Medicine Man is a
score that should occupy a spot in your collection, and if you consider
yourself a fan of Goldsmith's creative 1980's and early-1990's works,
then it is very highly recommended.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
Download
| Bias Check: |
For Jerry Goldsmith reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.18
(in 150 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.19
(in 159,592 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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