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| Jones |
The Mighty: (Trevor Jones) Who would have thought
that anybody could combine concepts from
Simon Birch and
Mad
Max: Beyond Thunderdome into a successful and inspirational
children's film? The idea of pairing two misfits of opposite types as a
working whole is not new, but author Rodman Philbrick seemingly took a
page from the character Master-Blaster in
Mad Max: Beyond
Thunderdome and created "Freak, the Mighty," a story about two kids,
one lumbering gentle giant and one physically disabled genius, and
literally paired the brain on top of the brawns to survive the
environment of modern day Cincinnati. The film is a highly praised and
extremely well-acted depiction of what any outcast can accomplish given
the right friends, a stirring imagination, and a mind closed to
prejudices. The imagination in
The Mighty comes in the form of
the book of Arthurian legend that brings the two boys together, causing
them to conquer bullies and other social problems with the confidence of
a knight saving a maiden from a dragon. The film performed reasonably
well due to its extraordinary positive reputation and decent reviews,
and Trevor Jones' music for the production earned and maintained the
respect of many film score collectors in the following decade. Jones was
arguably achieving the height of his mainstream success in 1998,
receiving several high profile scoring assignments through 2001 that
continued to impress listeners. The year of 1998 in particular saw
immense creativity on a large scale for Jones, and while
Dark
City and the television production of
Merlin receive most of
the attention,
The Mighty is easily the most diverse and creative
effort of the year for the composer. His ability to weave multiple
genres of music into one cohesive score is extremely impressive, and
The Mighty is all over the map when it comes to eclectic,
genre-bending style. He takes inspiration from traditional orchestral
action, bluegrass rhythms, and Celtic instrumentation, among others, and
somehow manages to form them into solid and prideful personality that
translates into a very rewarding listening experience.
Jones opens the score with a bubbly title theme in
"Past Times" that eventually receives significant treatment as the duo
at the heart of the film achieve their personal victories. This theme
immediately establishes the bluegrass elements of the score, setting a
rolling rhythm for acoustic guitar, the flute-like EWI, and varied pop
percussion and keyboarding. The theme is carried by a relaxed, but crisp
harmonica, a remarkably gorgeous role for an otherwise stereotyped
instrument. A jig-like interlude for the EWI and slapping percussion
immediately provides the Celtic influence that foreshadows the Arthurian
aspect of the story. Jones also conjures a motif of danger for
The
Mighty that he introduces in this opening cue as well. Fans of James
Horner will recognize the two-note motif at 2:10 into "Past Times" as a
cousin to one heard in
Braveheart and
Titanic. This track
rolls on for a generous four minutes of Jones' easy-going presentation
of themes, but the following three cues are easily skipped. Synthetic
meandering with barely any notable development inhabits these
character-building cues. Jones' prowess with orchestral action takes
flight in "Danger by the Lake," in which the two boys' encounter with
the local bullies leads to the imaginative partnership. Jones pulls
turbulent rhythms from
Dark City and the dragon sequences from
Merlin for this cue, though its suspenseful restraint for most of
its length is a better match for the later
Thirteen Days. The
two-note danger motif (actually repeated to make a 4-note statement
every time) makes a bold appearance at 2:45 into this cue. After the
hip, urban styling of "City Walkers," a definite confidence-building
cue, the lengthy "The Mighty Quest" cue offers only some magical choral
moments in its last two minutes. The score really takes flight in its
last three tracks on album, forming fifteen minutes of remarkable power
and charm all in one. Between the last minute of "The Mighty Quest" and
"Free to Fly" is the power of the London Symphony Orchestra at its most
ambitious form, combined with a few compelling solo and ensemble vocals.
Parts of these vocals will remind of Jones' little-known
Hideaway.
The "My Noble Knight" cue is a beautiful and lengthy
exploration of the title theme, with new age and orchestral elements
replacing the bluegrass ones. Boy soprano Chris Baron performs a lovely
duet with electric violin; the style of the synthetic backing to this
cue lends credibility to the dreamy imaginative state that prevails in
the boys' imagination. The choral performances in Latin extend at the
4:50 mark to include a small ensemble led by Miriam Stockley's distinct
voice. Her performances here mirror those heard in her "Adiemus" albums
rather than those in Patrick Doyle's
Great Expectations earlier
in 1998. The track reverses order at its conclusion, reprising the roles
of the electric violin and boy soprano. In "Free to Fly," Jones merges
all of his elements, coalescing the ensemble from "Past Times" and this
time combining it with the victorious performances of the LSO. As the
harmonica hands the theme over to the strings, Jones utilizes bold and
bombastic brass counterpoint. It's not often that you hear the LSO
perform material like this over a bed of acoustic guitar and bluegrass
percussion, and the results are mesmerizing. The last minute of the cue
is a time warp back to the days of
Excalibur and
Dark
Crystal as the Arthurian aspect of the plot receives its own
orchestral climax. The final score cue, "Future Times" is even heavier
on the synthetic elements, providing the title theme over a heavier
Irish jig rhythm for electric guitar. The EWI and harmonica continue
their roles as the score concludes with striking confidence. Overall,
the ten score cues in
The Mighty take a while to get rolling
after the opening summary of themes, but the cool, leisurely pace of the
score and its remarkable instrumental and choral tones make it an easy
recommendation for listeners in search of something they haven't heard
before. The score is flanked on the out-of-print Pangaea Records album
by the mellow Sting song for the film that earned a Golden Globe
nomination. The song uses insufferable layering of the vocals, but does
give co-compositional credit to Jones for some of his jig material in
the underlying rhythm. The other songs at the end of the album are
decent, but not related in style to the rest of the product. A promo
pressed by Miramax at the time contains an extra 15 minutes of Jones
music in the middle of the score. Fans of the composer should not
hesitate to investigate either album release.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
Download
| Bias Check: |
For Trevor Jones reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.78
(in 18 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.44
(in 26,058 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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The commercial album's insert contains extensive credits, but no extra
information about the score or film. The promo's insert is sparse.
