: (Jerry Goldsmith) By the late 1980's,
the concept of muscleman brute John Rambo was being replaced by
technology, but that didn't stop the Carolco studio from tempting the
reluctant hero back into one last battle against whatever forces were
disparaging the American way of life at that particular moment. The
targets of Rambo's mayhem in
were, once again,
Russians, but the location shifts from Vietnam to Afghanistan for the
end of the original trilogy of the series. By this point in Rambo's
journey, the script and its underlying story didn't really matter,
though in the process of providing a new backdrop for the killing, the
producers of
inadvertently utilized a political
alliance in the film that would seem horribly shortsighted just a decade
later. Not only does it seem awkward that Rambo would have attended a
Buddhist monastery in Thailand, as he does at the outset of the film,
but the fact that he would train and fight with the Mujaheddin of
Afghanistan against the Russians would eventually give
a more fascinating edge in a post-9/11 world. Outside of this now creepy
aspect of the film,
only existed in concept to show
audiences more of Sylvester Stallone annihilating his enemies in close
combat. Stallone earned $20 million and shot location scenes in Israel
for
, though, and even on a technical level, the film
was dragged down by terrible direction and under-achieving
cinematography. It would seem that Jerry Goldsmith didn't let any of
these trashy elements discourage him from providing yet another strong
action score for the franchise in his final entry. His scores for the
first two
-related pictures were acclaimed by fans of the
composer, serving the explosive nature of the franchise's lead character
well. Goldsmith had entertained listeners of
with several intelligent adaptations and maturations of themes
from the original film's score, keeping the established material fresh
while adding a few, somewhat underwhelming new themes and motifs. In
, the formula would be the opposite; the quality of the
new themes competes very favorably with the adaptations of the previous
material.
In no way does Goldsmith abandon the majority of his ideas
from the previous two scores, however. As Rambo contemplates his future
in a familiar solitude, Goldsmith employs the mournful "long road home"
theme from the first film in lengthy passages of tender solos over the
full ensemble in "Another Time" and "The Money." This theme is reprised
quite faithfully in
Rambo III, including one massively ballsy
action pronouncement of the idea in "The Game," though Goldsmith saves
the heartbreaking theme's best moment for the finale in "I'll Stay,"
where the reluctant hero bids farewell at the end of the trilogy with
one very rousing, full string-section rendition of it. The variant of
this theme used for the primary action performances isn't anywhere near
as well developed and manipulated here as it was in the second score,
though
Rambo III does have its fair share of ambitious action
cues. Instead of relying on the straight, tonal vigor of the theme to
propel those cues, Goldsmith maintains your interest with relentless
rhythms from a variety of orchestral and synthetic sources, mirroring
some of the low-piano and drum rhythms that would eventually highlight
Star Trek: Insurrection. Aggressive meters and additional piano
overlays are highlights of this scheme. The electronic accompaniment is
toned back in
Rambo III, never reaching the level of potentially
harsh irritation heard in the previous installment. The ethnic slant of
these synthetic aides would be visited once again by Goldsmith in
Star Trek: Insurrection as well. The five-note "sneaking" theme
used in the first two scores makes several notable appearances,
especially in the middle third of this score, and one of Goldsmith's
more creative moves is to incorporate the motif directly into the
underlying rhythm of the major action pieces. Another curious but
effective strategy by Goldsmith involves the employment of the first
four notes from Rambo's primary "long road home" theme at the outset of
both major new themes in the third score, essentially forcing the entire
film through the lead character's lens. The rising set of notes appears
at the start of the somewhat flat new action theme for
Rambo III,
as well as the primary idea for the setting of Afghanistan. The
technique provides an interesting connection between all of the ideas
involved in the franchise's maturation, and Goldsmith varies their
pacing and instrumentation to marginalize whatever overt familiarities
that may bother the listener.
Among the highlights of
Rambo III is Goldsmith's
treatment of the location in Afghanistan. While the setting of Thailand
is never really addressed outside of "Preparations," a
percussion-dominated cue that is easily the low point of the album,
Goldsmith provides a surprisingly warm representation for the
Mujaheddin. Because the film attempts to present the pre-Taliban
"freedom fighters" of Afghanistan as sympathetic, part of the film's
problem nowadays, there is a significant amount of accessible warmth
provided to them. Introduced in "Afghanistan" and developed in full
performances throughout the cues of tragedy that follow, ethnic
percussion (real and synthetic) lead the familiar four notes into an
engaging theme that suffices for the region despite relying a bit
heavily on progressions that may seem better suited for
The
Mummy. Special attention is required to "Then I'll Die," where
Goldsmith offers the idea with its most lovely harmony, synthetic bass
chords complimenting the melody more poignantly in this cue than
elsewhere in the score. This theme sometimes yields to a secondary
phrase that may qualify as another, separate theme for the location;
more whimsical and robust in its orchestral performances, this extension
of the idea in "Afghanistan" offers progressions related to Lee
Holdridge's equally emotional theme for
Old Gringo, especially in
woodwind employment. Later performances of these two themes would merge
the two phrases, with the secondary melody serving as an interlude. The
last cue, presenting the finale and rejected end credits suite, offers
all of the major ideas in succession, sending Rambo off with a reminder
of where he's been. One interesting note about
Rambo III is that
despite the presence of Russian villains in both sequel films, Goldsmith
only carries over fragments of his Russian theme from the second score
into the third. It is often identifiable in places such as "The Show
Down" (later edited into "Final Battle") because of its inherently slow
pacing and brass construct, despite rarely being stated with obvious
intent. Some of this material also influences passages in "The Game."
Another note of importance is the skill with which Goldsmith employs
counterpoint in
Rambo III. Even the hero's primary theme is
stated with a pause and rumble in nearly every performance, and the
widespread use of the four-note fragments at the opening of themes
assists in further blurring the lines between the concurrent thematic
statements.
Without good reason, the majority of Goldsmith's music
for
Rambo III was never actually used in the film. Significant
portions of
Rambo: First Blood Part II were placed in the final
mix instead, often with pacing problems and other difficulties inherent
in last minute, editing-room zeal. Granted,
Rambo: First Blood Part
II featured a wider selection of roaring action cues of superior
quality, but
Rambo III has its fair share of top-notch Goldsmith
material as well, especially when studied in retrospect. The composer
wrote outstanding end title suites for both films only to see them
replaced by obnoxious songs. Initially adding to the frustration of the
situation with Goldsmith's music for
Rambo III was its
presentation on commercial album. The Scotti Brothers release concurrent
with the film only featured seven cues of Goldsmith's work, favoring
several songs featured in the style first introduced at the end of
Rambo: First Blood Part II. In 1993, Intrada Records continued
their long-time association with Goldsmith by obtaining the rights to
the digital recording session masters for
Rambo III. Their
expanded album runs 76 minutes, nearly the entirety of the session
recordings (the only missing material involves the trimming of a few
relatively unimportant moments of minimalism, allowing Intrada to
advertise the product as being "complete"), and provides a cleaner
quality of sound compared to the original product. The performances by
the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra were vivacious to begin with, and
the 1993 Intrada album provided them with outstanding clarity. The
inclusion of the rejected cues on the expanded album is a major relief
for Goldsmith collectors, centering mostly around the remarkable "I'll
Stay" rejected credits. Intrada remastered the score further and
repackaged it with identical contents in 2005. They expanded the presentation slightly
in 2018, finally arranging the cues in film order and utilizing newly
discovered masters to offer superior sound compared to all previous
versions. Overall,
Rambo III is a solid finale to the franchise,
discounting Brian Tyler's rather tepid foray into a belated concept
continuation in 2008. The final Goldsmith entry doesn't feature the
strongest action material among his three, nor does the intelligence of
its adaptations quite equal
Rambo: First Blood Part II. But it
explores beautiful new territory in its major ethnic material, and the
use of electronics is as well balanced with the orchestra in
Rambo
III as it ever was in the trilogy. Expect a conceptually satisfying
conclusion to six years of great Goldsmith fun.
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- Music as Written for the Film: ****
- Music as Heard on the Scotti Brothers Album: **
- Music as Heard on the Intrada Albums: ****
- Overall: ****
| Bias Check: |
For Jerry Goldsmith reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.26
(in 124 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.29
(in 153,454 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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