: (Danny Elfman) The idea of boxing
robots has long bounced around the studio circuit, and in the age of
and their evolved special effects, it was only a
matter of time before Richard Matheson's 1956 concept (or an equivalent)
was translated into the standard formula sports movie. Veteran comedy
director Shawn Levy uses the science fiction genre in 2011's
franchise, most of them blindingly
transparent. A former boxer played by Hugh Jackman lives in a 2020 era
when real boxers have been replaced by robots and his own entries into
the ring have left him drowning in gambling debt. Attempting to deal
alone with his young son and turn around his finances, he stakes his
future on an old junkyard robot that, with some ingenuity and hard work,
becomes a sentimental favorite in the ring even if he isn't crowned
champion. The bond between father and son is repaired and finances are
saved, yielding the kind of tough, redemptive spirit that always
permeated the world of Rocky Balboa. A somewhat positive critical
response praised
in regards to exceeding low
expectations, and the film recouped its budget after a couple of weeks
in the theatres, immediately spurring talk of a sequel from DreamWorks.
Among the major assets of
is its original score by
Danny Elfman, for whom the inspirational sports genre had not been
explored prior. The composer's ventures into topics that bring
youngsters to the big screen have typically been influenced by some dose
of the tragedy prevalent in Elfman's career, even in a project like
. His uplifting scores are tinged with sadness in
most cases, and
finally allowed the composer to
develop a character-driven narrative that resolves itself with glorious,
redemptive, and surprisingly charming tones. Because of the science
fiction elements, he also reaches into his rich history in the fantasy
genre, touching upon aspects of his writing that are sure crowd
pleasers. The contemporary and technological angle seems well suited for
Elfman's late-1990's contemporary tones, beefed up with electric guitar
depth at times in his career but rarely as palatable as in the
supporting roles here.
Most importantly, at a time in film music when the robot
fight sequences in
Real Steel could have been treated to generic
rock band thrashing and synthesized library samples that might extend
over into the rest of the score, it's refreshing to hear Elfman's
organic take on the film, focusing appropriately on the people rather
than the machines. The ensemble is key to appreciating the personal
touch of Elfman's approach to
Real Steel. A standard Los Angeles
group is joined by electric guitars (including a bass guitar), rock band
drums, occasional bad-ass loops, angelic choir, and fleeting solo vocals
by the female singer Poe. Nearly all of these elements extend out of the
era in Elfman's career when he was blending contemporary appeal with his
melodramatic tones of the early 1990's. The aggressive guitars, drums,
and Poe's defiantly gritty voice all return from Elfman's relatively
unknown but satisfying score for
Anywhere But Here in 1999. The
merging of subtle bass enhancements, softer guitar, choir, and orchestra
are, meanwhile, a throwback to his equally obscure but lovely music for
The Family Man in 2000. Solemn sequences in
Real Steel
resurrect a feeling of Americana that dates back to
A Civil
Action, too, and Elfman's knack for elegant piano solos for
character interactions is well developed. A few bursts of action-genre
energy hail from the enthusiasm of
Men in Black, but without any
of the obnoxious associations. Despite the story's setting in Michigan,
Elfman handles the Americana element with a respectfully Southern-style
twang in a few of his guitar rhythms, developing into a tone very much
reminiscent of John Williams' opening to
The River by the middle
of "You Deserve Better." There are times in the score when the parochial
nature rambles in pleasantly tonal expressions of wholesomeness, as in
"On the Move." Conversely, there are also times when Elfman, with some
help from assistant composer T.J. Lindgren, reaches into the rich
history of Bill Conti's music for the
Rocky franchise and updates
it for a futuristic setting. In "Atom Versus Twin Cities," "Twin Cities'
Intro," "This is a Brawl," and "Into the Ring," Elfman and Lindgren
convey the harshest attitude, a necessary nod to the mechanical
muscularity that pounding percussion and rips of the guitars serve to
enhance.
Like Conti in his era, however, the reason these
pop-enhanced fight sequences are so much more competent than they could
have been in
Real Steel is because of a constant orchestral
presence. Behind the slapping and cool percussion in "Twin Cities'
Intro," for instance, is an interesting series of hyperactive string
figures, and in the other similar cues, the thematic brass material from
the less rocking cues is a contributor. This technique keeps the score
grounded in the characters who run the robots rather than the technology
itself, and some of the softer conversational cues invert the equation
by tempering the orchestral material with slight electric guitar
reminders. On top of all of that, no Elfman score in this genre would be
complete without some wholesale moments of choral awe, and he obliges
his listeners with a few passages of floor-rumbling choral crescendos in
"Meet Atom." Even beyond his intelligent application of instrumental
tones, Elfman succeeds in
Real Steel because of the score's
thematic integrity and the immensely powerful narrative flow of the
score's final two cues. In these regards, he follows the Jerry Goldsmith
playbook in emulating the strengths of classic sports-related scores
like
Hoosiers and
Rudy. The primary theme builds its
foundation upon a descending six-note series of ascending pairs, often
expressed in full by brass during the most triumphant moments in the
score. Heard prominently in "Charlie Trains Atom," this idea is the
feature attraction of Atom's underdog success. Elfman references the
pairs of notes within this theme frequently throughout the score,
sometimes vaguely on guitar or piano, constantly reminding the listener
of this identity without allowing it to become trite or oversaturating.
The use of pairs in this and the secondary progressions are constantly
reflective of the duality in the plot's various elements (two robots
fighting, man controlling robot, man and son, etc). The melodic material
for the characters is less clearly defined but explored in almost dreamy
fashion in roughly half of the tracks presented on the score's album. It
takes until "Parkway Motel" for the most coherent secondary idea to
truly reveal itself, Poe's vocal expressions of the idea a dead ringer
for the theme from
Anywhere But Here, and the piano's variations
of it in "You Deserve Better" and "Final Round" (at the start) are
nothing less than relaxingly fulfilling.
Elfman's utilization of tempo and full ensemble bravado
in
Real Steel's memorable duo of "Final Round" and "People's
Champion" is where the Goldsmith procedures of victorious expressions
come into play. Some listeners may also equate the sense of momentum in
these cues with Conti's often reprised
Rocky fight sequence and
victory material, though no matter from where the inspiration comes,
Elfman knocks the ball out of the park with his slowly accelerating
sequences of major-key thematic butt-kicking. Wild string ostinatos and
brass proclamations of the main theme become increasingly melodramatic
(joined eventually by even the choir) as the guitars and rock percussion
maintain the contemporary rhythms underneath. A couple of the sequences
in the lengthy "Final Round" could become sports arena staples much to
the same degree as Goldsmith's final game music from
Rudy,
displacing Conti's equivalent but dated
Rocky as well. The
conclusive crescendo of this ultimate feel-good tonality for all of the
combined elements in the score draws out the tempo of its progressions
in classic anticipatory fashion in "People's Champion" before ending the
score, quite literally, on a single piano note. That note, however,
sounds awfully like an intentional poke of fun at Steve Jablonsky's
Transformers scores, its deep resonance seemingly besting
everything Jablonsky has ever written for that franchise with one
classy, low octave jab. Overall, Elfman's score on album, despite a
preview of the triumphant main theme performances at the end of the
story in "Charlie Trains Atom" to open the product, make take some time
to generate excitement. In all of its corners, however, its balance of
character warmth and mechanical attitude is well achieved and begs for
an album longer than 42 minutes. The mix of all of the elements is
commendably accomplished, the guitars enjoying a slightly wet sound and
never overwhelming the orchestra. Some older listeners may be turned off
by the rock-like fight sequences, but when you consider the balls they
needed to be successful, as well as Elfman's constant orchestral
presence in their ranks, you have to appreciate how adeptly he handled
them. In the end,
Real Steel is a score with uniquely packaged
character, smart thematic loyalty, and one hell of a narrative
conclusion, and any other composer attempting to match its quality in a
possible sequel will face a potentially impossible challenge.
***** @Amazon.com: CD or
Download
| Bias Check: |
For Danny Elfman reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.16
(in 89 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.27
(in 153,897 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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