: (John Williams) Due to the politics and
economics of the era, there was a flurry of films in the early 1980's
that dealt with dramatic representations of the hardship of the American
farmer. Largely because
arrived last in this series in
1984, audiences weren't particularly sympathetic to it. The quality of
the film, despite poor critical response, is quite decent, setting aside
the awkwardness of Sissy Spacek and Mel Gibson as the leading couple
fighting to save their farm from both a regularly flooding river and a
hydroelectric developer played brilliantly by Scott Glenn. Director Mark
Rydell once again turns his attention on the mundane but important
aspects of rural America in
, tackling the subject of
farming from both the perspectives of money and natural disaster.
Gibson, while not known widely at the time, has always remained the weak
link in an otherwise precise depiction of contemporary Tennessee
lifestyles, his Appalachian accent never convincing. Helping counter his
miscasting is composer John Williams, who was once again inspired by
Rydell to convey a convincing sense of Americana that few modern
composers could accomplish. Williams' work for Rydell had included
several portraits of America prior to the composer's space opera
revolution, including
obviously exists in a different generation and
addresses more realistic, everyday subject matter for many audiences,
Williams does not miss the chance to emphasize the farmland along with
the people. The success of
as a score is owed to
Williams' ability to capture the pastoral elements of the landscape and
a simple lifestyle in both the broader scope of expansive melodrama that
listeners have come to expect from him and, more importantly, in the
more confined atmosphere of personal, heartfelt struggles. Throughout
the picture, Williams' score offsets the film's muted colors and ominous
storm clouds with a surprisingly upbeat spirit of perseverance and
respect for the land. It is as organic in texture as the composer has
perhaps ever been, and the maestro supplies an abundance of themes to
express this emotional range.
The music for
The River does occasionally reach
for the sense of majesty that was common in the composer's scores of
the early 1980's, but for listeners weary of Williams' fantasy and
adventure sound of this period,
The River has always been an
anomaly worthy of repeat appreciation. The Academy agreed, nominating
this score along with Williams' other, totally disparate work of the
year,
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. In many ways,
The
River has more of a unique impact on its film than its better-known
companion from that year. One of the small wonders regarding
The
River is the fact that Williams created four distinct themes for the
picture and managed to develop each one with remarkable precision
throughout his relatively short score. Listeners often get sidetracked
by Williams memorable instrumentation for the recording, including
notable contributions by trumpet, flute, contemporary percussion, and,
most importantly, acoustic guitar. But the underlying themes in
The
River allow the remarkable solo performances to appeal to the heart
of the listener better than the ensemble could have done with otherwise
mechanical structures. The album arrangement of "The River" conveniently
conveys all four of these ideas in direct succession. The first theme is
one of jubilation and hope, opening the first twenty seconds of that
opening cue and occupying greater time in the first minute of "From Farm
to Factory." This idea is very reminiscent in spirit and performance of
the perky adventure theme from
Jaws. Most prominent in the score
is the next theme heard in "The River," Williams' primary representation
of wholesome living and determination to make it work in tough
circumstances. It is this undeniably charming theme, usually performed
with piano and guitar underneath the ensemble, that extends to "The Pony
Ride" (where it receives some noteworthy embellishment in the form of a
complimentary country-inspired motif), "Back From Town," and "A Family
Meeting." Third in the cue "The River," at 2:15 is the score's love
theme, tenderly representing the primary couple's moments of bonding in
the story. Solo trumpet in low ranges gives this theme a comfortable
throwback personality, expanded considerably by Williams in "Love Theme
From the River" and reprised with trepidation in "From Farm to Factory,"
briefly in "A Family Meeting," and in fragments in "Young Friends
Farewell."
Most elusive in the score for
The River is the
theme for the land, usually performed by solo flute and appearing first
at 3:30 into "The River." Soaring to great heights in "The Ancestral
Home," a cue reminiscent of
The Towering Inferno and closest to
the composer's dramatic writing of the decade, this theme is frequently
heard thereafter, including "Rain Clouds Gather," "Back From Town," and
"A Family Meeting." Secondary motifs for the children of the lead couple
are consolidated into the album's "Growing Up." Together, these elements
create an extremely effective work, "A Family Meeting" rotating through
all of the themes so effortlessly that Williams achieves remarkable
cohesion. While the drum kit-style of percussion and electric
keyboarding in a minority of
The River will date the score too
badly for some listeners, the three notable acoustic soloists will save
the score for others. The extended guitar work in "Growing Up" and "The
Pony Ride" is extremely easy on the ears, seemingly informing James
Horner's style of incorporating the instrument into a whimsical but warm
environment for
The Spitfire Grill a decade later. There is at
least five minutes of Williams' many different dramatic styles each to
be heard in the various parts of
The River, giving any collector
of his music guaranteed highlights. Only the harrowing scene of "The
Tractor" receives minimalistic, troubled material of suspenseful
dissonance to break up the album's presentation. Williams' distinct LP
arrangement was released on CD by Varèse Sarabande in 1991, fell
out of print, and became extremely difficult to find, demanding
surprisingly unrealistic prices over $100. It took until 2020 before
Intrada Records finally pressed the film version of the score, which
actually runs shorter than Williams' separate album recordings as a
presentation. There was extensive mingling of material for the album,
and while it's great to hear the full extent of recorded music for
The River, it's not an essential improvement in longer form,
especially with only marginally improved sound quality. The highlights
of the Intrada album may be the three alternate tracks, including the
fascinatingly contemporary take on "Leaving Home" that made the film.
Despite being recorded separately, the differences between film and
album arrangements are mostly minimal. In the end,
The River
remains a lovely and highly effective soft spot in Williams' career, and
either album presentation will offer the best music from the score.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
Download
| Bias Check: |
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(in 91 reviews)
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