: (John Williams) Of the two
Dalai Lama-related films released in the latter half of 1997,
. It's entirely possible that the only reason Jean-Jacques
Annaud's film was green-lighted was due to Brad Pitt's portrayal of
Heinrich Harrer in the lead. While the journey to self-discovery and
redemption was the fascinating focus of the middle portion of
, the film suffered from an attempt to address the
entire modern history of the Tibetan fight for survival against
Communist China rather than concentrating on the more interesting
relationship between the 11-year-old Dalai Lama and Harrer, a former
Nazi trapped in the British-controlled Himalayas at the start of World
War II before escaping to Tibet. While the personal relationships in
are explored with extreme respect and attention to detail,
the friendship between Harrer and the Dalai Lama in
are glossed over with the same bleached look of Pitt's hair.
And thus, the film was artistically damaged despite wider mainstream
appeal. The same problem exists with John Williams' score for
, too, and one of the most interesting aspects of the
maestro's approach to this project was his inability or unwillingness to
travel down a musical route closer to Philip Glass' Oscar-nominated path
with
. Williams' score is very light on the authentic
Tibetan elements, servicing the film with an extremely Western-centered
and lushly romantic theme. There is significant dramatic weight built
into the score, and the melancholy nature with which Williams addresses
the wandering soul of Pitt's Harrer leads to a bittersweet atmosphere
that only resolves with a mushy ending when required to do so for the
character's ultimate redemption. As a listening experience, there is no
doubt that
. But Williams' attempts to insert a
token reference to the Tibetan culture in his music only distract from
the majestic appeal that the remainder of the score utilizes to
symbolize the larger journey.
The ensemble for Williams would consist of a
brilliantly recorded orchestra (recorded in 24-bit sound, as the album
advertises) and the solo cello perfomances of Yo-Yo Ma, who would become
a friend and future collaborator again with Williams. Ma's involvement
with the production makes an interesting political statement given the
subject matter of the film, though it's possible that the perfomer's
heritage was only coincidental. For a couple of source-like cues,
Williams inserts performances by the Gyuto Monks; these standalone
portions would not mingle with the surrounding score as Glass had chosen
to do with
Kundun. Ma's performances in
Seven Years in
Tibet don't approach the powerful resonance of Itzhak Perlman's
memorable violin contributions to
Schindler's List, though they
are elegant enough to merit crossover classical interest. Williams wrote
one primary theme for
Seven Years in Tibet, and this idea
dominates the work. Additionally, however, he provides an equally
emotional and weighty interlude to this theme that stands well on its
own, as well as a minor motif for the Buddhist religion and its leader.
The overarching theme is one of expansive beauty, made even more
gorgeous by Williams' technique of layering strings and backing their
performances with harmonious brass counterpoint. The full-scale tragedy
of this glorious theme shares significant traits with his later title
theme for
A.I. Artificial Intelligence, especially in the theme's
later progressions, though the gravity that this theme carries with its
performances would rarely be heard from Williams outside of here,
A.I. Artificial Intelligence, and the love theme for
Star
Wars: Attack of the Clones. A slight hesitation in the theme,
provided perhaps for mystery or perhaps the uncertainty of personal
journey, raises memories of the fantasy elements in
E.T. The
Extra-Terrestrial. This theme's monumental performances are heard
four times in full on the album, in the two concert suite arrangements
as well as "Leaving Ingrid" and "Approaching the Summit." These lovely
ensemble renditions are often countered by both Ma's solos and delicate
piano solos that also are reminiscent of several dramatic Williams
works.
The secondary portion of this main theme is almost as
intoxicating, introduced in the second minute of the opening suite
presentation. This theme has passing similarities to the "Rememberances"
theme from
Schindler's List and is better suited to the style of
Ma's performances. The third theme in the score is less utilized that
hoped, though that's understandable given the film's wandering focus.
Representing the Dalai Lama and his religion is this understated string
theme, first heard at 3:45 into the opening suite, and while this theme
would use some of the same, attractive performance techniques and
percussion as
Memoirs of a Geisha, its realization would be
limited to two cues in the central portion of the score (and mainly in
"Heinrich's Odyssey"). There are other parts of
Seven Years in
Tibet that will recall fond memories of other Williams' works. The
brass flourish (and dry cymbal hits) used as the closing crescendo for
the primary theme's concert performances is a page from
The Towering
Inferno. The rhythmic action in "Peter's Rescue" during the
avalanche scene pulls from
The Lost World: Jurassic Park, but of
course without the percussion mix. The quiet reverence for the subject
in the conversational and self-discovery cues are the score's weakest
parts, mirroring the somewhat underplayed presence that would constitute
the dull and ineffective parts of
Amistad. Whimsical string
performances in "Regaining a Son" are a singular moment of pure optimism
in the score, despite a whirling reminder of the title theme that
maintains an atmosphere most similar to Williams'
Harry Potter
scores. And thus, while superficial resemblences to the dramatic weight
of
Schindler's List exist throughout
Seven Years in Tibet,
the latter score serves more as a reference point for future Williams
scores rather than exploring old ideas. The trailers for
Seven Years
in Tibet very effectively used Randy Edelman's
Dragonheart,
and there was much speculation at the time about whether or not Williams
could surpass the majesty that Edelman's music provided for the
trailers. Williams would be nominated for a Golden Globe for
Seven
Years in Tibet, and although the Academy would favor
Amistad
that year,
Seven Years in Tibet remains more rewarding on
album.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
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