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Review of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (Rachel Portman)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... if you have no qualms about the immense amount of
redundancy in Rachel Portman's career work for similar dramatic
assignments of a warm, cuddly nature.
Avoid it... if you expect to hear either anything new from Portman or, unfortunately, any of the thematic or vocal elements from Cliff Eidelman's score for the first film in the franchise.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2: (Rachel
Portman) The 2005 coming of age film The Sisterhood of the Traveling
Pants successfully appealed to the 12 to 19-year old demographic of
girls and, more remarkably, a wide range of critics. Once again adapted
from the novels of Ann Brashares is the 2008 sequel, and the same cast
of four young actresses returns to convey how life and friendships can
change so much in just a few years of college life. They are bound by a
seemingly magical pair of pants that fits them all perfectly despite
their differing body shapes, now shipping the pants across the world as
they have traveled their separate directions. The pants are really only
a tool with which Brashares tells the stories of each girl, and part of
the reason for the concept's success is her ability to form connections
between at least one of her fictional characters and girls in the
audience. Critical response to Warner Brothers' continuation of the
sisterhood (unoriginally called The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
2) was equally well received by critics, who almost universally
praised the uncompromised warmth in the stories of these girls. While
the author and screenwriter remained as holdovers from the first
production, most everyone else in the crew turned over. This included
composer Cliff Eidelman, whose motion picture scoring career was already
in jeopardy of an untimely death by the time he provided a
conservatively pretty piece of music for the 2005 film. Eidelman has
been an industry non-factor since, and the fact that he did not return
for The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 is only a
continuation of the disappointment that many fans of his early 1990's
productivity feel towards his endeavors. On the other hand, this
franchise isn't the kind to necessitate a particularly novel approach in
its original music, and, after Edielman's departure, not much was lost
when Rachel Portman took his place. Portman's career had itself taken a
sabbatical in the late 2000's. Her score for The Sisterhood of the
Traveling Pants 2 represented her first musical effort since 2006,
and it had been since 2000 that she had received significant mainstream
attention. Ultimately, both The Duchess and the Grey
Gardens television score would be more impressive, higher profile
works in the subsequent year, though, leaving The Sisterhood of the
Traveling Pants 2 as nothing more than a footnote. The quality of
the music doesn't do much to change this designation.
For the veteran collector of Portman's music, there isn't much to say about The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 that hasn't already been heard before. It's a sufficiently innocuous and flighty score of basic melodies for a string and woodwind ensemble that only occasionally varies into either fresh melodic territory or compelling instrumental creativity. Enthusiasts of Eidelman's score will immediately note that his theme for the franchise was dropped. Given how attractive his theme became in the final few cues of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, this can be nothing other than a disappointment. Gone also are the relevant female vocals that provided a youthful and, at times, almost magical atmosphere for the girls and their pants. Portman's replacement theme is equally adequate, but it is so thoroughly rooted in her summary of career sounds that it is somewhat stale by comparison. There are a few shared chord progressions between Eidelman and Portman's themes, and the latter composer does quickly reprise the xylophone comedy tone from the first score in "Sisterhood." Otherwise, whereas The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants faithfully represented the standard Eidelman sound, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 does the same for Portman. Unfortunately, the package isn't quite as beautiful this time, reducing the sequel score's impact when compared to her many equivalents. The rhythms aren't quite as playful, nor are there many bouncing woodwind movements. A lack of grandiose ensemble string performances causes the score to dwell almost exclusively in the treble. The one redeeming element in Portman's score is the incorporation of an acoustic guitar, which not only provides a smooth backing for the generic string harmony, but also creates the minimal regional tones necessary to address the plot. Those expecting extended, rambling piano performances will receive cute thematic expressions in "Sisterhood," "Lena," and others, but nothing of substantial depth. All of these elements merge briefly in "Carmen" and throughout "Well Worn Pair of Pants," the latter of which finally exhibits an overdue spark of life and concludes on Portman's favorite deep piano technique. Ultimately, however, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 will be a bland score even by the standards of dedicated Portman collectors. A very short running time on album doesn't help, with less than 28 minutes of material seemingly playing longer because of the redundancy. This music functions but accomplishes nothing else. ***
TRACK LISTINGS:
Total Time: 27:47
NOTES & QUOTES:
The insert includes no extra information about the score or film.
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