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The sideshow parody moments of Space Jam include insertions for Western attitude, lounge romance for saxophone, and French swooning on accordion. Interestingly, Howard doesn't memorably access the classic Looney Tunes themes aside from a token, light moment at the start of "The Monstars." The instrumental flair of the music is where Howard earns his pay, the orchestra and its blurting brass in particular lending humor alongside the splashes of rock and occasional fantasy choir. In part due to the songs but also by the composer's own volition, the score's thematic narrative struggles to survive, the major themes backloaded in the story. There are major recurring ideas, though, along with several character theme variations, as in "General Bugs," that are a bit more forgettable. Even the primary recurring ideas are rather generic, though they do represent Howard's style pretty faithfully when allowed to flourish tonally for brief moments of concentration. The main theme of the score is one of redemption for all the protagonists, an ascending identity previewed on horns and strings at 0:08 into "Main Titles." This idea teases near the start of "Secret Stuff" and becomes suspenseful at the outset of "The Second Half" before shifting to a brief fanfare mode near that cue's end. It offers a few nice interludes during "Crush 'em" and is whimsical in the build-up to the climax in "The Winning Shot," where it celebrates with triumph. The main theme is pretty in the latter portions of "Gimme the Ball" and finally flourishes in the second half of "Michael Jordan Returns," the full ensemble drama at 0:48 reminding of Dave. Joining this theme for the protagonists is one of adventure and victory, reprising the swashbuckling spirit of Waterworld in quick outbursts as the Looney Tunes team achieves its win. This idea tries unsuccessfully to get started in "Spit Shine" and shows more life in the middle of "Secret Stuff" before emerging fully at 1:12 on brass. It stutters into the rock realm early in "Crush 'em" and factors briefly at 0:28 into "You the Duck" but then truly earns its heroic mode. With gusto, this theme exits with flair at 1:00 into "Not Good at Cheatin.'"

A secondary set of mystically-oriented motifs in the score for Space Jam includes light choir and three-note phrases of wonder in "Hole in One" and "Michael Jordan Returns" that also lends mystery to "You Get Me" and "Gimme the Ball." This material eventually blends with a six-note phrase for the lead villain in later cues, as best heard in "You Get Me." Meanwhile, the evil aliens that steal the talents of Earthly basketball stars to form the "Monstars" team receive what definitely becomes the score's the most memorable theme because of its ripping guitars and stomping opening notes of descent. Very slightly foreshadowed late in "Moron Mountain," this identity explodes at 1:21 into "Alien Transformation" and near the start of "The Monstars" and opens "The Ultimate Game" in its most flamboyant rock rendition; it functions better alongside the orchestra in this cue. It's boiled down to faux-sinister tones in "Monstars Locker Room" but disappears as that team of villains is defeated in the second half of the game. In an ancillary position, there is an antics motif that Howard applies to the villains' amusement park, Moron Mountain, and other scenes of wacky, constantly shifting movement. After informing the upbeat march in "Moron Mountain," this material's fragments are translated into an action burst during "Back to Earth" and eventually inverted in the pompous latter half of "Michael in Tuneland" and early in "The Tunes Practice" to represent equivalent insanity by the more familiar characters. The composer also adapts the Diane Warren melody of the song "I Turn to You" for the film, allowing its sensitivity to guide the latter half of "Charles" and opening of "Not Good at Cheatin.'" Altogether, these themes are basically sufficient, but they are each interrupted by the wild shifts in direction demanded by the cartoonish action. The score and the songs really don't meld all that well outside of the picture, and the score itself is proficient but not memorable. Howard proves his chops in emulating the best techniques of Stalling, and his talents in the rock realm serve to lace the cartoon mode with some amusingly brash personality. But, in the end, Space Jam is one of those scores that is intriguing to appreciate a few times but never revisit.  ***   @Amazon.com: CD or Download

Bias Check:

For James Newton Howard reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.26 (in 81 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 3.25 (in 89,297 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.

Total Time: 45:42