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| Zimmer |
Spanglish: (Hans Zimmer) As if almost on cue, James
L. Brooks' 2004 progressively minded comedy/drama about interpersonal
relationships arrived on the scene just in time to sweep away critics
and audiences with its charm during the awards season. While perhaps no
effort will eclipse the superbly acted
As Good As It Gets in
1997, the oddly assembled cast of
Spanglish did pretty well in
its own part. Starring Adam Sandler in a substantially serious role,
Spanglish portrays the story of a Mexican woman and her daughter
who arrive in the employment of a wealthy Los Angeles family. Unlike the
more deadly serious variations on that story in past films,
Spanglish treats the Mexican woman as a sort angelic presence who
helps, through the language barrier, to give sound advice to help with
the eccentricities of the her American employers. While its plot does
border on more serious topics such as adultery, for instance, the aim of
the film is to win your heart in the end, and
Spanglish did just
that for many critics just prior to the 2004 awards nominations. It also
packages what some might see as a liberal agenda in its feel-good story
as well. The film marked the third entry in an affable collaboration
between Brooks and composer Hans Zimmer, who was wrapping up a fantastic
year of production. As in their previous work together,
As Good As It
Gets, Brooks manages to tempt the lighter, more romantic elements of
Zimmer's sensibilities for these character dramas. The German born
composer has had an interesting tendency to dabble occasionally in the
areas of Spanish and other Hispanic music, often involving the
traditional acoustic guitar performances of his friend and fellow
composer Hietor Pereira. Their Hispanic style has seeped into several
Zimmer scores through the years, most notably in
It's Complicated
still to come, though
Spanglish was the first full-fledged
opportunity to allow this sensibility to flow into a popular dramatic
effort. The pretty and competent
As Good As It Gets earned Zimmer
an Academy Award nomination, and
Spanglish received a Golden
Globe nomination for similar reasons. It features an even greater sense
of humor, as well as an infectious spirit of romantic comedy that voting
bodies loved hearing from the likes of Rachel Portman and Italian
composers who had dominated the awards scene in the previous ten
years.
Being comprised of strings, woodwinds, and piano on top
of the featured acoustic guitar, the score does in fact take on many of
the simplistic, heart-warming characteristics of a Portman effort,
especially in the clarinets of "The Beach." But Zimmer's flair for
rhythmic flow is what distinguishes
Spanglish as music distinctly
rooted in his own spirit and energy. Created occasionally by percussion
and the string section, Zimmer's rhythms are often maintained with great
style by Pereira's guitar performances or other solo work by violin or
cello. The composer manages to avoid the stereotypes that you often hear
composers fall back into when writing a score such as this; all too
often you end up with a score dripping with Mediterranean flavor when
really none is called for. In a couple of places, that tone tugs at the
soundscape, especially with the final progressions of the main theme. In
his emphasized balance between Mexican and American styles, though,
Zimmer takes a cue such as "Welcome to the Claskys" and creates an
instrumental duel between the upscale strings of the orchestra (and one
wild violin in particular that probably reflects Tea Leoni's manic
performance) and the guitar representing the two primary Mexican
characters. There is considerable give and take between the guitar and
strings in later cues, such as at the start of "Cooking," and these
moments of frantic rhythms, ambitious guitar, and frenetic strings are
the highlights of the score. At all times, Zimmer maintains a positive
thematic structure, making
Spanglish a delightful listening
experience from beginning to end. The final cue, "Bus Stop," features a
dramatic climax to Zimmer's themes, with the full ensemble providing a
beautiful tear-jerking performance of Flor's (the maid) theme before
exiting. Overall, it's difficult to imagine that
Spanglish will
appeal to all of those who crank up the volume on Zimmer's militaristic
scores and consider the new age action romp
King Arthur to be the
best achievement by the composer in 2004. Alternately, if you've always
appreciated Zimmer's perky, lightweight music for projects like
As
Good As It Gets and
Something's Gotta Give, then
Spanglish will most definitely be a distinct and addictive score.
Given the composer's pressures to achieve this score under extreme
deadline stress (as Brooks retells with great humor when reflecting back
on the recording process), you can't help but give Zimmer and his team
kudos all around. A Gershwin song performed by characters in the film is
the only blemish at the end of an otherwise consistent, enchanting
little album.
**** @Amazon.com: CD or
Download
| Bias Check: |
For Hans Zimmer reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 2.84
(in 121 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 2.96
(in 298,225 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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The insert includes an outstanding note from director James L. Brooks about
spending time with Hans Zimmer during the recording process at deadline time.
