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Review of The Spiderwick Chronicles (James Horner)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... if you have traditionally appreciated the lengthy
constructs of James Horner's dense fantasy writing, even in the absence
of thematic strength.
Avoid it... if you demand memorable themes from Horner and expect either of this score's two primary themes to overwhelm you with either originality or development throughout the work.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
The Spiderwick Chronicles: (James Horner) Yet
another entry in the digital renaissance of the fantasy genre on screen
is The Spiderwick Chronicles, an adaptation from Holly Black's
popular book that told of the fantastic and frightening adventures of
two youngsters who discover an imaginative world of unexplored wonders.
The mythical creatures of this place help and hinder the children along
a journey that inevitably delivers them home in typical fashion. The
delay of Paramount's film pushed it out of consideration in a Christmas
2007 season that could have used the film at the box office, and an
early 2008 release could stunt its success to an extent. Film music
collectors have been eagerly awaiting the return of James Horner to his
regular levels of production, and the delay of The Spiderwick
Chronicles caused the composer's first full year of inactivity
(release-wise, technically speaking) since he began in the industry
almost thirty years prior. His first score release since a tandem in
Apocalypto and All the King's Men that brought little in
popular recognition, The Spiderwick Chronicles teased listeners
with an iTunes distribution that preceded the score's normal album
release by many weeks. For Horner himself, the children's genre was one
that yielded significant success in the early 1990's, culminating in
1995 when he largely departed the genre with Casper and
Jumanji. In the interim, 2000's How the Grinch Stole
Christmas has really been his only score directed at younger
listeners, leaving behind a sound at which Horner was quite
accomplished. While The Spiderwick Chronicles is a significant
return to that genre, listeners may be best served if they diminish
their expectations to an extent, because despite the score's inherent
strength in complex structure and a few comforting, standard Horner
techniques, it will not rise the level of the composer's best entries
from fifteen years prior.
The orchestral ensemble for The Spiderwick Chronicles is large enough to be effective, but does not exude the scope of Horner's recordings in London. This was the last score recorded at the Todd AO Scoring Stage in Los Angeles, one of the more active stages, and its closing will leave contractors with some likely scheduling problems for film score recordings in the future. It was Horner's best alternative to his preferred London recording location, stating, "The first thing I like about the stage are the acoustics. They match most closely the acoustics that I am used to at EMI Abbey Road studios in London." Horner's usual specialty instruments are absent, instead opting for a heavier presence of harpsichord and celesta, as well as bass-dwelling harmonica, accordion, and the aggressive pounding of an anvil. Most of the choral effects employed in the score don't attempt to mask their electronic nature, similar to Horner's use in The New World, though it would seem that occasional contributions by a real vocal ensemble do contribute at times. As for the content of the score, Horner perhaps has made a concerted attempt to explore new progressions, lessening the familiarity element that typically defines these kinds of works in his career. It is definitely not his strongest fantasy score thematically; in fact, The Spiderwick Chronicles is far more effective in its ability to create and maintain a unique ambience with smaller motif development and instrumental consistency rather than the more traditional use of major themes. Horner does offer two substantial themes in the score, one presumably for the children and one for the Chronicles and their fantasy world. Understandably, neither theme prevails at the outset of the film, and it's partly because it takes until the score's final cues for the themes to really establish themselves that they don't alone hold the entire effort together. The most prevalent idea is the overarching theme for the world, which is presented in brief sequences until the last two cues explore them fully. The slow, whimsical progression of this string-led title theme lends itself well to creative or beautiful counterpoint, including the mesmerizing electronic vocal accompaniment in the latter half of "Coming Home." After an ambitious and churning bass rhythm carries the theme's most robust performance at the opening of "Closing Credits," Horner uses the theme itself as counterpoint to one of the film's lesser motifs (beginning at about 3:30 into the cue). That motif, incidentally, has many of the gentle characteristics of the theme in The Land Before Time that would be translated into that soundtrack's song. The second theme, likely for the children themselves or another emotional element of the story, is a lightly elegant keyboard theme that will easily recall the most thematically haunting and bittersweet moments of Casper. The similarities between the two themes does indicate some shameless self-borrowing on Horner's part, especially by the time the theme receives the obligatory piano treatment a couple of minutes into "Closing Credits." This theme stands out like a sore thumb in several cues throughout the score, though its extended performances in "Coming Home" are its defining moment. As for the more unique, lesser motifs and instrumental characteristics of The Spiderwick Chronicles, Horner has some hits and misses. The most interesting instrumental technique in the score is the slurring of violins that effectively establishes a fantasy environment in "Writing the Chronicles." While this technique is evident sporadically throughout the score, it could have aided the score further if employed with greater frequency. On the other hand, the happy, prancing harpsichord sequences in the score are little more than an irritation when surrounded by material that seems more comfortable rooting around in the bass region. The harpsichord's motif is quite annoying at the outset and closing of "Coming Home," an otherwise superb cue, and while its role is necessary, it doesn't contribute much to the listening experience on album. The defining aspects of The Spiderwick Chronicles that will sound the most familiar to Horner collectors exist in the nuances of the score's non-thematic moments. The gently rumbling grounding in the bass that adds resonance to a moment in the film is used throughout the score. The rambling chimes as an accent go all the way back to their notable role in Glory. The slapping and clicking percussive tones of a metallic nature are a throwback to the suspense cues in Apollo 13. The banging of an anvil, especially prevalent in "The Protective Circle is Broken .... !," is mixed with authority in this score, creating a ruckus equal to Don Davis' music for The Matrix films. In more general terms, the action material in The Spiderwick Chronicles is most similar to Jumanji, though one singular standout cue is "The Flight of the Griffin," which exhibits many of the lofty mannerisms of The Rocketeer. The performance of the title theme in this cue is particularly soaring, perhaps the most memorable thematic moment in the score outside of the final two cues. Impressive as usual is Horner's ability to maintain an action cue for lengthy periods of time. Two aspects of these action cues are worth mentioning: first, one of Horner's strengths has always been his ability to alter the pacing of a cue to meet the synchronization points or level of excitement in a scene, and The Spiderwick Chronicles puts this expertise on display. Secondly, Horner's action material has seemingly become more dense in recent years, layering sections of the orchestra with a complexity that has been the domain of John Williams for three decades. The train sequence in The Legend of Zorro featured some of this Williams-like sound, and parts of the action material in the second half of The Spiderwick Chronicles offer the same thunderous level of activity. Overall, there are aspects of this score that will bother detractors of Horner's work, starting with the obvious similarities between one of the two primary themes and Casper's lullaby. But the remainder of score, while not really thematically cohesive, is entertaining in most of its parts. The final two cues, aside from the disappointingly lengthy conclusion to the credits, make a beautiful and noteworthy suite. ****
TRACK LISTINGS:
Total Time: 71:30
NOTES & QUOTES:
The insert includes no extra information about the score or film.
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