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Review of Terminal Velocity (Joel McNeely)

FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:

Buy it... if you always get an adrenaline kick from consistent, action-oriented orchestral bombast with a few electric guitars added to the mix for flavor.

Avoid it... if mundane action material that is consistently strong but lacks a distinct personality is something that bothered you in regards to Joel McNeely's career in the 1990's.

FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:

Terminal Velocity: (Joel McNeely) Ranking relatively low on the overall ranking of films by their intelligence level, Terminal Velocity is a rather mundane though adequately interesting 1994 film about a normal guy who gets caught up in a Soviet spy plot and a whole lot of gold. This unsuspecting skydiving instructor (Charlie Sheen) rescues a beautiful female student (Nastassja Kinski), escapes from unlikely mid-air situations, defies impossible odds, and is subjected to other predictable plotline standards. Audience reactions to Terminal Velocity were similar to those you'd witness for a typical straight-to-video flick or B-rate cable film. For action junkies, the movie may be a nice distraction in the middle of the night when insomnia and indigestion strike, and the same could be said of Joel McNeely's score. Once hailed as the successor for composing legend John Williams, McNeely spent the better part of the 1990's providing effective, though not overwhelming scores for an unfortunate series of less than stellar films. Despite the usual demise of the films, some of the scores achieved their own success apart from the pictures, and Terminal Velocity is one that translates its adrenaline kick to film score collectors on album. Its soaring action at high altitudes would serve as a preview of sorts for McNeely's additional material for Air Force One two years later. He had shown time and time again that he was capable of producing action music for lesser films along the same vein as Jerry Goldsmith's similar works, and there existed stylistic similarities between the two composers at times. The music for Terminal Velocity and Air Force One share many common action rhythms, motifs, and instrumentation, making Terminal Velocity a good alternative for fans who have been searching without success for McNeely's contribution to Air Force One on the black market. With a moderately sized orchestral ensemble, McNeely produces a dynamic and quickly paced action score for Terminal Velocity that especially excels in its employment of accelerating brass figures that would inform Don Davis' music for The Matrix and its sequels.

The consistency of McNeely's orchestral structures becomes more evident as the score progresses, with the final two cues, "Russian Gold" and "End Credits," serving up melodic string performances that the film certainly didn't deserve. At the height of the action, McNeely alternates between nervous, contemplative ambience (based on timpani and woodwinds) and all-out, snare-driven action that, with certain motifs in the brass, not only resembles Davis' work of the future, but Michael Kamen's Die Hard during that score's best moments. With only a few surprising jolts to disrupt the steady ride, McNeely's score solidifies its consistency as it continues to develop the thematic material highlighted in the final tracks. The only stumbling block for a few listeners might be the incorporation of electric guitars and an electric bass into early cues. Two of these cues offer a contemporary action backdrop for the sky-diving scenes, though one, "Ditch's Dive," obnoxiously explodes with the guitar in full force, much like John Debney's ripping techniques in The Scorpion King. Interestingly, the use of the guitar fits the film's targeted style quite well, though when applied in total contrast to an adjoining orchestral cue, the instrument becomes cumbersome. The solo guitar is sadly absent from the rest of the score; in fact, McNeely's work loses much of its contemporary touch as it progresses to more of a Hollywood Silver Screen-formatted resolution. The contemporary elements serve to add much welcomed spice to the score, just as they would add style to The Avengers several years later. The music for Terminal Velocity never becomes as outlandishly stylistic as The Avengers would, however, and remains a more coherent and solid action piece. The cue "Cadillac Freefall" remains a favorite, foreshadowing the highlights of McNeely's tumultuous action music for the upcoming Virus. Ultimately, the consistency exhibited in this score might also be a detriment for some listeners; an anonymous personality does inhabit the music as a result of its steady tone. Many score fans will probably consider Terminal Velocity to be an average, if not mildly interesting action effort, and they would be correct in that assessment for the most part. More than anything, the score continued to build the case for many film music enthusiasts that McNeely deserved better scoring assignments that were not forthcoming.  ***

TRACK LISTINGS:

Total Time: 32:09

• 1. Desert Landing (2:17) • 2. Aerial Ballet (2:46) • 3. Airborne (1:03) • 4. Ditch's Dive (1:44) • 5. Easier Ways to Die (1:43) • 6. The Second Plane (3:46) • 7. Christa Is Caught (4:15) • 8. Desert Nocturne (1:10) • 9. Cadillac Freefall (5:43) • 10. Russian Gold (3:25) • 11. End Credits (4:11)

NOTES & QUOTES:

The insert includes no extra information about the score or film.

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The reviews and other textual content contained on the filmtracks.com site may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of Christian Clemmensen at Filmtracks Publications. All artwork and sound clips from Terminal Velocity are Copyright © 1994, Varèse Sarabande and cannot be redistributed without the label's expressed written consent. Page created 7/1/03 and last updated 4/1/09.