: (James Horner) While the topic of
the Vietnam War had been explored in smaller, more realistically
explosive films for several years, the early 1980's merged it with the
quickly evolving superhero genre, leading most notably to the franchise
that resulted from
. Another notable entry in this new
sub-genre was
, an adventure film aimed at raising
awareness about soldiers still believed to be missing in action in
Vietnam. The star power of Gene Hackman led the film to modest box
office success, though the script's long first half of character
establishment scenes, a major speed bump on the way to the outstanding
rescue scenes at the end, reduced
's longevity. The
story essentially details the desperation of Hackman's character, a
Korean War veteran convinced that his son, listed as MIA, is still being
held prisoner in Laos. He assembles a crew of like-minded former
military veterans to steal the equipment necessary to launch a secret
rescue mission into an area of possible Americans in detainment learned
by the leader through extensive investigative research. The film goes to
great lengths to show the bonds that form between the men as they train
together in Texas for their mission, and this familial attachment will
prove valuable when the plot doesn't offer the happiest of endings. For
young composer James Horner, the film was one of a plethora of 1983
assignments to result from his unexpected mainstream recognition for the
previous year's
. Many of his
scores in that subsequent year exhibited styles (and often exact musical
sections) that would be better known in manifestations in both the 1982
classic and its sequel,
was among Horner's better known assignments
at the time, the score is largely devoid of a following outside of
hardcore enthusiasts of Horner's music, a circumstance contributed to by
a lack of proper album release for several decades.
The lack of overwhelming demand for this score is
likely due to its anonymity compared to Horner's other output of the
period. The last thirty minutes of the film is where the meat of the
work is confined, and this music is not surprisingly highly derivative
of the composer's other, better recognized efforts. As a result,
Uncommon Valor is one of those scores with highlights worthy of a
place in any Horner collection, but it's a whole that is disappointingly
lackluster and arguably inappropriate. Before the film's action scenes
in its latter half, the music of
Uncommon Valor is equally and
sharply divided between Vietnamese and American identities. Horner's
handling of these extremes is appropriately functional in a basic sense,
but their sounds are so diametrically opposed that they seem almost
cartoonish. The application of a variety of specialty instrumentation
appropriate to the region (shakuhachi flute, gamelan, mandolin,
cimbalom, metallic percussion) is so brutally foreign in its disharmony
that it threatens to become a racist representation of that culture by
Horner. Similar primal sounds of clanging cutlery at mealtime would also
define the Klingons in the subsequent
Star Trek III: The Search for
Spock. This material will sound alien to Western ears and it
certainly makes the Vietnamese seem like filthy brutes, and it's an
over-the-top caricature that is not a pleasant listening experience on
album by any means. The closest Horner would come to such bizarre tones
in his mature years would be the finale celebration music of a
source-like variety in
Willow. The other personality of the
opening half of the score denotes the single-minded dedication by
Hackman's character to prepare for the mission, including a propulsive
sense of movement and a noble theme of contemplation. This approach
alone is fine, but Horner felt compelled for some reason to write a
spirited, upbeat military march for the band of men that Hackman
assembles. He likely meant for it to underline the sometimes comical
interactions they have on their way to forming a cohesive unit, but the
composer's intended use of this theme over the end credits shows that he
may have been out of touch with the heart of the film.
More effective ideas explored by Horner for
Uncommon
Valor are hints of future successes, however, including a solo
trumpet and supporting strings in "Final Escape" that foreshadow
In
Country (another Vietnam-related score from Horner with much more
poignant highlights), a brass suspense theme over exotic rhythms in
"Main Title" that predict
Vibes, and snare and rising brass
phrases in "Pan Over Hill" that would inform
Apollo 13. For many
listeners, the ills of the first half of the score are forgiven by the
cues "Escape Airbase," "Choppers Over Hill," and "Final Escape." This
brazen action music is extremely typical to Horner's early mannerisms,
however, the rising brass action fanfare of four note figures
frightfully identical to the
Star Trek scores. The trademark
harsh tones of these players is a sound unique to this era for Horner as
well. You can't help but roll your eyes at the familiar shifting of
chords at 1:25 into "Escape Airbase." This is great stuff for Horner
enthusiasts, but don't expect it to be able to support a whole album. In
the end, one could argue that Horner missed the mark with
Uncommon
Valor, his music for the Vietnamese locations and Texas training
scenes both badly beholden to stereotypes, some potentially racist.
That, along with the unoriginal action music, can arguably be viewed as
a poorly executed assignment by the composer. The score had long been
officially unreleased, its highlights part of a popular 1998 "Suites and
Themes" Horner compilation bootleg and the majority of the score traded
on a "Pony Boy" bootleg since 2000. But Intrada Records released nearly
every available minute of music, used and rejected, in 2010, including
the pleasant "Brothers in the Night" rock ballad replacing Horner's
orchestral recording for the end credits, a welcome switch. Ironically,
the ten minutes heard on the "Suites and Themes" compilation album
represents the only truly necessary material from
Uncommon Valor,
though the sound quality was cleaned up to widen the soundscape on the
limited Intrada version. Ten minutes of alternate "Main Titles" mixes
was added to that presentation by Quartet Records in 2024 for another
limited run. Ultimately, the score's highlights make the score
recommendable to Horner collectors, but limit your expectations when
exploring the rest of the soundtrack. Much of it you'll never listen to
more than once.
*** @Amazon.com: CD or
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| Bias Check: |
For James Horner reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.16
(in 107 reviews)
and the average viewer rating is 3.23
(in 197,460 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.
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