For the most part, however, Windtalkers follows more of a familiar pattern of generic Horner action and drama material rather than pulling the best from his earlier works for a more engaging listening experience. As an accompaniment for war, Horner's composition for the film is powerful, brooding, heroic, and somber all at once. Its functionality should not be doubted; while some listeners have inevitably documented the similarities between this effort and Enemy at the Gates, the mass of music for Windtalkers makes for an adequate war score even if it doesn't test new grounds in Horner's career. At least this work doesn't step on the toes of so many classical composers and the cliches from Horner's own works, a tendency which essentially ruined Enemy at the Gates for many listeners. Unfortunately, that does cause the score to be significantly more generic in its sound. Along these lines, the major detraction from Windtalkers for most fans of the composer will be the obvious underplaying of the Native American elements. Horner utilizes a very restrained combination of sampled ethnic vocal chants and a single native flute (which he terms a "Lakota flute") to constitute the Navajo element, and while both efforts succeed to the extent to which they were used, the majority of the score invariably suffers without their influence. Collectors know that Horner is more than capable of using Native American voices, drums, and other instrumentation to an incredible effect due to Thunderheart, but he didn't opt for that tact here, and the score for Windtalkers cries out for more of the same kind of ethnic magic that Horner had once gone to extremes to explore. Some might argue that the film demanded a straight forward score for the wartime situations that, on the whole, had little to do with Native Americans in a broader sense. But Horner doesn't even interpolate these ethnic elements in subtle ways throughout, choosing instead to apply them in an almost token formula. There are more than a few rousing action cues in Windtalkers that could have benefited enormously by the harmonious integration of the American and Najavo elements. Unfortunately, Horner of the 2000's was not emphasizing the same distinct instrumental colors of his 1990's works. The action sequences involving battle, such as the lengthy "Taking the Beachhead," are very effective in their purity of American bravado. Horner even manipulates the four-note "danger motif" from his previous works by appending two additional notes that give it a slightly less ominous personality.

Most interestingly, the structures and orchestration of the battle cues in Windtalkers remind of John Williams' equivalents in parts, especially on cello. The use of the main theme with full snare rolls and trumpets blazing in these cues is among the most explosive material that Horner had put out in years. It's not as dramatically significant as, say, Glory's like-minded cues, but it is much more inspiring than much of Horner's other action material from the era. Despite early complaints that this score was devoid of themes, it indeed faithfully utilizes one primary idea. While the score on its original album does not introduce the theme in full until the end of "A New Assignment," the score quickly establishes and ends with the uplifting and elegant theme representing the full set of main characters. It's an inverted form of the controversial love theme from Enemy at the Gates, rising in its progression instead of falling. In the softer moments, the native flute performs the theme with the same delicacy heard in the somber sequences of Casper. Fuller expressions of theme by the entire ensemble are satisfying in "Taking the Beachhead" and "Calling to the Wind." A secondary theme of military service is conveyed by trumpets in "Navajo Dawn" and "Calling to the Wind" as well. While the score has its flaws, thematic dedication is not one of them. There are countless cues, however, that are less than inspiring for Horner, the composer meandering on auto-pilot through anonymous light war drama, but the majority of this music is at least interesting enough for a second listen. Rather, disappointment in Windtalkers comes back to the mysterious lack of ethnic integration throughout the mass of the orchestral material. A greatly expanded, 3-CD presentation from Intrada in 2023 reveals only minimal additional material of this type, instead shining a light on the rest of the suspense and battle music for the most part. Casual listeners will likely find the album to be highly redundant, though it does finally convey the thematic narrative fully. Intrada's treatment of the music is admirable, resisting the urge to attempt to emulate most of the late screen edits of the recording and offering fascinating alternate takes that are significantly different from the final ones. While the score as it stands is a strong three-star entry on any album, it could very easily have been a noteworthy four-star score if Horner had approached Windtalkers with the same kind of ethnically personal intensity as he had with Thunderheart. A simple repeat of the prior score's tone would have been inappropriate, of course, but to hear the same powerful, ethnic tone combined with the orchestral might of wartime heroism would have been a great pleasure and undoubtedly an effective sound for the film.  ***   @Amazon.com: CD or Download