PRESS RELEASE: RED STEEL™ 2 FEATURES WILD WEST MEETS ASIA FUSION ORIGINAL MUSIC SCORE BY TOM SALTA

Award Winning Composer Creates Gun-Slinging, Sword-Swinging Soundtrack for Ubisoft's Action Fighting Video Game on Nintendo Wii™

New York, March 17, 2010 - Renowned composer Tom Salta has written and produced an original musical score for Red Steel™ 2, Ubisoft's new first-person action title developed exclusively for the Nintendo Wii™ and designed with full Wii MotionPlus™ integration. In Red Steel 2, the player becomes a swordsman who finds himself in a remote mixed metropolis in the middle of the American desert, where Eastern and Western cultures collide. To reflect this adventurous new setting in Red Steel 2, Salta composed an action-packed 'Wild West' guitar-driven score blended with evocative Asian music influences. Developed by Ubisoft Paris, Red Steel 2 is scheduled for release on March 23rd, 2010.

"Tom Salta is an extremely versatile composer and delivers a unique and dynamic soundtrack for Red Steel 2," said Isabelle Ballet, music supervisor for Red Steel 2. "He has crafted various music styles including mixing blues guitars with traditional Asian instruments to produce an energetic, hybrid score that motivates and immerses players in the action. We can't wait to share this experience with everyone!"

For the Red Steel 2 score, Salta enlisted the virtuosic guitar performances of veteran studio musician Steve Ouimette and recorded various instrumentalists for Chinese percussion, Shakuhachi, Fue, Pipa, harmonica and violin. Salta previously scored the original Red Steel soundtrack that received numerous accolades for its vibrant musical palette, including IGN's Wii Award for Best Original Music.

Red Steel 2 is a revolution in the action-fighting genre, taking full advantage of the capabilities of the Wii MotionPlus™ accessory. Your movements are faithfully replicated on-screen, putting the emphasis on swinging, shooting and fun! With the ability of the Wii MotionPlus to sense the strength of a swing, you will literally be able to make an impact on your adversaries through power and precision. For more information on Red Steel 2, please visit www.redsteelgame.com.

About Ubisoft:

Ubisoft is a leading producer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment products worldwide and has grown considerably through a strong and diversified line-up of products and partnerships. Ubisoft has teams in 28 countries and distributes games in more than 55 countries around the globe. It is committed to delivering high-quality, cutting-edge video game titles to consumers. For the 2008-09 fiscal year Ubisoft generated sales of €1,058 million Euros. To learn more, please visitwww.ubisoftgroup.com.

© 2010 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Red Steel, Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the U.S. and/or other countries.

Wii and Wii MotionPlus are trademarks of Nintendo.

Fantastic Mr. Fox: Additional Music From The Original Score [The Abbey Road Mixes] by Alexandre Desplat (Review)

Fantastic Mr. Fox is proof that Alexandre Desplat is just plain wonderful if you haven’t had enough proof. You just can’t deny the amount of charm and character this score has. It has themes for pretty much every character or group of characters and the unique instrumentation to back up the vivid and wondrous visuals that Wes Anderson has crafted.

This release boasts an additional 48 minutes of music from the original soundtrack release, which was great to begin with. In short, between the CD release and this digital release you can own the complete recording sessions to this score. What I love about the score is that Morricone is homaged in multiple areas and while you may think that spaghetti western references would be out of place here they aren’t. They fit perfectly within the framework of the film and find a way to make it feel like they belong. Well, the western stuff is mainly used for only one character, but Desplat brings it back at the end of the film.

The instrumentation is what sets this score apart. Along the same lines of what Hans Zimmer did for Sherlock Holmes we have unique blending of instruments like the plucking of a banjo with a cello swooning in the background. You get the countryside element immediately but it brings out the personalities of the characters and essentially bring the puppets to life.

This was the first time Wes Anderson worked with Desplat. Mark Mothersbaugh was his previous “go to” composer, but Desplat was just a perfect fit for this film. This film isn’t just plain silliness like the trailer made it out to be, and if you’ve seen Anderson’s previous work you know he doesn’t just do plain silliness. Alexander Desplat is an immense talent who took some time to grow on me, but has now risen to the top of composers working today. He is making his presence known even in the mainstream areas. He just did the second Twilight film, New Moon and now is set to finish up the Harry Potter series. Fantastic Mr. Fox is a true delight and this second release was a complete surprise and should be treasured.

Creation by Christopher Young (Review)

Christopher Young has crafted an unbelievably beautiful journey with his score to Creation; the film about Charles Darwin. From the get go the main theme sinks in and plants its foot down giving the listener a take-off point for the rest of the emotional journey.

The score is very gentle in its approach but the emotions it carries weigh heavy on the heart. This is not an overly dramatic score but one of tragic isolation and a strive to overcome that isolation. This is a piano and strings score, and usually when I say that I mean it in a negative sense but not so here. Simplicity is the beauty here. The sparkle of human thought and how one contrasting thought from the rest of society can separate you from that society.

Young even utilizes an Irish jig in the track “Fuegian Children”, which immediately brought back memories of his brilliant score to The Shipping News. My favorite part of the album are the closing two tracks entitled “Knowing Everything I Now Know” and “Humility And Love”. The last track is utterly beautiful as starts with a solo violin that erupts into a huge string section that then dies down into a lone piano.

The score evokes grand emotions from simple melodies and echoes everything about the story being told on screen. I would go ahead and say this is one of Christopher Young’s finest works. It embodies everything I believe a good score should have; emotion through simple melodies and a firm thematic grounding that allows it to stand apart from the film. This score is very much worth your time.

From Paris With Love by David Buckley (Review)

David Buckley surprised the hell out of me with his score to The Forbidden Kingdom, which was the last score of his to get a release. It was fun, fresh and carried you on an emotional journey. Buckley switches gears for From Paris With Love. While the score is done in an incredibly entertaining and stylish manor it lacks a thematic identity.

Buckley is a friend and collaborator of Harry Gregson-Williams and the Harry influence can be heard prominently throughout the score. When I saw the movie I smiled every time I heard a “harryism” because it just felt perfect with what was going on. The music is heavy on the electronic sound and propels you through with vivid rhythms and arrangements. “Welcome To Paris, Baby” is my favorite track. It’s one of the few tracks where the music just carries you as the listener. That’s another point where the solo listening experiences suffers a bit. It’s clear that there were many short cues composed and when that’s the case it makes it very hard to make a CD album that represents the essence of the score.

For some reason I found myself comparing the score to Harry Gregson-Williams’ score to The Taking Of Pelham 123. The styles and approaches are similar and they both feature John Travolta in very similar roles.

The score was fun. It’s nothing new or unique, but given the material it was a fun experience for me. The CD was only released in Europe and since I always opt for a CD versus iTunes I imported it. If you’re a Harry Gregson-Williams fan then you’ll enjoy the score. Otherwise it may be a tough sell unless you really enjoyed the film.

Leverage by Joseph LoDuca (Review)

One thing I can say about Joseph LoDuca’s score to the TV series Leverage is that it has a character of its own. So many TV scores these days fail to have their own identity, but Leverage has one. The sound has a thriving pulse to it and it’s tons of fun. There isn’t anything groundbreaking about the music here. It’s simply an upbeat jazzy score that calls to mind David Holmes’ work on the Ocean’s movies.

It’s very easy to label the score as “con” music. You know, very cool and suave. It certainly has the urban city feel and creates that atmosphere. LoDuca successfully changes things up to keep interest by adding different flavors. We have an Irish themed punk song as well as an Indian flavored track. There are some more emotionally driven tracks as well that ground the score a bit.

In the end the immense amount of music included here from the series may seem a bit overwhelming for a standalone experience. They really pack the CD nearing in at 73 minutes of music. I can’t say it’s something I can listen to anytime mostly because the music does only play on the surface. Again, this is looking at it from a standalone experience. In the show it performs its job successfully. LoDuca is able to create a light and fun atmosphere that walks the walk and talks the talk, but it fails to leave a lasting impression.

Battlestar Galactica: The Plan & Razor by Bear McCreary (Review)

I’m going to be straight forward and honest here. I’ve never watched Battlestar Galactica. The only times I tune into the SyFy Channel are to watch terrible made for TV movies like Sharks In Venice starring Stephen Baldwin. Anyway, I have heard nothing but praise for Bear McCreary’s work on the series. Granted, taking a look at his filmography probably won’t impress you and the films he’s done aren’t gonna do more in the impressions department, but let me tell you right now that this is some great stuff.

The score is a combination of two separate Battlestar Galactica “events”. The Plan is more or less a 2-hour movie that aired after the completion of the series. Razor can also be considered a stand alone film (it aired between seasons). For thematic and cohesive purposes McCreary decided to combine the two scores for this unified release. I almost didn’t believe what I was hearing when the first track started. “This is music from Battlestar Galactica?” is pretty much what I said aloud. I rarely dabble in TV scores because they usually lose focus over the span of seasons and most of the score is filler. LOST is one exception to this. I found the second exception. Every track here is genuine storytelling. Thematic and melodic material carries you on an amazing journey. The music stands on its own in an immense way. It’s a rock infused percussion propelled soundscape with ethnic flavors that creates an immersive atmosphere.

This was my first Bear McCreary experience and I’m hooked. I know I’m probably missing the big picture here since I haven’t looked at the other seasons’ scores, but I love what I hear here. My initial impressions of Battlestar Galactica have changed. Never would I have imagined to find such grand and emotionally driven arcs in a score to a series for the SyFy Channel. Listen to the first track and I guarantee you’ll want to continue. If you’re a fan of modern scoring you will love it. I can’t speak for purists or traditionalists because they are stubborn and think anything that isn’t a 70 piece orchestra is bad. If you’re a Battlestar Galactica or Bear McCreary fan then I’m sure you know how great this is. If you are not fans of either then jump in and take a listen.

82nd Annual Academy Awards Recap

Oscars have come and gone again. This year I can’t lie. I enjoyed the telecast immensely. While the Oscars have become rather predicable it was nice to see a few curve balls. I truly believe that Art Direction and Cinematography were the two hardest categories to call; there just wasn’t an “above the rest” nominee to me. Great surprises were Ben Still in Na’vi attire and a few hilarious skits from Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin. Neil Patrick Harris’ opening number felt a bit out of place but was good. I loved that Kathryn Bigelow won and James Cameron didn't. First female director to win an Oscar is a pretty big milestone. She deserved it though because The Hurt Locker was a perfectly crafted film. Also happy that Avatar only went home with 2 Oscars. The movie is not that good! I enjoyed it immensely, but am sick and tired of the praise everyone is giving this movie.

There were some things that bogged down the telecast and initiated eye rolling from me. I love Jeff Bridges and love that he won, but his speech was just too boring, Sean Penn again comes in and makes everyone feel awkward, and then there was the Step Up 3 rehearsals going on during the score montage. I mean, honestly what the hell? That was the most insulting and ridiculous thing I have ever seen to those scores. How can you play these immense compositions while break dancers jump all over the place and do the robot? If scores do one thing it's that they accommodate imagery and nothing was in sync from what I saw. It was a horrendous misfire.

The score category this year was a sure win for Giacchino, which I could not be happier that he won. I remember playing the first Medal Of Honor in 1999 and loving the score. That was more or less the beginning of his career. Over a decade of following him and loving every score he composes I saw him get his Oscar. A well deserved Oscar. Hans is my boy, but even he knew he wasn’t going to win I’m sure. Giacchino swept every other award possible and let’s face it, Up is pretty damn amazing. Guaranteed tears every time.

Great telecast and well deserved wins make this the best Oscar ceremony in a couple years.