Defendor by John Rowley (Review)

John Rowley’s score to Defendor is a very one dimensional experience. The story is somewhat reminiscent of Kick-Ass in that it’s a comedy about a man who takes to the streets as a vigilante to help the innocent. In that respect the score fits tone-wise.

It’s a bit over the top with a heavy modern vibe. What I liked about it is that Rowley has sort of infused the modern approach with some classical sounding arrangements. “Final Assualt” almost sounds like a modern symphonic movement. However the drum loops and synth mock-ups wear thin as the experience goes along. The score doesn’t seem to build a story. It does the bare minimum to support the narrative, but on it’s own it doesn’t provide anything memorable or worthwhile.

John Rowley is very early in his career and based off what I hear here he does have a sound and a style. It’s just the thematic variation that needs work. Unless you loved the film I can’t expect anyone to approach this blindly.

Reflections On LOST: A Commentary

[SPOILER WARNING] This article discusses the final episode in explicit detail.

LOST has come to an end. Over the past seasons we witnessed one of the greatest modern fictional stories ever told on one of the greatest mediums of entertainment. The final episode culminates the stories, the events and the moments that we’ve experienced. The final battle between light and dark ignites. The struggle to overcome begins and finding strength and love within the people we love and care for is the only way. And in the end we are reminded that the most important parts of our lives only matter and have worth to us because of the people we surround ourselves with.

My take on the journey’s end is this. The writers slowly introduced us a “sideways” storyline where our characters were living distant, normal and average lives. Lives that suited them. What this storyline turned out to be was an afterlife existence where the roaming souls of our dead characters could find each other and remember everything that their lives were. One by one Desmond brought everyone together by acting as a gatherer of these wandering souls. By touching the ones they loved our characters were instantly reminded of the lives they led. By remembering the lives they lived and why the people they loved were so important they were able to “move on”.

The afterlife existence was created and even though it has no point and place of existence one can suggest that it’s way past from when they died. Some on the island and some off. Parallel moments remind them of their lives such as Claire giving birth to Aaron, Sun having an ultrasound with Juliet and John in a wheelchair. Jack constantly notices his neck is bleeding from the point where the man in black pricked him. The fact that Jack bleeds is a symbol of his martyrdom I think. It’s also no coincidence that his last name is Shepherd.

Not all of our characters get to move on though. If you remember Michael’s soul is still trapped on the island. Characters that were inherently bad were not allowed to leave the island once they passed. So along with Michael I’m sure a few others remained trapped there for eternity. Then there were those who moved on but not with our core group. As Desmond told Eloise that Daniel would be leaving, but not with him. Meaning that we move on with the people who mattered most to us and vice versa. Since Daniel, Miles, Frank, Charlotte and Richard were really not tied so close to our main characters we can assume they moved on with the people they cared for most. Then we have Ben who chose to stay behind. A character who has always had a hard time moving on as he struggled to find purpose, and in the end chooses not to.

From a viewer’s standpoint this finale was probably one of the most emotionally stirring pieces of storytelling I’ve ever experienced. The final 5 minutes or so are so beautiful that words don’t even describe it. In fact even in the show words don’t even describe it. Michael Giacchino’s score is what takes us on our final step all the way to the last frame. Speaking of Giacchino I think anyone who stuck with LOST all the way through has the honor of saying that they witnessed the greatest television score of all time unfold before them. The final episode is evidence of his brilliance and of how essential score is to not only LOST but everything in the mediums of film and television. I will go ahead and say that his score for the final episode is the most beautiful score I have ever heard. Perfect in every way and not a single note wasted. It definitely kept my eyes tearing up for the entire thing, and when that final scene came along and crossed-cut with Jack’s death on the island it was almost too much for me to emotionally handle.

The final scene of Jack stumbling to the very same spot he first awoke on the island is nothing short of brilliant writing. He lies down as he holds the knife wound in his side. He struggles to breath. Vincent appears from the brush. He smiles. He looks back up to the sky between the bamboo. The plane piloted by Frank and carrying the love of his life flies overhead and away from the island. Tears flood his eyes. The scene is cross-cut with him and everyone else in the afterlife existence as his father opens the door and lets the light flood in. The light embraces everyone and Jack is smiling as he sits next to Kate. We cut back to Jack’s eye. The very first frame of the show in the first episode. Only now it’s not opening it’s closing. Fade to black. LOST appears on the screen.

What does it all mean? It’s what the show was about from the very beginning. It was about flawed human beings trying to find their way. The island in all its mythology and supernatural existence was a test that brought them all together. It revealed everything about them and gave them meaning and a purpose they never had. Once Jack’s eye closes we know exactly what’s running through his head. Whether you believe the afterlife actually exists or believe that it was Jack’s last thoughts that brought him to peace upon his death we are left with one idea. That if it weren’t for all the people we love and for those who care for us in our lives then we would be completely lost.

Robin Hood by Marc Streitenfeld (Review)

Marc Streitenfeld is an interesting composer to look at. He started out as an assistant to Hans Zimmer and served as music editor on many of Hans’ scores the past decade. Through Hans is where he met Ridley Scott. After working on 7 films together Hans and Ridley took their separate ways, which some people still wonder about. Honestly, it was most likely a friendly separation than some of the “creative differences” separations you hear about between directors and composers.

Anyway, after the one night stand with Harry Gregson-Williams (his brother's composer) on Kingdom Of Heaven it was Marc Streitenfeld who stepped in. Marc has composed 4 films for Ridley Scott, which brings his total amount of scores to 4. Yes, Marc Streitenfeld has only worked with Ridley Scott (and 1 film with Ridley’s son Jake Scott). So 5 scores total.

Ok, so to the score. This was considered Marc’s true test as a composer since it was his first huge scope film. Does he succeed? Immensely. The score is tremendous as it’s a lush mix of grand orchestrations, subtle intrigue and a dollop of fantastical epic. It’s also 100% Streitenfeld. The man does have a style and it is unique. His sound is unmistakable if you’ve heard his past scores and it manages to flourish here in full glory. The track “Killing Walter” will call to mind Body Of Lies and American Gangster. His German background seeps through here with some of the action cues. I wouldn’t call them reminiscent of anything Zimmer has done, but there is a touch of that good old Zimmer sound especially in the heroic theme of the film and the battle scenes. We have a touch of celtic flavor in here as well.

Overall this is such a colorful score that swells with so much character. Sides of it bring us to the menacing darkness of Godfrey’s character while at other points we have delicate tragedy such as in “Nottingham Burns”. Then the grandiose heroism of the story is interwoven into it. I think the only think lacking is some sort of cohesive emotional journey. While I know the CD isn’t a full representation of the score I can’t help but feel that the score has slight trouble progressing the story as an accompaniment to the narrative. It does the job, but alas won’t leave a long lasting impact on you. I also felt this way while watching the film. Nonetheless, it was fun and entertaining summer fare. It definitely enveloped me and grasped me, but it just missed the mark of being something incredible.

LOST: Season 5 by Michael Giacchino (Review)

People who have stuck with LOST all the way through have witnessed something special. They witnessed THE greatest television score start, develop and ultimately bring us to its emotionally walloping end. When that first episode of the pilot aired it had such a visceral impact because of the music. The danger, the isolation, the hope and the mystery of the entire show flooded into us through Giacchino’s score. It can be intense, it can be tragic, it can be heartwarming but most of all it’s thematically grounded.

Season 5 was an amazing emotional accomplishment, and before seeing the final season I was dubbing it his greatest work on the series thus far. Although now I can say season 6 his is true master brushstroke. In this season the score is heavily influenced with Benjamin Linus’ theme. It pretty much takes its stake as the main theme of the season since so much revolves around that character. Towards the end of the album we get introduced to Jacob's music and some new thematic material while familiar themes pop in and out through the journey.

The only problem I have with these LOST score releases is how they’re mixed and recorded. What we have here on these discs from Season 2 beyond are live recording sessions (season 1 clearly was studio mixed for the final dub). Now again, I don’t know what the decision is behind this but it leads to some distracting “air” in the tracks. By “air” I mean all the sounds of the musicians. You hear rustling, breathing and moving around. For instance at 1:17 in the track “For Love Of The Dame” you get a full blown sniffle from someone. The fact that got recorded in the final mix is kind of mind blowing. Now, I know I’m nitpicking here and these are really minor distractions, but they are distractions nonetheless. If I were sitting and watching a movie and someone was sniffling and rustling behind me I would turn around and tell them to pipe down. Same goes for my score listening experience, except I can’t tell the musicians to stop knocking about.

In the long run the fact that I am listening to another chapter in the greatest television score ever composed makes me forget about the rush mixing job. It’s a must buy and will give your tear ducts a good draining.

Guidelines For The Summer Moviegoer

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A Nightmare On Elm Street by Steve Jablonsky (Review)

The one thing I’ve noticed about the horror genres are that they go through fads. We all remember the “PG-13 Japanese Remake Fad” that we all had to endure and suffer. Then we had the “Torture Porn Fad” with the Hostel movies and all the Saw films. Why? Why so many Saw films? Now we’re in the midst of the “Michael Bay Produced Remake Fad” where we’re seeing all of our favorites being remade into crappy studio money making products. The only constant with these Michael Bay produced remakes other than Bay himself is Steve Jablonsky. Steve has scored every one of these things: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Amityville Horror, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, The Hitcher, Friday The 13th and now A Nightmare On Elm Street.

Now, I love Jablonsky but I can honestly say every one of his horror scores to these remakes have been boring and pretty much not enjoyable. You can call them atmospheric, but you can be atmospheric and still be really good (see Yamaoka’s work on the Silent Hill game franchise).

Here, Jablonsky actually hits a home run after striking out so many times. He delivers a terrific horror score full of brooding strings, chilling vocals and pulsing electronic percussion. There were parts that reminded me of Hans Zimmer’s The Ring, which was without a doubt the last great horror film score composed.

With A Nightmare On Elm Street we get a nice theme that carries us through the film and never leaves us lost in the middle of dreadful ambient scoring, which many of his previous horror scores were. He pays homage to Charles Bernstein who composed the original film’s score, but still makes it a Steve Jablonsky score. Now, the film itself is pure dreck. The only redeeming qualities I found were to be Jablonsky’s score and Jackie Earl Haley doing a pretty decent (if different) Freddy Kruger.

Don’t let your experience from Jablonsky’s past horror scoring attempts deter you from checking this one out. It’s really quite good even if the film itself is pure Hollywood product.

P.S. I'm pretending the track "One More Nap" doesn't exist. Luckily it wasn't used in the film, which is why I'm not too angered by it.

Babies by Bruno Coulais (Review)

Bruno Coulais is a great composer, and while you may not recognize his name he has been composing since the late 70’s. The French composer has also had experience in the documentary genre with his scores to Winged Migration and the recent Oceans.

For Babies the score doesn’t so much act as an emotional backdrop as it does just a backdrop. Little spurts of music here and there, and while it has a character and an identity it never comes into its own. The score release is evident that there was not much music in the final film since the total running time clocks in around 27 minutes, and that counts the song by Sufjan Stevens which was heard in the trailer.

As a standalone experience it fails. It hooks you with its charm, its sound and its warming use of vocals but it never reels you in. Quite honestly, I was listening to it waiting for it to grasp me and then I heard hollow vocals chanting “Agnus Dei”. I realized that Babylon A.D. (which is next alphabetically in my iTunes) had begun playing. I was surprised that the score was already finished.

So, the score has all the charm and character in the world, but goes nowhere with it. It never hooks and feels monotone at times with no real change in the pacing. Maybe this was all the film required, and in the end it is the composer’s job to service the film not the album release. That’s something I always keep in mind, but when I feel no emotional connection to the score I usually tend to forget it.